New Year’s Eve

Starting in the year 1927, the Sri Aurobindo ashram began the first New Year’s Celebration. On this eve of the New Year day, the sadhaks assembled in the Ashram around  midnight and as soon as the clock struck midnight The Mother welcomed the new year with music on her organ. This was followed by pranams in the stillness of the night and The Mother blessed everyone. 

The last of the midnight pranams was on the 31 December 1937. “From the 1st January 1939 this pranam began to take place in the morning … The midnight silence was replaced by The Mother’s `Bonne Annee’ which was reciprocated.”

“From 1933, The Mother started distributing a message after her serene music — a thought, a prayer, an aspiration to serve as a guide for the whole year. These messages, written both in English and French, are reproduced in facsimiles of the Mother’s handwriting whenever possible. Between 1974 and 1984, New Year messages were not
distributed at the Ashram.

By and by the cards came to be distributed even outside the Ashram; thus those who could not participate in the midnight ceremony of [the New Year] were also able to receive The Mother’s benediction and guidance for the New Year.”

From 1985 to the present, the Pondicherry Ashram has distributed messages selected from the writings of the
Mother and Sri Aurobindo to devotees around the world.

In the Lodi ashram, New Year’s eve is celebrated each year with an evening event that includes dinner, conversation, an inspirational film, refreshments, meditation, Mother’s music, a large bonfire and distribution of the New Year’s message and Mother’s annual calendar.