Thanksgiving is a glorious time of the year. It began as a day of giving thanks and sacrifice for the blessing of the harvest and of the preceding year. Prayers of thanks and special thanksgiving ceremonies are common among almost all religions after harvests and at other times. Trees are just bursting with color, giving thanks for life as they prepare to hibernate. All the colors remind us of how blessed we are, and how diverse existence is; people, animals, the land, buildings, everything that being on Mother Earth affords us. Thanksgiving is the start of the winter holiday season, and the colors, tastes, and aromas of this festive family holiday are associated with Positive Energy and all those things are affected by Vastu Shastra since it is all about environments (home, work, travel, mind, body, spirit, etc.). Always remember that we must balance Energy of Five Elements of Mother Nature Consciously because Unconsciously it Manages All of Us. That is, Living in Harmony with The Earth.

Some Useful Tips through Healing Spaces with Vastu:

• Thanksgiving Kitchen: Thanksgiving is a great time to bring good Vastu Energy into your kitchen, where you create health and abundance for yourself and your family all year ’round. A kitchen with good Vastu energy looks, feels and smells like great things are happening. Start by cleaning the stove and making sure all the burners work so positive energy can flow freely. Then give yourself space by clearing the countertops of seldom-used appliances and utensils.

• Harmony All Around: Help yourself create a peaceful and harmonious holiday around the family table through Harmonious Seating, Harmonious Décor and Harmonious Foods. The Thanksgiving season is not the time to eat in front of the TV. The dining room is considered to be a place of wealth in Vastu Shastra, so be sure to use it. While using a rectangle or square table, try to avoid seating your guests near corners, which can cause a feeling of unease during the meal. It also helps to use a tablecloth to blunt the edges, or drape live greenery across the corners to soften them. Bring out the good stuff, the china, crystal, silver, and all the other pieces you have been ‘saving’. What are you ‘saving’ them for if not for happy family gatherings? Invite an even number of guests, keeping the lights low, and decorating with soothing, earthy colors like pumpkin, goldenrod, evergreen, and chocolate. Use a centerpiece of orange flowers or fresh fruit and vegetables like pumpkins and gourds. Orange is a Fire Element color in Vastu Shastra that encourages conversation, and the fresh veggies and fruit represent good health and longevity. Be sure to remove photos of deceased relatives or animals from the dining room because these can create health problems if you dine in their presence. Entertaining guests is associated with wealth in Vastu Shastra, so hang a mirror that reflects your beautifully decorated Thanksgiving table, and you will symbolically double your wealth. Vastu Shastra is all about balance, so just be sure to balance lighter foods with a healthy dose of colorful, hot foods. That means you can serve “white” foods like mashed potatoes in bright colored plates and bowls.

• Activate the five senses (sight, sound, taste, touch, and smell): Sight, taste, touch, and smell are taken care of by food that is served. Some of the best sounds are prayer and laughter. Use the five elements (Fire, Earth, Air, Water, and Space). Fire might be candles or a cozy fireplace. If you use red color, realize it activates the appetite and can be considered an aggressive color. Earth can be ceramic cookware or serving dishes. Earth colors (yellow, tan and brown) help ground the event. Water can be beverages. For Space, bring the outdoors in by placing leaves on the table and using fragrant sprigs of pine or juniper in table arrangements.

• Focus and Center Yourself: Just because the holidays are here, does not mean you throw out your daily practices of wellbeing. If anything, this is the time to really maintain healthy body, mind, and spirit routines, because life does not always allow for this lovely routine to unfold exactly as written, adaptations are made when needed. Another component to Centering Yourself is to simply practice gratitude. Yes, this is cliche, but it is TRUE! Practicing gratitude reminds us to be present with TODAY and that sets the tone for TOMORROW.

• Be Playful: Growing up, remember that holiday gatherings provided awesome opportunities for PLAYFULNESS! As kids we would run around our grandmother’s home playing tag and in the evening, we would gather around the dinner table after dessert to play cards or board games. So yes, as an ADULT, please remember to be playful!

• Healing Space with Vastu is Clearing Ceremony Inside Your Home prior to Thanksgiving. Whether you are hosting Thanksgiving or not, it is always a great idea to Space Clear your home. Why? As you get charged up from the holiday energy (let that be positively or negatively), those thoughts and emotions are projected into your home. Ideally, as per Vastu, you are aiming to cultivate an environment that offers a sense of BALANCE and NEUTRALITY. This means, the emotional, mental, physical, and spiritual atmosphere of your home and self-have become grounded and peaceful.

• Conduct a Mini Space Clearing of Your Home AGAIN After Your Guests Leave. We all know that clutter is not desirable so clear away dishes when everyone has eaten. Because energy never disappears, it needs to be transmuted. After you celebrate with friends and family (especially if you are hosting Thanksgiving) it is a good idea to Space Clear your home again. This helps to shift the energy left behind from your guests to a level of neutrality while allowing you to reclaim your homes energy as your own. Do you need to Space Clear right away? No. Yet, it is suggested to do so within a week’s time span after Thanksgiving.

• Pamper Yourself: Please do not wait for the holidays to appear in order to give yourself permission to be good to you. Be kind, be gentle, show love and appreciation, to yourself as often as you can. The more you practice self-love and care, chances are, you will raise the bar of respect, positive boundaries and assertiveness. And this can come in handy when dealing with challenging personalities.  

Thank You Universe for your assistance in preparing my home and self for a pleasant and peaceful Thanksgiving celebration.” There is no better time to appreciate all you have at your disposal than Thanksgiving, so — Enjoy!