Clearly recognizing what is happening inside us, and regarding what we see with an open, kind and loving heart, is what I call Radical Acceptance.

Radical acceptance has two pillars: learning to observe our experience clearly and how to be compassionate towards that experience.Learning to pause is the first step in the practice of Radical Acceptance. A pause is a suspension of activity, a time of temporary disengagement when we are no longer moving toward any goal. Unlike the frantic pilots, we stop asking, “What do I do next?” The pause can occur in the midst of almost any activity and can last for an instant, for hours or for seasons of our life.

The Two Pillars: Learning To Pause

Most of us spend our time frantically moving from task to task. In the chaos of everyday life, we often forget to pause and take a minute to remember where we are, what we are doing, and why we think it matters. Learning to incorporate pauses throughout our days is a simple and effective way to begin becoming more conscious observers of and participants in our experience.

The Chaos Of Everyday Life

Suffering or discontent is universal, and fully recognizing its existence is the first step on the path of awakening. During his all-night vigil, the Buddha looked deeply into his own suffering. His amazing insight was that all suffering or dissatisfaction arises from a mistaken understanding that we are a separate and distinct self. This perception of “selfness” imprisons us in endless rounds of craving and aversion. When our sense of being is confined in this way, we have forgotten the loving awareness that is our essence and that connects us with all of life.

Lord Buddha's Noble Truth

Everyone – in one way, shape, or form – is suffering. Suffering is inherent to the human condition. The Buddha recognized that this suffering stems from being trapped in our sense of self and forgetting that we are connected to all that exists in this world.A common misconception about Buddhism is that the goal is to eliminate the craving that causes suffering, but the reality is that desires will always exist. They cannot be eliminated. However, through accepting the fleeting nature of all things and experiences, we can better relate to our desires, and in doing so, we will suffer less.

Desires Do Not Go Away

Perhaps the biggest tragedy in our lives is that freedom is possible, yet we can pass our years trapped in the same old patterns. Entangled in the trance of unworthiness, we grow accustomed to caging ourselves in with self-judgment and anxiety, with restlessness and dissatisfaction.  Each day we listen to inner voices that keep our life small. Even if we were to win millions of dollars in the lottery or marry the perfect person, as long as we feel not good enough, we won’t be able to enjoy the possibilities before us.

The Trance of Unworthiness

In every moment, joy and freedom are possible. But many of us get caught up in habitual thinking patterns that prevent us from feeling the many joys of life. Instead of being grateful for a pay raise, we complain and think we deserve more. Instead of accepting ourselves as imperfect beings doing our best, we criticize ourselves for making small mistakes. Until we learn to accept ourselves and our experience, we stay in the trance of unworthiness.

Trapped In Our Small Thinking

The process of experiencing and accepting the changing stream of sensations is central to the alchemy of transformation. Emotions, a combination of physical sensations and the stories we tell ourselves, continue to cause suffering until we experience them where they live in our bodies. If we bring steady attention to the immediate physical experience of an emotion, past sensations and stories linked to it that have been locked in our body and mind are “de-repressed.” Layers of historic hurt, fear or anger may begin to play themselves out in the light of awareness

Peeling The Layers

Fear is the anticipation of future pain.

Fear of death is a powerful motivator. Death is the ultimate end, the fate we all face. While many of us prefer to ignore the reality that one day we will die, it’s important to understand how it influences our daily actions and decision making.If we don’t fully accept ourselves or our experiences, we may feel shame. Shame about how things should be.  It creates a fear that fuels more shame, and a vicious feedback cycle begins.The other side of resisting fear is freedom. When we stop tensing against life, we open to an awareness that is immeasurably large and suffused with love.

Fear, Death, Shame and Freedom

When we are caught in our own self-centred drama, everyone else becomes “other” to us, different and unreal. The world becomes a backdrop to our own special experience and everyone in it serves as a supporting cast, some as adversaries, some as allies, and most as simply irrelevant. Because involvement with our personal desires and concerns prevents us from paying close attention to anyone else, those around us—even family and friends—can become unreal, two-dimensional cardboard figures, not humans with wants and fears and throbbing hearts.

Becoming Paranoid

When we get lost in the narrative of our life, we begin to fictionalize the people around us. The hyper-attention on our existence becomes the lens through which we view every person or interaction. Instead of realizing that even those people we don’t like spending time with are humans with fears and desires like ours, we write them off as detractors to our story.

The World Becomes A Fiction For The Egocentric

Just as a bright sun causes ice cubes to melt, in the moments when we feel connected and kind, we create a warm environment that encourages others around us to relax and open up. Each time we widen the circle of caring—with a smile, a hug, a listening presence, a prayer—the ripples flow out endlessly.The little actions matter. A smile, listening intently, saying a few kind words – these small actions create an openness that encourages others to participate in the warmness of existence.

Feeling Connected and Kind

Hurting other people feels terrible. But it happens, and instead of wallowing in your sorrow, try this simple, but effective approach to moving forward: take responsibility for the pain you’ve caused, listen intently to understand the other persons suffering, offer a genuine apology, and revitalize your commitment to acting with compassion.

What to Do When You’ve Hurt Someone

As we become mature spiritually, our yearning to see the truth and live with an open heart becomes more compelling than our reflex to avoid pain and chase after pleasure. We may feel mistreated and angry at our partner but we are willing to recognize our part, see their pain, forgive and keep loving. When we become lonely or sad, we are less inclined to dull the painful feelings with food, drugs or staying busy. We become increasingly aligned with our evolutionary destiny, which is to awaken into our natural wisdom and compassion

Becoming Spiritually Mature

Spiritual maturity means breaking free from our natural gravitation toward pleasure and away from pain. Instead of succumbing to these natural desires, we continue on the path to truth and treat all situations with an open heart. It’s a subtle, but meaningful difference.

The Ultimate Growth

While there are things that are simply outside of your control, there are lots of actionable steps you can take to seize control and feel better. 

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Health

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Motivation & Inspiration

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Productivity

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Communication

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Personal Development

How to Feel Better About Yourself

A simple, modern take on the spirituality of the east.

Combining the principles of psychotherapy with the teachings of Buddhism, this illuminating guide explains how to eliminate the personal conflicts and feelings of not being good enough that can cause such problems as addiction, overwork, and perfectionism, and how to develop balance, compassion, acceptance, self-healing, and a more fulfilling life. Reprint. 20,000 first printing.

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Philosophy

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Religion & Spirituality

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Books

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Meditation

For many of us, feelings of deficiency are right around the corner. It doesn’t take much--just hearing of someone else’s accomplishments, being criticized, getting into an argument, making a mistake at work--to make us feel that we are not okay. Beginning to understand how our lives have become ensnared in this trance of unworthiness is our first step toward reconnecting with who we really are and what it means to live fully. —from Radical Acceptance “Believing that something is wrong with us is a deep and tenacious suffering,” says Tara Brach at the start of this illuminating book. This suffering emerges in crippling self-judgments and conflicts in our relationships, in addictions and perfectionism, in loneliness and overwork—all the forces that keep our lives constricted and unfulfilled. Radical Acceptance offers a path to freedom, including the day-to-day practical guidance developed over Dr. Brach’s twenty years of work with therapy clients and Buddhist students. Writing with great warmth and clarity, Tara Brach brings her teachings alive through personal stories and case histories, fresh interpretations of Buddhist tales, and guided meditations. Step by step, she leads us to trust our innate goodness, showing how we can develop the balance of clear-sightedness and compassion that is the essence of Radical Acceptance. Radical Acceptance does not mean self-indulgence or passivity. Instead it empowers genuine change: healing fear and shame and helping to build loving, authentic relationships. When we stop being at war with ourselves, we are free to live fully every precious moment of our lives.

Tara Brach

Radical Acceptance

Public discourse given on the date of April 17th 2022 Jehovah’s Witness talk

Real Peace And Security When 

Peope believe that war is inevitable that there is no way to live life without war. That is not true. People also have a warped view of peace as well. They believe that peace is something that is just in the process and not sustainable

People Have A Warpped Ideology Of Peace And War 

<ol><li>recognize our spiritual need remember that we have a deep spiritual need that needs to he fulfilled.</li><li>Learn about Jehovahs (Gods) commandments and submit to them and learn about them </li><li><a href="https://www.jw.org/finder?srcid=jwlshare&wtlocale=E&prefer=lang&bible=62003019&pub=nwtsty">1 John 3:19 </a>Satan is the ruler of the world and the earth that is why they are so much suffering in this world </li></ol>

How To Restore Our Relashonship With God

In the days of those kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed. And this kingdom will not be passed on to any other people. It will crush and put an end to all these kingdoms, and it alone will stand forever

We just scratched the surface on the in-depth topic of peace and security. If you want more information feel free to browse through any of these articles <a href="https://www.jw.org/en/library/magazines/watchtower-no2-2021-may-jun/new-world-paradise/">Paridise when </a><a href="https://www.jw.org/en/library/magazines/watchtower-no5-2017-september/bible-verses-about-peace/">Will there ever be peace on earth</a>

More Information On When To Expect Peace And Security 

Feel free to contact Jehovahs witnesses in the following link to learn more. Also feel free to follow me for more content on Religion, human psycology and a wide range of subjects <a href="https://www.jw.org/en/jehovahs-witnesses/request-a-visit/">Request a Visit </a>

Concluding Thoughts 

Spiritually is a very important need that all humans have. It’s important to learn about it. Here are my thoughts from a discourse I listened to

When peace comes on earth 

Friedrich Nietzsche is what comes to mind when we say "Nihilism". He's a German philosopher and the one who provided a detailed discretion and diagnosis of nihilism; that all values are baseless and so things are meaningless. It's an extremely pessimistic and full of radical skepticism philosophy that frequently gets criticism for condemning the purpose of existence. As its name says, "Nihilism" comes from the Latin word "Nihil", which means Nothing.

Nihilism Quotes: For knowing the meaning of nothing 

“To live is to suffer, to survive is to find some meaning in the suffering”

“Everything in the world displeases me; but, above all, my displeasures in everything displeases me”

“The modern mind is in complete disarray. Knowledge has stretched itself to the point where neither the world nor our intelligence can find any foot-hold. It is a fact that we are suffering from nihilism”

“But in the end one needs more courage to live than to kill himself”

“There is no one as dangerous as he or she who has nothing to lose”

“Destroy or be destroyed-there is no middle way! Let us then be the destroyers!”

“The problem is not suffering itself or oblivion itself but the depraved meaninglessness of these things, the absolutely inhuman nihilism of suffering.”

“what are you looking for? There is no Truth. There’s only action, action obeying a million different impulses, ephemeral action, action subjected to every possible and imaginable contingency and contradiction, Life. Life is crime, theft, jealousy, hunger, lies, disgust,stupidity, sickness, volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, piles of corpses. what can you do about it, my poor friend?”

“I think human consciousness, is a tragic misstep in evolution. We became too self-aware, nature created an aspect of nature separate from itself, we are creatures that should not exist by natural law. We are things that labor under the illusion of having a self; an accretion of sensory, experience and feeling, programmed with total assurance that we are each somebody, when in fact everybody is nobody. Maybe the honorable thing for our species to do is deny our programming, stop reproducing, walk hand in hand into extinction, one last midnight – brothers and sisters opting out of a raw deal.”

“Though nihilism has been relentlessly criticized for overemphasizing the dark side of human experience, it might be equally true that this overemphasis represents a needed counterbalance to shallow optimism and arrogant confidence in human power. Nihilism reminds us that we are not gods, and that despite all of the accomplishments and wonders of civilization, humans cannot alter the fact that they possess only a finite amount of mastery and control over their own destinies.”

Nihilism is not a friendly philosophy; it exploits humanity's bad side, and it may irritate you. Except for what we give it, there is no objective order or structure in the world. The nihilist realizes that all values are baseless and that reason is powerless after penetrating the facades that support convictions. But even in Nihilism you can still find something. Active nihilists have a great deal of autonomy in deciding how to conduct their life. It's not easy to figure out what your life's purpose is. It necessitates a delicate balance of stiffness and flexibility.

Nihilism Philosophy - How to live in nihilism 

These ideas of philosophy are profoundly great for people who doubt out existence. 

These nihilism quotes offer insight into what a nihilist is (and is not) and what they believe. What do you think of nihilism?

problemsolving

Problem Solving

50 Nihilism Quotes About The Implications of Nothingness

Dating back centuries, simnel cake is a fruit cake that was originally eaten on Sunday during Lent throughout the United Kingdom.
The cake is topped with a layer of toasted marzipan and 11 or 12 marzipan balls, which represent the 12 apostles.

United Kingdom: Simnel cake

Pascua is Spanish for Easter, so Tarta Pascualina means "Eastertime Tart." <ul><li>The savory pie is filled with ricotta, hard-boiled eggs, spinach, artichoke, and parsley. S</li><li>ince it is meatless, it's a common dish during Lent, and the many eggs used to make it symbolize the resurrection of Jesus Christ.</li></ul>

Argentina: Torta pascualina

Recipes for capirotada — a bread pudding served on Good Friday — vary across the country, but it's usually made from:<ul><li>Bread similar to a baguette (bolillo), which has been soaked in mulled syrup made from sugar, cinnamon sticks, and cloves. </li><li>Nuts, dried fruit, and sprinkles are common toppings.</li></ul>Capirotada is meant to signify the crucifixion: the cinnamon sticks represent the cross, the cloves represent the nails, and the bread represents Christ's Body.

Mexico: Capirotada

The French have a particular Easter recipe for leg of lamb known as "le gigot d'agneau Pascal:" The meat (lamb being known as a sacrificial animal) is seasoned with garlic and herbs such as rosemary and then roasted.

France: Leg of lamb

Those making mämmi for Easter need to start the preparation days in advance, as it needs to be stored chilled for three to four days before being served. The traditional dessert is made from water, molasses, malted rye, rye flour, and Seville orange zest for seasoning. It's usually eaten cold with milk or cream.

Finland: Mämmi

<ul><li>White borscht isn't exclusively made at Easter, but it's common during the holiday. Made from soured rye flour, sausage, and hard-boiled eggs, the soup is hearty and filling.</li><li>Although babka has become a year-round dessert favorite in many countries, the spongy yeast cake has traditionally been served on Easter Sunday in Poland for years. Typically, the babka is round and covered in a sweet glaze.</li></ul>

Poland: White borscht (zurek) and babka wielkanocna

Sweet breads are common holiday food in Italy. There's panettone at Christmas and colomba di Pasqua at Easter. Shaped like a dove, a symbol of peace, colomba di Pasqua is stuffed with candied fruit and then sprinkled with almonds and pearl sugar.

Italy: Colomba di Pasqua

This is a hearty soup that consists of a variety of grains and beans as well as bacalao, dry salted cod. The exact ingredients differ from household to household, but common ones include fava beans, squash, corn, rice, garlic, onions, peas, and milk.Ideally, 12 different kinds of beans are used to make the soup, representing the 12 apostles. The bacalao symbolizes Jesus.

Ecuador: Fanesca

Tsoureki is a braided sweet bread. The three-strand braid symbolizes the Holy Trinity, while the hard-boiled eggs that the bread is commonly served with are meant to symbolize the blood of Christ, which is why they're dyed red.

Greece: Tsoureki

<ul><li>Known as kerbelsuppe in German, chervil soup is made from chervil, a herb related to parsley. </li><li>The soup is typically eaten on Maundy Thursday (the Thursday before Easter), which is known as Gründonnerstag, or Green Thursday in German — hence the green soup.</li></ul>

Germany: Chervil soup

Rosquillas de Semana Santa, or Easter doughnuts, taste more like cake than doughnuts since they're made with fermented flour instead of yeast. How they're served differs across Spain, but a common preparation is a dusting of sugar on top.

Spain: Rosquillas

The ham is sweet, thanks to either a glaze made from honey and brown sugar or from being covered in sliced pineapple.Before fridges existed, animals were slaughtered in the fall, and their cured meat wasn't ready to eat until Easter — hence the tradition.

United States: Baked ham

Pinca is a popular Easter treat used to celebrate the end of Lent in many Eastern European countries, like Slovenia and Croatia. Before it's baked, the sign of the cross is carved into the dough at the top of the bread.

Slovenia and Croatia: Pinca

Made with cottage cheese and cream cheese, pashka is a savory dessert that can either be eaten alone or with bread. The cheese mound is often decorated with dried fruit and the letters XB, which mean "Christ is risen."

Russia: Pashka

A combination of both pizza and pie, pizza chiena means filled pizza in the Neapolitan dialect. The Neapolitan specialty is stuffed with a variety of cured meats and cheeses.

Naples, Italy: Pizza chiena

These sweet, spiced buns are traditionally eaten on Good Friday to signify the end of Lent, and have been an Easter tradition for centuries. Currants or raisins dot the bun, and a glaze is used to make a cross on top, which signifies the crucifixion of Jesus.

United Kingdom: Hot cross buns

This sweet and salty Brazilian candy is made from only a few simple ingredients: ground peanuts, salt, sugar, and sometimes cassava flour.

Brazil: Paçoca de amendoim

When did Christians start celebrating Easter? How is it celebrated around the world? Where do Easter eggs and bunnies come from? Here's everything you need to know about the most important Christian holiday

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History

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Society, Arts & Culture

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Food

The Easter Celebration

From a marzipan-topped fruit cake in the UK to a stuffed savory pie in Argentina, here's what Easter meals look like across the globe.

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Travel

What people eat for Easter in countries around the world

James Chapter 2: It talks about two specific topics.1. Warning against Prejudice.2.Faith and Actions.

James Chapter 2

Warning against Prejudice:•Never treat people according to their outer appearance.•It defines as Making Judgements based on evil motives.•Love your neighbour as yourself.•Judging according to their appearance defines that you are guilty of sin, and the law condemns you as a law breaker.•Speak and Act as people who will be Judged by the law that sets us free.•God will not show Mercy when he Judge people.

Warning Against Prejudice

Faith and Actions:James 2 verse 14 says"What good it is,my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him?"•If someone is in lack of food and clothes and you say them " Go in peace ,be warmed and filled" without giving them anything; how much does that help them in anyway? And verse 17 says So also faith by itself , if it does not have works is dead.•It is easy to say you have works,but i have faithWhat if someone asks "show me your faith through works or apart from your works" and they say "I will show you my faith by my works".

Faith And Actions

Examples:Abraham:Verse 21 says, Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered up his son Issac on the altar? And Verse 23 says, "Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness", and he was called a friend of God.Rahab:Verse 25 says,And in the same way was not also Rahab the prostitute justified by works when she recieved the messengers and sent them out by another way?Conclusion:Verse 24 says,You see that a person is justified by Works not by Faith alone.Verse 26 says,For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so also the faith apart from works is Dead.

Abraham And Rahab

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"If you are looking for a Bible that's easy to use and to give away, this is the Bible for you " The world is hungry for eternal truth. When we spread God's Word, we're helping to fulfill the Great Commission. Now you can reach more people with this handy, budget-friendly edition. With no frills or extras that increase the page count or the price, this economy KJV Bible is the ideal choice for a basic introduction to Scripture, for daily devotions, worship, prison ministry, evangelistic outreach, missions, or any occasion when you want to read and share God's Word. Special Features - Complete KJV text - Simple, straightforward presentation - Convenient size - Affordable price--keep a supply on hand

Hendrickson Publishers

The Holy Bible

<ul><li>Mindfulness, in the Buddhist tradition, is a tool to sit with, understand, alleviate, and ultimately overcome suffering. </li><li>No doubt, mindfulness in itself might alleviate some of the suffering workers experience. </li><li>However, corporate mindfulness often supports <a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/intl/basics/productivity">productivity</a> as the sole arbiter of <a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/intl/basics/self-esteem">self-worth</a>, which is in itself a source of suffering. </li><li>Moreover, corporate mindfulness is typically shorn from the ethical teachings that accompany it in Buddhism. </li><li>“Right Livelihood” is a part of the “Eightfold Path” of Buddhism.</li></ul>

Corporate Mindfulness

Many Silicon Valley corporations(Think Google or Meta) provide everything from daycare to laundry to fitness centers and snacks, meals, and happy hour drinks, in an effort to glue workers to the workplace. Some corporations even sent their workers weekly snack boxes during the pandemic, as well as paying for mindfulness and other wellness apps and programs.

Corporate Maternalism

Silicon Valley appears to have created an elite within corporate America, one which has developed its own religion, co-opting mindfulness to suit its own purposes. Will workers continue to drink the Kool-Aid? Are we all buying into the religion that says Big Tech (and social media) will solve all our problems, thus disconnecting ourselves from more meaningful engagement with our neighbourhoods and communities?

In Silicon Valley, Work May Be Religion

Many tech workers feel fulfilled and “whole” because of work, others at the margins of the tech industry are living broken lives. There is a social cost to  “Techtopia,” a society where work is the highest form of fulfilment. The problem with Techtopia is that work monopolizes the resources of a community—its time, energy, money, and devotion. As a result, people disinvest in other vital social institutions—families, faith communities, neighbourhoods, and political institutions. Work becomes the alpha institution, around which all other institutions must submit to.

Techtopia: Everything Revolves Around Work

In Silicon Valley, work is the new religion.

"Work Pray Code: When Work Becomes Religion in Silicon Valley" is a must-read.

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Career

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Corporate Culture

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Mindfulness

Mindfulness in Silicon Valley: Is Work Becoming Religion?

Prior to the Council of Nicaea (In 325 AD), churches around the world celebrated Easter at various times. In order to bring unity among the churches, council members created a formula that would calculate the date for Easter celebration around the world.
They established Easter to be held on the first Sunday that occurs after the first full moon, which follows the vernal equinox, but always after Jewish Passover. It was also determined that the vernal equinox would fall on March 21.

Calculating Easter

Jewish Passover is celebrated on the 15th day of the month of Nisan, which is the first month of the year for the Jewish calendar. It is a time practicing Jews commemorate God setting the ancient Jewish people free from captivity in Egypt. Passover is celebrated for 8 days and is made up of several ceremonial traditions.
It was important for the church to celebrate Easter after the Jewish Passover because Jesus Christ celebrated Passover with his Jewish followers the night before he was crucified.

Easter and Passover

After the Great Schism of 1054, the Catholic and Orthodox churches still believed Easter should be celebrated on the first Sunday after the first full moon to follow the vernal equinox.
<ul>
<li>But the Catholic Church no longer found that Easter had to fall after Passover. It also switched from the Julian calendar to the Gregorian calendar, which was presented in 1582.</li>
<li>The Orthodox Church still held to the original Nicean Council's formula for Easter as well as following the original calendar system of the Julian calendar.</li>
</ul>
The two churches now celebrated the same Easter holiday on two different days.

Same Easter, Different Day

Before the invention of calendars and other modern methods of tracking years and seasons, people relied on the position of the sun in the sky and obvious signs in nature to indicate the passing of time.
When the equator and the hemispheres of the Earth became common knowledge, it was understood that the slightly tilted rotation of the earth causes different hemispheres to experience different seasons. The vernal equinox is the event that occurs in late March, which brings spring to the parts of the earth in the Northern Hemispheres.

The Vernal Equinox

Did you know that there are two different dates for the Easter holiday? There is one for the Catholic Church and one for the Orthodox Church. On...

Why there are two Easter dates

Lent is the greatest and most solemn period of fasting on the Christian church’s calendar, leading up to the celebration of Christianity’s most important feast day: Easter.Like most practices rooted in Christianity, the way people observe Lent, or whether they observe it at all, varies wildly depending on their heritage, specific religious tradition, and preferences. Still, there are some rules and guidelines that mark the observance of Lent for Christians who observe the season. And, increasingly, even nonreligious people are picking up the ritual.

Lent Before Easter

Lent technically lasts for 46 days. The period is a mirror of the 40 days that Jesus spent in the wilderness, fasting, praying, and being tempted by Satan before he started his public ministry.The concept behind Lent is that each year, Christians will mimic Jesus’s actions in the wilderness. Lent is sometimes called the “Great Fast.” It’s a period of time in which Christians are meant to give up some comfort or adopt some spiritual practice that leads to self-examination, repentance from sin, and, ultimately, renewal of the soul.

Duration And Meaning of Lent

<ul><li>It depends on the date of Easter. But since roughly the First Council of Nicaea in 325 CE, the date of Easter has been more or less determined by locating the first full moon following March 21 on the Gregorian calendar. And that’s how the date is determined by Western churches today.</li><li>Orthodox Christians use a slightly different system — which means that when Orthodox Easter (sometimes called Pascha) lands on the same day as Western Easter, it’s coincidental.</li><li>Once the date for Easter is fixed, all you have to do to calculate the other days of observance that fall during the Lenten period.</li></ul>

How The Dates For Lent Are Calculated

<ul><li>Western Christianity typically allows observers to pick whatever they want to fast from, based on a person’s understanding of what earthly comforts distract them from worship.</li><li>Protestants in particular tend to avoid specific church-mandated practices when it comes to fasts.</li><li>Some Catholics keep a more rigid version of the fast. The most notable and well-known practice is abstaining from eating meat on Fridays.</li><li>Orthodox Christianity is far more strict about the fast: observers fast from meat, fish, eggs, dairy products, olive oil, and alcohol every weekday, during lent.</li><li>Some don’t fast at all.</li></ul>

How People Fast During Lent

Ash Wednesday kicks off the most solemn period of fasting on the Christian church’s calendar, leading to the celebration of its most important feast day: Easter.

Lent, explained

As a predominantly Catholic country, France has various Easter traditions of note.<ul><li>According to legend, French children receive chocolates on Easter morning not from the fabled bunny, but from flying church bells. </li><li>It’s said that when the bells do not ring from Good Friday to Easter Sunday (to mourn Christ's death), they are flying to Rome to fetch the goodies. </li><li>In Alsace, charming markets are whimsically decorated and teeming with fluffy rabbits, goats, and ducks you can pet. </li><li>The village of Bessières makes a giant omelette each year from 15,000 eggs—and a dozen cooks.</li></ul>

Easter in France

The most striking Easter tradition is the intricate sand designs called alfombras that line the streets.The multi-chromatic creations come in patterns of all kinds—geometric, floral, and illustrative—and local artisans spend days creating the masterpieces using a mix of dyed sawdust and sand. They are erased on Good Friday as the procession walks over them, kicking up the sand and erasing the designs in the process.

Easter in Guatemala

<ul><li>One of the island’s most beloved is the Good Friday kite flying festival on Horseshoe Bay Beach. Hundreds of Bermudians turn out to fly their kites, which are kaleidoscopic, hexagonal wonders with long tails that hum once aloft. The wooden sticks that provide the structural integrity form a cross or star shape, and their annual flight symbolizes the resurrection.</li><li>Traditional Easter dishes in Bermuda include hot cross buns and codfish cakes.</li><li>The island grows Easter lilies and gifts bouquets of the white flowers shaped like trumpets to Buckingham palace every year.</li></ul>

Easter in Bermuda

<ul><li>It all starts on Palm Sunday when churchgoers receive dried flower bouquets or willow branches in lieu of palms. </li><li>Their version of Easter eggs is much more elaborate and intricate. Called pisanki, they are painted with delicate, ornamental floral patterns. </li><li>On Easter Monday, the Poles celebrate “Wet Monday,” in which boys and men pour water on women and girls, although in recent years the tradition has evolved into water fights where no one is safe. </li><li>Warsaw also is home to the Beethoven Easter Festival, which hosts a classical music program through Holy Week.</li></ul>

Easter in Poland

<ul>
<li>Florence holds a ritual called Scoppio del Carro, in which white oxen carry a centuries-old wagon to Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore. After mass, the archbishop sends a mechanical dove into the wagon, which explodes in a spectacular fireworks display.</li>
<li>A parade through the city follows, and most Easter celebrations don’t stop when the night ends.</li>
<li>Easter Monday, called Pasquetta (or little Easter), is for packing picnics of leftovers and getting outside to relax. Or, in the Umbrian village of Panicale, rolling four-kilogram wheels of cheeses through an obstacle course.</li>
</ul>

Easter in Italy

<ul><li>The island of Marinduque’s Moriones Festival takes place during Holy Week each year, and a major cornerstone of the festivities is inspired by Longinus, a Roman executioner of Christ.</li><li>Men and women impersonate Roman soldiers, by donning masks, helmets, and gladiator-inspired garb, and wander the streets.</li><li>According to legend, Saint Longinus was blind, and was cured when a drop of Christ’s blood fell in his eye during the crucifixion, as he pierced Christ's side with a lance. He then declared his faith and was later beheaded. This specific tale is often reenacted during the festival.</li></ul>

Easter in The Philippines

In Mexico and throughout Latin America, the Easter holiday is an opportunity to cleanse oneself of evil.<ul><li>On Holy Saturday, it’s typical to re-enact the burning of Judas by hanging an effigy and burning it at the stake.</li><li>Theatrical renditions of the rest of Easter’s tales, called passion plays, are performed, too. One of the largest and most elaborate of them all is in Iztapalapa, a borough of Mexico City, which has 5,000 participants and 150 speaking roles. The tradition began in 1843 to rejoice the end of a cholera epidemic. Now, the performances begin on Palm Sunday and last through Holy Week<warningtag>.</warningtag></li></ul>

Easter in Mexico

Eastern Orthodox communities follow the Julian calendar's holiday schedule instead of the Gregorian's. <ul><li>The Holy Fire, which is said to emit from the tomb of Jesus Christ every Holy Saturday, is flown from Jerusalem to Athens and then delivered throughout Greece. </li><li>During midnight church service, the flame is passed from the priest to worshippers’ candles. People say Christ has risen" and "Truly, He has risen".</li><li>Easter marks the end of 40 days of fasting, and the dishes served that day are appropriately indulgent and symbolic: roasted lamb, sweet and fluffy braided bread,  and red hard-boiled eggs.</li></ul>

Easter in Greece

<ul>
<li>Since 1930, Angelenos have celebrated Holy Saturday with a Blessing of the Animals on Los Angeles's Olvera Street—the procession is full of flamboyantly costumed pets and a cow decked out in flowers leads it.</li>
<li>But New York City is home to perhaps the splashiest of all Easter events in the country: the Easter Parade and Bonnet Festival. Around St. Patrick’s Cathedral in midtown, hundreds of revelers sport towering, whimsical hats.</li>
</ul>

Easter in the United States

From passion plays in Mexico to kite-flying in Bermuda, these countries have incredible Easter traditions. Here's how to recreate them at home.

How Countries Around the World Celebrate Easter

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