Carlo Petrini, an Italian activist and writer, came up with the concept of slow food. ‘Slow’ didn't sound that fascinating until it was fused with food. 1986 saw the start of the Slow Food Movement by Petrini.

This movement is all about enjoying local food that is lovingly prepared and shared with friends and family. He chipped off this movement in protest of a McDonald's restaurant that was being built in his town. The ‘slow food’ concept stands in stark contrast to the fast food that we are so accustomed to eating in our regular lives.

Give it a thought.

Slowing down is indeed difficult. We jump from one dish to another, one product to another, one project to another and from one judgment to another. Racing up just seems to have become a part of our system. Any new habit or routine that we adopt doesn't seem to last long because we are too quick to jump to the next one. What we forget is that we need to assimilate the new and positive habits into our system, and for this, all we need is time.

The New Moon Solar Eclipse in Libra will give us that opportunity to slow down. Libra is a sign of beauty and harmony. This is the sign that particularly popularised the beauty of going slow and not rushing in. This new moon, instead of rushing in, relish the slowdown.

Libra is a sign of balance. Typically symbolized by the scales, this airy sign lays a great emphasis on your relationship with others and primarily yourself.

Now let’s agree that the world around us is changing, but the only constant person in your life is ‘YOU’. You know exactly when you feel elevated and when your mood dips. No matter how close your lover hovers around, you are your constant companion.

The Libra solar eclipse new moon gives you the chance to peep into those areas of your life that lack balance and need improvement. ‘YOU’ are important here. Dig for those areas. Certain aspects of your personality that need improvement might be obvious and evident. But some others, the subtle ones, require a bit of your thinking and awareness. Look for these areas and work on them.

If you have the habit of procrastinating, accept it and get strong enough to get rid of it. If you love junk, wisely substitute it with healthier options - not all at once, but slowly and steadily.

Reset your intentions and fine-tune your inner powers - gently and slowly. This New Moon is like a buttress. It will help you reinforce all the positive habits and uproot the negative ones.

This is also the best time to meditate or learn how to do it. Taking a little time off from your routine and seeing yourself in the mirror, not just for the sake of it but to find that conviction in your eyes, is a great preparation for the busy day that lies ahead.

Acknowledging small things can be a source of great happiness, but how many of us actually realize it?

In the process of doing something great - something pathbreaking, we often forget that our life is a mosaic of small things put together. Prune yourself, read, adopt healthy eating, include yoga in your daily routines, pray harder and above everything else; love yourself more!

The Libra new moon is around to teach you some vital life lessons. So grab it and skip the grudges. Harmony doesn't come easy. In the process of balancing yourself, you’ll have to drop those self-laid inhibitions; only then shall we come to realize the harmony between our gross and subtle bodies.

If you understand the energy this Libra new moon solar eclipse is spilling over you, you’ll be able to find the real beauty tucked deep somewhere inside you. Slowing down and achieving harmony has much to do with accepting yourself, and that too without any conditions. Getting your scales right is the whole point!

Now this is for all the women! The Libra new moon solar eclipse is the best time to learn cycle syncing.

Cycle syncing is the time when you change or adjust your food, exercise, and skincare rituals around the phases of your menstrual cycle. If you are going through your menses during this time, great!

Menses cause your hormones to shift tremendously. So what better time to learn how to toss your hormones back to balance than this October 14th?

Understand your menstrual phases and cycle your diet according to your period. If you crave warm foods before you begin your period, so be it. Go with the flow. If you crave more cake and starchy foods, regulate your diet and again go with the flow.

The Libra new moon solar eclipse is indeed a nice time to understand your body a little better and bring those essential changes to your diet and exercise routines, even if it’s for a day.

Spend time with yourself 🤗

Switch off your phone for some time and look within. See what makes you happy. Is it reading a book or baking your favorite cake? Get some time off to be with yourself. If talking to your house plants makes you happy, so be it! Focus on those small things that you’ve been skipping for some time now.

Meditate 🧘

There's nothing like it. If you have a favorite meditation technique, great! But if you do not have one, then take up a meditation course. You don't need complicated techniques to relax and channelize your energy. A simple mantra chanting could also work wonders during this Libra New Moon Solar Eclipse.

Journal your thoughts 📝

Write your feelings down. As the pace of your activities slows down a little, you may feel a bit out of place during this time. Take time to pen down your feelings; this will enable you to vent out your confusion and clear your mind.

Opt for simple things 🥗

Eating high-end food isn’t something you should always do. As a sign, Libra is elegant and sophisticated. So keep it simple. Simple meals can make you happier during this time. Your mental system is slowing down and so is your digestion.

Give yourself easy meals like stir-fried noodles, one-pot tomato basil pasta, salads, tacos - it could be anything, but the whole point is to keep it simple. Just eating the right quality food isn’t enough - the amount matters too, especially during this Libra New Moon Solar Eclipse. Use your meals as a means to attain balance.

Get healthy workouts ️ 🏃‍♂

The Libra New Moon Solar Eclipse could drive you into zero activity zones. To avoid this, adopt a healthy (and not vigorous) workout. Your mind is striving to become calmer and learning to focus more. Any vigorous or harsh activity could easily agitate your mind. So be watchful of the exercise you select. Taking long walks is best during this time.

The Libra new moon solar eclipse can lead you a bit into daydreaming and building castles in the air. While this time asks you to be slower than you usually are, there is a high risk of you losing your purpose. There are also juicy chances that you may start lazing out and take it as a technique of relaxation. This is where you need to be careful.

Relaxation doesn't involve reclining in your armchair, sipping a cup of coffee, smoking a cigarette, chatting with your friends, or checking your phone for some random reels. It has much to do with the deeper techniques of relaxation.

The primary goal of this time is to give you that missing sense of balance.

So, relaxation doesn't make you lose your sense of purpose or blur the line. Instead, it strongly reinforces the goals you have and increases your receptivity towards those grey areas in your life that need improvement.

Balance is all about welcoming the change and neutralizing the unwanted.

Follow the above rituals, one at a time. You may also choose to make your own rituals and follow them. The key here is to be consistent with your chosen rituals.

Balance is a delicate thing and can be lost with any of those scales tilting to either side. The baseline here is to gauge your actions. Look closely at how you act, react, and behave during this time and a few days after it.

Developing awareness towards all that you do will leave deep impressions on your mind that contain the power to alter your perceptions, maybe forever.