Valentine’s Day 2026 was one with a difference. It was about devotion streaming across oceans, a simple shift from laptop to television — and a home filled with love with blessings flowing.
From Laptop to TV — Making Space for Grace
I began watching the Sri Hanuman Chalisa Parayana on my laptop — the sacred gathering taking place at Maharaja Grounds in Mysore, led by His Holiness Sri Ganapathy Sachchidananda.
The chants were powerful even through a small screen.
That was early morning (just after midnight here) and then I opted to get some rest as I needed to work. Later in the morning I went back on YouTube for Divya Nama Sankeertana. The kids who are early risers noticed and asked, “Is that Tataji?” I said yes and let them know He was live from India and asked them if they wanted to see Him live.
So, I switched from the laptop to the TV. They were listening to bhajans and trying to sing along.
And just like that, our living room transformed.
The screen grew larger. The sound filled the space. The sacred chants seemed to settle into the walls of our home.
There was something beautiful about that — simple, direct, unfiltered. They did not ask complicated questions. They just wanted to see Him. To watch. To stay.
In that moment, Valentine’s Day became about shared devotion.
Then came the next request:
“Can we see the Shuka Vana birds?”
So we searched and brought up the beautiful parrots of Shuka Vana on the big screen.
Instant joy.
The children laughed and began repeating what the parrots said — carefully listening, mimicking the sounds, trying again and again. The room filled with giggles and playful echoes of chirps and phrases.
It was lighthearted.
It was innocent.
It was full of life.
And somehow, it felt perfectly aligned with the sacredness of the day.
A Valentine’s Day to Remember
This year, love looked like:
- A laptop becoming a TV broadcast.
- A living room turning into a prayer space.
- Children recognizing their Guru on screen.
- Laughter while repeating parrots’ words.
- Quality family time with the kids enjoying singing, seeing birds, making linkages and getting answers to their questions.
Distance did not matter.
Screens did not diminish the experience.
If anything, it reminded me that love transcends geography.
Valentine’s Day 2026 was not about what we received.
It was about what we shared:
Faith.
Family.
Joy.
Connection.
And in that simple act of switching screens, we made space for something much bigger — grace filling our home.
Jai Hanuman.
Jaya Guru Datta.