Sunrise to Sunrise: A Vigil to Welcome New Light at New Year (Gayatri Gaia)

An online vigil from Wednesday 31 December 2025 1645 UK/UTC (1145 EST) to 1 January 2026 2040 UK/UTC (1540 EST).

Click here to find the equivalent times in your own time zone. UK time is currently the same as UTC, Universal/Greenwich mean time.

Click here for links for livestreams on Insight Timer

Reflecting upon the gifts and giving thanks for the Earth, Mother Gaia, and all of life that she embodies, is the focus for a vigil of holding out, for people of any faith tradition or none. Please join me at any time for as long as you wish to reflect, pray, meditate or simply bathe in the beautiful ministry of those holding space with me, welcoming and wishing light into the world ("Gayatri-Gaia"), as we pray and offer intention for peace, healing and wholeness for all beings.

I will be hosting the event online on Insight Timer (no app needed), including chat for sharing intentions, hopes and prayers, along with suggestions for reflection as the sun rises in different places on Earth.

Throughout, I will offer Chat posts as the sun rises, sets and Midnight brings New Year to many places around the world, indicating significant events planned to occur during the year ahead, and highlighting where there is currently deep suffering, such as in conflict zones and where there is drought and famine. These mentions may prompt you to focus prayer as the sun rises in those countries, but are merely suggestions.

The vigil will span 28 hours between Wednesday 31 December 2025 1645 UK (1145 EST) through to 1 January 2026 2040 UK (1540 EST), marking the first sun rise on a major land presence on Earth until the last. I, and at any time, potentially others, plan to be meditating, receiving, and holding space during this time. Hence, excepting short breaks, you’ll know that you’re not alone when joining the meditation.

Joining the vigil

If you wish to see ticker-tape chat of sunrise, sunset and Midnight times, along with suggestions for reflection, Insight Timer is the place to go. You will also be able to join in the Chat if you wish to, while observing Insight's community guidelines such as showing respect for others and not engaging in any divisive dialogue. If you don't have the app, you can still join from an Internet browser. Simply click on any of the links below at the appropriate time, or find the next livestream happening via my Insight Timer profile at Insight Timer (Events tab).

Links for livestream on Insight Timer

Insight Timer limits each livestream to 2 hours, so 14 separate livestreams will follow one after the other, with a short break between (for me to set-up and take the occasional stretch). The livestreams are as follows:

Part 1–31 Dec 1645-1845 UTC
Part 2–31 Dec 1845-2045 UTC
Part 3–31 Dec 2045-2245 UTC
Part 4–31 Dec 2245-0045 UTC
Part 5–1 Jan 0045-0245 UTC
Part 6–1 Jan 0245-0445 UTC
Part 7–1 Jan 0445-0645 UTC
Part 8–1 Jan 0645-0845 UTC
Part 9–1 Jan 0845-1045 UTC
Part 10–1 Jan 1045-1245 UTC
Part 11–1 Jan 1245-1445 UTC
Part 12–1 Jan 1445-1645 UTC
Part 13–1 Jan 1645-1845 UTC
Part 14–1 Jan 1845-2045 UTC

I will offer the link for the next stream in sequence before leaving each stream, so if you join at any point, you shouldn't need to refer back to this list between the streams for the next link.

Joining the vigil with the Gaytra Mantra

Optionally, you may like to recite or listen to a beautiful recording of the Gayatri Mantra while taking part in the vigil. The Gayatri Mantra is one of the best known and most sacred of mantras found in the Hindu Vedas. It is an adoration and prayer to The Divine, The Source from which everything is birthed and returns. Gayatri is the Mother of all, present in our every breath. I believe that the mantra transcends all faith traditions and none. It is said to have been much admired by The Buddha. Its personification of God, "All That Is" as light coming into the world, resonates in Christianity and many other faiths. Its geomantic associations with the energy or essence of life remind us that our planet, Gaia, is an intelligent, living, self-regulating manifestation of beauty and power. The desire for enlightenment and a fulfilled, purposeful and actualized life is the wish of most people, whether they subscribe to a particular faith tradition or not.

A beautiful sung version of the mantra that plays on a 2-hour loop can be heard at https://youtu.be/UlnHON3tAXo?si=9ZUeJ3xQXQgNx4VS. This is a deeply moving recitation by Deva Premal and & Miten that you may wish to open in a separate tab of your browser to play as you meditate.

Some Questions and Answers

Why does the vigil last 28 hours rather than 24?

The first sunrise we will mark will be at East Cape, New Zealand, the point where the sun will first rise over a major land mass, excepting Antarctica. The earliest land sunrise actually occurs earlier, at 15:43 UTC on 31 December at Millennium Island in the Republic of Kiribati. The point at which a sunrise can be determined on Antarctica is complicated by the fact that at the South Pole, the sun doesn't set at this time of year, and in latitudes close to the pole, there are varying amounts of twilight. The first clear sunrise for a settled point on Antarctica will be at 14:39 UTC on 31 December at Casey Station. There are very few land points across the Pacific that will see the sun rise between Kiribati and New Zealand, hence I decided to commence reflections with East Cape (we will have opportunities to honour and reflect on ocean life during the vigil).

All times used for the vigil and given in the Chat will be offered as UTC, Coordinated Universal Time. The International Date Line is far from straight, meaning that there are actually 14 time zones ahead of UTC (Greenwich) time rather than 12. Several are offset by half an hour, or in the case of Nepal, 45 minutes. Some countries and individual states in some countries do not alter their clocks during the year to observe daylight saving, e.g. Queensland and Arizona. Given the tilting of the Earth toward the sun at this time of year, the sun rises much earlier and sets much later in the Southern Hemisphere compared with the north.

What will happen during the vigil?

When you join the vigil, you will see me onscreen and potentially others in the Chat panel in Insight Timer.

This isn’t a guided meditation, but rather a peaceful space where people who want to welcome and give thanks for our Earth and welcome peace and light for all beings can be together at a heart level. This is a vigil about connecting with the positive intention of the meditation, and receiving comfort and inspiration.

Please join at any time, for as many times, and for as long as you like during the 28 hours.

At the end of the vigil, we will simply come to a gentle close, I will unmute to offer a few words of thanks and the call will end.

What to do during the vigil

There are no "right ways" for taking part. I suggest, if you can, joining for at least 15 minutes, which is usually a good time for breaking from the stresses of the day and allowing yourself to be still for a time. When you leave, you may want to come away slowly, becoming aware of where you are, and not immediately rushing into another activity.

You may wish to close your eyes during the meditation, and try to avoid too much time staring at the screen. You may want to restrict eating and drinking to taking only water. Have a blanket to hand if you feel cold. Otherwise, just be still and simply breathe.

I suggest that you might like to devote at least some time for yourself during the meditation, if not all–to be "bathed" or ministered to and feel held by others who may be on the call. Where do you most want light to shine in the days and months ahead? Where might you need healing? What gifts from The Divine or from Mother Gaia do you seek? What illumination might help or guide you? You may wish to hold open such questions, or simply try as best to just "be", enjoying the moment, without busy thoughts, or feeling a need to do, think, or say anything. Receiving blessings for yourself is important, since unless you are well rooted yourself, it's difficult to be a blessing to others. So, don't be shy about asking to receive blessings for yourself!

You may also be inspired to pray or wish good intent for others–for loved ones and others known to you, and those who you don’t know. Perhaps you may be led to consider healing on Earth, for blessings, protection and edification of wildlife, the seas, land, rocks, sky, and all creation. Perhaps you will focus on where healing is most needed, in specific countries, communities, where there is tribal or toxic political or humanitarian dis-ease, or among warring groups of people. Or, you may just marvel at the gift of a new day and the miracle of life on Earth.

Longer meditation

If you plan to join me in meditating over a longer period of several hours or more, be careful to take rests between periods of "going deep", especially if like me, you're more familiar with shorter meditations. Take special care to come out of the meditation gently, to avoid being disturbed by the busyness of normality. Much can come up during a deep meditation, and you can find yourself going very deep. Yet this is also where we can most learn, be transformed, and renewed.

If you want to share anything that arises for you with another person after your meditation, I will be available to listen and share on a one-to-one basis in spiritual holding a little later in the week (I expect to need sleep immediately after the meditation, except if your need to talk is an emergency). Simply email or message me after the meditation if you'd like to talk.

What if there are technology problems?

Excepting a failure of the Internet, I won’t be able to monitor the sessions or offer technical support, as I’ll be joining in the vigil myself. If you have difficulty connecting, you may wish to check your Internet, restart your device and try again.

I will endeavour to resolve any technical problems at my end as soon as possible. If these occur, simply check back later. I won't be recording the streams, which are intended to be safe and confidential spaces for all who join.