Christmas has become a moment.
A feeling we try to manufacture.
A mood we chase for a few days.
A brief pause before life speeds up again.
But if you look closely, if you strip away the lights, the gifts, the songs, the consumerism, what you find underneath Christmas is something far older, and far more powerful.
Ritual.
And ritual is how human beings have practiced devotion for thousands of years.
One of my favorite rituals happens every year without fail: putting up the Christmas tree with my kids.
I took a photo just a few nights ago. It was 1 AM. I walked into the living room and found my daughter and her best friend, who was sleeping over, mesmerized by the lights on the tree.
I think this may be my favorite picture of 2025.
The tree wasn’t decoration.
It was a ritual.
An act of devotion.
Something we do as a family every year, not because it achieves anything—but because it anchors something.
The Forgotten Power of Devotion
In my upcoming book, Becoming Unfuckwithable, I talk about devotion not as religion or sacrifice, but as applied love over time.
Devotion to a cause.
Devotion to an ideal.
Devotion to your health.
Devotion to your children.
Devotion to your craft.
Devotion to your inner life.
It doesn’t matter what the object of devotion is.
What matters is this:
Devotion makes us stronger because it removes negotiation.
When you are devoted, you don’t wake up asking, “Do I feel like it today?”
You wake up knowing who you are. And you act accordingly.
Why Rituals Were Never About Results
Here’s something the modern world has quietly forgotten:
Rituals are not about what you get.
They never were.
Why do we make our bed every morning, knowing full well we’re going to mess it up again at night?
Why do we spend hours choosing Christmas gifts, only to watch the wrapping paper torn apart in seconds?
Why do we hit the gym day after day, even though progress is slow, incremental, sometimes invisible?
If you look at these behaviors purely through the lens of efficiency, they make no sense.
And that’s the point.
Rituals were never designed to be efficient.
They were designed to be formative.
They shape us.
Ritual Is Identity in Motion
Ancient cultures didn’t rely on motivation.
They relied on structure.
You didn’t meditate when you felt inspired.
You prayed when the bell rang.
You didn’t train when you were in the mood.
You trained because that’s what warriors did.
You didn’t ask whether a ritual was “worth it.”
You performed it because it reminded you who you were.
Ritual locks identity into the body.
And identity is far more powerful than willpower.
The Modern Trap: “What Do I Get?”
Somewhere along the way, we turned everything into a transaction.
We started asking:
What do I get from this workout?
What do I get from this relationship?
What do I get from this habit?
What do I get from this practice?
But devotion collapses the moment it becomes transactional.
Rituals don’t ask for guarantees.
They don’t promise outcomes.
They don’t negotiate with the ego.
They simply say:
Show up anyway.
And in doing so, they free us from the exhausting cycle of chasing, quitting, restarting, and judging ourselves.
Christmas as a Devotional Technology
This is why Christmas endures.
Not because of theology.
Not because of tradition.
But because, once a year, it forces ritual back into our lives.
We slow down.
We gather.
We give without keeping score.
We show up for people we love, even when it’s inconvenient.
For a brief moment, we remember what it feels like to live from devotion instead of demand.
The tragedy isn’t that Christmas ends.
The tragedy is that we don’t carry its structure forward.
A Modern Ritual for an Ancient Need
If there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s this:
You don’t need grand practices to become unfuckwithable.
You need small rituals you don’t negotiate with.
Five minutes of stillness each morning. A daily walk. Writing one paragraph. Preparing food with care. Training your body consistently. Showing up for your kids, fully present.
Not because it guarantees success.
But because it guarantees alignment.
And alignment compounds.
Devotion Is What Remains When Motivation Is Gone
Motivation is emotional. Emotion is unstable.
Devotion is structural. And structure outlives emotion.
This is why devotion to a practice, a value, or a way of living creates something deeper than achievement.
It creates character.
And character is what makes you unfuckwithable.
One Small Ritual to Carry Into the New Year
If there’s one thing I’d invite you to take into the new year, it’s not a goal.
It’s one small ritual.
Not something impressive.
Not something you’ll post about.
Not something that needs willpower.
Just one steady, repeatable act you don’t negotiate with.
It might be as simple as this:
- Taking your supplements every morning: unrushed, intentional, present. Not because supplements change your life, but because how you do small things trains who you are.
- Sitting cross-legged on the same sofa every morning for five minutes of stillness. Same place. Same posture. Just you, breathing, showing up.
- Stepping outside at 8 AM every day for a short walk to get sunlight. Same route. Same time. Letting your body relearn rhythm.
- Writing a two-minute note of appreciation to one colleague or teammate before you start your workday. No agenda. No feedback. Just acknowledgement.
None of these rituals will go viral.
None of them will look dramatic.
And that’s exactly why they work.
Because devotion doesn’t need intensity. It needs consistency.
The ritual isn’t about what it produces. The ritual is the point.
Show up for it long enough, and something subtle but powerful begins to happen:
your nervous system calms, your identity stabilizes, and life starts to feel less like something you’re chasing and more like something you’re inhabiting.
That’s how change really happens.
Quietly.
Daily.
Without applause.
A Quiet Invitation This Christmas
So this Christmas, instead of resolutions, try something different.
Choose one small ritual.
Make it steady.
Make it repeatable.
Make it unyielding.
Not to get something.
But to be someone.
That’s devotion.
And devotion, practiced quietly, daily, without applause, is how ordinary humans become extraordinary.
Merry Christmas. May you remember who you are and rise.
P.S. Exciting Upcoming Live Events
Before the year comes to a close, I just want to pause and say thank you.
Over the past six days, nearly 10,000 of you have been showing up with me every single day for the 7 Sacred States Challenge.
Watching the comments, the reflections, the breakthroughs, it’s been deeply moving.
Today, on Christmas Eve, we completed the challenge with the final session, and I genuinely loved spending this time with you each day.
If you’ve been part of it, thank you for your presence.
And if you haven’t yet joined,
You can still catch today’s live session (last day of the challenge) by signing up here.
(You will immediately receive an email to join the session live on zoom that’s starting at 8 AM LA / 4 PM London today, Dec 24, 2025.)
Now, what’s next?
Between now and December 31st, I’ll be hosting two additional live masterclasses I’d love to invite you to:
1. A live presentation about your 2026 Mastery Journey. (Free LIVE event)
Happening on December 26: this 60-min session is on making 2026 the year you master both your inner world and outer reality. We will be sharing something special about Spiritual & Manifesting Mastery Programs for you and an exclusive opportunity on how you can get both the programs with significant savings.
Register for 2026 Mastery Journey here
2. Create your Lifebook for 2026 & beyond. (Free LIVE event)
Happening on Dec 28: a focused 90-minute live session where I’ll help you see what you truly want in your life. We’ll look at why goal-setting keeps failing, do a live-life-assessment together to reveal which areas need attention and which areas are already working for you, guide you through a short future-visioning experience, and show you how to start creating your own Lifebook for 2026 and beyond, for free.
If any of these speak to you, I’d love to have you there.
This end-of-year window is sacred, and I’m grateful to be sharing it with you.
And, I’d love to hear from you: leave a comment and tell me which of these live sessions you’re most excited for, or simply share what’s alive in your heart right now.
With Love,
25 Responses
Your articles are trully a Masterclass. Thank you for sharing, Vishen.
I have a MindValley subscription. While I would have loved to be a part of the 7 states of consciousness, I live in California with terrible migraines and can’t watch a live class at 8 am. Do you have replays?
Hi Kate, you can watch the replays here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLcTZ8xyOL50Hy0YCZvZg_osO8f__rWFdP
Hope this helps!
Thank you for encouraging to comment, Vishen. I am most excited for the Lifebook session. Last year, it was Jim Kwik. I have been with Mindvalley since 2019 and I subscribed last year to an annual subscription. Unfortunately, I was not able to do any course last year and I felt I was getting less reminders from Mindvalley. I would request Mimdvalley team to be as proactive with members and keep reminding us of upcoming events to join to make the most of annual memberships. Given my experience last year, I am about to unsubscribe from the annual subscription.
Why have you abandoned us in the Southern Hemisphere, airing your latest series in the middle of our night and not allowing any replays to be sent out?
Hi Aine, you can catch all the replays on our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@Mindvalley/streams
Hope this helps!
Lovely, Vishen. How about remembering to end the year with all you DO have to be grateful for in order to face the New Year with optimism and trust that all that you most need next in life will come to you. Wishing you all a most blessed New Year.
Muchas gracias por compartir Vishen, toda esta información y práctica me está cambiando la vida, a una mejor versión de mi y es increíble, lamento mucho no poder participar en todos los eventos, pero lo seguiré intentando, que Dios los bendiga siempre, muchas gracias por todo!!!
Dear Vishen, I wanted to thank you. You and Mindvalley and the wonderful teachers here (Regan Hillyer in particular) have changed my life this year. I live in Brisbane Australia, for me, tuning into your Summits and free sessions means waking up at 2:00 am to participate live (which I have done for half a dozen of your summits, I have also done several Mindvalley Courses including the Masters of Manifesting, Regan’s Manifesting course and some other courses). I did the Seven States with you, culminating in last nights session on Receptivity. Earlier that evening I had listened to a powerful Activation from Regan (I”m in her MMM Program now) and after I had listened to your session on Receptivity I tried to go back to sleep (it being 3:00 am). But I couldn’t sleep, my mind was going over everything I have learned from all the courses I have done and which the Seven States brought together in a powerful way for me. And as I was lying there, a profound breakthrough came over me. Everything you said , just clicked into place and I felt a visceral shift in my body as I “let go” and relaxed. Relaxed into Knowing, Faith, Love, Stillness, Non attachment, Devotion and Receptivity. I sat up and wrote down what I was feeling and realising, what had changed in my perception, understanding and state of beingness. And that has carried through into today (Christmas Day here), where I have been able to stay present in the moment and just enjoy it. I wasn’t in my head, in my gut or my stomach, I wasn’t in the past or the future, I wasn’t tied up in knots of stress and anxiety and on the outside looking in. Instead I was present and enjoying being with the people around me, observing them with affection and feeling part of it instead of an alien. I was able to eat the meal and enjoy it instead of feeling sick, like I usually would. I was able to exchange gifts with joy and participate in swimming in the bay. (It is so hot here!). I was able to be present. This is such a gift for which I am so grateful. I am able to feel unity for the first time in my life and feel at peace. I am a 65 year old widow. I live alone (but with animals), I am an author (over 25 books published), and Energy Healer (Reiki Master and Egyptologist: I have researched and uncovered the authentic system of energy healing practiced by the ancient Egyptians, that uses quantum physics, which is why I found Regan’s methods so resonant). I connect with people online, but very few people face to face. I go days, even weeks without any real human contact. I’ve spent this year on a profound personal journey to connecting with myself and my life’s purpose (and battling a gut issue along the way which has righted itself in the last few weeks, as I have finally shed the layers of trauma trapped in my body through Regan’s activations and raised my vibration). I am excited to be doing the Life Book seminar in a few days and setting myself up for a breakthrough year in 2026, along with Regan’s MMM Program. I was hoping to make it to MVU in 2026, but I gather it is sold out already. Thank you again for the Seven States. Your book on how to become Unfuckwithable is going to be awesome. Regards Cathy
Awesome! Its genuinely remarkable post, I have got much clear idea regarding from this post
In the powerful stillness of this season of reflection, on our humanity wellbeing and our measures of giving and forgiveness.
We thank you Kristina Vishen and your dear family and the Mindvalley amazing teachers.
Knowingness
Faith Love Stillness, non attachment, devotion receptivity.
My apologies for only showing up for a few of the 7 days, it seems the knowingness state blew me out of the water and realising what I have known about my self for the longest time. Or how it took 50 years to speak my childhood truth , this past year.
All of the states seem so resonant in their frequency , that is realigning our thoughts and prayers in action.
Devotion actually reminding me of my commitment to practice my music on my mandolin and continue making music as means of arts healing expressions and communicating truth that truth could seem more palatable with music in the message, as we all know truth is not usually the favourite subject in modern news times.
Albeit a very enlightening experience, for which I am very grateful to cover as much information on the ground as it was and is emotionally charged work and could be the reason why I couldn’t attend each day, almost felt like I need more time with each state subject to actually process all of the information you shared.
Maybe we could join in prayers for world peace in every country now. Asking every world leaders,
Educating our humanity wellbeing, away from fossil fuels agendas, towards renewables in every war torn countries.
Governments giving back to the first nations traditional owners in every country,
improving standards of quality of life , for all people of every nations.
Prayers for peace, while moving from fossil fuels agendas to renewables energy resources powered lifestyles, ending all wars over fossil fuels and trusting in God for solar energy solutions almighty God Bulurru hear our prayers
Peaceful Christmas wrapped in love and tied with shining hope, lasting joy, and good health 🙂
Truth be known- God is all things, God is everything. We are all an expansion of God. We are all one there is only God. And God is love.
May we all know God for he is your father.
Blessings to all
With love,
Your son.
I just want to say Thank You, Vishen, for your vision, what you have created with MindValley, and what you share with the world. How you show up, and that you show up matters. Thank you.
I wish you and yours a blessed HolyDay.
Shannon Buck
There is definitely devotion and rituals during the Christmas season but let’s not forget, at the core of it all Christmas; ‘Christ’s Mass’ is straight up the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ. Merry Christmas to all a Blessed New Year!
NAMASTE! Theres so much wrong with the American version of the pagan Christmas. The controllers here tell their slaves this holiday represents celebrating the birth of a character in one of their religions, Jesus, who is the epitome of all that is LOVE. The season of JOY. How is this supposed to be taken literally in a country where there is so much ABSOLUTELY UNECESSARY suffering? We’re repeatedly told the u.s. is home to more millionaire’s and billionaire’s than the rest of the countries Combined. We’re told that amongst the richest nations the u.s. is #1 in child and elderly poverty, hunger, and homelessness!!!! How can we celebrate by spending all of our money on garbage while this country is plagued with so much unnecessary EXTREME: poverty, hunger, homelessness, unemployment, below living wage employment, price gouging, streets and communities flooded with drugs and alcohol, greed, and the most debilitating school system on earth!!!!
I’m a big teacher of the “create our own joy and successful lives”. But if there are people that struggle with not being able to do this, we should be helping them 100% in short, if the government here can create living wage jobs with solid benefits, and top rated retirement benefits for themselves, for doing very little to earn this, then EVERY AMERICAN MUST BE GUARANTEED NO LESS THAN WHAT THESE CRIMINALS ARE GIVING THEMSELVES. We can end every bit of the suffering IMMEDIATELY!!! SHAME ON EVERYONE HERE FOR NOT CARING FOR THE BETTERMENT OF HUMANITY!!! Contact me if you want details!!!!
I’m so thrilled about the initiation of my spiritual journey! I’m a civil engineer and I always doubted it! Now I can feel its presence and it’s so powerful. It connects me to the human I want to be ♥️
I love this concept of Devotion and Ritual for the purpose of Consistency developing Structure that aligns your Identity with your dreams.
As Aristotle said thousands of years ago, you become what you repeat, and this idea of Devotion to simple Rituals reflects that idea more brightly than ever!
It doesn’t have to be galvanizing, it just has to be consistent. You don’t need to climb a mountain to reach your power, rather could choose to float to it like a feather on a soft breeze of simple Rituals. And who knows, maybe you could find yourself floating far above the mountains one day, still rising.
What a beautiful Blog. It really made me reflect and inspire myself into becoming devoted of myself, for myself. How much simple daily actions and practices can be so profound for our sense of self. I forget and slip away very often, however after reading your blog, my intention is to be consistent.
Thank you so much!!!
This is thoughtful writing—but it’s ultimately misguided, because it takes something revealed and reduces it to something useful.
Christmas is not a “devotional technology.”
It is not a neutral ritual container.
It is not about structure, identity formation, or emotional anchoring—at least not at its core.
Christmas is first and foremost about an event:
God entering history in the person of Jesus Christ.
That matters.
Because when you detach Christmas from the birth of Jesus, you don’t elevate it—you empty it.
The Core Error: Replacing Revelation with Utility
The essay reframes Christmas as valuable because of what it does to us:
• It slows us down
• It creates ritual
• It builds devotion
• It stabilizes identity
Those things may happen—but they are effects, not the reason.
Christian faith doesn’t begin with human devotion.
It begins with God’s initiative.
“We love because He first loved us.” (1 John 4:19)
The danger here is subtle but serious:
Christmas becomes about our practices instead of God’s promise.
About our alignment instead of His incarnation.
About identity formation instead of salvation.
Christmas Was Never About Our Devotion
The biblical Christmas story is striking precisely because it is not about disciplined humans getting their lives together.
• Mary is confused, not centered
• Joseph is afraid, not aligned
• Shepherds are interrupted, not ritualized
• The world is noisy, violent, and indifferent
And into that chaos, God comes anyway.
Not because humanity showed up correctly.
Not because devotion removed negotiation.
Not because ritual anchored identity.
But because grace does not wait for readiness.
That’s the scandal of Christmas.
Ritual Without Christ Is Just Self-Reference
Rituals matter—but in Christianity, rituals point away from us, not back toward us.
A Christmas tree can be beautiful.
Family traditions can be meaningful.
Structure can be grounding.
But without Christ, devotion collapses inward.
You end up devoted to:
• Consistency
• Identity
• Inner life
• Personal strength
• Becoming “unfuckwithable”
Christian devotion is different.
It is not about becoming unshakeable.
It is about becoming surrendered.
Jesus did not come to make us emotionally regulated.
He came to redeem us.
Christmas Is About a Person, Not a Practice
The angels didn’t say:
“Behold, I bring you a powerful ritual.”
They said:
“Today in the city of David a Savior has been born to you.” (Luke 2:11)
Christmas is not formative because it shapes us.
It is transformative because God acted.
Rituals don’t save.
Devotion doesn’t save.
Consistency doesn’t save.
A baby in a manger does.
The Real Meaning of Devotion
Christian devotion is not:
• Applied love over time
• Non-negotiated habits
• Identity locked into the body
Christian devotion is a response to grace.
We don’t show up to prove who we are.
We show up because of who He is.
And the most honest posture at Christmas is not strength or alignment—it’s humility.
In Short
This essay beautifully describes human longing for structure,
but Christmas answers a deeper problem: human separation from God.
Strip away Jesus, and Christmas becomes inspirational.
Keep Jesus, and Christmas becomes redemptive.
That’s not theology as an accessory.
That’s the heart of the faith.
Christmas isn’t about magic.
It isn’t about ritual.
It isn’t about devotion.
It’s about God keeping His promise—
by coming near,
taking on flesh,
and entering a broken world to save it.
That’s not something we manufacture.
That’s something we receive.
That is what Christmas is really about.
Thanks to Dave for sharing this thoughtful and theologically sound reply. I am in total agreement with Dave. And, thanks to Vishen for all his thoughtful
leadership throughout the years.
Hi Dave,
you wrote from a Christian point of view and you explained in an excellent way the deeper connection christian faith puts into Christmas. Obviously, this is valid for any other religion with their main festivities, too.
As we are (at least, still) living in a free world where everybody is free to believe whatever he/she wants or not, I think it is very important to show the sense for our souls that lies within every ritual, may it be good or bad. This helps to realize that, if Christmas just means buying expensive gifts, our inner values will decay and we shall become superficial, we won’t develop any more.
Vishen made that very good point, and I am really grateful to him for having found those beautiful, clear words.
And thank you, too, Dave, for having explained just another dimension of religious rituals: confide in a higher power, in a community following their own rules without having to explain, just for faith.
I hope we can go ahead like this, science and faith (whatsoever faith as long as its basic is love) hand in hand, tolerating each other, searching to explore the same world with the aim to protect it and live in peace.
I love this post V… Devotion has been my new word for self discipline for a few years now and it has been a game changer… it brings the sacred into the ever now present moment and brings beauty to the seemingly mundane. Love this word and how it resonates! much love & Merry Christmas to you and your family! <3 <3 <3
Really love how you celebrate others in your community regularly
A problem with performing routines is that you have to not feel like you sinned if you miss one. I am so programmed for my daily routines that I get a bit distressed if I miss one. Like slalom skiing I feel I need to go back and go through the gate I missed. I need to lighten up and stay loose with myself. Devotion is great, if it doesn’t rule you.