Abbotsford News Wednesday, October 22, 2014
Diwali
A23
Thursday, October 23
Celebrate light Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights, is a five-day festival which falls on Thursday, October 23th this year. In English, the term Diwali can be translated into “a row of lights,” and the festival is also called Divali or Deepavali. The Hindu festival is celebrated annually on the 13th lunar day of the Krishna paksha of the Hindu calendar month of Ashwin. Falling in accordance with the luni-solar Hindu calendar, the Diwali festival unites friends and family in celebration each year. The holiday originated as a harvest festival that marked the last harvest before winter. For those of the Hindu faith, this is the most important festival of the year, and is celebrated by families engaging in traditional activities at home.
the first day of Diwali, housewives consider it auspicious to clean the home and shop for gold or kitchen utensils. Many people wear new clothes and jewelry as they light the first lamp of Diwali. Naraka Chaturdasi is the second day of the festival, where people decorate their homes with clay lamps or diyas and create design patterns called rangoli on the floor using coloured powders or sand. Amavasya is celebrated on the third day with the worship of Lakshimi, the goddess of wealth. This is the main day of the festival when families gather together for Lakshmi puja, a prayer to Lakshmi, followed by mouth-watering feasts and firework festivities.
Though celebrated around the world, Diwali is an official holiday in India, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Singapore, Guyana, Trinidad and Tobago, Malaysia and Fiji.
Kartika Shudda Padyami is celebrated on the fourth day and on the fifth day Yama Dvitiya is recognized, where sisters invite brothers into their homes, and welcome them with love and a lavish meal.
Dhanteras starts the first day of the festival, which is significant in Indian business communities as many people make customary purchases of precious metals. On
Throughout the festival, celebrators wear new clothing, jewelry and come together as families and friends in order to share entertainment, food and treats. Homes are deco-
rated with lights and candles and cleaned to represent a new start. Diwali involves lighting small clay lamps filled with oil to represent the victory of good over evil. The lamps are kept lit overnight and the house is tidied to make the goddess Lakshmi feel welcome. Firecrackers
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are often set off to ward away evil spirits, but these items are illegal to set off in Abbotsford. The festival is a celebration of the triumph of good over evil, the return of Lord Sama, Sita, and Lakshmana from exile and the defeat of Ravana.
A24
Abbotsford News Wednesday, October 22, 2014
Diwali
Thursday, October 23
The meaning of Diwali Diwali is one of the most important Hindu festivals in India – but the colourful customs and meanings associated with it can vary dramatically depending on whether you reside in the countryside or
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On the streets of densely populated conurbations like Mumbai, Diwali – popularly known as the Festival of Lights – is often a raucous affair, marked by a cacophony of fire-
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themselves and their loved ones. In the quiet tribal villages, such as those dotted around the vast state of Maharashtra in the west of India, the celebration is generally a more simple affair, defined by humble offerings and wholesome feasts. Few, if any, firecrackers are burst and many follow their own particular tribal traditions. Most villagers try to buy new clothes, but few can afford gold, jewelry or elaborate gifts. There are some Diwali rituals common across most of the subcontinent. In both city and countryside, small clay oil lamps (or diyas) are placed at the thresholds of homes, shops and offices throughout the five-day affair to celebrate the legend of the return of the Hindu god, Lord Rama, to his kingdom after 14 years in exile. According to mythology his people lit diyas to welcome his return. Hindus in cities and villages also believe
Gambling card games are often played in both villages and cities, as it is generally considered auspicious to gamble during Diwali. This started from a legend that a Hindu deity played a dice game with his consort on the fourth day of Diwali and she won. Some Hindus believe Lakshmi can be invoked through gambling. Gambling parties are an especially popular pastime during Diwali in Mumbai. The parties typically start at 10pm in bungalows and farmhouses and continue well into the early morning. “Bets can start as small as Rs 20 (40 cents) and as big as Rs 5,000 ($93). In a night people can lose up to Rs 50,000 ($930),” explains Vikram Mehta, 30, founder of Red Om Entertainment. “People don’t mind losing – it’s part of the ambiance and people are having fun. Everyone dresses up, everyone is on holiday, everyone is invit-
“The modern world is changing and festivals are the only way to keep our culture and traditions alive.”
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crackers on the streets and a flourish of ceremonial gambling in the home. The wealthier urban dwellers splurge on gold, jewelry, clothes and expensive gifts such as electronics, which they buy for
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that during Diwali the Hindu goddess of wealth, Lakshmi, will visit their homes if they are lit, clean and beautifully decorated. Windows and doors are left open to let the goddess in and homes are cleaned from top to bottom. Brightly-coloured rangolis are drawn using fingers on the ground at the entrances to homes and offices. These geometric designs are usually symbols of nature and their purpose is to welcome guests and to encourage Lakshmi inside.
ing each other to their homes, there is a lot of warmth.” A range of games are played, the most popular Teen Patti with Blackjack and poker also big favorites. “People sit on mattresses on the floor. There are rooms where the kids play for fun and then other rooms with the higher stakes,” Mehta says. The homes are decorated with diyas, people dress in traditional Indian dress, servants wander round with platters of kebabs, biryani and Indian sweets, he adds. Across
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Continue on pg. 25
Abbotsford News Wednesday, October 22, 2014
Diwali
A25
Thursday, October 23
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try Indian sweets – known as mithai – are exchanged and people have large family gatherings in their homes.
There are various other rituals celebrated in towns and villages on each of the five days. For example, on the last day of Diwali in many parts of India, a sister cooks for her brother and he bestows gifts on her in celebration of the love between siblings. “The modern world is changing and festivals are the only way to keep our culture and traditions alive. For us Diwali is the victory of good over evil, the returning of good back into our lives and starting a new year with a positive approach and forgetting all the bad that has happened,” says 45-yearold Mumbai housewife Heena Damle. Typically fire crackers are set off from dusk, often throughout the night. The noise is believed to herald the defeat of evil and catch the attention of the gods.
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Diwali also marks the start of the new Hindu financial year and many businessmen, traders and shopkeepers, open new accounts books. Businessmen in certain states, particularly Gujarat, worship their accounts books.