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Deepavali (also spelled Devali in certain regions) or Diwali[1], popularly known as the festival of lights, is an important five-day festival in Hinduism, Jainism, and Sikhism, occurring between mid-October and mid-November. For Hindus, Diwali is the most important festival of the year and is celebrated in families by performing traditional activities together in their homes. Deepavali is an official holiday in India,[2] Nepal, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Mauritius, Guyana, Trinidad & Tobago, Suriname, Malaysia, Singapore, and Fiji.
The name Diwali is itself a contraction of the word "Deepavali" (Sanskrit: दीपावली Dīpāvalī), which translates into row of lamps.[3] Diwali involves the lighting of small clay lamps (diyas, or dīpa in Sanskrit: दीप) filled with oil to signify the triumph of good over evil. During Diwali, all the celebrants wear new clothes and share sweets and snacks with family members and friends. Most Indian business communities begin the financial year on the first day of Diwali.
Diwali commemorates the return of Lord Rama along with Sita and Lakshman from his fourteen-year-long exile and vanquishing the demon-king Ravana. In joyous celebration of the return of their king, the people of Ayodhya, the Capital of Rama, illuminated the kingdom with earthen diyas (oil lamps) and burst crackers
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Diwali (also spelled Devali in certain regions) or Deepavali, popularly known as the "festival of lights", is an important five-day festival in Hinduism, Jainism, and Sikhism, occurring between mid-October and mid-November. For Hindus, Diwali is the most important festival of the year and is celebrated in families by performing traditional activities together in their homes. Deepavali is an official holiday in India, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Mauritius, Guyana, Trinidad & Tobago, Suriname, Malaysia, Singapore, and Fiji.
The name Diwali is itself a contraction of the word "Deepavali" (Sanskrit: दीपावली Dīpāvalī), which translates into "row of lamps". Diwali involves the lighting of small clay lamps (diyas, or dīpa in Sanskrit: दीप) filled with oil to signify the triumph of good over evil. During Diwali, all the celebrants wear new clothes and share sweets and snacks with family members and friends. Most Indian business communities begin the financial year on the first day of Diwali.
Diwali commemorates the return of Lord Rama along with Sita and Lakshman from his fourteen-year-long exile and vanquishing the demon-king Ravana. In joyous celebration of the return of their king, the people of Ayodhya, the Capital of Rama, illuminated the kingdom with earthen diyas (oil lamps) and burst crackers.
In Jainism, Diwali marks the attainment of moksha or nirvana by Mahavira in 527 BC. In Sikhism, Deepavali commemorates the return of Guru Har Gobind Ji to Amritsar after freeing 52 Hindu kings imprisoned in Fort Gwalior by defeating Emperor Jahangir; the people lit candles and diyas to celebrate his return. This is the reason Sikhs also refer to Deepavali as Bandi Chhorh Divas, "the day of release of detainees". Deepavali is widely celebrated in both India and Nepal.
The first day of the festival Naraka Chaturdasi marks the vanquishing of the demon Naraka by Lord Krishna and his wife Satyabhama. Amavasya, the second day of Deepawali, marks the worship of Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth in her most benevolent mood, fulfilling the wishes of her devotees. Amavasya also tells the story of Lord Vishnu, who in his dwarf incarnation vanquished the tyrant Bali, and banished him to hell. Bali was allowed to return to earth once a year, to light millions of lamps to dispel the darkness and ignorance, and spread the radiance of love and wisdom. It is on the third day of Deepawali — Kartika Shudda Padyami - that Bali steps out of hell and rules the earth according to the boon given by Lord Vishnu. The fourth day is referred to as Yama Dvitiya (also called Bhai Dooj) and on this day sisters invite
In each legend, myth and story of Deepawali lies the significance of the victory of good over evil; and it is with each Deepawali and the lights that illuminate our homes and hearts, that this simple truth finds new reason and hope. From darkness unto light — the light that empowers us to commit ourselves to good deeds, that which brings us closer to divinity. During Diwali, lights illuminate every corner of India and the scent of incense sticks hangs in the air, mingled with the sounds of fire-crackers, joy, togetherness and hope. Diwali is celebrated around the globe. Outside India, it is more than a Hindu festival, it's a celebration of South-Asian identities.
While Deepavali is popularly known as the "festival of lights", the most significant spiritual meaning is "the awareness of the inner light". Central to Hindu philosophy is the assertion that there is something beyond the physical body and mind which is pure, infinite, and eternal, called the Atman. The celebration of Deepavali as the "victory of good over evil", refers to the light of higher knowledge dispelling all ignorance, the ignorance that masks one's true nature, not as the body, but as the unchanging, infinite, immanent and transcendent reality. With this awakening comes compassion and the awareness of the oneness of all things (higher knowledge). This brings Ananda (joy or peace). Just as we celebrate the birth of our physical being, Deepavali is the celebration of this Inner Light.
While the story behind Deepavali and the manner of celebration varies from region to region (festive fireworks, worship, lights, sharing of sweets), the essence is the same – to rejoice in the Inner Light (Atman) or the underlying Reality of all things (Brahman).
Source : en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diwali
A few early shots from the Diwali 2012
Join fabulous Diwali Photo Contest on www.voteoye.com/event/1. First prize Rs. 10,000. 53 more prizes to be won. Last date 18th November 2012.
And the romance with light continues….
Check out a few more shots of Diwali 2017, although this time I stopped wandering and sat stationary observing these superb patterns in the sky in an attempt to capture the grand display of lights on Diwali. Somehow I still have the Diwali fever on as the celebrations continue. Stay tuned for more illuminating captures. And, of course, keep loving, liking, sharing and commenting.
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Diwali Festival, Horncastle Arena, 24 October 2015.
File reference: Diwali-2015-IMG_0872.jpg
Photo by Vanessa Tedesco.
From the collection of Christchurch City Libraries.
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In the week leading up to the Hindu festival of Diwali, which falls this year on Nov. 11, every neighborhood in India becomes more beautiful.
Houses are cleaned out, decorative lamps are lit, families reunite and gifts are exchanged. Diwali is considered to be the Hindu new year, the day on which winter “officially” arrives, and a time to pray for prosperity by felicitating the goddess of wealth.
It is also the day that air pollution across India spikes to five to eight times above the safe standard.
Two practices define Diwali — lighting earthen lamps all over the house, and setting off firecrackers. According to children’s rights NGO Bachpan Bachao Andolan, India produces nearly $38 million worth of firecrackers every year, most of which are sold in the weeks leading up to Diwali. Entire towns are dedicated to the manufacture of these crackers. Every Indian child grows up knowing the names of each different kind.
Many Indian children, though, are too familiar with these crackers — because they make them.
“During the festive season thousands of children are trafficked and used as cheap labor… and made to work in very hazardous conditions where a blast or tiny spark often leads to accidents,” says R.S. Chaurasia, the chairperson of Bachpan Bachao Andolan, which is currently campaigning against firecrackers.
Chaurasia gave the example of Sivakasi town in the state of Tamil Nadu, which he said was home to 80% of India’s fireworks production. Fatal accidents and fires in its factories are an annual affair.
According to Chaurasia, ignoring safety measures and hiring children allows for massive profit margins.
Consumers aren’t safe either. Fire hazards and burn injuries during celebrations are common. And according to the Center for Science and Environment (CSE), a policy research organization, standards for what goes into fireworks are either non-existent or not imposed, allowing firecrackers to emit abundant toxic fumes into the environment.
Its readings show that levels of carbon dioxide and particulate matter — particles of pollution suspended in the air — increase significantly during the festivities leading up to Diwali, and are the highest on the day itself. Last Diwali in Delhi, for example, the center recorded a level of PM2.5, the fine particulate matter that can enter the lungs and blood stream, that was ten times the recommended standard. It was three times as high as Delhi’s average real levels, which are already considered unsafe.
“The body’s filtering mechanism doesn’t work against this small particulate matter,” Polash Mukherjee, a research associate at the CSE who has worked extensively on firecracker emissions, told GlobalPost. “It causes an exaggeration of respiratory illnesses, and the most affected group is really young children.”
Advocates recently came up with a novel way to highlight the problem: they petitioned the Supreme Court on behalf of their infant children. Two 6-month-olds and a 14-month-old appealed for immediate restrictions on the use of fireworks on the basis of their fundamental right to life and clean air.
“Our lungs have not yet fully developed and we cannot take further pollution through bursting of crackers,” said the petition, drafted by the toddlers’ families. “The smoke… during the festivals of Dussehra (a Hindu celebration in October) and Diwali virtually clogs the atmosphere and magnifies the risk of contracting lung diseases.”
Unsurprisingly, a Sivakasi-based group opposed the plea, claiming that the lives of 1.3 million employees of the firecracker industry would be affected.
The Supreme Court responded that the use of loud fireworks between 10AM and 6AM is already prohibited to limit noise pollution, and said that an all-out ban was unrealistic. It turned the petition down, instead reprimanding the government for not publishing public service advertisements discouraging firecrackers as it had asked in a ruling 10 years ago.
The reluctance of authorities to take action in the face of all the evidence comes down to a combination of religious zeal and environmental apathy. Hindus say it is their religious right to set off firecrackers, while manufacturers insist that any spike in pollution from their products is only temporary. Amid India’s chronically dirty air, industry leaders argue, a few festivities are not a factor in the country’s respiratory problems.
Experts contest both assertions. Several campaigns against firecrackers point out that while lamps are a symbolic part of Diwali celebrations, firecrackers are purely celebratory — which means they could easily be curtailed, if not banned, without keeping Hindus from their religious rites.
The question of pollution is even harder to ignore. According to Mukherjee of the CSE, the air pollution around Diwali aggravates the ill effects of Delhi’s notoriously smoggy winter on people with respiratory problems. And the problem is not limited to temporary carbon dioxide and particulate matter levels.
“(Firecrackers also release) elements like heavy metals, which stay in the atmosphere for a long time and percolate into underground water, and stay in the soil for a much longer period,” Mukherjee said. Extended exposure can affect the kidneys, liver and the central nervous system.
However temporary festive air pollution may be, it adds to the problem of survival in India’s metropolitan cities. “People are leaving Delhi,” said Mukherjee. “Expatriates are returning to their own countries because they say Delhi is not safe for their kids, but we have to work here.”
Like every year, I have taken a few photos of kids this year #Diwali as well. They rarely wear ethnicware, so I try not to miss clicking them when they do.
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In Nepal, Diwali is known as "Tihar" or "Swanti". It is celebrated during the October/November period. Here the festival is celebrated for five days and the traditions vary from those followed in India. On the first day (Kaag tihar), crows are given offerings, considering them to be divine messengers. On the second day (Kukur tihar), dogs are given food for their honesty. On the third day, Laxmi puja is performed. This is the last day according to Nepal Sambat, so many of the businessmen clear their accounts on this day and on finishing it, worship goddess Laxmi, the goddess of wealth. The fourth day is celebrated as new year. Cultural processions and other celebrations are observed in this day. The Newars celebrate it as "Maha Puja", a special ritual in which the body is worshipped to keep it fit and healthy for the year ahead on this day. On the fifth and final day called "Bhai Tika", brothers and sisters meet and exchange gifts.
In Nepal, family gathering is more significant during Diwali. People in the community play "Deusi and Bhailo" which is a kind of singing and dancing forming a group. People go to all the houses in the community and play songs and dance, and give blessing to the visited house, whereas the home owner gives some food like rice grains, Roti, fruits and money. After the festival, people donate some part of collected money and food to the charity or welfare groups and rest of the money and food, they go for picnic. People also play swing called Dore Ping made out of thick ropes and Pirke Ping or Rangate Ping made out of woods.
source: wikipedia.com
Diwali-the festival of light celebrated in India.lots of fireworks,night shining in the lights of auspecious lamps and full of fun.