Festival Of Lights

Diwali is known as festival of lights where people of all age groups participate. Deepavali in Sanskrit known as ‘a row of lamps’. Filling little clay lamps with oil and wick and lighting them in rows all over the house is a tradition that is popular in most regions of the country. It is associated with many customs and traditions. To Hindus, darkness represents ignorance, and light is a metaphor for knowledge. Therefore, lighting a lamp symbolizes the destruction, through knowledge, of all negative forces- wickedness, violence, lust, anger, envy, greed, bigotry, fear, injustice, oppression and suffering, etc. It is celebrated differently in different ways with different reasons.Whatever the mode of presentation, the purpose is to bring truth of the victory of the good over the evils.

Hindu Mythology

The Story of Rama and Sita: Lord Rama was a great  ideal son, the ideal husband, and above all, the ideal king who was exiled by his father Dashratha, the King of Ayodhya, along with his wife Sita. Lord Rama returned to his Kingdom Ayodhya after 14 years of exile, in which he put an end to the demon Ravana of Lanka, who was a great Pundit, highly learned but still evil dominated his mind. After this victory of Good over Evil, Rama returned to Ayodhya. In Ayodhya, the people welcomed them by lighting rows of clay lamps. So, it is an occasion in honor of Rama's victory over Ravana; of Truth's victory over Evil. Gods from the Heaven poured flowers and garlands to celebrate and show their pleasure.

The Story of King Bali and Vamana Avatar: The other story is related to king Bali, who was a generous ruler. Some of the Gods pleaded Vishnu to check King Bali’s power , then Vishnu in the form of Vamana (priest) came to Bali and asked him to give three feet’s of land to him. Then king laughed .Surely priest could not cover much ground and agreed to vamana’s  request. At this point Vamana changed to Vishnu and he covered one foot to earth, the other to sky and asked Bali where the third feet. Then Bali asked Vishnu to keep his feet on his head as third feet.Then he was send to the underworld. As a part some Hindus remember King Bali.

The Defeat of Narkasur: There are many popular stories associated with this day.

Narakachaturdasi originates from days of Lord Krishna,celebrated as the second day of Deepavali days.Lord Vishnu in his 8th incarnation as Krishna destroyed the demon Narkasura, who was causing great unhappiness amongst the people of the world. People make an effigy of Narakasura, carry it to the outskirts, and burn it. Later, they take bath and burst crackers. This is the day of Narakasura's death.

Narakasur was a demon king, ruling Pragjothishyapur, a southern province in the present day Nepal. He gained a boon from Brahma that he shall die only in the hands of a woman. Armed with the boon, he became a cruel king. Addicted to power, he defeated Lord Indra (king of gods) and stole the earrings of Aditi (the heavenly mother goddess). Aditi was a relative of Satyabhama.When she heard of the cruelties  done by Narakasura, went to ask Lord Krishna, permission to wage a war against Narakasura, Krishna not only agreed, but also offered to drive her chariot in the Warfield. Satyabhama fought Narakasura bravely, Her victory on Narakasura translated into freedom for all his prisoners and honoring of Aditi.

At dusk, the whole city was lit with lamps and fireworks were displayed to rejoice in peace after the death of the demon king. Thus, came Narakachathurthasi as a celebration of the death of the evil king

Krishna and The Mountain: In the village of Gokula, many years ago, the people prayed to the God Indra. They believed that Indra sent the rains, which made their crops, grow. But Krishna came along and persuaded the people to worship the mountain Govardhan, because the mountain and the land around it were fertile. This did not please Indra. He sent thunder and torrential rain down on the village. The people cried to Krishna to help. Krishna saved the villagers by lifting the top of the mountain with his finger. The offering of food to God on this day of Diwali is a reminder to Hindus of the importance of food and it is a time for being thankful to God for the bounty of nature.

Lakshmi Pooja

Goddess Lakshmi, the Hindu deity worshiped on the Hindu's biggest festival Diwali, symbolizes the goddess of light, beauty, good fortune and wealth as per the Hindu mythology. While Laxmi is generally worshiped to achieve success, she does not reside long with anyone who is lazy or desire her only as wealth

Shri is the sacred name of the goddess . As a female counterpart of Lord Vishnu, Maha Lakshmi is also called "Shri", the female of the Supreme Being. Goddess Lakshmi means "Good Luck" to Hindus. The word "Lakshmi" is derived from the Sanskrit word "Laksya", meaning 'aim' or 'goal', and she is the goddess of wealth and prosperity, both material and spiritual. which carries an underlying current.

Lakshmi was the daughter of the sage Bhrigu and took refuge in the ocean of milk when the gods were sent into exile. Lakshmi was reborn during the Churning of the Ocean. As soon as the gods saw Lakshmi, they all fell in love with her beauty. Shiva claimed Lakshmi as his wife, but since he had already taken the Moon, her hand was given to Vishnu, whom Lakshmi herself preferred.

During Deepavali, the newlyweds go to the bride's parental home for revelry. Taking blessings from the elders, they burst the first crackers of the day. Usually a vast range of crackers is bought, with costs running into thousands of rupees. The Diwali Celebrations include a visit to the temple, gifts of clothes and jewelry, gorging on sweets and receiving blessings of elders. The groom's parents, brothers and sisters come down to join in the celebrations.

Diwali is synonymous with “Laxmi Pujan”, since, she brings peace and prosperity to all. The Devi is worshiped on the night of diwali where traditional rituals are performed to honor the Goddess. After sunset, atleast five pieces of ghee diyas (lamps) are lit in front of the deities to usher in light. She is offered traditional sweets & it is followed by devotional songs in praise of the deity.

Diwali as Harvest Festival

Diwali signifies Harvest Festival. As it occurs at the end of a cropping season and has along with the above customs, a few others that reinforce the hypothesis of its having originated as a harvest festival. Every harvest normally spelt prosperity. The celebration was first started in India by farmers after they reaped their harvests. They celebrated with joy and offered praises to God for granting them a good crop.

On the second day of Deepavali, a ritual that is strongly suggestive of the origin of Deepavali as an harvest festival is performed. Worship of the Goddess of Wealth, Laxmi and performance of Aarti are a part of the harvest festival. On this day delicacies are prepared from pounded semi-cooked rice called Poha or Pauva. This rice is taken from the fresh harvest available at that time. This custom is prevalent both in rural and urban areas especially in Western India.

In rural areas, Diwali signifies only this aspect. The reason being the fact that Diwali which is celebrated sometime in October/November co-incides with the end of a harvesting season, known as the Kharif season when the fresh crop of rice is available. Therefore, Diwali is also considered by many rural hindus to be the harvest festival when farmers offer prayers, and express their gratitude to the Almighty for the bounty they received from him.