Diwali - festivities and celebrations...

Diwali is round the corner, in fact the celebations have begun with the children, there are crackers being burst and the atmosphere is filled not only with the noise of the crackers but the resonance of the alarms and sirens from the parked cars in the housing societies.

My younger son who has suddenly become bold and adventurous to try his hands at the crackers by virtue of being inspired by his 'Big Bro'. Turning 5 for the younger one has been turning Bold too..... but I discovered something about him, this time he had the gun loaded with the a strip of crackers but before he fired them he asked his grandfather to cover his ears!! 

I quietly ignored it, didn't want my boy to feel embarrassed, he was behaving so grown up you see! That night while I was putting him to sleep he asked me why was Diwali celebrated. I remember asking the same question to my mom when I was young and she told me a  couple of stories as the legend had it. I read about them during by school years. I was glad my son asked me this question. I told him 5-6 reasons but today talking to my friends found a few more and I wish to share them here. There are many reasons from mythology behind celebration of the festival of lights. 

The Victory of Lord Rama: According to the epic Ramayana, it was the new moon day of Kartik when Lord Rama, his wife Sita and brother Lakshman returned to Ayodhya after defeating  Ravana and conquering the kingdom of Lanka. The people of Ayodhya illuminated the city beautifully and decorated it with earthen lamps. This story is what most of the people know including my little one.

Goddess Laxmi's incarnation: There's another story that says the Goddess of wealth, Laxmi was incarnated on the new moon day (amavasyaa) of the Kartik month during the 'Samudra Manthan', churning of the ocean, hence  Diwali is associated with Goddess Laxmi.

Lord Vishnu and Goddess Laxmi: On this very day, Lord Vishnu in his fifth incarnation as Vaman-Avtar rescued Laxmi from the prison of King Bali and this is another reason of worshipping Goddess Laxmi on Diwali.

The Return of the Pandavas: According to the epic Mahabharata, it was Kartik Amavashya when the Pandavas were back from their 12 years of banishment that was awarded to them after Kauravas defeated them at the game of dice. The people of the kingdom,  celebrated their return by lighting the earthen lamps or the diyas.

Krishna Killed Narakaasur: On the day preceding Diwali, Lord Krishna killed the Demon king Narakaasur and rescued 16 thousand women from his captivity. The celebration of this victory went on for two days including the Diwali day. 

There are a couple of facts from the other religions such as Jainism, Sikhism, the Arya Samaj as well as there are some historic references of the festival.

One of the greatest Hindu kings, King Vikramaditya was coroneted on the Diwali day, hence Diwali became a historical event as well.

Mahavir Tirthankar, the founder of modern Jainism attained his nirvana on this day.

It was the Diwali day when Maharshi Dayananda, the founder of the Arya Samaj  and known as one of the greatest reformers of Hinduism attained his nirvana.

The third Sikh Guru Amar Das institutionalized Diwali as a historic day when all Sikhs would gather to receive the blessings of their Gurus. In 1577, the foundation stone of the Golden Temple at Amritsar was laid on this day. In 1619, the sixth Sikh Guru Hargobind, who was imprisoned by the Mughal Emperor Jahengir, was released from the Gwalior fort along with 52 kings. Sikhism has a lot of significance associated with the festival.

How Do we celebrate?

People do the spring cleaning of their houses and offices.

The festivities are generally for 5 days starting with Dhanteras or dhan tryodashi, when it is considered auspicious to buy some gold jewellery, household utensils or something new for the house. Of late it has become a tradition to buy houses or other property, even take thepossession of the new house or vehicle. Even new businesses and ventures are started on this day.

Naraka Chaturdasi. Second day is celebrated as Naraka Chaturdasi or 'Chhoti Diwali', On this day Lord Krishna killed the demon Narakaasur and liberated the 16,000 women that he had held in his captivity.

The third day is celebrated as the actual Diwali or Badi Diwali   the day is marked as the Hindu New Year. Goddess Laxmi is worshipped  to receive blessings of wealth and prosperity.  This is also the day Lord Rama, along with his wife Sita and brother Lakshman returned to Ayodhya, defeating the demon King Ravana. It marks the triumph of good over evil, that of light over darkness.

Govardhana Puja,  Fourth day is celebrated as a spiritual harvest festival. Thousands of years ago, Lord Krishna asked the people of Vrindavan to perform Govardhana Puja. On this day too lamps or diyas are lit.

The firth day is celebrated as Bhai Dooj - the festival of brothers and sisters. This marks the last day of the celebrations.

People generally visit family, relatives and friends and exchange gifts and sweets. Now the sweets are replaced with much healthier options like dry fruits and healthy nuts. This is also the time when there is a huge demand for sweets all over the country and adulteration is prevalent. 

I have found a very healthy option to gift my family and friends, I have chosen natures' goodness over artificial sweets.

One great option I found for gifting during Diwali and the rest of the year is the natures' gift from Jammu and Kashmir. It has everything from almonds, walnuts, figs, raisins, saffron and other nuts and dried fruits. Loved their celebration pack for Diwali, a beautiful pack of dry fruits. They also have some fabulous skin care and beauty products.

Do check: http://www.puremart.in/