Diwali — The Festival of Lights
It celebrates the victory of light over darkness, knowledge over ignorance, and good over evil.
India is a country where each day of the year is a festival, all 365 days. This is because we believe life is a celebration, and man needs a respite from his daily chores to rejuvenate and replenish. With so many festivals dedicated to so many gods and goddesses, it isn’t easy to pinpoint the most important festival of all. Still, if one comes close, it is the festival of Diwali or Deepavali — lit. a row of lights.
Diwali falls on the 13th day of the Hindu month of Karthik (October-November). From this day onwards, the position of the northern hemisphere of the earth with respect to the sun is such that everything in nature slows down. Days become shorter, the earth receives less sunlight, trees shed leaves, the land becomes barren, and nothing grows. It is a period of hibernation.
It is also the time we feel the winter blues; depression and sadness are quite common. It is one reason Indians celebrate Diwali — to bring joy in communities and prevent sadness. Light brightens us up and is symbolic of enlightenment, awareness, and ultimate liberation, long believed by Indians to be the purpose of human life. And Diwali, as the name suggests, is all about light — external and inner light. The several stories associated with the five days of Diwali give it an added allure.
Lord Ram’s wife, Sita, was kidnapped by the demon Ravan and taken to Lanka — now Sri Lanka. Rama fought a fierce battle with Ravan with the help of his brother Lakshman, his devotee, Lord Hanuman, and many others. He rescued Sita, and Diwali is the day he returned to his hometown of Ayodhya, with Sita and Lakshman in tow. All the people of Ayodhya lit rows and rows of lamps to welcome their beloved King, and so started the festival of Diwali.
Pre-Diwali
There is a long-standing tradition to clean the entire house, get rid of old possessions, whitewash, and paint walls before Diwali. People prepare sweets and savory snacks in advance so they can be enjoyed by the family and given to guests, neighbors, and donated to the poor.
Before the start of the five key days of Diwali comes, the celebration called Vasu Baras.
Vasu Baras
On this day, cows and their calves are venerated for their lifelong service to humanity. Cows give milk, are used in agriculture, were kept as pets, and are the only animals whose excretory products are also useful to man. Cowdung was used in making floors of houses, cow urine is used in Ayurvedic medicine even today.
In India, cows are gods. In truth, cows are regarded as mothers, and mothers are regarded as gods; ergo, cows are worshipped as gods.
In the olden days, most households had pet cows who were treated like family. Whenever there was a death in the family, the cow sheds tears of sorrow along with the family. In those days, medical science wasn’t as advanced as today, and many women died in childbirth; their newborns were nursed with the cow’s milk. That is the reason cows are considered as mothers and hence gods.
People perform aartis of cows (for performing an aarti, a small lamp, or ‘diya’ with a burning flame is placed in a metal plate and rotated clockwise in front of the object/person whose aarti is being done). They express gratitude to the household cows and the ones found outside temples. Cows are worshipped, fed, and pampered on this day.
The Five Days of Diwali
Diwali is celebrated over five days. Some of these occasions can fall on the same day because the Hindu calendar is lunisolar and quite different from the Gregorian calendar.
1. Dhanteras or Dhanatrayodashi
The first day is Dhanteras or Dhanatrayodashi (trayodashi means the thirteenth day of the lunar cycle) and is dedicated to Dhanvantari — the God of medicine and an avatar (incarnation) of Lord Vishnu, one of the trinity. Ayurveda — an ancient Indian medicine system — worships Dhanvantari and considers him the bestower of good health. This day is designated as “National Ayurveda day” by the government of India.
Dhanteras is believed to be auspicious for buying new things such as gold, jewelry, cars, clothes, household items.
2. Narakchaturdashi
On this day, Lord Krishna and his wife Satyabhama killed the demon Narakasura. Narakasura was the son of Mother Earth and Lord Vishnu. He had a boon that no one but the Earth could kill him. He committed various atrocities, and when his reign of terror got out of control, Satyabhama — who was an incarnation of Mother Earth herself — killed Narakasura along with Lord Krishna.
Waking up at Brahma Muhurta — 4.00 am — is beneficial for spiritual progress. Brahma is one of the trinity, considered the creator of the universe, and Brahmamuhurta is the creator’s time. According to Sadhguru — an Indian mystic — our pineal gland secretions are at their maximum at Brahmamuhurta. It is the best time to stabilize our body, mind, and soul, bring them in harmony, and advance spiritually.
On Narak Chaturdashi, it is customary to wake up before the break of dawn and have an abhyanga snan and wear new clothes. Abhyanga snan (an Ayurvedic self-massage) is a ritual in which you apply fragrant oils to the body and bathe it with sandalwood, ubtan — an aromatic herbal powder for cleaning the body, milk, and other such luxurious items.
The drop in temperatures and approaching winter makes the body dry, and oils do a fantastic job of moisturizing and nourishing. They improve blood circulation, keep joints healthy, improve muscle tone, reduce inflammation and pain, etc.
After this ritual, people perform pujas and then burst crackers and eat special delicacies. It is also common to visit neighbors, relatives, friends to exchange sweets and savory snacks made for Diwali. The atmosphere is one of camaraderie, kinship, forgiveness, and spreading love and joy to all.
3. Lakshmi Pujan
On this day, Goddess Lakshmi — the wife of Lord Vishnu — is worshipped. She is considered the goddess of wealth, prosperity, auspiciousness, and good fortune. Idols of Lakshmi and Ganesh are placed on red cloth, and pujas are performed.
Lamps are lit outside the front door, on balconies, and window sills to welcome Goddess Lakshmi, who is said to be a stickler for cleanliness and prefers to enter a well-lit house.
4. Govardhan Puja, Balipratipada or Padwa
Lord Krishna lived in a small cowherd village called Braj. The villagers used to worship Indra — the God of rains and storms — in the autumn season. Krishna advised them to worship Mount Govardhan instead, whom he believed to be the real sustainer of life in Braj and its vicinity.
Indra was angered by this and broke loose his wrath on the helpless villagers via rain and thunderstorms. The villagers turned to Krishna for help, and he willingly obliged. He lifted Mount Govardhan on his little finger to provide shelter to the cowherds and their cattle and saved them from Indra’s wrath.
This day is celebrated as the primary day of Diwali to commemorate this incident.
5. Bhai Dooj
Like Raksha Bandhan, Bhai Dooj celebrates the brother-sister bond. Sisters pray for the long life of their brothers and perform aartis. Both exchange loving gifts and sweets.
Some commonalities in rituals and celebration
Some rituals and customs are followed on all five days, namely —
- Cleaning and maintaining the neatness and aesthetic appeal of homes to welcome God and positive energies.
- Waking up early before sunrise and having a bath with special oils, soaps, and fragrances.
- Drawing a Rangoli in front of the house — Rangoli is an artistic design made with rice flour, colored sand, or flowers. Unique designs are created on different days, depending on the significance of that day.
- Wearing new outfits and jewelry
- Savoring sweets and snacks made especially for Diwali, such as chakli, sev, karanji, ladoo, mithai.
- Performing pujas and aartis of various gods and goddesses. Visiting temples to seek their blessings.
- Lighting earthen lamps, lanterns, string lights, and bursting firecrackers
If you liked this story, you will also enjoy the ones below.
Here’s how you can know more about the Festivals of India.
References:
- https://www.drikpanchang.com/calendars/hindu/hinducalendar.html
- Hindu Fasts & Festivals by Sri Swami Sivananda.
- Isha Yoga.
