Happy Diwali!

Tomorrow the country will light up in celebration of Diwali. A corruption of the Sanskrit word Deepavali, meaning ‘row of lights’, this is probably South Asia’s biggest festival and certainly one of the biggest in India. Note: Diwali pictures in this post by greeshma, yashrg, one hot stove.

During Diwali, homes are decorated with rows and rows of oil-lamps in the evening and the night skies explode with fireworks. Unfortunately, more people now-a-days are choosing convenience over tradition: you see more fancy electric lights and candles instead of the prettier, and traditional, oil-lamps.

In Diwali, it is common for people to buy new clothes and visit friends and family to exchange greetings and gifts. Diwali is also an auspicious time to move into a new house or buy a new car. In fact, like Christmas season in the USA, Diwali shopping accounts for a big chunk of the annual sales of many consumer goods in India.

Two Goddesses in particular are celebrated at Diwali: Lakshmi and Kali. In the North, this is also a time for some harmless gambling over card games!

The date of Diwali is set by the Hindu calendar and so it varies in the Western calendar, but usually falls in October or November. This year Diwali will be celebrated on Nov 8-9, and so everyone gets a long weekend. For the kids, Diwali means firecrackers, new clothes, lots of good food, and loads of sweets. No surprise then that my daughter eagerly awaits Diwali every year even though she is easily scared by some of the firecrackers (she is all of four).

For first-time visitors to India, I must warn you that Diwali can be pretty noisy with firecrackers exploding every few minutes on the roads, over rooftops, and in community parks. The fervour of the festival can be best experienced by celebrating amid a Hindu family, even though five-star hotels will usually arrange fireworks during the evenings and a gourmet spread at dinner too.

Like most Hindu festivals, the origins of Diwali are a matter of mythology. Here are the two popular versions of how Diwali originated:

1. The killing of the demon Narakaasura

The demon was the evil king of Pragjyotishpur, near Nepal. He ruled with a reign of terror, abducted 16,000 daughters of the gods, and stole the earrings of Aditi, mother of the gods.

The gods asked Lord Krishna for help, and after a mighty battle he killed the demon, freed the girls, and recovered the earrings.

After his victory Krishna returned very early in the morning and was bathed and massaged with scented oils. Taking an early morning bath with oil is still a Diwali tradition (especially in South India).

2. The killing of the demon Ravana

Ravana, who had ten arms and ten heads, was the wicked king of the island of Lanka, who kidnapped the wife of Rama. Rama had been in exile for 14 years because of a disagreement as to whether he or his brother should be the next king in Ayodhya.

After a great battle Rama killed the demon and recovered his wife. Rama's return with his wife Sita to Ayodhya and his subsequent coronation as king is celebrated at Diwali.

When Rama and Sita first returned to Ayodhya it was a dark moonless night and they couldn't see where they were going. Their people put little lamps outside their houses so that the new king and queen could find their way, thus beginning the tradition of the festival of lights.

Read “The Story of Diwali” if you are interested in more of the Hindu mythology surrounding this festival.

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Durga Puja

When I was in the USA a few weeks back, my family was celebrating Durga Puja (or Durga Pujo like we Bengalis pronounce it). While most of India celebrates Dussehra, Bengal celebrates its biggest annual festival with great pomp and ceremony. In Eastern India and particularly West Bengal, Durga Puja is more important than any other festival.

This festival is dedicated to the worship of Goddess Durga and a celebration of victory of good over evil. In Kolkata alone, almost two thousand pandals are setup where people can participate in community celebration and worship the Goddess. Over a period, this festival has also turned into an event to showcase the talent and creativity of local artisans, who create awe-inspiring pandals and idols of the Goddess. Here are some pictures from this year's Durga Pujas in Kolkata.

The idols of the Goddess (usually made of clay) are immersed in the Ganges after a week-long celebration. The pandals are also temporary and are taken down after the festival. But during the week of Durga Pujas, Kolkata is a city transformed. Vehicular traffic comes to a stand-still on most roads, as revellers take over. Dressed in their best, you can see groups of people going from pandal to pandal and admiring the work and creativity on display. Morning and late evenings are usually reserved for worshipping the Goddess. And, of course, like all things Bengali, food and sweets play a major role during this time too!

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Ganesh Chaturthi

While we are away on our vacation, Pune will prepare to celebrate it's biggest festival, Ganesh Chaturthi. This annual Hindu celebration is dedicated to the elephant-headed God of auspicious beginnings, Ganesha (also known as Ganesh or Ganapati) and will keep the city festive much beyond the ten days of the festival. Note: Photo by HapPuppy.

Many homes will install and worship clay idols of Ganesha during the ten days of the festival, after which the idols are taken out ceremoniously, carried in a procession through the streets of the town and immersed into the river. In Mumbai, the sea-front packed with people during the immersion ceremony, is a spectacular sight.

The festival was apparently started by Shivaji, the great Maratha warrior and ruler, to promote culture and a feeling of nationalism amongst his subjects during the fight against the Mughal emperors. After his death the festival continued to be celebrated but on a smaller scale. In 1894 when the British banned public assemblies, Bal Gangadhar Tilak revived the state-wide celebrations as a way of spreading the freedom message through a legitimate religious festival .

Fasting, feasting and distribution of sweets are important aspects of this festival. An ubiquitous sweet during this festival is the modak (shown here). These delectable delicacies are made up of a soft and fluffy rice flour cover that encloses sweet coconut filling and a particular favorite of the Lord Ganesha.

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