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Sitaram · Site Admin Joined: 14 Sep 2005 Posts: 1079

Sitaram writes: Below is a link sent to me by my one and only devoted
chela. Guruji is most pleased.

http://www.indiayogi.com/content/festivals/diwali.asp

The word "Diwali" comes from the Sanskrit word "Deepawali" - Deepa
meaning light and Avali, meaning a row. It is celebrated 20 days
after Dussera, on the 13th day of the dark fortnight of the Hindu
calendar month of Ashwin (October-November). The most common legend
related to Diwali is from the epic of the Ramayana (a legendary story
of Lord Rama). King Dashratha had three wives namely Kaushalaya,
Keykayee and Sumitra and four sons Rama, Bharat, Laxmana and
Shatrughan. Rama was the son of Queen Kaushalaya and Bharat was the
son of Queen Keykayee. Keykayee wanted Bharat to be the next King
while the King Dashratha wanted Rama, his eldest son to be the King.
But Keykayee made full use of the two wishes King Dasharatha had once
promised Keykayee and asked for sending Rama to exile for the period
of fourteen years. During that time Lord Rama fought and won tenuous
struggles in the south part of the Indian sub-continent (which some
people believe is now Sri Lanka) killing the king of Demons, Ravana
who had forcibly taken away his wife Sita. Diwali marks his
victorious return to his kingdom, Ayodhya.

Another reason for the celebration of Diwali is that it marks the
killing of the evil Narkasura at the hands of Krishna (a Hindu God).
Naraka is believed to have abducted 16,000 women. Krishna killed him
and rescued these women whom he later married. Naraka is the
personification of hell and is believed to be the monsoon during
which all activities come to a stand still.

In South India, the story widely associated with Diwali is that of
Narasimha, the man-lion incarnation of Vishnu. According to a legend,
Hiranyakshipu was an evil demon king. He was unjust and cruel to his
people. However, he was almost invincible, having extracted a boon
from Brahma (the creator) that he would be killed neither by beast
nor man, neither inside nor outside, neither during the day nor at
night. When his atrocities became unbearable, the gods sought
Vishnu's help. Assuming his fifth incarnation of Narasimha, the man-
lion, Vishnu killed Hiranyakshipu with his claws in the courtyard
just before daybreak, hence steering clear of the boundaries of the
boon.

Diwali or Deepawali is celebrated for a period of five days. The
First day is called Dhanteras or Dhantrayodashi, which falls on the
thirteenth day of the month of Ashwin. 'Dhan' means wealth and this
day is generally observed to acknowledge and welcome wealth. Lakshmi
the Goddess of wealth (wife of Lord Vishnu-the preserver) is believed
to enter houses on this day, therefore entrances are made colourful
with lovely traditional motifs of Rangoli (designs made with coloured
powder) to welcome the Goddess of wealth and prosperity. To indicate
her long-awaited arrival, small footprints are drawn with rice flour
and vermilion powder all over the houses. Lamps are kept burning all
through the nights, since Lakshmi is said not to enter a dark house.
The lamps also welcome home the spirits of dead ancestors, who are
believed to visit on this auspicious night. In addition, the light
frightens away any evil spirit that might be wandering about near the
house on this night. In the state of Orissa, lamps are lit to light
up the dark path so the spirits of ancestors can find their way back
to heaven. In modern times, diyas have been replaced by wax candles
and colored electric bulbs. In villages cattle are adorned and
worshipped by farmers as they form the main source of their income.
Cows are offered special veneration as they are supposed to be the
incarnation of Goddess Lakshmi and therefore they are adorned and
worshipped on this day.

People worship the tools or equipment of their source of income (e.g.
Carpenters worship their tools.) As a symbol of entering wealth,
women folk buy something of value- either utensils or even gold and
silver on this day.

The Second day is called Narka-Chaturdashi or Choti-Diwali, which
falls on the fourteenth day of the month of Ashwin. The legend
related to this day is about the King Bali of the nether world whose
mighty power had become a threat to the gods. In order to curb his
powers Lord Vishnu in the guise of a small boy visited him and begged
him to give him only that much land which he could cover with his
three steps. Known for his philanthropy King Bali proudly granted him
his wish. So with his first step Lord Vishnu covered the entire
heaven, with the second step the earth and asked Bali as to where he
should take the step. Bali offered his own head and so Vishnu put his
foot on Bali's head and pushed him down to the underworld. However
for his generosity Lord Vishnu allowed Bali 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. This day therefore is
dedicated to lights and prayers.

http://www.indiayogi.com/content/festivals/diwali1.asp

The Third day of the festival of Diwali is the most important day of
Lakshmi-Puja, which is entirely devoted to the Goddess Lakshmi. The
mythical belief is that on this day Lakshmi emerged from the ocean.
Lakshmi-Puja commemorates her birth and therefore forms a major part
of Diwali celebrations. It is believed that on this day Lakshmi walks
the earth in every bye-lane and showers her blessings on each
household for prosperity. This day is also known by the name
of "Chopada-Puja". The day of Lakshmi-Puja falls on the dark night of
Amavasya (new moon). It is believed that on this auspicious day Lord
Krishna discarded his body. "Lakshmi-Puja" is performed in the
evenings when tiny diyas (clay lamps) are lit to drive away the
shadows of evil spirits. "Bhajans"(devotional songs) are sung
and "Naivedya"( sweetmeats or traditionally-lightly pound dry
coriander seeds with jaggery ) is offered to the Goddess.

On this very day sun enters his second course and passes Libra which
is represented by the balance or scale. Hence, this representation of
Libra is believed to have suggested the balancing of account books
and they're closing and thus businesses and personal account books
are started/closed on this day. Despite the fact that this day falls
on an amavasya day it is regarded as the most auspicious.

One more interesting story related to this day is of a small boy
called Nichiketa who believed that Yam, the god of Death was as black
as the dark night of amavasya. He on this day met Yam in person and
was puzzled seeing Yam's calm countenance and dignified stature. Yam
explained to Nichiketa on this day of amavasya that by only passing
through the darkness of death, man sees the light of highest wisdom
and then only his soul can escape from the bondage of his mortal
frame to mingle with the Supreme Power without whose will nothing
moves in the world. And then Nichiketa realised the importance of
worldly life and significance of death. Nichiketa's all doubts were
set at rest and he whole-heartedly participated in Diwali
celebrations.

The Fourth day is Padwa or Varshapratipada, which marks the
coronation of King Vikramaditya, and Vikaram-Samvat was started from
this day. The Govardhan-Puja (mountain worship) is also performed on
this day. The people of Gokul used to celebrate a festival in honour
of Lord Indra and worshipped him after the end of every monsoon
season. But one particular year the young Lord Krishna stopped them
from offering prayers to Lord Indra who in terrific anger sent a
deluge to submerge Gokul. But Krishna saved Gokul by lifting up the
Govardhan Mountain and holding it over the people as an umbrella.
This day is also observed as Annakoot meaning mountain of food.
Statues of deities are given a milk-bath and then dressed in
shimmering attire with colourful ornaments. After the prayers a
variety of sweetmeat is ceremoniously raised in the form of a
mountain before the deities and the devotees approach the Mountain of
Food and take Prasad (sweetmeat blessed by the deity) from it.

The Fifth and final day of Diwali Festival is known by the name
Bhaiya-Dooj or Bhav-Bij or Bhai-Tika This day is observed as a symbol
of love between sisters and brothers. The legendary belief is that on
this day Yamraj -the god of death visited his sister Yami and she put
the auspicious tilak on his forehead. They spent the day together,
talking, eating, sharing stories of their lives and exchanged special
gifts as a token of their love for each other. Yamraj then announced
that anyone who receives tilak from his sister on this day would
never be thrown. Since then it became symbolic for the brother to go
to his sister's house to celebrate this day. Today sisters apply
tilak to their brothers and pray for their long and happy life. In
all likelihood, this ritual was originally intended only for married
women. Since they celebrated Diwali with their in-laws, this festival
allowed them to come to their parent's home during this auspicious
time. They got some time to meet the family and to rest after the
hectic activity of the preceding week. And it gave their parents an
opportunity to give them gifts, an opportunity they did not often
get. Nowadays however, among many communities both married and
unmarried sisters observe Bhai-Dooja. It is regarded as a day for the
brother and sister to meet and generally re-establish/reinstate the
love in their relationship.

Today however, Diwali on the whole is the festival with more social
than religious connotations. It is a personal, people-oriented
festival when enmities are forgotten, families and friends meet,
exchange gifts and enjoy feeling of warmth and happiness. This
festive occasion also marks the beginning of the Hindu New Year. The
origin of Diwali can be traced back to ancient India, when it was
probably an important harvesting season. It was thus extremely
important to the largely pastoral Vaishya community. Their granaries
were full, and the weather was good, at the end of the long monsoon
and before the arduous winter. It was therefore a good time to
celebrate. The Vaishya community began their New Year with this happy
occasion, after paying their debts and clearing their ledgers. They
stared their day with the ritual bath, which begins with an oil
massage of the hair and body. This was absolutely essential on this
day. Its importance probably refers to cleaning oneself thoroughly
after the monsoon months. As the religion developed, various
mythological stories and explanations were attributed to this
festival to give it religious sanction. However today, this
historical explanation is all but lost among the many stories and
folklore linked with the origin of the festival. Today people receive
new clothes and gifts from their elders, which they are expected to
wear.

The family then prays for its well being and prosperity. After the
prayers start the main celebrations which consist of bursting
crackers and lighting candles. People then visit friends and
relatives and exchange sweets and gifts. Being one of the main
festivals of the trader community, markets are gaily decorated and
lit up. Firecrackers are lit and burst throughout the five days
(According to one belief, the sound that resounds throughout the
universe makes all aware of the great homecoming of Rama. Another
belief is that the crackers are an indication of the joy of the
people living on the earth, making the gods aware of their plentiful
state. Still another possible reason has amore scientific basis:the
fumes produced by the crackers kill a lot of insects, found in plenty
after the rains.

However the use of high-tech bomb crackers is fairly recent.) Even
the significance of wealth has changed over the years and today the
days are considered lucky for gambling. Giving social sanction to a
vice, a popular saying states that one who does not gamble on this
day will be born a donkey in his next birth. Casinos and local
gambling houses do risk business during the Diwali week. In most
homes, people invite their friends and relatives over to play cards.

In West Bengal, the Deepawali festival is celebrated as Kali-Puja and
Kali, Siva's (the destroyer) consort, is worshipped on this day. It
is believed that on this day Kali killed the wicked Raktavija.

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