Deolali Camp: Diwali, also known as Deepavali, is one of the most celebrated festivals of the country. People buy new clothes, purchase things for their house, clean their house and perform Laxmi Pujan on the Day of Diwali. They draw beautiful rangolis at their doorsteps and light up the whole house with sky lanterns, earthen diyas and decorative lights.
We all are aware of the main reason of celebrating Diwali. It is celebrated after Lord Ram returned from 14 years’ exile and saving Sita from the captivity of Ravan after killing him. However, there are various other reasons why people celebrate Diwali. In Braj region of Northern India, parts of Assam, Tamil and Telugu communities of South, Diwali is celebrated for the defeat of Narakasura.
Lord Krishna, an avatar of Lord Vishnu, killed the demon Narakasura who had held 16,000 girls in captivity.In Western India, Diwali is celebrated as the day Goddess Lakshmi was born from Samudra Manthan, the churning of the cosmic ocean of milk by the Gods and demons. On the night of Diwali, Lakshmi chose Vishnu as her husband and married him.
Guru Hargobind, the sixth Sikh Guru, along with 52 other Hindu kings, was released from captivity by Mughal emperor Jahangir on the day of Diwali. Hence, the day of Diwali is celebrated as ‘Bandi Chor Diwas’ among Sikhs.There are various reasons to celebrate Diwali among different regions and religions. However, the most important aspect is that what we learn from the festival of Diwali.
“As we all know, Deepavali is celebrated for the return of Lord Ram to Ayodhya. However, we don’t realise that he had spent 14 years in exile before that. What we learn from Diwali is that happiness and sadness are a part of our lives. Like a coin has two faces, similarly, our life has two phases. We need to have faith that after sadness, happiness will follow. After 14 years of exile, the whole Ayodhya was decorated with diyas for Lord Ram’s arrival. Have faith that good things will happen and keep a positive mindset”.
– Pandit Ghanshyam Murlidhar