The annual fiesta celebrated in a very pomp manner across India is the Festival of Lights called Diwali !! This is the religious festival icon of the country. As per the Hindu legends, Diwali is the day when the Demon King Naragasura was killed. To symbolize the victory of Good over the Evil, Diwali is celebrated on the No moon day of the Tamil month Ippasi , which falls during October – November every year. This year, Diwali is celebrated on 6th November 2018.
Diwali preparations :
Weeks ahead of Diwali, the country wears the festive look. Being the largest country with the maximum number of consumers, you can find the shopping zones flooded with people everywhere. Children await the festival celebrating with new dresses and sweets.
Crackers are the highlights of Diwali festival besides the other things. Days before the festival, you can listen to the sounds of crackers as a welcoming note to the festival of lights. Sivakasi, a small town in the down south of Tamil Nadu is the largest manufacturers of Crackers in India. Crackers are exported from this small town to almost all parts of the country. Right from the smallest one, the varieties of crackers are so amusing that it is the significant entertainment for the children as well as the elders.
Diwali celebrations:
As per the Hindu tradition, celebrating Diwali has its own protocols and procedures. On the day of Diwali, people get up so early around 4pm. Even before that the women in the house can be seen preparing the breakfast for all. Though Indian families are nucleus due to geographical, economical and other reasons, Diwali is the festival which everyone finds it a reason to be together as a joint family. The women will be preparing delicious breakfast with more number of food items special in their regions. The most staple food in the respective region will be definitely available with other delicious items and sweets. All members in the family will be blessed by the eldest women in the family once all of them take the oil bath and worship the God. Special poojas and rituals are done and the eldest member of the family blesses everyone with the new dress and crackers. The festival begins and everyone rush to the street the play with the crackers. You can also see people from other families visit each other to exchange greetings and to get blessings from the elders.
Diwali in North India:
Diwali is a celebration that rejuvenates and reunites the families and friends. As Indians are diasporic, Diwali is celebrated in all countries wherever Indians are living in majority. In North India, Diwali is celebrated to mark the victory of Lord Rama over the demon king Ravana as per the Hindu epic Ramayana. It is believed that since the ancient days, the festival is infallibly observed to celebrate the come back of Lord Rama with his wife Goddess Sita, recovered from the hostage in Sri Lanka. Diwali in North India starts with Dhanteras, where people purchase gold, silver and copper as they are considered to be auspicious. The Diwali day is auspicious for Traders and business men in North India as the new financial year for them commences on this day. Poojas dedicated to Goddess Lakshmi and the dramatic interpretation of the Ramayan episodes are conducted in different parts of the cities.
Though the rituals and the purposes differ, Diwali is the ultimate festival where it remains true and constant that Diwali is the celebration of life, its enjoyment and a great sense of goodness. Indian Panorama wishes everyone a safe and Happy Diwali 2018 !!