I have a frenetic week planned : I am heading to the local market to buy flowers, colors for making rangoli and fresh ingredients for the four course meal which is cooked today , then heading to pickup clay lamps and festive lights. I will also be making up-pit stop at my favorite jewellery shop to buy some gold coins for “Pooja”.
Hey everyone, you all might be wondering who I am preparing for . I assure you, this is not normal for me. But this one week every year, I have a never ending smile on my face. It’s going to be DIWALI soon, the Hindu festival of lights. The Diwali is an important Hindu Festival. It falls on the new moon day in the month of kartik. According to the English calendar, it falls towards the end of October or the beginning of November. It also tells of fresh beginning as we open new Checkbooks and Diaries as well as clean our homes. North India celebrates Diwali as lord Rama’s homecoming to Ayodhya after defeating the rakshasa king of Lanka, Ravana. It was on this day that lord Rama, Sita and Laxman returned after an exile of 14 years. The people gave them hearty welcome making light lamps and diyas as well as George on sweets. The festival celebrates new beginnings, the triumph of good over evil and light over darkness.
The Diwali Celebrations are loud and colorful. As a family, we spent most of the week preparing the house preparing and decorating before Diwali begins. The main part of any Indian festival is its food. I’d eagerly anticipate my mother’s main-course and sweets for Diwali dinner. I would love huddling for hours with my family to decorate our flours with rangoli designs around the house to symbolically welcome Laxmi, The goddess of well. From dozens of bright lights at any house entrance ; to clay diyas, string lights and colorful urlis distributed in each room around my, the festive season was visible everywhere.
After the evening laxmi pooja fireworks would follow. All friends burns fireworks together and eat sweets. As each one of us was in wonder, Diwali gave us a gift of togetherness, happiness, connecting to our roots and most importantly of memories that would last us a lifetime.
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