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The tradition of celebrating fairs and festivals, runs almost
through out the year, in this country of festivities. Out of the main five
festivals; the Festival of Lights: Diwali has a special importance, which has
come up through the last 5000-7000 years. It is the gayest of the festivals; an
occasion of great excitement and rejoicing. It is an occasion in honour of
Rama's victory over Ravana; of Truth. Illuminations are arranged as welcome to
Rama in Ayodhya. It is observed since then.
The original form of Diwali is Deepawali,which literally means a
row of lights. During Diwali, the feast of lamps, every house is lit with
little earthenware vessels containing oil and a lighted wick, and groups of men
and women assemble along the river bank setting these little lanterns afloat on
tiny rafts and watching with intense interest the frail craft, as they float
down streams. The festivity is in honour of Goddess Lakshmi, the consort of
Visnu, one of the trinity. The fate of the little lamps placed on the breast of
Mother Ganges, is pregnant with auguries of the future fortunes of the pious
Hindus, who assign them to the stream, and that during the illuminations, the
bankers and the merchants counted their money and worshipped it as symbols of
the Goddess, who is the patron of prosperity and whose influence guides the
commercial ventures of the virtuous votaries.
Initially, perhaps this festival was on account of the arrival
of the cold season, after scorching heat of the summer. Later it was a festival
of the farmers, who enjoyed the fruit of their Kharif crop. After the rains,
the traders set sail to other countries and started worshipping Goddess
Lakshmi, because of their gains and profits, so the farmers and the traders
started celebrating the festival emergence, out of the churning of the ocean,
also appeared in legends of the Puranas and this festival began to be
celebrated as the birthday of Lakshmi.
As to why Diwali is celebrated, depends on different prevalent
legends in different parts of India. The most popular is the one of Northern
India, where people believe that this was the day, when Lord Rama, the seventh
incarnation of Lord Vishnu, returned to his kingdom Ayodhya after 14 years of
exile, in which he put an end to the demon Ravana. Ravana of Sri Lanka, was a
great Pundit highly learned, expert in politics, but still evil dominated his
mind. He was not enlightened by the beams of Knowledge. A person, devoid of
knowledge, may be a learned scholar and very strong, but may still be a great
devil. It was the devil in Ravana, which wish to procure all beautiful things
of the world, including Sita, the beautiful sublime consort of Rama. Though
Ravana kidnapped Sita, yet he did not coerce her or forcibly pushed her into
his harem. This was due to his religious learning, being the son of a great
saint, although his mother was a Rakshas woman On the other hand, Rama though
he conquered Sri Lanka, yet he neither occupied it nor levied any tax on it,
but gave the kingdom to Bhabhesan, the brother of Ravana. It was a victory of
righteousness over devilish. Diwali, the festival of lights, is the festival of
spiritualism of such symbols and virtues. The illumination is only symbolic;
just as images are worshipped as symbols of Gods. It is the festival of
lighting the most dark night Amaveseya; enlightenment of the darkness.
In the Western part of India, the legend relates to a demon
monarch Bali, who performed such penance that the gods in the heaven began to
feel threatened. So Lord Visnu, in heaven, then assumed the form of a dwarf
Vamana and came down to earth as the fifth incarnation. At that time, the demon
king was performing a great sacrifice on the earth, in the true Vedic
traditions. It was believed that he satisfied all those, who came to him, by
giving them promised gifts. Vamana went to him. Bali said that Vamana was late
and that he had very little to give him. Vamana asked for just three steps. The
demon king felt reassured He laughed and granted the request. The dwarf
measured the earth with his first step, growing enormously in size as he did
so. With another he measured the heaven."Where do I keep my third
step?" Bali realized that was none other than the Lord himself and so
bowed and offered head for his third step. When Bali vanquished, the Lord also
released prisoners of Bali, among which were Lakshmi, the Goddess of wealth and
Ganesa, the remover of obstacles. When Lakshmi and Ganesa came down to earth,
they brought great prosperity to the people. In the Southern part of India, the
myth is that Lord Visnu in his eighth incarnation as Krishna, destroyed the
demon Narakasura, who was causing great unhappiness amongst the people of the
world. Diwali or Narakachaturthi celebrates the end of this evil. In some parts
of India, Diwali marks the beginning of a new year, because it is believed that
the legendary king Vikramaditya, known for his wissdom, was crowned on this day
at Ujjain.
On the night of Diwali, while the rest of India worships
Lakshmi, Eastern India, particularly West Bengal worships Kali, the Goddess
symbolic of strength (described later).
Tantrics started worshipping Lakshmi under the name of Tripura
Sundari, Maha Lakshmi, Lalita, etc., because they think that they can acquire
supernatural powers (Siddhi), easily be enchanting hymns and Mantras, on this
night. Philosophical thinkers gave the festival the form of the philosophy in
Visnuism, according to which Sri and Lakshmi (beauty and divine prosperity) are
the consorts of Visnu. Visnu is symbolic of all visible creation, Sri and
Lakshmi are integrated with this visible creation and therefore in poetics, are
described as the consorts of Vis'nu. They are both essential elements of
creation, therefore Jains and Buddhists have also adopted them. Sri and
Lakshmi, who are one now, are worshipped in one form in Jainism and Buddhism.
Lakshmi, is the embodiment of knowledge,power and prosperity; so the learned
recognized her as the Goddess of light, the guide of enlightenment from the
darkness of ignorance.
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