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Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. [167] In 2020, the INDF ETF was launched to mark the start of Diwali. Join half a million readers enjoying Newsweek's free newsletters. While different historical events are observed in different regions and by different faiths, Diwali represents the triumph of light over darkness, and knowledge over ignorance for all the cultures that celebrate it. [43] The lamps from the puja ceremony are then used to light more earthenware lamps, which are placed in rows along the parapets of temples and houses,[130] while some diyas are set adrift on rivers and streams. Diwali is usually celebrated twenty days after the Vijayadashami festival, with Dhanteras, or the regional equivalent, marking the first day of the festival when celebrants prepare by cleaning their homes and making decorations on the floor, such as rangolis. It is intended to signify a brother's duty to protect his sister as well as sisters blessing their brothers. [109] Textual evidence suggests that Bengali Hindus worshipped Lakshmi before the colonial era, and that the Kali puja is a more recent phenomenon. The Prayer Hymn (Aarti) for the Hindu Diwali Celebration, The Real Reason for the Hindu Raksha Bandhan Celebration, Hindu Calendar: Days, Months, Years and Epochs, Fasting, Praying, and Regular Hindu Rituals. [60] It is mentioned in the Ramayana that Diwali was celebrated for only 2 years in Ayodhya. Small business owners give gifts or special bonus payments to their employees between Dhanteras and Lakshmi Pujan. [52] In Nepal, it is also a multiday festival, although the days and rituals are named differently, with the climax being called the Tihar festival by Hindus and Swanti festival by Buddhists. Confectioners and shops create Diwali-themed decorative displays, selling these in large quantities, which are stocked for home celebrations to welcome guests and as gifts. On this day, sisters will give gifts to their brothers and invite them to enjoy a meal. [101] According to J.S. [79] Throughout the epic, Rama's decisions were always in line with dharma (duty) and the Diwali festival serves as a reminder for followers of hinduism to maintain their dharma in day to day life. The one festival in India that is celebrated above the caste & religion that is Diwali. This year, Diwali will be on Thursday, Nov. 4. iStockphoto.com/SoumenNath What Do People Do? The darkest night is the apex of the celebration and coincides with the second half of October or early November in the Gregorian calendar. It's observed on the 15th day of Kartik, the holiest month in the Hindu lunar calendar. [86][87], Trade and merchant families and others also offer prayers to Saraswati, who embodies music, literature and learning and Kubera, who symbolises book-keeping, treasury and wealth management. It's the holiday season and Diwali is around the corner. Diwali is celebrated for five days, each with its own special significance. It's been 11 years since we celebrated Diwali at our family homes back in India, but that will never stop us from feeling at home, celebrating traditions, and embracing it. It was in early 20th-century, states Harjot Oberoi, a scholar of Sikh history, when the Khalsa Tract Society triggered by the, Hindus of eastern and northeastern states of India associate the festival with the goddess. For some Hindus, it is a day to pray for the peace to the manes, or defiled souls of one's ancestors and light their way for their journeys in the cyclic afterlife. The fifth day, called Bhai Dooj, Bhai Tika, or Bhai Bij, celebrates the bond between brothers and sisters. The legislation will come into effect next year, and Diwali will replace Anniversary Day, which is also known as Brooklyn-Queens Day, so that schools can still deliver the 180-day requirement of . When is Navaratri in 2021, 2022, and 2023? This year, it begins in the first week of November from 2nd-6th. Earlier in the season's fortnight, some welcome the souls of their ancestors to join the family for the festivities with the Mahalaya. Diwali is celebrated over five days in most of North India. [83][84][85] Hindus from the Braj region in northern India, parts of Assam, as well as southern Tamil and Telugu communities view Diwali as the day the god Krishna overcame and destroyed the evil demon king Narakasura, in yet another symbolic victory of knowledge and good over ignorance and evil. It is determined by the Indian calendar and the dates of celebration change every year. However, in South India, the festival is observed as the defeat of Narakasura. Goddess of Wealth, Lakshmi Devi is worshipped on this day and it is customary to purchase precious articles. [86], Mythical tales shared on Diwali vary widely depending on region and even within Hindu tradition,[88] yet all share a common focus on righteousness, self-inquiry and the importance of knowledge,[89][90] which, according to Lindsey Harlan, an Indologist and scholar of Religious Studies, is the path to overcoming the "darkness of ignorance". Goddess Lakshmi, the goddess of good fortune and prosperity, is the primary deity worshiped during Diwali. Holi Dates: When is Holi in 2021, 2022 and 2023? [135][61] While the cleaning, or painting, of the home is in part for goddess Lakshmi, it also signifies the ritual "reenactment of the cleansing, purifying action of the monsoon rains" that would have concluded in most of the Indian subcontinent. The women, in particular, adorn themselves in colourful attire and decorate their hands with henna. The day of Diwali itself falls on November 4.. [43], The puja and rituals in the Bengali Hindu community focus on Kali, the goddess of war, instead of Lakshmi. The date of Deepavali on the new moon makes it the darkest night in the month of Kartik, when the nights are cold, long, and dark: all the lights make that darkness easier to bear. Diwali (English: /dwli/), Dewali, Divali,[3] or Deepavali (IAST: dpval), also known as the Festival of Lights,[4][5] related to Jain Diwali, Bandi Chhor Divas, Tihar, Swanti, Sohrai, and Bandna, is a religious[6] celebration in Indian religions. [58] The Venetian merchant and traveler Niccol de' Conti visited India in the early 15th-century and wrote in his memoir, "on another of these festivals they fix up within their temples, and on the outside of the roofs, an innumerable number of oil lamps which are kept burning day and night" and that the families would gather, "clothe themselves in new garments", sing, dance and feast. Get a Britannica Premium subscription and gain access to exclusive content. They also spend time with family and friends to enjoy good food and fireworks. This year it was from November 5th-9th and in 2019 it will be October 25-29th. [53][54], The five-day long festival originated in the Indian subcontinent and is likely a fusion of harvest festivals in ancient India. Das, Subhamoy. Scholars contest the 527 BCE date and consider Mahavira's biographical details as uncertain. Diwali, also spelled Divali, is one of the major religious festivals in Hinduism, Jainism, and Sikhism. In Sri Lanka and. "There were a hundred-plus of us at my cousin's house each year," she explains. [43][82] Along with Lakshmi, who is representative of Vaishnavism, Ganesha, the elephant-headed son of Parvati and Shiva of Shaivism tradition, is remembered as one who symbolises ethical beginnings and the remover of obstacles. According to Truschke, Aurangzeb did so because he found the festivals "distasteful" and also from "concerns with public safety" lurking in the background. "Deepawali" and "Dipawali" redirect here. On the Gregorian calendar, the festival falls between October and November. Since the 18th century, Diwali has been celebrated in Sikhism as the time of Guru Hargobinds return to Amritsar from captivity in Gwalior, an echo of Lord Ramas return to Ayodhya. [181][182], The use of firecrackers on Diwali increases the concentration of dust and pollutants in the air. Many light diyas and keep them burning throughout the night. According to Pintchman, the start of the 5-day Diwali festival is stated in some popular contemporary sources as the day Goddess Lakshmi was born from Samudra manthan, the churning of the cosmic ocean of milk by the Devas (gods) and the Asuras (demons) a Vedic legend that is also found in several Puranas such as the Padma Purana, while the night of Diwali is when Lakshmi chose and wed Vishnu. It is observed by the Vajrayana Buddhist minority among the Newarpeople of Nepal. Diwali was not a public holiday in Pakistan from 1947 to 2016. Some Hindu communities mark the last day as Bhai Dooj or the regional equivalent, which is dedicated to the bond between sister and brother,[111] while other Hindu and Sikh craftsmen communities mark this day as Vishwakarma Puja and observe it by performing maintenance in their work spaces and offering prayers. Amavasya Tithi on Diwali begins at. [108] During Diwali, people wear their finest clothes, illuminate the interior and exterior of their homes with saaki (earthen lamp), diyas and rangoli, perform worship ceremonies of Lakshmi, the goddess of prosperity and wealth,[l] light fireworks, and partake in family feasts, where mithai (sweets) and gifts are shared. Iff a festival falls in the waning phase of the moon, these two traditions identify the same lunar day as falling in two different (but successive) masa. Some Muslims joined the Hindu community in celebrating Diwali in the Mughal era. Diwali was celebrated as a signifier of triumph of good over evil after Krishna's Victory over Narakasura. [115][144][145], The agricultural symbolism is also observed on this day by many Hindus as Annakut, literally "mountain of food". Subhadra welcomes him with a tilaka on his forehead. This festival gets its name from "Deepa" meaning "Light" and "Avali" meaning "Row". Learn Religions, Oct. 12, 2021, learnreligions.com/when-is-diwali-1539426. Diwali is an important festival in Jainism. [148] On this day the womenfolk of the family gather, perform a puja with prayers for the well being of their brothers, then return to a ritual of feeding their brothers with their hands and receiving gifts. In South India the festival marks Krishnas defeat of the demon Narakasura. Typically the holiday falls in October or November, as it's observed on the 15th day of Kartik, the holy month of the Hindu lunar calendar . [120] The term "chhoti" means little, while "Naraka" means hell and "Chaturdashi" means "fourteenth". The Diwali festival dates back to ancient times in India. Diwali is also an important festival in Jainism. Gambling, especially in the form of card games, is encouraged as a way of ensuring good luck in the coming year and in remembrance of the games of dice played by Shiva and Parvati on Mount Kailasa or similar contests between Radha and Krishna. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors. The exact dates change each year but this year, Diwali falls on Monday 24 October. Sikhs historically referred to this festival as Diwali. Patrice J. Williams is a travel and style content creator, fact-checker and author of the thrift shopping book. Sanskrit inscriptions in stone and copper mentioning Diwali, occasionally alongside terms such as Dipotsava, Dipavali, Divali and Divalige, have been discovered at numerous sites across India. amnta / primnta. [112] [o] The looms, tools of trade, machines and workplaces are cleaned and prayers offered to these livelihood means. [68] In his paper on The Lunar Year of the Hindus, Jones, then based in Bengal, noted four of the five days of Diwali in the autumn months of Aswina-Cartica [sic] as the following: Bhutachaturdasi Yamaterpanam (2nd day), Lacshmipuja dipanwita (the day of Diwali), Dyuta pratipat Belipuja (4th day), and Bhratri dwitiya (5th day). [153][p] In the modern day, Diwali mela are held at college, or university, campuses or as community events by members of the Indian diaspora. This festive day is interpreted by some to symbolise Yama's sister Yamuna welcoming Yama with a tilaka, while others interpret it as the arrival of Krishna at his sister Subhadra's place after defeating Narakasura. Diwali or Deepawali, known as the "festival of lights," is usually celebrated in October or November, and is on October 24 this year.