Deepavali

Christina Lee 

Deepavali, or more commonly known as the “festival of the lights,” is one of the most important festivals of Hinduism that spans over the course of five days. The origin of the festival stemmed from the story about Lord Rama from the Hindu epic Ramayana. When Rama and his wife, Sita, returned to their country after fourteen years of exile, the people welcomed them by lighting small oil lamps called diye. At night during the festival, similar oil lamps still illuminate households and temples, being a beautiful symbol of the inner victory of goodness over evil. In anticipation for Deepavali, many families cleaned their houses and adorned the entrances with colorful patterns called ragoli. Very much like Chinese New Year, Deepavali symbolizes a new beginning for the hopes of a financially prosperous year. Offices and households are thus decorated with Lakshmi, the goddess of fortune. Varying with regional traditions, Deepavali also honors the marriage of Vishnu and Lakshmi or Lord Krishna’s victory over the demon Naraka.

            Since school is off for a day on such a special occasion, one must be curious as to how staff and students spent this holiday. The most common heard response from staff and students, including myself, was “sleeping in.” The holiday certainly gave many a chance to rejuvenate for the coming week, and it also gave them a chance to catch up on work.

Mr. R. Ramesh, a national staff member, gave a thorough description on how he celebrated Deepavali, as follows: “In the morning, my whole family went to the temple to pray at 8:00 am. Then we got back and called friends to celebrate with us. After eating lunch together at 12:00, we all sat down and watched a Deepavali themed movie. After the movie, these friends and family members are separated into different groups. Individual groups may go to different places to chat or have drinks.”

 Interestingly, the security guard for my apartment gave a similar answer but with a little difference, being, “Warly in the morning, my whole family took an oil bath for Deepavali. Then we got blessings from the elders in the family who provided us with new clothes. We wore the new clothes to the temple to pray. When we come back, we prayed again at the small alter in the house. Then we had breakfast together as a family and then invited friends to join us for lunch.”

Deepavali is not just a festival exclusively for those of Hinduism faith, but people of various ethnicities and beliefs are also welcome to take part in this vibrant festival as well. So, how did you spend the 2015 festival of the lights?