Hindu Festival of Lights in India: A Happy Diwali to all

2008-10-28 06:30:06 - The Most colorful festival of Indian subcontinent is being celebrated today as the entire country goes worshiping Goddess Lakshmi and Lord Ganesha,as Lakshmi the Goddess of wealth and Ganesha the good omen Lord to give success in acts of human for the welfare of all human beings.Festival of Lights,lighting a an oil based lamps a symbolic way of our spirit to get rid of darkness and let the inner light lit our self.  It is also said the that as invention of fire came to knowledge of human beings,the comforts from chill winter and food for body flourished in primitive ages.Each house is lit and decorated with hundreds of earthen lamps and candles give an aesthetic look to the cities and town,villages with fireworks at its best in evening to midnight brings call of Lord Rama back home from his fourteen years of exiled imposed to Him by his stepmother.  One of the festivals that unite the people irrespective of their religion and nationality is Diwali in Singapore. Hindus celebrate the annual Festival of Lights - Diwali - with elaborate light and candle decorations, creating a beautiful spectacle as the night draws in. The festive atmosphere generates a feeling of joy and happiness and is to be felt and shared in Singapore. As a policy, crackers are not sold to avoid noise pollution and only sparklers can be bought. To mark Deepavali- the Hindu festival of lights, "Little India" on Serangoon Road is decorated with lights, garlands and colorful arches. Today, Little India is the emotional and commercial center of the local Indian community. On Diwali day, children accompanied by parents will go to open area to light the sparklers since most of the people live in high-rise apartments. There are more than 18 temples in Singapore and it is customary to offer prayers at the temples. The whole atmosphere provides a feeling of being at home and enables newcomers to easily integrate with the rest of the society. This reminds us of the Tamil proverb "Yaadhum Oore Yaavarum Kelir" which means, 'every country is my own and all the people are my kinsmen.'  Nepal is another good place to see the magnificent Diwali celebration. Diwali in Nepal is called Tihar. Just like Indians, Diwali is celebrated here to honor the goddess of wealth (Lakshmi) and the God of prosperity (Ganesha). The whole of Nepal is decorated with lights and lamps. Special foods like sweets of different forms are prepared to mark the festivity. Fireworks and crackers are used widely all around. Myanmar has a good number of Hindu population and most of the Hindu festivals are celebrated over there. Diwali celebrations in Myanmar is really full of glory and fun and is celebrated as per the Hindu solar calendar. The day of the festival is celebrated by worshiping God. The Houses are decorated with lights and lamps, special foods are prepared, gifts are exchanged and fireworks are enjoyed to mark the occasion.  Diwali Mauritius is celebrated with great enthusiasm at Mauritius as this country have great Indian crowd. The Diwali celebrations at Mauritius is as good as in India. The festival of lights- Diwali is celebrated in October/November. Diwali marks the victory of Rama over Ravana and also commemorates Krishna's destruction of the demon Narakasuran. Earthen oil lamps are placed in front of every home turning the island into a fairyland of flickering lights.  Hindu community of Malaysia constitutes about 8% of its total population. The community celebrates Diwali festival as a symbol of triumph of good over evil. The Malaysian people call Diwali as Hari Diwali. The south Indian tradition of oil bath precedes all the rituals of Diwali Festival. The Diwali celebration includes visits to temples and prayers at household altars.Diwali is celebrated almost all over the Malaysia except in Sarawak Federal Territory of Labuan.  The Indonesian island of Bali is famous for celebrating the festival of Diwali, as a majority of the population here are Indians. It is one of the most revered festivals of the locals here. The celebration and rituals of the festival is mostly similar to that celebrated by their counterparts in India.  Australia the wonderful island, continent a vast countrywith cosmopolitan culture on Indian Ocean has an estimated 100000 Indians as settled in Australia. Many of the Indians here are recent arrivals are professionals, that belong to the affluent sections of the Indian societyand to Hindu's here, Diwali is one of the major festivals that is celebrated with great enthusiasm. The lightening of lamps and diyas on Diwali is a common practice. Lack of logistics and appropriate material for celebrations have influenced which has given Diwali an Austalian touch in the celebration of the festival of light