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Diwali
Diwali (), Dewali, Divali, or Deepavali ( IAST: ''dīpāvalī''), also known as the Festival of Lights, related to Jain Diwali, Bandi Chhor Divas, Tihar, Swanti, Sohrai, and Bandna, is a religious celebration in Indian religions. It is one of the most important festivals within Hinduism where it generally lasts five days (or six in some regions of India), and is celebrated during the Hindu lunisolar months of Ashvin (according to the amanta tradition) and Kartika (between mid-October and mid- November).''The New Oxford Dictionary of English'' (1998) – p. 540 "Diwali /dɪwɑːli/ (also Diwali) noun a Hindu festival with lights...". It is a post-harvest festival celebrating the bounty following the arrival of the monsoon in the subcontinent. Diwali symbolises the spiritual "victory of light over darkness, good over evil, and knowledge over ignorance".Jean Mead, ''How and why Do Hindus Celebrate Divali?'', The festival is widely associated with Lakshmi,Suzanne Barc ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Diwali (Jainism)
Diwali in Jainism marks the anniversary of ''Nirvana'' (final release) or liberation of Mahavira's soul, the twenty fourth and last Jain Tirthankara of present cosmic age. It is also celebrated at the same time as the Hindu festival of Diwali. Diwali marks the end of the year for the Jains and it likewise remembers the passing commemoration of their 24th Tirthankara Mahavira and his achievement of moksha. History Mahavira attained Moksha (liberation) on this day at Pawapuri on 15 October 527 BCE, on Chaturdashi of Kartika, as confirmed by ''Tilyapannatti'' of Yativrsabha. Mahavira, the 24th ''Tirthankara'' of this era, revitalised Jain dharma. According to tradition, the chief disciple of Mahavira, ''Ganadhara'' Gautam Swami also attained omniscience i.e. absolute or complete knowledge ('' Kevala Jñāna'') on this day, thus making Diwali one of the most important Jain festivals. Mahavira attained his nirvana at the dawn of the amavasya (new moon). According to the ''Ś ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Diya (light)
A diya, diyo, deya, deeya, dia, divaa, deepa, deepam, deep , deepak or saaki is an oil lamp made from clay or mud with a cotton wick dipped in Oil or ghee. These lamps are commonly used in the Indian subcontinent and they hold sacred prominence in Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist and Jain prayers as well as religious rituals, ceremonies and festivals including Diwali. Traditional use Clay diyas are symbolically lit during prayers, rituals and ceremonies; they are permanent fixtures in homes and temples. The warm, bright glow emitted from a diya is considered auspicious - it represents enlightenment, prosperity, knowledge and wisdom. Diyas represent the triumph of light over dark, good over evil with the most notable example of this being on the day of Diwali. Diwali is celebrated every year to celebrate the triumph of good over evil as told in the Hindu epic, the Ramayana. Diwali marks the day Lord Shri Rama, Goddess Sita devi and Lakshmana returned home to Ayodhya after 14 years in e ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Govardhan Puja
Govardhan Puja (), also known as Annakut or Annakoot (meaning a “mountain of food”), is a Hindu festival in which devotees worship Govardhan Hill and prepare and offer a large variety of vegetarian food to Krishna as a mark of gratitude. For Vaishnavas, this day commemorates the incident in the ''Bhagavata Purana'' when Krishna lifted Govardhan Hill to provide the villagers of Vrindavan shelter from torrential rains. The incident is seen to represent how God will protect all devotees who take singular refuge in him. Devotees offer a mountain of food, metaphorically representing the Govardhan Hill, to God as a ritual remembrance and to renew their faith in taking refuge in God. The festival is observed by most of Hindu denominations all over India and abroad. For Vaishnavas, particularly the Pushtimarg of Vallabha, the Gaudiya Sampradaya of Chaitanya and the Swaminarayan Sampradaya, it is one of the important festivals. The Annakut festival occurs on the first lunar day of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dhanteras
Dhanteras ( hi, धनतेरस), also known as Dhanatrayodashi ( sa, धनत्रयोदशी), is the first day that marks the festival of Diwali in most of India. It is celebrated on the thirteenth lunar day (Trayodashi) of Krishna Paksha (dark fortnight) in the Hindu calendar month of Ashwayuja (according to the amanta tradition) or Kartika (according to the purnimanta tradition). Dhanvantari, who is also worshipped on the occasion of Dhanteras, is considered the God of Ayurveda who imparted the wisdom of Ayurveda for the betterment of mankind, and to help rid it of the suffering of disease. The Indian ministry of Ayurveda, Yoga and Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homeopathy, announced its decision to observe Dhanteras, as the "National Ayurveda Day", which was first observed on 28 October 2016. Usually, Gujarati families will enjoy a meal of ''daal baath'' and ''malpua'' to ring in the new year. Celebrations Vasubaras marks the beginning of the celebration ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Balipratipada
, also called as ''Bali Padyami'', ''Padva'', ''Virapratipada'' or ''Dyutapratipada'', is the fourth day of Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights. It is celebrated in honour of the notional return of the daitya-king Bali to earth. Bali Padyami falls in the Gregorian calendar months of October or November. It is the first (or 16th) day of the Hindu month of Kartika and is the first day of its bright lunar fortnight. In many parts of India such as Gujarat and Rajasthan, it is the regional traditional New Year Day in Vikram Samvat and also called the Bestu Varas or ''Varsha Pratipada''. This is the half amongst the three and a half muhurats in a year.This is celebrated as the New Year's Day according to the "Vikram Samvat". The Balipratipada is an ancient festival. The earliest mention of Bali's story being acted out in dramas and poetry of ancient India is found in the c. 2nd-century BCE '' Mahābhāṣya'' of Patanjali on Panini's ''Astadhyayi'' 3.1.26. The festival has link ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Naraka Chaturdashi
Naraka Chaturdashi (also known as Kali Chaudas, Narak Chaudas, Roop Chaudas, Choti Diwali, Narak Nivaran Chaturdashi or Bhoot Chaturdashi) is a Hindu festival that falls on Chaturdashi (the 14th day) of the Krishna Paksha in the Hindu calendar month of Ashwayuja (according to the amanta tradition) or Kartika (according to the purnimanta tradition). It is the second day of the five-day long festival of Diwali (also known as Deepavali). Hindu literature narrates that the asura (demon) Narakasura was killed on this day by Krishna and Satyabhama. The day is celebrated by early morning religious rituals, and festivities follow on. Meaning in Hinduism The festival is also called ''Kali Chaudas'', where ''Kali'' means dark (eternal) and ''Chaudas'' means fourteenth, since it is celebrated on the 14th day of the lunar month of Kārtika or Krishna Paksha. In some regions of India, Kali Chaudas is the day allotted for the worship of Mahakali or Shakti. It is believed that on ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rangoli
Rangoli is an art form that originates from in the Indian subcontinent, in which patterns are created on the floor or a tabletop using materials such as powdered lime stone, red ochre, dry rice flour, coloured sand, quartz powder, flower petals, and coloured rocks. It is an everyday practice in many Hindu households, however the colours are preferred during festivals and other important celebrations as it is time consuming. Rangolis are usually made during Diwali or Tihar, Onam, Pongal, and other Hindu festivals in the Indian subcontinent, and are most often made during Diwali. Designs are passed from one generation to the next, keeping both the art form and the tradition alive. Rangoli have different names based on the state and culture. Rangoli hold a significant role in the everyday life of a Hindu household especially historically when the flooring of houses were untiled. They are usually made outside the threshold of the main entrance, in the early mornings after cleaning ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bandi Chhor Divas
Bandi Chhor Divas (Punjabi: ਬੰਦੀ ਛੋੜ ਦਿਵਸ ; meaning) is a Sikh celebration that commemorates the day the sixth Guru of Sikhs, Guru Hargobind released 52 prisoners from Gwalior Fort, who had been imprisoned by Mughal Emperor Jahangir. Emperor Jahangir had held 52 prisioners at the Gwalior Fort for several months. Gurdwara Data Bandi Chhor Sahib, is located at the place of the Gurus internment in the Fort. The day falls in autumn and often overlaps with Hindu Diwali, the festival of lights celebrated across Punjab. Historically, from the time of the third Sikh Guru Amar Das, Sikhs and Hindus of the time used the occasion of Diwali, Vaisakhi and other such festivals to congregate at the seat of the Gurus., Quote: "Since the time of Guru Amar Das it has been customary for Sikhs to assemble before their Guru on three of the most important Hindu festival occasions - Vaisakhi, Divali and Maha Shivaratri". In the late 20th century, Sikh religious leaders and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tihar (festival)
Tihar (also known as Deepawali and Yamapanchak) is a five-day Hindu festival celebrated in Nepal and the Indian states of Sikkim and West Bengal, particularly the towns of Darjeeling and Kalimpong, which host a large number of ethnic Indian Gorkha people. Tihar is analogous to the Indian festival of Diwali, the festival of lights, but some significant differences. Like with Diwali, Tihar is marked by lighting '' diyo'' inside and outside the home but unlike the Indian festival, the five days of Tihar include celebration and worship of the four creatures associated with the Hindu god of death Yama, with the final day reserved for people themselves. According to the Vikram Samvat calendar, the festival begins with Kaag (crow) Tihar on Trayodashi tithi of Kārtika '' kṛṣṇa'' pakṣa (the 13th day of the waning moon) and ends with Bhai Tika on Dwitiya tithi of Kārtika śukla pakṣa every year. In the Gregorian calendar, the festival falls sometime between October and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bhai Dooj
Bhai Dooj, Bhaubeej, Bhai Tika, Bhai Phonta or Bhratri Dwitiya is a festival celebrated by Hindus on the second lunar day of the Shukla Paksha (bright fortnight) of Kartika, the eighth month of the Vikram Samvat Hindu calendar or the Shalivahana Shaka calendar. It is celebrated during the Diwali or Tihar festival and Holi festival. The celebrations of this day are similar to the festival of Raksha Bandhan. In the southern part of India, the day is celebrated as Yama Dwitiya. In the Kayastha community, two Bhai Doojs are celebrated. The more famous one comes on the second day after Diwali. But the lesser-known one is celebrated a day or two after Diwali. In Haryana and Uttar Pradesh a ritual also followed, a dry coconut (named gola in regional language) with klewa tied along its width for worshipping is also used at the time of doing ''aarti'' of a brother.In Bengal the day is celebrated as Bhai Phota, which comes one day after Kali Puja. Regional names The festival is known as ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jains
Jainism ( ), also known as Jain Dharma, is an Indian religion. Jainism traces its spiritual ideas and history through the succession of twenty-four tirthankaras (supreme preachers of ''Dharma''), with the first in the current time cycle being Rishabhadeva, whom the tradition holds to have lived millions of years ago, the twenty-third ''tirthankara'' Parshvanatha, whom historians date to the 9th century BCE, and the twenty-fourth ''tirthankara'' Mahavira, around 600 BCE. Jainism is considered to be an eternal '' dharma'' with the ''tirthankaras'' guiding every time cycle of the cosmology. The three main pillars of Jainism are ''ahiṃsā'' (non-violence), ''anekāntavāda'' (non-absolutism), and ''aparigraha'' (asceticism). Jain monks, after positioning themselves in the sublime state of soul consciousness, take five main vows: ''ahiṃsā'' (non-violence), ''satya'' (truth), ''asteya'' (not stealing), ''brahmacharya'' (chastity), and ''aparigraha'' (non-possessiveness). These ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sohrai
Sohrai is a harvest festival of the Indian states of Bihar, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Odisha, and West Bengal. It also called cattle festival. It is celebrated after harvest and coincide with Govardhan Puja of Diwali festival. It is celebrated by Sadan, Oraons, Munda and Santal among others. It is celebrated on Amavasya of the Hindu month Kartik in the month of October–November. In this festival, people fast, paint house, prepared food. In night, they light earthen lamps in the cattle-sheds and offered sacrifice to deity of animals Gaurea also known as Pasupati. Names It coincides with Govardhan Puja of North India. It is also known as Bandna festival. Celebration Sohrai is harvest festival celebrated after harvest. The festival is celebrated on Amavasya(new moon) in the Hindu month of Kartik(October–November). The feast is celebrated in the honour of cattle especially bullocks, buffalos, goats and sheep. On the day people fast throughout the day, earthen lamps li ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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