Around one billion people worldwide and across the U.S. will celebrate Diwali this week.
Diwali, also known as Deepavali and the Hindu “Festival of Lights,” is one of India's most widely celebrated holidays. It overlaps with other harvest rituals and festivals. The dates for the holiday vary each year as they follow the lunar calendar. Diwali originated in India more than 2,500 years ago. The annual festival, which expands to the Indian diaspora, is usually observed for five days or even as short as one day, depending on where a person lives or how the person celebrates.
This year's celebration also coincides with the U.S. presidential election, in which Vice President Kamala Harris, who is Black and South Asian, could make history if elected president. Harris, who is Christian, has expressed pride in her Indian heritage and has celebrated Diwali at her official residence in Washington, D.C., in recent years. In a message in 2021, she called for those to “remember to honor the light within one another.”
The possibility of someone with South Asian heritage ascending to the highest office in the U.S. has added even more excitement to Diwali for some South Asian Americans, including Deepak Sarma, who is 54 years old, and says Harris’ presence in politics helps elevate them.
“We're part of the American landscape,” Sarma, the inaugural distinguished scholar in the public humanities at Case Western Reserve University, says.
Sarma and others who celebrate Diwali share the holiday's significance in their lives.
Here are some things you should know about Diwali.
Diwali is not just celebrated by Indians and Hindus
Diwali is celebrated mainly by Hindus and Indians across the Indian diaspora for different reasons. It is also celebrated among other South Asian religions in various ways.
“Different religious traditions in India each fit their religious themes and narratives into Diwali. Some Hindus, for example, believe Diwali to be the return of Lord Rama, an avatar of Vishnu, from 14 years of exile,” Sarma says. “Other Hindus believe it to be the celebration of the killing of the asura (demon) Narakasura by Lord Krishna, another avatar of Vishnu.”
Some Hindus see Diwali as a chance to worship and celebrate the Hindu goddess of wealth, Lakshmi. And for others, like Sarma, Diwali is the “victory of knowledge over ignorance.”
Diwali celebrations for Sikhs commemorate the release of Guru Hargobind, who was imprisoned around 1617 and released in 1619, according to Ravi Gupta, department head of History and professor of religious studies at Utah State University.
Jains also celebrate Diwali. They do it in remembrance of the day Lord Mahavira, revered as one of the great teachers of the religion, who attained Nirvana or enlightenment.
“In each of these Indic traditions, we find that Diwali holds some sort of significance and a reason for celebration, often a representation of hope and the victory of goodness,” Gupta says.
Traditions such as food hold sacred meaning
Another name for Diwali, Deepavali, means “garland of lights,” and garlanding is an act of reverence in India, according to Sarma, who was born on Diwali. Their first name — Deepak — is an homage to the holiday. To honor someone, a person may place a garland of flowers around them, such as the statues of deities in the temples, Sarma says
“People aren't garlanding other people with lights," Sarma says.
Diwali also occurs on the night of a new moon, adding to the importance of lights during Diwali. In the darkness of night, roads and paths in India are lined with oil lamps illuminating the way to temples where gods and goddesses are honored among lights. People will also clean their homes and ensure every room is lit with lamps the night of Diwali, as it is believed that the goddess Lakshmi visits well-lit homes, Gupta says.
There are also celebrations with fireworks.
“It's a festival of giving thanks and one that celebrates the presence of light in Hindus' lives … it celebrates the victory of light over darkness,” Gupta says.
Food is also not just part of Diwali but “everything” during the holiday, he says.
There is the sharing of food and sweets that are homemade or bought from an Indian grocery store. Soan Papdi, a flaky dessert Sarma says melts like cotton candy in one’s mouth, is one of their favorite sweets during Diwali. Jalebi, spiral-shaped and dipped in syrup, and almond burfi, sugary and square-like, are some of the other many treats during Diwali.
Diwali celebrations continue with Govardhan Puja or Annakuta, which means “mountain of food.” That will occur Nov. 1 in the western U.S. and Nov. 2 in other parts of the world. It is to commemorate when Krishna, as a child, lifted a mountain and used it to protect his village from a torrential rain storm. This act is celebrated with a “mountain” of food and some people will create a mountain of rice and pile it with various types of food. The food is shared in temples and people’s homes. When he and his family celebrate Annakuta, Gupta says he cautions people only to eat what they can so food is not wasted.
“Although it's celebrating plenty, it's also emphasizing the fact that food is very much a gift and it is special and we have to treat it with respect and carefully,” he says.
Intricate designs such as rangoli, are drawn in front of people’s homes to create “a sacred space and an auspicious kind of doorstep,” Sarma says. Vibrant colors, like red, are also worn, which Gupta says is connected with the birth of new life, growth and abundance.
How can I celebrate Diwali?
You don’t have to be Hindu or Indian to celebrate Diwali, Sarma, who is also a cultural consultant for companies like Netflix and Mattel, says. Sarma also helped American Greetings craft Diwali greeting cards and Diwali E-cards can be customized online.
You can greet your Indian friends with a savory sweet or a Diwali greeting card. You can also say “Happy Diwali!” to someone who is celebrating.
However, one should be careful and not assume that all Indians and all Hindus are also celebrating Diwali,” they say.
“Not every person that's South Asian or Indian or has Indian heritage may have learned about the tradition or celebrated it,” Sarma says.
According to Pew Research Center, nearly 80% of Indians identify as Hindus, 14.2% practice Islam, 2.3% Christianity and 1.7% Sikhism.
Gupta says he will celebrate Diwali with a two-day festival at home in Logan, Utah with family and friends. Sarma says they will exchange sweets with friends and have dinner together at an Indian restaurant near Cleveland, Ohio. They will also give their children a book or pen as a gift.
“The greatest thing that I could give my children is the thirst for knowledge,” Sarma says.
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