I did not know about the Diwali Festival – this is one of my first visits to New Delhi and I am staying in the beautiful old art deco Taj Ambassador Hotel, close by to the Khan Market and, these days, to a Delhi Metro station. The hotel is an oasis of calm.
It’s the end of a busy day and I retire early, drifting off and then sitting up startled by the massive explosion outside – it seems to be on the road in front of the hotel.
I put on some clothes and race down to reception and breathlessly ask: “did you hear that! What is it?” The reception staff are beaming, their joy is obvious. “Sir, happy Diwali – Indians let off firecrackers to celebrate.” I ask: “At this time of night?” She replies: “Sir, it could be at any time, day or night, we never know – but there will probably be more tonight.”
Since I cannot sleep, I check out this Diwali festival. It is beautiful – if a bit loud.
There is nothing in India more joyous than the annual Diwali “Festival of Lights” celebrating the triumph of good over evil, light over dark and knowledge over ignorance. Surely this optimistic and hopeful theme is relevant to our world today?
Families come together for meals and exchange of gifts such as sweets and dried fruits. Children look forward to Diwali in India in much the same way as they look forward to Christmas in the west – with great excitement and anticipation.
In towns and cities, public buildings are lit up and throughout India homes are surrounded by candles (diya), while people wear their smartest new clothes, and the atmosphere is one of hope. At the end of the day, the sky is lit up by firecrackers and sparklers.
People express their thanks for things like good health, wealth, knowledge and peace.
At heart, Diwali is an expression of goodwill to all people, and so its public face is not about the voice of one religion. One of the few festivals to be held across the whole of India and touching all 1.4 billion people, Diwali cuts across religions and is celebrated by Hindus, Jains, Sikhs and Buddhists.
Diwali is really a reminder of the beauty of this world and all things in it – what a great message of hope and optimism this is for all our children.
A final note on Diwali
Although my first encounter with Diwali – that explosion in Delhi – filled me with feat in this era of terrorism, yet with all that, Indians freely continue to celebrate as they always have. I admire that.
I was in Jaipur (the pink city) during one Diwali and vendors were selling firecrackers on the pavement – they were stacked about a metre high, and one vendor had about 10 metres of these giant explosives. Bigger than you would have seen when firecrackers were legal in the west. The vendor was happily sitting on top of the lethal pile, smoking a cigarette! Nobody but us noticed or cared. As I learn about India in my search, I am not suggesting selling firecrackers on the footpath, but maybe we can learn again to relax a little in the way Indians do.
As the influence of India grows and as the Indian diaspora in many countries also expands, I hope that the beautiful Diwali might become a truly global celebration of all that is good in us.
This is one of my first lessons as I continue my search for India.
Into India 