Hindu Festivals

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Its Diwali

it is celebrated for many reasons but the main is that on that day the Hindu Lord Ram came back to this kingdom after 14 years of forest stay

It is also celebrated to give pray to Goddess Lakshmi the goddess of money and God Ganesha the god of good luck

The belief for celebrating Diwali:

Symbolically Diwali is considered as celebration of

1. Return of Rama to Ayodhya after killing the Demon king Ravana

2. Killing of Narakasura by Krishna

3. Defeat of Indra by Krishna, who lifted mountain Govardhan to protect villages in Vrindavan from flooding caused by rains started by Indra.

All these are symbolic.

It is interesting to know that Diwali is a festival in Religions that are supposed to have evolved from Hinduism like Jainism, Sikhism and Buddhism.

The actual reason for celebrating Diwali:

Diwali is the day we come out of our dreams, illusions, and compulsions and try to know our real worth. Indra, Ravana and Narakasura are symbolic of these.

Since, excluding Brahman, Vishnu is the only Hindu god who enables us to know our real worth, the festival is based around Vishnu and Lakshmi.

Strictly speaking, it is not a festival to celebrate. It is just the day we audit our previous year.

However, every one gives gifts and sweets to create an illusion that the previous year was very successful, irrespective of the previous years results.

Thus, Hindus distribute gifts and sweets to celebrate mythological victory of good over evil.

How ever, the actual reason why Hindus distribute gifts and sweets is to indicate that the previous year was very successful.

22 October 1938 was the date of Diwali according to Deepavali.net

Diwali falls on the new moon night (Amavasya) between mid-October and mid-November. Diwali is celebrated for five days according to the lunisolar. It begins in late Ashvin (between September and October) and ends in early Kartika (between October and November).

7 November 1999 was the date of Diwali according to Deepavali.net

Diwali falls on the new moon night (Amavasya) between mid-October and mid-November. Diwali is celebrated for five days according to the lunisolar. It begins in late Ashvin (between September and October) and ends in early Kartika (between October and November).

Which ingredients are forbidden?

• Meat
• Fish
• Poultry
• Eggs

Although some Hindus may occasionally eat meat, almost all avoid beef.

In addition, strict practitioners also abstain from:

• Garlic
• Onions
• Mushrooms that
• Any alcohol
• Tea and coffee (obtaining caffeine)

What are the main laws or beliefs relating to food?

According to Vedic (Hindu scripture) texts, one should offer all food as a sacrifice to God: "...All that you do, all that you eat, all that you offer and give away, as well as all austerities that you may perform, should be done as an offering unto Me." (Bhagavad-gita 9.27) The Gita specifies exactly what should be offered: "If one offers Me with love and devotion a leaf, a flower, a fruit, or water, I will accept it." (9.26) There are other references in the Vedic literature confirming that fruits, vegetables, grain, nuts and dairy products are fit for human consumption.

Food plays an important role in worship, and the food offered to God (prasada) is thought to bestow considerable religious merit, purifying body, mind and spirit. Taking prasada that has been cooked and offered with devotion inclines the mind towards spirituality. Many Hindus have an altar at home and offer their food before eating.

Meat, fish, poultry, and eggs as they are usually considered tamasic (influenced by ignorance) and are not sanctioned by either the scriptures or saints. Almost all Hindus avoid beef out of respect for the cow. In the Mahabharata - a seminal Hindu epic - one of its central characters, Bhishma, declares that no sacrifices can be made without butter. And, thus, cows became essential to the spiritual life of Hindus. Alcohol, tea and coffee are said to pollute one's consciousness, making the practice of meditation difficult. Mushrooms are thought to take on the quality of ignorance, while garlic and onions take on the quality of rajas (passion).Is there a link with vegetarianism

Holi, is a religious spring festival celebrated by Hindus. Holi is also known as festival of Colours. It is primarily observed in India, Nepal, Pakistan,[1]and countries with large Indic diaspora populations following Hinduism, such as Suriname, Malaysia, Guyana, South Africa, Trinidad, United Kingdom, United States, Mauritius, and Fiji.

In Vaishnavism, Hiranyakashipu is the great king of demons, and he had been granted a boon by Brahma, which made it almost impossible for him to be killed. The boon was due to his long penance, after which he had demanded that he not be killed "during day or night; inside the home or outside, not on earth or in the sky; neither by a man nor an animal; neither by astra nor by shastra". Consequently, he grew arrogant and attacked the Heavens and the Earth. He demanded that people stop worshipping Gods and start praising him.

Hiranyakashipu, on the lap, being killed by Lord Narasimha, an incarnation of Hindu god Vishnu.

According to this belief, Hiranyakashipu's own son, Prahlada, was a devotee of Lord Vishnu. In spite of several threats from Hiranyakashipu, Prahlada continued offering prayers to Lord Vishnu. He was poisoned by Hiranyakashipu, but the poison turned to nectar in his mouth. He was ordered to be trampled by elephants yet remained unharmed. He was put in a room with hungry, poisonous snakes and survived. All of Hiranyakashipu's attempts to kill his son failed. Finally, he ordered young Prahlada to sit on a pyre on the lap of his demoness sister, Holika, who could not die because she also had a boon. And a boon which would prevent fire from burning her. Prahlada readily accepted his father's orders, and prayed to Vishnu to keep him safe. When the fire started, everyone watched in amazement as Holika burnt to death, while Prahlada survived unharmed, the burning of Holika is celebrated as Holi.

Later Lord Vishnu came in the form of a Narasimha (who is half-man and half-lion) and killed Hiranyakashipu at dusk (which was neither day nor night), on the steps of the porch of his house (which was neither inside the house nor outside) by restraining him on his lap (which is neither in the sky nor on the earth) and mauling him with his claws (which are neither astra nor shastra).

In Vrindavan and Mathura, where Lord Krishna grew up, the festival is celebrated for 16 days (until Rangpanchmi) in commemoration of the divine love of Radha for Krishna. The festivities officially usher in spring, the celebrated season of love.

There is alternative story detailing the origin of Holi. This story is about Kamadeva, a god of love. Kama's body was destroyed when he shot his weapon at Shiva in order to disrupt his meditation and help Parvati to marry Shiva. Shiva then opened his third eye, the gaze of which was so powerful that Kama's body was reduced to ashes. For the sake of Kama's wife Rati (passion), Shiva restored him, but only as a mental image, representing the true emotional and spiritual state of love rather than physical lust. The Holi bonfire is believed to be celebrated in commemoration of this event.