Diwali Pooja

Diwali 2022 is on October 24, Monday

Karthik Amavasya Tithi Timing: October 24, 5:27 pm – October 25, 4:18 pm

Pradosh puja time : October 24, 5:50 pm – October 24, 8:22 pm

The festival of Diwali in India is celebrated over a period of five days. The first day of Diwali is called Dhanvantari Trayodashi or Dhanteras. On this day Lord Dhanvantari, the god of medicine, came out of the ocean with the science of Ayurveda for mankind. The second day of Diwali is called Narak Chaturdashi. The third day is of Lakshmi Puja. The fourth day is Govardhan Puja, the day Lord Krishna asked the people of Vrindavan to pray to the hill, Giri Govardhan, instead of Indra. The fifth day is dedicated to brothers and sisters and is celebrated as Bhai Dooj. It is based on the belief that in the Vedic age, Yama, the god of death, once visited his sister Yamuna. He granted her a boon that whoever would visit her sister on this day would be freed from all her sins and would attain salvation.

Story of Ayodhya

The most popular story of Diwali is the return of Lord Rama to Ayodhya with his wife Sita and younger brother Lakshmana after killing Ravana, the demon king in Lanka. The people of Ayodhya lined the streets and their homes with earthen lamps to welcome him. From that day onwards Deepawali is celebrated with great pomp and display as a remembrance.

But there are many lesser known stories related to Diwali. Read them to your kids and make them aware of these lesser known stories as well.

1. Lord Krishna killed Narakasura: Narakasura was the son of Goddess Prithvi, Bhudevi and Varaha (third incarnation (re-incarnation) of Vishnu). Bhudevi asked Vishnu for a boon that Narakasura should be all powerful and have a long life. Immersed in power, he conquered both heaven and earth. All the gods approached Vishnu and requested him to get rid of Narakasura. Vishnu assured him that he would kill Narakasura in his avatar as Krishna. Later, Krishna killed Narakasura and freed 16,000 women whom he had forcibly enslaved. To restore their dignity, Krishna married these women and obtained 16,000 wives. (Krishna also killed Mura, the general of Narakasura and thus Mura’s enemy came to be known as Murari). Before his death, Narakasura had asked for a boon that his death should be celebrated with great pomp on earth. Thus it was the day which came to be celebrated as Diwali.

Lord Mahavir 2. Lord Mahavira attained Nirvana: According to Jain texts, Lord Mahavira, the twenty-fourth and last Tirthankara, a teacher who preached the dharma, is said to have attained Nirvana (salvation) on the day of Diwali. It is said that the soul of Lord Mahavir had proved to be the purest form for the soul.

3. Rescue of Goddess Lakshmi: King Mahabali was an extremely powerful king who ruled the earth. He had defeated all the gods and made Goddess Lakshmi a slave. In his fifth incarnation as Vamana, a dwarf Brahmin, Vishnu approached Mahabali and asked for three steps of land. Against the advice of his guru Shukracharya, Mahabali agreed to it. Vamana covered the three worlds – earth, heaven and Hades – in two feet. Unable to fulfill his promise, and seeing the wrong of his ways, Bali offered his head as the third motion to Vamana, who stepped on him and pushed Bali into Hades. Thus Vamana saved Goddess Lakshmi from the captivity of Bali. Hence Lakshmi is worshiped on this day.

4. Coronation of King Vikramaditya: It is widely believed that the coronation of the great King Vikramaditya took place on the next day of Diwali. This day is known as Padwa or Varshapratipada. Vikramaditya (102 BC – 15 BC) was the emperor of Ujjain. He was famous for his valor, wisdom and generosity. The Vikram Samvat calendar was established by King Vikramaditya after his victory over the Shaka rulers in 56 BC. The calendar begins with 57 BC.

5. Return of Pandavas: According to the epic Mahabharata, Pandavas returned to Hastinapur after thirteen years of exile. People loved the Pandavas and welcomed them by lighting earthen lamps in their homes.