Namaste dear friends,
A message of love, light and hope during these tender times:
Deepāvali or Diwali, is the Hindu festival of light which the Chaplain’s Office and Hindu Students Organization will celebrate this Friday. Historically in India and abroad, people of all faiths have joined together to celebrate Diwali as it stands for core human values such as peace, well-being, and compassion.
Across the world during Diwali, observant families place rows of oil lamps along the boundary markings of their dwellings: often along pathways and verandas in India and on windowsills and deck railings in the US. The names Deepāvali and Diwali derive from Sanskrit words for the oil lamp: diya and deep, while avali means “rows or clusters of lamps.”
The lighting of lamps is a spiritual invitation to Maha Lakshmi, the Goddess of wellbeing and wealth, into our homes and hearts. Her presence symbolizes the awakening of divine knowledge in the hopes of overcoming negative forces in life such as violence, anger, envy, greed, bigotry, fear, injustice, and suffering. Our Diwali prayers include those for universal peace and wellbeing. As we light the diya wicks (or electric tea lights!), we also pray for the means to compassionately shine the light of our own internal diyas into the dark spaces in the hearts of our loved ones, our community members, and the world at large.
The deepas also represent the aspiration to live a balanced and compassionate life. The flame of a deepa will not burn properly if the wick is too far submerged in the oil of the lamp. Nor will it burn properly if it doesn’t have enough oil. Just like the wick - we often shine best in the world when we tend to our inner oil tanks, aspire towards an authentic, grounded and purposeful life, and notice and center kindness on those around us who are suffering. By doing so we can remain burning brightly while bringing much needed radiance and sweetness into the world. And that light will be reflected back to us in return.