Happy Deepavali & Selamat Hari Raya!
This Saturday,Hindus from all around the world will be celebrating Deepavali, also known as Diwali.I will be going down to my mom's hometown,Taiping on Thursday.Parents and brother is coming over to stay at my place tomorrow.We will be leaving to Taiping on Thursday early morning.We will leave Taiping on Sunday as my sister starts work on Monday.I will be folowing my family back to Malacca as i'm on leave till 29th October due to the Hari Raya celebration which falls on Tuesday and Wednesday.As Deepavali coincides with Hari Raya again this year just like last year, we are celebrating 'Deeparaya'.Can't wait for the long awaited holiday and celebration!!!!Wishing all my dear friends Happy Deepavali & Selamat Hari Raya!
What is Deepavali?
A colorful festival that is celebrated by all Hindus worldwide is Deepavali, which is also known as the festival of lights. This festival usually falls around late October and November. One important practice that the Hindus follow during the festival is to light oil lamps in their homes on Deepavali morning. By lighting the oil lamps, the Hindus are thanking the gods for the happiness, knowledge, peace and wealth that they have received. The Hindus consider Deepavali as one of the most important festivals to celebrate.
The Legend
There is even an interesting legend behind this festival. The story goes that Narakasura, a demon, ruled the kingdom of Pradyoshapuram. Under his rule, the villagers suffered a lot of hardship as the demon tortured the people and kidnapped the women to be imprisoned in his palace. Seeing his wickedness, Lord Khrishna set out to destroy the demon and the day Narakasura died was celebrated as Deepavali, the triumph of good over evil!
Celebrations
The Hindus usually awake early in the morning of deepavali around 3am and the first ritual will be having an oil bath, which is an important feature of Deepavali. Hindus will be dressed in their new clothes on Deepavali. Most of the ladies would be clad in silk saris or Punjabi suits of various bright shades. Hindus particularly dislike dressing in black on that day, as they consider black an inauspicious color for the festival. Hindus would also pay their respects to the elderly and most families would go to the temple after having breakfast. This is also an important practice for them. The reason why they would be going to the temples is to pray to get happiness and prosperity on Deepavali. The houses would be decorated with oil lamps and children will play with firecrackers to celebrate the festival. On the first day, they would not go visiting but would stay at home to welcome the guests who visit them.
Food
Visiting Hindus during Deepavali will be an interesting activity, as you will get to taste a wide variety of delicious food. In every home that you visit you are bound to be served with a tempting spread of sweets. Some of the popular sweets are halwa, burfi and laddu. Hindus love eating spicy food.Thosais, idlis, naans and also idiyapom are served with prawn sambal, mutton curry, chicken curry, etc.Murrukus, oma pudi and other types of biscuits such as jem tart, peanut biscuit, etc are much sought after.
Fire works
Fireworks are played starting on the eve of Deepavali and can go on till about 1 week.
A lil bit bout Hari Raya
Hari Raya Puasa is also commonly known as Hari Raya Aidilfitri. Hari Raya (Malay for "Day of Celebration") is a term used in Malaysia that can apply to the Muslim festivals of Eid ul-Fitr or Eid ul-Adha. Typically, simply "Hari Raya" refers to Eid ul-Fitr, which is also known as "Hari Raya Aidilfitri" or "Hari Raya Puasa" (literally "Fasting Day of Celebration").As Eid ul-Fitr often coincides with either the Hindu festival of Deepavali or the Chinese New Year, which are both celebrated in Malaysia, portmanteaus such as DeepaRaya or Kongsi Raya have been created that refer to Eid ul-Fitr and one of the two festivals.
What is Deepavali?
A colorful festival that is celebrated by all Hindus worldwide is Deepavali, which is also known as the festival of lights. This festival usually falls around late October and November. One important practice that the Hindus follow during the festival is to light oil lamps in their homes on Deepavali morning. By lighting the oil lamps, the Hindus are thanking the gods for the happiness, knowledge, peace and wealth that they have received. The Hindus consider Deepavali as one of the most important festivals to celebrate.
The Legend
There is even an interesting legend behind this festival. The story goes that Narakasura, a demon, ruled the kingdom of Pradyoshapuram. Under his rule, the villagers suffered a lot of hardship as the demon tortured the people and kidnapped the women to be imprisoned in his palace. Seeing his wickedness, Lord Khrishna set out to destroy the demon and the day Narakasura died was celebrated as Deepavali, the triumph of good over evil!
Celebrations
The Hindus usually awake early in the morning of deepavali around 3am and the first ritual will be having an oil bath, which is an important feature of Deepavali. Hindus will be dressed in their new clothes on Deepavali. Most of the ladies would be clad in silk saris or Punjabi suits of various bright shades. Hindus particularly dislike dressing in black on that day, as they consider black an inauspicious color for the festival. Hindus would also pay their respects to the elderly and most families would go to the temple after having breakfast. This is also an important practice for them. The reason why they would be going to the temples is to pray to get happiness and prosperity on Deepavali. The houses would be decorated with oil lamps and children will play with firecrackers to celebrate the festival. On the first day, they would not go visiting but would stay at home to welcome the guests who visit them.
Food
Visiting Hindus during Deepavali will be an interesting activity, as you will get to taste a wide variety of delicious food. In every home that you visit you are bound to be served with a tempting spread of sweets. Some of the popular sweets are halwa, burfi and laddu. Hindus love eating spicy food.Thosais, idlis, naans and also idiyapom are served with prawn sambal, mutton curry, chicken curry, etc.Murrukus, oma pudi and other types of biscuits such as jem tart, peanut biscuit, etc are much sought after.
Fire works
Fireworks are played starting on the eve of Deepavali and can go on till about 1 week.
A lil bit bout Hari Raya
Hari Raya Puasa is also commonly known as Hari Raya Aidilfitri. Hari Raya (Malay for "Day of Celebration") is a term used in Malaysia that can apply to the Muslim festivals of Eid ul-Fitr or Eid ul-Adha. Typically, simply "Hari Raya" refers to Eid ul-Fitr, which is also known as "Hari Raya Aidilfitri" or "Hari Raya Puasa" (literally "Fasting Day of Celebration").As Eid ul-Fitr often coincides with either the Hindu festival of Deepavali or the Chinese New Year, which are both celebrated in Malaysia, portmanteaus such as DeepaRaya or Kongsi Raya have been created that refer to Eid ul-Fitr and one of the two festivals.
posted by Petite Queen @ 9:29 PM
2 Comments:
At October 18, 2006,
Nlndr said…
Happy Diwali to u!
At September 09, 2008,
John said…
First of all Happy Diwali to you and your family and readers of this blog. Really good and informative post on Diwali festival. Before i read this post i don't know about diwali festival in deeply. Diwali is such a great festival and all Indians are celebrated this festival with great festive mood and happiness.It is also true that Diwali remain incomplete without exchange of Diwali Gifts. This festival is also known as Gift Giving festival. But it is not easy for NRI people because they can not reach India on this festival. So they send diwali gifts to india Online to their relatives and loved one and they try to keep the festival spirit alive.
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