HAPPY DIWALI
November 14, 202020 I Volume 29 1 Number 48 Phone 604-502-6100 *Fax 604-501-6111 day, hence Diwali became a historical event as well.
WHY DO WE CELEBRATE DIWALI? It’s not just the festive mood in the air that makes you happy, or just that it’s a good time to enjoy before the advent of winter. There are 10 mythical and historical reasons why Diwali is a great time to celebrate. And there are good reasons not just for Hindus but also for all others to celebrate this great Festival of Lights.
Special Day for the Arya Samaj: It was the new moon day of Kartik (Diwali day) when Maharshi Dayananda, one of the greatest reformers of Hinduism and the founder of Arya Samaj attained his nirvana.
Special Day for the Jains: Mahavir Tirthankar, considered to be the founder of modern Jainism also attained his nirvana on Diwali day.
Goddess Lakshmi Ji’s Birthday The Goddess of wealth, Lakshmi incarnated on the new moon day (amaavasyaa) of the Kartik month during the churning of the ocean (samudra-manthan), hence the association of Diwali with Lakshmi.
Vishnu Rescued Lakshmi: On this very day (Diwali day), Lord Vishnu in his fifth incarnation as Vaman-avtaara rescued Lakshmi from the prison of King Bali and this is another reason of worshipping Ma Larkshmi on Diwali.
Krishna Killed Narakaasur: On the day preceding Diwali, Lord Krishna killed the demon king Narakaasur and rescued 16,000 women from his captivity. The celebration of this freedom went on for two days including the Diwali day as a victory festival.
The Return of the Pandavas: According to the great epic ‘Mahab-
Special Day for the Sikhs:
THE FESTIVAL OF LIGHTS IS FOR ALL
The third Sikh Guru Amar Das institutionalized Diwali as a Red-Letter Day when all Sikhs would gather to receive the Gurus blessings. In 1577, the foundation stone of the Golden Temple at Amritsar was laid on Diwali. In 1619, the sixth Sikh Guru Hargobind, who was held by the Mughal Emperor Jahangir, was released from the Gwalior fort along with 52 kings.
The Pope’s Diwali Speech: In 1999, Pope John Paul II performed a special Eucharist in an Indian church where the altar was decorated with Diwali lamps, the Pope had a ‘tilak’ marked on his forehead and his Coronation of Vikramaditya: speech bristled with references The Victory of Rama: One of the greatest Hindu King VikraAccording to the epic ‘Ramayana’, it maditya was coroneted on the Diwali to the festival of light.
harata’, it was ‘Kartik Amavashya’ when the Pandavas appeared from their 12 years of banishment as a result of their defeat in the hands of the Kauravas at the game of dice (gambling). The subjects who loved the Pandavas celebrated the day by lighting the earthen lamps.
was the new moon day of Kartik when Lord Ram, Ma Sita, and Lakshman returned to Ayodhya after vanquishing Ravana and conquering Lanka. The citizens of Ayodhya decorated the entire city with the earthen lamps and illuminated it like never before.
Happy Diwali and Bandi Chhor Divas! ਦੀਵਾਲੀ ਤੇ ਬੰਦੀ ਛੋੜ ਿਦਵਸ ਦੀਆਂ ਲੱਖ ਲੱਖ ਵਧਾਈਆਂ!
Please stay safe and celebrate at home. ਸੁਰੱਿਖਅਤ ਰਹੋ ਤੇ ਿਕਰਪਾ ਕਰਕੇ ਇਸ ਸਾਲ ਇਸ ਿਦਹਾੜੇ
ਪੀਟਰ ਜੂਲੀਅਨ
ਜਗਮੀਤ ਿਸੰਘ
ਜੈਨੀ ਕਵਾਨ
ਘਰ ਿਵਚ ਹੀ ਮਨਾਓ।
ਡੌਨ ਡੇਵੀਜ਼
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Indo-Canadian Voice Diwali
Wishing you and your family a
Healthy & Happy Diwali
| Saturday Nov 14, 2020
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Saturday, Nov 14, 2020 | Indo-Canadian Voice Diwali
Diwali – Festival of Lights BY DR. SARWAN SINGH RANDHAWA Community Librarian-Supervisor Muriel Arnason Library THE word “Diwali� is derived from the Sanskrit word “Deepavali� Deepa meaning light and Avali, meaning a row. It means a row of lights. The more literal translation is “rows of lighted lamps�. It is referred to as the Festival of Lights. It marks the beginning of the new year and symbolizes a renewal of life. Many festivals are celebrated in India, some of them only in some locales, but Diwali is one of the happiest of the great Indian festivals and is celebrated all over India and most parts of the world. It is one of the grandest celebrations of Indo-Canadians, and is the most important and colorful of the Indian Festivals, having aspects of the western traditional holidays of Thanksgiving and Christmas. We give thanks to God and share good will with fellow human beings. Diwali comes on the darkest night of the year, in late October or early November. In Hindu philosophy darkness represents ignorance and lighting the lamp signifies overcoming ignorance and gaining knowledge. It is a celebration of joy, brightness and happiness. Interestingly, the Diwali festival coincides with the October festival of Halloween. As the Halloween in the western world is traditionally associated with spirits and the dead, Diwali is associated with the victory of good over evil, as well as sharing, caring, forgiving, and lov-
ing sentiments. Diwali is held in memory by mythological and historical stories, which say that the evil demons were slain by many God incarnations. On this day Lord Rama returned to his kingdom after fourteen years of exile. People rejoice because Lord Rama had conquered Ravana, a cruel king. He had conquered evil, and good had triumphed. Among the Sikhs, Diwali came to have a special significance on the return to its sixth master, Guru Hargobind who had been held captive in the fort of Gwalior under the orders of Mughal emperor Jahangir. Guru ji also got 52 Hindu rajas (small kings) released from the prison of Jahangir. The celebration of Diwali is marked by the lighting of innumerable lamps in every courtyard and the bursting of crackers. Sweetmeats
and new clothing are purchased. Every home is cleaned, beautifully painted and decorated with flowers, garlands and colorful lamps. People go house to house to exchange gifts and sweets. They try to forget old grudges and wipe the slate clean. The time for rejoicing is mainly early morning and late night. The hours of darkness bordering the waking hours are preferred as lights and crackers are the highlights of the festivities and these are most effectively illuminated at these hours. Hence, people rise early and go to sleep late. At night, every building is lit with little lamps to attract the blessings of the Goddess of wealth, Lakshmi. In the Hindu culture, this festival also seen as renewal of life. In Hindu custom, light signifies goodness. This is a five day festival. Each day is marked with a significant ‘puja’
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Happy Diwali
Hon. Harjit Sajjan
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Vancouver South
Papineau
Patrick Weiler
West Vancouver— Sunshine Coast— Sea to Sky Country
Sukh Dhaliwal
Surrey—Newton
Ken Hardie
Fleetwood— Port Kells
Hon. Joyce Murray
Vancouver Quadra
Ron McKinnon
Coquitlam— Port Coquitlam
Randeep Sarai
Surrey Centre
Hon. Carla Qualtrough Delta
Terry Beech
Burnaby North— Seymour
of a certain God or Goddess. All the business people start new business calendars and celebrate their new year at this time. They worship the Goddess Lakshmi to bless their new account books. At temples, there is devotional music, singing and dancing as well as lots of food. All Sikh temples, homes and businesses are generally illuminated during the week of Diwali celebration. Special prayers are made for the prosperity and well-being of everyone on earth. The best and most attractive Diwali is celebrated at the Golden Temple in Amritsar. Worshippers float multi-colored light candles on the water and the Gurdwara holds a grand fireworks display. Lot of sweets and food are served. Thus, the theme behind celebrating Diwali is “good conquering evil�. From darkness we enter into light, and light empowers us to do good deeds and bring us closer to divinity. Therefore our Diwali festival promotes social and practical purposes of sharing, caring, forgiving, and loving sentiments. This gives a message to fight various social evils with the illumination of our inner lights.
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Indo-Canadian Voice Diwali
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HAPPY
BC’s public school teachers are proud to join in the celebration of Diwali. We are all enriched when we share our cultural traditions.
A message from the Surrey Teachers’ Association
| Saturday Nov 14, 2020
Diwali Recipe: CardamomScented Coconut Kheer Recipe NO Diwali meal is complete without sweets or mithai. Taking inspiration from traditional kheer or rice pudding, this dairy-free Cardamom-Scented Coconut Kheer uses rich and creamy coconut milk, coconut beverage, and a bit of shredded coconut – all available at your local Real Canadian Superstore and No Frills. If you can get your hands on a nice fresh coconut (the brown kind, not young green), freshly shredded coconut is a delicious addition to this dessert. The flavours are tropical and warm, and just what we need on these cool autumn nights. It’s also the perfect dessert to end your Diwali festivities – kids and adults will love this creamy, coconut kheer. Added bonus: this dish is dairyfree and can be made vegan by swapping coconut sugar for white sugar. Cardamom-Scented Coconut Kheer
1/2 cup basmati rice (I used Suraj brand), washed, soaked in water for 15 minutes, and then drained 5 cardamom pods, crushed 1/4 cup coconut sugar or cane sugar or white sugar 1 can full fat coconut milk
1 500ml tetra pack of coconut milk or 2 cups of unsweetened coconut beverage (I used Silk brand) 2 cups unsweetened cashew or almond beverage (I used Earth’s Own Cashew Fresh) 1/4 cup shredded unsweetened coconut Heat coconut milk, coconut beverage and cashew/almond beverage in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Mix frequently, do not let burn. Bring to just boiling point and then lower heat to medium low. Add crushed cardamom, drained rice and sugar, and continue to cook for 45 – 55 minutes, stirring frequently. When rice is soft and milk has reduced to a creamy consistency, check sweetness and add sugar until desired sweetness is reached – I usually stop around 1/4 cup. In a small frypan, lightly toast shredded coconut on medium heat, mixing frequently until light brown. Serve kheer in pretty bowls with a generous sprinkle of toasted coconut on top. You can also add toasted almonds, cashews or pistachios, and when it’s in season, sliced mango. Enjoy! Find more recipes, pop culture stories and South Asian lifestyle content on jugnistyle.com.
Happy Diwali This year, please celebrate only with people you live with and do not invite guests into your home.
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Diwali Quarantine Style: How to Make it the Best Diwali Ever BOSTON—The Covid-19 pandemic has overshadowed all celebrations, festivals and holidays, and now it will impact how we celebrate Diwali. But it will not prohibit us from the most important part of the Diwali festival. Diwali is less than a month away so here are some suggestions on how to celebrate Diwali 2020 Quarantine Style for you and your loved ones. First, let us not forget that the most important part of Diwali is the family Puja, which can still be done in full festivity. Cleanse your home, decorate inside and out, hang lights to impress all your neighbors and illuminate the evening, buy new clothes and jewelry online, wear your best festive attire and enjoy a beautiful soul inspiring puja together at home. And if that is not enough to have the Best Diwali ever, here are a few more suggestions: Diwali Car Caravan Decorate your car for Diwali and do a Diwali Car Caravan with friends and neighbors. From the safety of your own cars, you can all get together in a car parade and drive past friends, neighbors and relatives homes with some music and excitement. Gather a group of friends to do a Car Caravan, and check on the elderly who live in your area who might like some Diwali festivity and enjoyment and be sure to include them in your driving route. You can even have a competition to see whose car is the ‘Best Decorated’ for Diwali! Lights, lights and more Lights! Illuminate every part of your home, inside and out! Make it so beautiful that your children won;t even notice that they are missing out on fireworks.. if your home is a festival in itself! Contactless Surprise Treats Surprise friends and neighbors with gifts and treats left on their doorsteps. A tradition usually done around Halloween, knowing as Booing, can be borrowed on Diwali for gifting! This is a fun and contact-less way to surprise your friends, relatives and neighbors who you would usually visit on Diwali. The less physical contact we have with those not in our home bubble the better, but that shouldn’t stop you from giving out Mithai, gifts and thoughtful
treats for Diwali. Send Diwali Cards Make and send Diwali cards to all your friends and relatives across the globe! Perhaps it’s time to get back to the old fashioned joys of receiving a card, as it always brings a smile. Better yet, make the card yourself with your children or, if you prefer a more polished look, take this opportunity to be photographed in your festive Wear and send a lovely photo card. Play Games Online
Well, if the Pandemic has taught us anything, it’s that we can do everything online. So that card game needn’t be missed! Set up an online game and play with friends as per usual. Charity Instead of spending money on a needless large party, use the same money this year to make a meaningful contribution to a good cause. Or, do charity with your family in a socially distanced manner. Covid19 has left so many people struggling with homeslesness, jobless-
ness and an uncertain future, creating an even greater need to help our communities. Arts and Crafts I used to enjoy making homemade Dias with my children when they were younger, but there are so many arts and crafts you can do with children around Diwali. Everything from Rangoli designs, to drawing their own images of Diwali, to decorating clay dias, to making Diwali decorations for the home by hand. So enjoy and be sure to display your children’s handwork with pride! Advocacy Reach out to your local legislatures, magistrates or town officials and encourage them to issue a Diwali Greeting to the community. Advocate for cultural awareness and visibility. This is an optimal time to maximize your towns/cities awareness and ensure that the biggest Indian holiday of the year is recognized. Rainbow Colored Flames Using Household Chemicals Enjoy an evening firepit, as living in Massachusetts we cannot do fireworks, but you can certainly enjoy a nice fire to enjoy in a socially distant manner. (You can even add colors to the flame! https://www.thoughtco.com/makea-rainbow-of-colored-flames-606193 Once the chemicals are set up, there’s no hurry to light the fire. When you are ready, add fuel and then light it at one end. Hand sanitizer burns with the coolest temperature flame, but the high water content means the rainbow fire doesn’t last long. Feel free to experiment Perhaps the best Diwali ever! Dress up, decorate, and lift your spirits for the best Diwali you have ever had at home! (And we are all professionals at being ‘At Home’ now!)Try making sweets you have never made before, choreograph your own family dance to share with loved ones across the globe, light up the night sky with tons of lights and colors and give thanks to the Gods for giving us the strength to carry on and overcome even this time of darkness. It is truly a Diwali to reflect upon, as light will always prevail over darkness.
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Saturday, Nov 14, 2020 | Indo-Canadian Voice Diwali
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Saturday, Nov 14, 2020 | Indo-Canadian Voice Diwali
The Origin of Diwali
Deepawali or Diwali is certainly the biggest and the brightest of all Hindu festivals. It’s the festival of lights (deep = light and avali= a row i.e., a row of lights) that’s marked by four days of celebration, which literally illumines the country with its brilliance, and dazzles all with its joy. This year Diwali falls on Saturday 14 November 2020. Each of the four days in the festival of Diwali is separated by a different tradition, but what remains true and constant is the celebration of life, its enjoyment and goodness. Historically, the origin of Diwali can be traced back to ancient India, when it was probably an important harvest festival. However, there are various legends pointing to the origin of Diwali or ‘Deepawali.’ Some believe it to be the celebration of the marriage of Lakshmi with Lord Vishnu. Whereas in Bengal the festival is dedicated to the worship of Mother Kali, the dark goddess of strength. Lord Ganesha, the elephant-headed God, the symbol of auspiciousness and wisdom, is also worshiped in most Hindu homes on this day. In Jainism, Deepawali has an added significance to the great event of Lord Mahavira
val of ‘Dhanteras’ (‘dhan’ = wealth; ‘teras’ = 13th) is celebrated two days before the festival of lights.
attaining the eternal bliss of nirvana . Diwali also commemorates the return of Lord Rama along with Sita and Lakshman from hisfourteen-yearong exile and vanquishing the demon-king Ravana. In joyous celebration of the return of their king, the people of Ayodhya, the Capital of Rama, illuminated the kingdom with earthen diyas (oil lamps) and burst crackers. These Four Days Each day of Diwali has its own tale, legend and myth to tell. The first day of the festival Naraka Chaturdasimarks the vanquishing of the demon Naraka by Lord Krishna and his wife Satyabhama. Amavasya, the second day of Deepawali, marks the worship of Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth in her most benevolent mood, fulfilling the wishes of her devotees. Amavasya also tells the story of Lord Vishnu, who in his dwarf incarnation vanquished the tyrant Bali, and banished him to hell. Bali was allowed to return to earth once a year, to light millions of lamps to dispel the darkness and ignorance, and spread the radiance of love and wisdom. It is on the third day of Deepawali — Kartika Shudda Padyami that Bali steps out of hell and rules the earth according to the boon given by Lord Vishnu. The fourth
day is referred to as Yama Dvitiya (also called Bhai Dooj) and on this day sisters invite their brothers to their homes. The Significance of Lights & Firecrackers All the simple rituals of Diwali have a significance and a story to tell. The illumination of homes with lights and the skies with firecrackers is an expression of obeisance to the heavens for the attainment of health, wealth, knowledge, peace and prosperity. According to one belief, the sound of firecrackers are an indication of the joy of the people living on earth, making the gods aware of their plentiful state. Still another possible reason has a more scientific basis: the fumes produced by the crackers kill a lot of insects and mosquitoes, found in plenty after the rains.
From Darkness Unto Light... In each legend, myth and story of Deepawali lies the significance of the victory of good over evil; and it is with each Deepawali and the lights that illuminate our homes and hearts, that this simple truth finds new reason and hope. From darkness unto light — the light that empowers us to commit ourselves to good deeds, that which brings us closer to divinity. During Diwali, lights illuminate every corner of India and the scent of incense sticks hangs in the air, mingled with the sounds of firecrackers, joy, togetherness and hope. Diwali is celebrated around the globe. Outside India, it is more than a Hindu festival, it’s a celebration of South-Asian identities. If you are away from the sights and sounds of Diwali, light a diya, sit quietly, shut your eyes, withdraw the senses, concentrate on this supreme light and illuminate the soul.
The Tradition of Gambling The tradition of gambling on Diwali also has a legend behind it. It is believed that on this day, Goddess Parvati played dice with her husband Lord Shiva, and she decreed that whosoever gambled on Diwali night would prosper throughout the ensuing year. Diwali is associated with wealth and prosperity in many ways, and the festi-
Wishing you and your family and a Healthy & Happy Diwali !! smUh B`eIc`ry nUM dIv`lI dIE~ vD`eIE~
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