Diwali celebrations all over India
Festival of Lights, Diwali is celebrated throughout the country with great joy, enthusiasm and dedication. People all over India celebrate Diwali festival differently but with common thing is, it is celebrated for the joy and happiness of victory. This five day festival of Diwali throughout India worship Goddess Laxmi, the goddess of wealth and Prosperity.
Diwali celebrations in Delhi:
Delhi, the capital city of India wears a festive look during Diwali festival. People of Delhi start Diwali from Dussera festival itself. They do whitewashing, spring-cleaning and decorate shops and houses with flowers and lights. And on Diwali evening they perform Goddess Laxmi pooja. Wives do aarti to their husbands, garlanding him and putting a “tika” on his forehead and pray for his long life. In some houses, people perform a ritual of immersing a silver coin in a tumbler of milk. The milk is then sprinkled lightly in all the rooms of their house. The Prashad is kept in front of the idol throughout the night.
The shops and market places become busy with sales and offers. They conduct Melas and fairs everywhere. According to the tradition on the day of Dhanteras, people buy kitchen utensils of some kind. On the day of Diwali festival people decorate the entrance and top of their homes with earthen diyas and electric lights and burn crackers with great joy.
Diwali celebrations in Bengal:
In west Bengal during Diwali festival people worship the horrific and magnificent Goddess Kali Matha. There is a belief in Bengal, that the night of Diwali is of ‘Pitris’ (ancestors) and people lit lamps on long poles to guide their souls on this night. People in Bengal celebrate Kali Pooja by lighting lamps in honor of Goddess Kali Matha. People seek protection and blessings from Kali Matha after worshiping her which is performed performed only at midnight on Amavasya in a tantrik procedure. Houses are decorated and put Rangoli in front of houses and courtyard.
Diwali celebrations in Tamil Nadu :
In the state of Tamilnadu, Diwali festival is celebrated on the when Lord Krishna defeated the demon Narakasura. Diwali festival is a brightful and wonderful festival in Tamilnadu. All Tamilans celebrate this festival with great dedication. In Tamilnadu, Diwali festival is celebrated in the month of aipasi on the day of ‘naraka chaturdasi’ thithi, preceding amavasai.
People in Tamilnadu starts Diwali preparations one day before Diwali festival by cleaning up oven with lime and put kumkum dots and then filled with water for the next day’s oil bath. On the Diwali day, Elders apply gingelly oil on the heads of the younger members before the bath and they begin with taking an oil bath before sunrise which is believed that having an oil bath in the morning on the day of diwali is equivalent to taking bath in the Ganges.
They start their breakfast by taking a small quantity of Diwali lehiyam which has a medicinal property after taking oil bath. And burn crackers after bath in the morning after performing Pooja.
Diwali celebrations in Andhra Pradesh:
The state of Andhra Pradesh in India is one of the oldest state with Telugu speaking language. Andhra Pradesh has traditional way of celebrating Diwali festival that is organized and celebrated throughout the state. People of Andhra Pradesh celebrate Diwali festival just like in north by worshipping goddess Laxmi. In the capital city of AP, Hyderabad, there is a tradition of giving bath to the buffaloes, on the day of Diwali and also follow a custom of decorating paper figures.
People of Andhra Pradesh celebrate the Diwali festival by visiting temples and decorate their homes with earthen lamps, rangoli in front of their houses and burn crackers at night after Laxmi is performed in the evening.