Dipavali
The festivity of Divali, the festival of lights, represents the divine union of Lakshmi with the God Visnu. In this period, every light and oil lamp is lit in honor of the arrival of Lakshmi on earth, as if brightening the path for her and making every home, village and forest hut welcoming and ready for the visit of the Divine Mother, the bringer of abundance and prosperity. In the South of India, during these days, from the early morning – around 4am, after the brahmamuhurta – the Hindus wash and cover their bodies with oil making them clean and perfumed, after which they wear new clothes. The most fortunate bathe in the Ganges river, as a sign of purification. The custom of exchanging clothes, the colorful sari and doti, is also common. Even employers, on these days, offer clothes to their employees. Old resentments are forgotten, all are kind and cheerful and hug each other in renewed friendship.
The powerful vibration that comes from people’s souls is in the air and it is so strong that it can change, even in only for a few days, people’s hearts, bringing it closer to divine love. In these days, especially in the North, business owners take the opportunity to start new account books and pray to the Goddess Lakshmi for success and prosperity for their business.
The best lightings are in Bombay, in the famous golden temple of Amristar, where thousands of small lights are lit on the steps of the great temple’s tank. All the majestic south Indian temples, such as Tanjore, Tiruvannamalai, and Maturai, glitter in the light of the many different lamps.
Even in our Ashram, during these days, lamps are lit to brighten the arrival of Lakshmi and to propitiate the enlightenment of the soul, finally freed of the bonds of karma. The sun, the moon, the stars, and all the lights of the world can never equal the light of Knowledge. Let’s emerge from the obscurity of ignorance and realize, through meditation, the eternal light of the soul.