Diwali 2024: The festival of Diwali is celebrated on the new moon day of Krishna Paksha of the Kartik month. This time the festival of Diwali is celebrated on October 31, i.e. today. Diwali is the festival of lamps and light. Furthermore, this day is considered very auspicious for worship. Just as a seeker removes the darkness of many births in the sky of the mind by reaching the point of light in spiritual practice, similarly people try to remove the darkness of Amavasya by lighting lamps on Diwali. Because, in Sanatan scriptures, Deep Jyoti is considered to be the true Parabrahma and Janardan is Vishnu. Therefore, Diwali is a festival to awaken the soul.
This is the reason why there are reasons to celebrate Diwali in the four eras of Sanatan Dharma. Let us know what are the stories of Diwali in the four eras.
Satyayug Diwali Story
According to mythological beliefs, on Satyayuga, when the gods along with the demons churned the ocean, Dhanvantari Dev also appeared, taking the nectar along with the poison Halahal and coincidentally, this date was Trayodashi of Krishna Paksha of the month of Kartik. It is believed that since then the tradition of celebrating Dhanteras on the Trayodashi day of Krishna Paksha of the month of Kartik began. It was because of the churning of the ocean that Mother Lakshmi appeared sitting on a lotus on the new moon day of Krishna Paksha of the month of Kartik and then the gods celebrated Diwali for the first time to celebrate her appearance and since then there has been this great festival. .
History of Diwali from the Treta Yuga
According to Valmiki Ramayana and Ramcharitmanas of Tulsidas, when Lord Ram returned to Ayodhya with his wife Sita and younger brother Lakshman after fourteen years of exile in Treta, the people of Ayodhya celebrated by lighting lamps across the state that night. Ever since Lord Ram returned to Ayodhya after killing Ravana, the symbol of evil, Diwali began to be celebrated as a symbol of the victory of good over evil.
Diwali Story by Dwaparayuga
According to mythological beliefs, there was a sinful demon named Narakasura in Dwaparayuga. He was blessed because no one could kill him except Bhudevi. Taking advantage of this blessing, Narakasura began to torture the gods. To save themselves from the terror of Narakasura, all the gods came to Lord Krishna in panic because Shri Krishna’s wife Satyabhama was the incarnation of Bhu Devi, so Lord Krishna rode in a chariot with Satyabhama to fight Narakasura.
But one of Narakasura’s arrows hit Shri Krishna. Seeing her husband Parameshwara wounded, Satyabhama became very angry and killed Narakasura with an arrow. Coincidentally, that day was Chaturdashi of Krishna Paksha of the Kartik month. Therefore, to celebrate the murder of Narakasura, the festival of Naraka Chaturdashi and Diwali began to be celebrated from the next day.
Diwali Stories from Kalyug
, Lord Mahavir, the 24th Tirthankar of Jainism, left his mortal body on the new moon day of Krishna Paksha of the Kartik month. Therefore, this day came to be celebrated as the Nirvana festival of Lord Mahavir because the followers of Mahavir believed that after his death, the inner light was gone, hence they try to compensate by lighting a lamp on the day of his death. . Nirvana.
, Diwali also has great importance in Buddhism. In fact, on the new moon day of the Kartik month, Lord Buddha returned to his birthplace, Kapilvastu, after 18 years. According to Buddhist texts, when Gautam Buddha arrived at Kapilvastu, people welcomed him by lighting lamps in every house. At the same time, Buddha had also preached Appa Deepo Bhava to his disciples and since then the festival of Diwali has been celebrated in his memory.
, At the same time, in Kautilya’s Arthashastra, written in the 4th century BC, there is a description of large-scale lighting of lamps in temples and river ghats on the new moon day of the month of Kartik.
, Apart from this, the day of Diwali also holds great importance among the followers of Sikhism. In fact, on the new moon day of the Kartik month of 1618, the sixth guru of the Sikhs, Guru Hargobind Singh Sahib, was released along with fifty-two other prisoners. The Guru’s independence was then celebrated by lighting lamps. Therefore, people of the Sikh community also celebrate this day as Bandi Chhod Diwas i.e. Independence Day.
, Many historians have also mentioned the celebration of Diwali by the Mughal emperor and creator of Deen-e-Ilahi, Akbar. It is said that during Akbar’s reign, on the day of Diwali, a large sky lamp was hung on a forty meter high base in front of the Daulat Khana.
All these stories show that the new moon day of the Kartik month has great importance both from mythological and historical points of view.
