Diwali, also known as the “Festival of Lights,” is a festival that lasts for five days where people put many candles in their house and outside. The celebration of Diwali is to symbolize that good wins over evil.

Also, Hindus believe in the soul that it is infinite, that it will not die even if your body does.The spiritual significance of Diwali is to cleanse the soul of all its sins and ignorance that shields a person’s true nature. Not the one of the body but the soul. And when the person completed with diwali he should have compassion for all things and a more supreme knowledge and ultimately achieve eternal happiness. The translation of Diwali id the festival of lights that is not only referring to candles but to yourself that you have to enjoy yourself because everyone is unique.

In Hindu festivals there is almost always a legend or some type of myth behind the celebration. In this case the legend of Diwali is told like this:
One day the King of Ayodhya, Dasarath, was out hunting. He accidentally shot and killed a boy who who was the only son of his blind parents. His parents dying with grief cursed the king that he too will die like him in grief. The King having no children was told to give offerings to god the fire god came and in return gave the King two bowls of pudding which he gave to his three wives. Who had four sons in all. The eldest queen Kausalya had Ram (also known as Rama) , the middle queen Kaikeyi had Barath and the youngest queen Sumitra had twins Lakshmana and Shatrughna. The King was very happy that his sons were growing up to become fine men and was thinking of putting Ram the eldest on the throne. When Kaikeyi heard about this she was overjoyed but her maid was not. She wanted Kaikeyi’s son Barath to accend to the throne not Ram so she poisoned the queens mind into asking for the two wishes that the king had granted her. Kaikeyi went to Dasarath and asked him that for his first wish her son go to the throne and for the second Ram goes to the jungle for exile for 14 years. The King being shocked that his queen has asked for such wishes has no choice but to fulfill them but dies of grief. Then Ram with his wife Sita and Lakshman go in the jungle for 14 years. Then one day when Ram and Lakshmana are hunting a deer, a demon Ravana in disguise as a saint comes and take Sita away. Ram and Lakshman then go to find Sita and get help from Monkeys. Ram then defeats Ravana and takes Sita back. When they come back the city is dark so Ram’s mother, Kausalya tells the people of Ayodhya to light lamps so they can see where their going. This story shows that good wins over evil by Ram defeating Ravana, and when they came back the city was immersed in lights; hence it is called Diwali the festival of lights. Diwali this year, is on Sunday, November third. Happy Diwali!