Pan-India · October–November
Also known as Deepavali · Festival of Lights
When it’s celebrated
The exact date shifts each year — it’s fixed from the panchang. Cast your free kundli or check the calendar for this year’s muhurat.
Significance
Diwali celebrates the triumph of light over darkness and knowledge over ignorance, marking new beginnings, prosperity and the homecoming of Lord Rama to Ayodhya. As the financial and spiritual new year for many communities, it is the most widely observed Hindu festival, honouring Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth and fortune, and dispelling inner and outer darkness with rows of lamps.
The story
The principal North-Indian legend holds that Diwali marks Lord Rama's return to Ayodhya after fourteen years of exile and his victory over the demon-king Ravana; the citizens lit rows of clay lamps (deepa) to welcome him home, giving the festival its name. Other strands recall the night Goddess Lakshmi emerged from the churning of the cosmic ocean (Samudra Manthan), and in eastern India the new-moon night is sacred to Goddess Kali.
Rituals
Across India
Diwali is a five-day celebration that varies widely by region: in the North it centres on Rama's return, in the West (Gujarat) it doubles as the start of the new business year, in Bengal and the East the new-moon night is devoted to Kali Puja, and in the South it commemorates Krishna's slaying of the demon Narakasura (Naraka Chaturdashi). It is called Deepavali in southern and eastern India and Diwali in the North and West.
Questions
Diwali celebrates the victory of light over darkness and good over evil. In North India it marks Lord Rama's return to Ayodhya after defeating Ravana, while across India it is a day to worship Goddess Lakshmi for wealth, prosperity and auspicious new beginnings.
Goddess Lakshmi, the deity of wealth and fortune, is the primary deity worshipped, usually alongside Lord Ganesha for wisdom and auspicious beginnings. In eastern India, the same new-moon night is dedicated to Goddess Kali.
Diwali falls on the Amavasya (new moon) of the month of Kartik, usually in October or November. The exact Gregorian date shifts each year because it is fixed by the Hindu lunar calendar (panchang).
People clean and decorate their homes, light rows of diyas, draw rangoli, perform Lakshmi-Ganesha puja, exchange sweets and gifts, wear new clothes and burst firecrackers over a five-day celebration.
Because homes, temples and streets are illuminated with countless oil lamps, candles and lights symbolising the triumph of inner light and knowledge over darkness and ignorance.
Book a pooja in your name, find the muhurat, or read the day’s panchang — bring the festival into your own practice.
