1. divali divali divali divali divali divali
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In Sanskrit, ‘Diva’ means light or lamp and ‘Ali’ means a line or row
divali
divali
divali
divali
divali
‘DIVALI’ means a row of lights
divali

2. Light means many things to us.
It means Knowledge,
Truth, Energy, Warmth Life
During Divali, Indians wish one another with an oil lamp. This flame is kept burning, for good luck and not blown out
The Indian word for God is ‘Dev’ meaning light

3. Divali is a time of THANKSGIVING to Goddess ‘Lakshmi’ who brings good fortune or plenty of wealth...
Goddess of Fortune
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4. Divali is celebrated for 4 days and each day is special.
One day is for brothers and sisters to share love and good wishes
The red powder on the forehead is for good luck

5. At night we add divas to the design
The best part of Divali is doing fun things together with friends and family....like RANGOLI or KOLAM in bright colors
At night we add divas to the design
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6. They make patterns for good luck like the Swastik and Om
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Indians decorate their homes with ‘kandils’ (paper lanterns) and electric lights
Children love to light Divas
and paint them
They make patterns for good luck like the Swastik and Om

7. The buildings and streets in India are all lit up and busy for Divali
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8. FIREWORKS SHOP
Shopping for fireworks like crackers, sparklers and rockets is most exciting during Divali
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9. Oh, the delicious sweets and goodies that Mom makes for Divali!
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I love to dress up in sarees and Indian dresses with bangles and jewellery
Oh, the delicious sweets and goodies that Mom makes for Divali!

10. All over the world, Indians on all continents
All over the world, Indians on all continents... Australia, Africa, Asia, North America and South America, celebrate Divali.....
by sharing love
by exchanging gifts
by sending wishes
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Divali
Stories
India is thousands of years old....and there are people of many different cultures...so there are many stories about Divali from different parts of India
More
Divali
Stories

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Here is one...In ancient times Indians depended on farming for their living

13. When the crop was ready for harvest the farmers would worry about the birds eating up the grain before dawn
If the birds ate the crops there would be nothing to sell and they would have no money to live
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14. They thought of a brilliant way to keep the birds away....
They placed rows of oil lamps in the field in the night and they danced and sang for they knew the lamps would bring good fortune (Lakshmi) into their homes
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15. Ever since, Indians celebrate this time of the year with happy festivities and thanksgiving to Lakshmi
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16. He married a beautiful princess called Sita.
Ramayana, the story of Rama, explains why Divali is celebrated in India, Thailand, Indonesia and other parts of the world
Once upon a time, about 7000 years ago, there lived a Prince called Ram in the kingdom of Ayodhya.
He married a beautiful princess called Sita.
Ram was an excellent archer and a good human being.
His step mother Kaikeyi, loved him but her wicked servant warned her that Ram would become king
Illustrations from rama.htm

17. Kaikeyi wanted her own son to be king .
So she ordered her husband, King Dashrath to banish Ram to the forest for 14 years. Dashrath was very sad as he loved Ram but was forced to send Ram away.
Ram went willingly to live in the forest. He gave up all his fine clothes.
He was joined by his wife Sita and his brother Lakshman
Illustrations from rama.htm

18. Sita told Ravan that Ram would surely rescue her
While in the forest, Sita was kidnapped by Ravan, the King of Sri Lanka when Ram had gone hunting
Sita told Ravan that Ram would surely rescue her
Ram became very worried and searched everywhere for Sita
Illustrations from rama.htm

19. There they fought Ravan’s army, killed Ravan and rescued Sita
Ram met the king of the tribals in the forest who promised to help Ram bring Sita back from Sri Lanka with his army of tribal forest dwellers
The army of tribals made a bridge of rocks and crossed the sea to Lanka.
There they fought Ravan’s army, killed Ravan and rescued Sita
Illustrations from rama.htm

20. Ram was then crowned King of Ayodhya
Ram, Sita, Lakshman and their loyal tribal friend, Hanuman, all returned happily to Ayodhya
Ram was then crowned King of Ayodhya
Illustrations from rama.htm

21. The people of Ayodhya were so happy to have their favorite prince Ram back and now as their king, that they rejoiced!
They lit divas and sang and danced with flowers, sweets and colors. This was the story of Divali!
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