Diwali season inspires artistic celebration
By RANITA GHOSH · The Johns Hopkins News-Letter · November 16, 2013
As an economy primarily reliant on agriculture, ancient India celebrated Diwali at the time of the last harvest before winter. The farmers would celebrate in hopes of a good harvest in the following year. They would have large family gatherings, clean their homes and light diyas, which are small candles, in order to welcome Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth, into their homes. This custom of lighting lamps and celebrating this holiday in general has remained since ancient times.
Across India today it is customary to observe Diwali by lighting lamps and spending time with one’s families. Businessmen in India, in fact, mark their new financial year with this holiday, just like those ancient farmers. Though it started as a Hindu celebration, Diwali has become a national Indian holiday, celebrated by Hindus, Christians, Muslims, Jains and Sikhs alike throughout the country. It is a time for family. It is a time for relaxation. It is a time for new goals. And it is a time for fun.
Children often play with fire crackers, and large bonfires bring neighborhoods together where dancing and singing ensue. New clothes are worn, gifts exchanged and buildings decorated with festive lights.
Here at Hopkins, this traditional Indian holiday has been kept alive by the Hindu Student Council. As one of the largest student run events on campus, Diwali Dhamaka, as the event is called, is always planned to fall on parents’ weekend. This is one of the only events during the year that all the South Asian performing arts groups come together, showing the unity and camaraderie that this holiday fosters. The significance of dancing and singing to Diwali is to celebrate the past year’s successes and hope the new year brings even better things.
On the day of the event, the Recreation Center is taken over, decorated with a painted mural backdrop depicting an Indian landscape as well as lights put up everywhere. Guests at Diwali Dhamaka take off their shoes, as is custom in Indian households. An aarati, or prayer service, is performed. Catered Indian food is served to all the students, parents and faculty. As the first main South Asian event of the semester, it is the first place where the dancing and singing groups showcase their new teams and what they have been working on since the start of the semester. There are also class dances where each class, the freshmen through the seniors, come together to not only show their class spirit but to also feel a sense of togetherness which Diwali naturally brings. After the performances, there is an open dance floor and people usually dance and sing to both garba, a traditional style of dance that is performed in a circle to show respect toward the different Hindu gods and Bollywood songs.