Celebrating diwali at home

 

 

First Day:	Asweyuja Bahula Thrayodasi, Dhanatrayodashi, Yamadeepdaan
Second Day:	Narkachaturdashi
Third Day:	Kaumudi Mahostavam, Balindra Pooja, Karthigai Deepam, Thalai Deepavali
Fourth Day:	Bali Padyam / Bali Pratipada
Fifth Day:	Yamadwitheya , Bhatri Ditya

1) Clean the house and business premises thoroughly before the Diwali day, or the Dhanteras. Do the laundry, clean all the rooms and sort out your papers in both your home and business. Clean the oven, smear it with lime and apply four or five dots with kumkum on it.

2) Do Shopping. Get new clothes, utensils, jewellery, small gifts for your family, relatives and friends.

a) Note down the items you are gonna prepare on diwali day and get all the items needed. Listing out some of them.

            1) Dress and other cosmetics
            2) Diwali lamps/candels
            3) Crackers for diwali
            4) Flowers for pooja
            5) Groceries
            6) Rangoli Powders
            7) Mehandhi(henna) cones

 
3) Put Mehandhi (henna) designs in hand. Apply to kids, relative women's and friends.

4) Make the entrance way to your home or business colourful using the traditional motifs of Rangoli designs, bells, flower garlands, wall hangings, mirrors, LED lights, etc. This is a joyful way to welcome the Goddess of Wealth and Prosperity. Rangoli designs can be found across the internet.

5) Decorate Pooja Room.  For Diwali Festival, in the traditional pooja room, betel leaves, betel nuts, plaintain fruits, flowers, sandal paste, kumkum, gingelly oil, turmeric powder, scented powder is kept. Crackers and new dresses are placed in a plate after smearing a little kumkum or sandal paste.

6) Oil Bath on Diwali Day. The Diwali day begins with everyone in the family taking an oil bath before sunrise, a custom arising from a belief that having an oil bath in the morning on the day of diwali is equivalent to taking bath in the Ganges. Before the bath, elders in the house apply gingelly oil on the heads of the younger members.

7) Wear new clothes and get blessings. Lit lamp in pooja room. After praying to god, elder member of the house will give the new dress to the family members, presented infront of God. After wearing new dress, get blessings from elders.





 

 
8) Light some firecrackers and fireworks. These are a common part of Diwali, used to symbolize warding off evil from your surroundings. They are usually set off in greatest numbers on the actual day of Diwali.

9) Bake sweets, snacks, and savouries. These are traditional offerings for Diwali and are given as gifts. In Tanjore, the custom is to first take a small quantity of deepavali lehiyam (medicinal, ayurvedic paste) after the oil bath and then have breakfast. Often sweets are eaten after wearing new clothes. In almost all houses, items like ukkarai, velli appam, idly, chutney, sambhar, omapudi, boondhi are prepared. For lunch, jangri, pathir peni, or one variety of the poli are made.

 

10) Burn lamps every night during the festival. In the evening, light small oil lamps (called "diyas") and place them around the home. Turn all the lights on and light some candles.










 

11) Pooja in evening. Lit kuthu vilaku (oil lamp) in the pooja room. Mats or wooden planks are placed facing east. After naivedhya (offering to the Gods) of the items, a plaintain fruit is given to each member of the family followed by betel leaves and betel nuts. Those who have to perform 'pithru tharpanam' will have a second bath perform the tharpanam and don't eat rice at night.

12) Exchange gifts, burst crackers and enjoy. Invite your friends and relatives home. Offer sweets, snacks and savouries. The basic idea behind the tradition of exchanging Diwali Gifts is to accelerate the feeling of love, bonding, affection and appreciation. People convey their respect, good wishes, blessings, love and appreciation for their dear ones through gifts. Since Diwali is a religious festival, sending Diwali Gifts also symbolises one's prayers to the almighty for the prosperity and well being of the recipient.

We wish you all, a happy and safe diwali!!!