By Leela Ramdeen, Chair, CCSJ (http://rcsocialjusticett.org) & Director, CREDI
Shubh Divali
Today, October 30, T&T will celebrate Diwali or Deepavali, the festival of lights. In my childhood, my Hindu father taught us, his children, about the significance of this festival. Inter alia, it is a celebration of the victory of dharma, good over evil, light over darkness, knowledge over ignorance.
There are days of house-cleaning before this auspicious occasion to ensure that Mother Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth, beauty and prosperity enters the home. Hindu scriptures state that at midnight she enters homes, so Hindus clean and decorate their homes to welcome her.
It is a time when Hindus wear new clothes, exchange gifts and sweets, give food and money to the poor, offer prayers to various deities such as: Mother Lakshmi, Lord Ganesh, Lord Ram, Lord Krishna, Lord Hanuman, Lord Yama, and Lord Kuber; and homage is paid to one’s ancestors.
For many, this is the start of a new year. Business people close their accounts at this time and pray to Mother Lakshmi to increase trade/business in the new year.
There are other significant meanings related to this festival. Having grown up in Chaguanas, one of the most memorable meanings for me is the story of Lord Ram. Many of us would have attended Ram Leela performances which are always colourful, and full of music (tassa drumming) and dances.
As Pa told us, leela is the Hindi word for play/theatre. Ram is a Hindu god. So, Ram Leela is a play about the life of Lord Ram. It is performed in the open at more than 25 venues in Trinidad and Tobago and lasts for 10 nights in September or October. It ends with the burning of a large effigy of Rawana, the evil king who stole Ram’s bride, Sita, and who was defeated eventually – signifying the triumph of good over evil.
The rows of deyas lit at the homes of Hindus reflect those that were lit on the return of Ram, Sita, and Ram’s brother Lakshman to Ayodhya after Ram had been in exile for 14 years.
The story of Ram, which can be found in the epic Ramayana, teaches moral values such as faith, devotion, duty, love, respect; how to be a good father, son, brother, and leader; how to distinguish between right and wrong and so on.
The Catholic Church continues to promote interreligious dialogue. A Diwali message (2014) from the Vatican’s Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue states: “May the Transcendent Light illumine your hearts, homes and communities, and may all your celebrations deepen the sense of belonging to one another in your families and neighbourhoods, and so further harmony and happiness, peace and prosperity… may we, Hindus and Christians, join together with followers of other religions and with people of good will to foster a culture of inclusion for a just and peaceful society.”
It is worth noting Pope Francis’ words on the relationship between interreligious dialogue and evangelisation. In 2013 he said: “Interreligious dialogue is a necessary condition for peace in the world, and so it is a duty for Christians as well as other religious communities… In this dialogue, ever friendly and sincere, attention must always be paid to the essential bond between dialogue and proclamation, which leads the Church to maintain and intensify her relationship with non-Christians… True openness involves remaining steadfast in one’s deepest convictions, clear and joyful in one’s own identity, while at the same time being ‘open to understanding those of the other party’ and ‘knowing that dialogue can enrich each side’…Evangelization and interreligious dialogue, far from being opposed, mutually support and nourish one another.”
In his address to an interreligious and ecumenical gathering in Sri Lanka in 2015, he said: “As experience has shown for (inter-religious) dialogue and encounter to be effective, it must be grounded in a full and forthright presentation of our respective convictions. Certainly, such dialogue will accentuate how varied our beliefs, traditions and practices are. But if we are honest in presenting our convictions, we will be able to see more clearly what we hold in common.
“New avenues will be opened for mutual esteem, cooperation and indeed friendship… the fostering of… unity is a noble task which is incumbent upon all who have at heart the good of the nation, and indeed the whole human family… For the sake of peace, religious beliefs must never be allowed to be abused in the cause of violence and war. We must be clear and unequivocal in challenging our communities to live fully the tenets of peace and coexistence found in each religion, and to denounce acts of violence when they are committed.”
Diwali provides us with an opportunity for a true “culture of encounter”.
Happy Diwali to our Hindu brothers and sisters.
