Diwali

A major festival of India, Diwali is rightly known as the Festival of Lights. The festival gets its name from the Sanskrit word Deepavali, which means An Array of Lights. The five days long festival is celebrated on Amavasya - the 15th day of the dark fortnight of the Hindu month of Ashwin (Aasho) (October / November) every year.

Dance is an integral part of the celebrations. As part of the festivities, homes are decorated with earthen lamps, Rangoli ornamentations, floral designs etc. This is done as an offering to Goddess Lakshmi, the celestial consort of lord Vishnu and the Goddess of wealth and prosperity according to the Hindu mythology. Diwali also marks the beginning of a new year according to the traditional Hindu calendar.