Billions Will Celebrate Diwali, International Festival of Lights, This Weekend

Days in the Northern Hemisphere might be getting shorter. But many communities around the world will still be bathed in light this weekend, thanks to the traditions of Diwali.

Diwali, the Festival of Lights, begins today. It will conclude Tuesday. More than a billion people around the world observe the holiday. It reaches its peak on Sunday.

“Diwali is celebrated by Hindus, Jains, Sikhs, Buddhists, and people of Indian heritage and non-Indian heritage,” the Hindu American Foundation explains. It says that for all who take part, “the holiday represents the same symbolic victory of light over darkness, knowledge over ignorance, and good over evil.”

Celebrants of Diwali string lights. They wear brightly colored clothes. They may make art out of dyed rice flour. Eating sweets is also common. People enjoy jalebi. It is a cake of swirled dough dipped in sugar syrup. Another favorite treat is gulab jamun. It is fried dough soaked with sweet rose syrup.

Fireworks are among the most popular ways of celebrating the Festival of Lights. That has become a point of tension in India recently. Air pollution is a major problem there. It gets worse at the onset of fall. That is when farmers burn off the remnants of crops in preparation for winter. In the capital of Delhi, the Air Quality Index hit a rating of “Very Poor” on Monday.

India's Supreme Court has tried to strike a balance between celebration and safety. It has briefly relaxed its blanket ban on fireworks this year. So-called “green” fireworks will be legal. They are designed to be quieter and safer than regular fireworks. They are cleaner, too. They release less smoke when they pop. People will be allowed to use them only on certain days and hours. The full ban will resume on November 9.

Reflect: How do you think people can honor important traditions while also caring for the health and safety of their communities?