Light The Lamp Of Divinity This Diwali (Part 2)

Lighting Diyas or Lamps made of clay is the most important aspect of Diwali. A single diya holds immense beauty and it removes darkness. Spiritually, what is the darkness that we need to remove? It is of our ego and spiritual ignorance. The clay which the Diya is made of, represents our physical body. The wick which is lit inside the diya represents our true identity as a soul.  Oil signifies the spiritual knowledge that we are all souls whose original qualities are peace, joy, love, bliss, purity, power and wisdom. We need to keep adding oil to ensure that the flame is burning. It means we need to keep applying divine qualities in our every thought, word and action so that we the souls remain illuminated. This light of knowledge gives us the power to light up other souls. Another important message is that the flame representing the soul remains the same, regardless of the Diya. It burns the same way and gives the same brightness. This implies that we the souls are all equal, regardless of our external appearance, status, gender, nationality and religion.

Bursting firecrackers is a message to burn and finish past hurt. Like one flame can burst an entire chain of crackers, similarly one thought – Past is finished, can end burdens of the past pain we have been carrying. It makes forgiveness and acceptance easier. Holding resentment makes us emotionally weak and we are bound to negative thoughts about others. When we let go, we set our mind free.  Businessmen settle old financial accounts and begin new ones. It is symbolic that we settle our old karmic accounts by resolving conflicts, forgiving ourselves and each other and filling our relationships with vibrations of love, trust and respect. 

When we celebrate the festival this way, we win over the darkness of our ego and spiritual ignorance and light the lamp of divine knowledge within. We return to Self-Rule or rule over our inner world. That is when we truly invoke the divinity of Sri Lakshmi in ourselves. It means we welcome new ways of thinking, living, behaving, being and becoming – to experience abundant happiness, health and harmony.