Ephemera our Elephant celebrates Diwali

November 08, 2020

Ephemera our Elephant celebrates Diwali

Diwali symbolizes the spiritual victory of light over darkness, good over evil, and knowledge over ignorance

In the Hindu epic Ramayana, Diwali is the day holy Sita and Rama returned home after a period of 14 years in exile.

“When I despair, I remember that all through history the way of truth and love have always won. There have been tyrants and murderers, and for a time, they can seem invincible, but in the end, they always fall. Think of it--always,” said Mahatma Gandhi. Diwali is a time of renewing this faith.

During Diwali, people wear their finest clothes. And special foods are prepared. Fireworks displays are also beautiful.

The Celebrations take place over five main days,

Day 1 Dhanteras... cleaning and decoration of homes and workplaces with oil lamps, candles and Rangoli ( a mandala)

A Melbourne rangoli made with coloured Sago

Day 2 Naraka Chaturdashi. On this day Holy Krishna killed a demon and released 16,000 girls held captive

Day 3 Lakshmi Pooja and Diwali. Lakshmi Pooja is the worship of the divine Lakshmi ji, the Goddess of Prosperity

Day 4 Govardhan Puja- preparation and offerings of a large variety of vegetarian food to Holy Shri Krishna as a mark of gratitude. Also, New Year is observed in Gujarat

Offerings in India above and in a Sydney Home below

Day 5 Bhai Dooj which is dedicated to the bond between sister and brother. A brother will eat a simple meal with his sister.

Many Hindus associate the festival with Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth and prosperity, and wife of Vishnu. The start of the 5-day Diwali festival is stated in some popular contemporary sources as the day Goddess Lakshmi was born from Samudra Manthan, the churning of the cosmic ocean of milk by the Devas (gods) and the Asuras (demons) while the night of Diwali is when Lakshmi chose and wed Vishnu. Along with Lakshmi, Ganesha, the elephant-headed son of Parvati and Shiva of Shaivism tradition, is remembered as one who symbolises ethical beginnings and the remover of obstacles.

Trade and merchant families and others also offer prayers to Saraswati, who embodies music, literature and learning and Kubera, who symbolises book-keeping, Treasury and Wealth management.

All share a common focus on righteousness, self-inquiry and the importance of knowledge, and is the path to overcoming the "darkness of ignorance".

"A culture that worships goddesses produces strong women," US Vice President Kamala Harris

In 1894 the artist Raja Ravi Varma was the first to depict Goddesses and Gods with human faces. His lithograph depicting Goddess Lakshmi below. This is in the collection of The Art Gallery of New South Wales.

The strength of Raja Ravi Varma’s (1848–1906) artistic vision was considerable in guiding the way that goddesses were imagined and visualised in British India. Varma, who was from an aristocratic background received his training from visiting court painters and became a well-known portrait painter who was also commissioned to paint large scale religious scenes.

As mentioned, Goddess Lakshmi was born after the churning of the cosmic ocean identifying that prosperity is born only after some effort.

Lakshmiji is depicted in Indian art as an elegantly dressed, prosperity-showering golden-coloured woman with an owl as her vehicle, signifying the importance of economic activity in the maintenance of life and her ability to move, work and prevail in confusing darkness. She is the goddess of wealth, fortune, love, beauty, illusion, joy and prosperity.

Her Four Hands

Signify the four aspects of human life important to Hindu culture:

Dharma

Cosmic law underlying right behaviour and social order.

Kama

"Desire, Wish, Longing"

Artha

literally translates as "meaning, sense, goal, purpose or essence"

Moksha

Emancipation, Enlightenment, Liberation, and Release

Ephemera, kshanabhangurata In Indian, talks directly to Children

“The Goddess of Prosperity Lakshmi will visit your home on Diwali. She will only enter homes which are clean and have a lovely rangoli to attract her. Is yours ready?” questions Ephemera.

This is a Melbourne Rangoli made of lentils

“We Elephants worship the Goddess, as she can also return all lost property on Diwali”. Ephemera points to a picture with two Elephants and the Goddess.