PayPerPostBlueMonster #157

Hey all readers,
    On this wonderful Diwali day, PPP has released another piece of their $500 prized puzzle - the payperpostbluemonster. For all those newbies out there, PPP, or PayPerPost, is a blog marketing enterprise started by Ted Murphy which pays you to blog. They have an ongoing competition for a puzzle. They are releasing puzzle pieces now and then, which PPP members should assemble, and post on their blogs, for a $500 award!

    So heres Puzzle Piece No. 157…

    Thats all for now dear readers… Au revoir until next time… Keep tuned to BlogForPeace!

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October 22, 2006 | Filed Under Tech | Leave a Comment 

Happy Diwali to all my readers!

Dear readers,

HAPPY DIWALI!

Hey all,
Im quite excited as today is a great festival in India named Diwali. I believe that I’ve blogged about Diwali last year @ BlogForPeace, and I dont want to bore you again with the same old hat… So today, I giving you an excerpt from Wikipedia, my favourite encyclopaedia, on the origin of Diwali… Enjoy :)



Diwali, also called Deepavali is a major Hindu
festival. Known as the “Festival of Lights,” it symbolises the victory
of good over evil, and lamps are lit as a sign of celebration and hope
for mankind. The festival of Diwali is about harvesting. Celebrations
focus on lights and lamps, particularly traditional diyas (as illustrated). Fireworks are associated with the festival in many regions of India.

Diwali is celebrated for five consecutive days in the Hindu month of Ashwayuja. It usually occurs in October/November, and is one of the most popular and eagerly awaited festivals in India. Hindus, Jains and Sikhs alike regard it as a celebration of life and use the occasion to strengthen family and social relationships. For Jains it is one of the most important festivals, and beginning of the Jain year. Jains celebrate Diwali because Lord Mahavira achieved Moksha. It is also a significant festival for the Sikh faith.

The festival marks the victory of good over evil. The Sanskrit word
Deepavali means array of lights that stands for victory of brightness
over darkness. As the knowledge of Sanskrit diminished, the name was
popularly modified to Diwali, especially in northern India.

On the day of Diwali, many wear new clothes, share sweets and light

firecrackers. The North Indian business community usually starts their
financial new year on Diwali and new account books are opened on this
day.

Hindus find cause to celebrate this festival for different reasons:

  • As per sacred texts, according to Skanda Purana, the goddess Shakti observed 21 days of austerity starting from ashtami of shukla paksha (waxing period of moon) to get half part of the body of Lord Shiva.
    This vrata is known as kedhara vrata. Deepavali is the completion day
    of this austerity. This is the day Lord Shiva accepted Shakti into the
    left half of the form and appeared as Ardhanarishvara. The ardent devotees observe this 21 days vrata by making a kalasha with 21 threads on it and 21 types of offerings for 35 days. The final day is celebrated as kedhara gauri vrata.

Children lighting lamps in the form of swastika on eve of diwali
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Children lighting lamps in the form of swastika on eve of diwali

  • Diwali also celebrates the return of Lord Rama, King of Ayodhya, with his wife Sita and brother Lakshmana to Ayodhya from a war in which he killed the demon king Ravana.
    It is believed that the people lit oil lamps along the way to light
    their path in the darkness. This is the reason, why the festival is
    celebrated a day earlier in South India since Lord Rama travelled from
    the south to his kingdom in the north. In North India, the festival is
    held on the final day of the Vikram calendar. The following day marks the beginning of the North Indian new year, and is called Annakut.

  • It commemorates the killing of Narakasura, an evil demon who created havoc, by Lord Krishna’s wife Sathyabhama. This happened in the Dwapara Yuga during this time of Lord Krishna’s avatar. In another version, the demon was killed by Lord Krishna
    himself. In South India, Diwali does not coincide with the beginning of
    a new year as South Indians follow a different calendar, the Shalivahana calendar.

  • In Bhavishyottara and Bramhavaivarta Purana, Diwali is associated with the Daitya king Bali, who is allowed to return to earth once a year.

SOURCE : Wikipedia

So dear readers, I hope that you have read, and understood the basic facts and essence of Diwali, and the reason why I’m so excited :P You can follow the word links to Wikipedia for more information…

Festivals such as this throw light and colour to a person’s everyday life. It promotes inter-communal peace, harmony and brotherhood as people celebrate festivals such as this in great pomp and ceremony… Thus, festivals are truly a tribute to peace, like I’ve said a trillion times before :)

So dear readers, let me end here now, and once again, HAPPY DIWALI!


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October 22, 2006 | Filed Under General World | 1 Comment 

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