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Archive 1Archive 2Archive 3

Picture? (2004)

I strongly feel that a picture would make way for a better article. --GatesPlusPlus 15:15, 16 Dec 2004 (UTC)

Let's try to make it a featured article by November 1.

Should this be moved to a new article? This article should just describe the significance of Diwali festival. The social issues associated with it should be kept out. Probarbly have it link to diwali. Alren 20:54, 26 Oct 2004 (UTC)

Pics of firecrackers and Lightening (2005)

Can anyone share pics of Diwali Lightening and Diwali firecrackers? Also , we can add Golden temple's picture decorated during diwali in Sikhism and Diwali section.--Holy Ganga 09:15, 26 October 2005 (UTC)

Done --Deepak|वार्ता 00:34, 29 October 2005 (UTC)
Yes...also the current sprinkle of photos is excellent- so beautifully shot photos--The world salutes the Rising Star...Try to be One 17:08, 21 October 2006 (UTC)

spelling? (2005)

The article should probably maintain a consistent spelling (Diwali, Deepavali, Dipavali) in the text, after listing some of the alternatives in the intro. Is there a consensus on which spelling should be used or should there be a vote? Willhsmit 21:52, 27 October 2005 (UTC)

I vote Diwali since it's most undertood and used by the majority.--Pranathi 06:56, 29 October 2005 (UTC)

Does it look like a featured article yet? (2005)

Shall we make it a candidate, or is it sure to fail?

No, it isn't up to standard yet. If nothing else it needs a lot of copyediting. Copyedit it and put it up for peer review. Guettarda 06:25, 31 October 2005 (UTC)
Agree, it still needs some work - apparently Hinduism was a featured article. Maybe we should add Hindu festivals to the Hindu articles template. There are some other nice examples of featured articles here: Wikipedia:Featured_Article#Religion_and_beliefs Megapixie 06:30, 31 October 2005 (UTC)
Id agree that it needs editing, although informative it doesn't read like an encyclopaedia article should. It would also be nice to add some more pictures of diwali celebrations, can anyone fine something more relevant to replace the fireworks pic?
The diwali economics part is way out of place... it needs to be updated with the stuff like muharat trading on the stock markets and also the same done by the other companies... Madhav 16:13, 14 February 2006 (UTC)

SHOCKING WRITE UP

RAM, WHO IS THE MAIN REASON BEHIND 60,00,00,000 PEOPLE CELIBRATING THE THIRD DAY HAS NOT BEEN MENTIONED!!!!!!!!!!!!!! IT REALLY FEELS PATHETIC TO NOTE THIS.''''

Read significance in hinduism --Deepak|वार्ता 19:13, 5 November 2005 (UTC)

Proposal

I don't think there is any Holiday/Festival related WP:FA. Wikipedia:WikiProject Holidays have not even set up a proper structure yet. This is why I have made a proposed structure below.

  1. Introduction:
  2. Date: Part of this section should be turned into a table for converting the Hindu calendar into the Gregorian calendar over the past ten years or so.
  3. Origin and Significance: It would be better if it was split in three section.
    1. ... in Hinduism
      1. ... in North India
      2. ... South India
      3. ... Other Parts of India (eg. Kali is worshipped in Bengal)
      4. ... Rest of world
    2. ... in Jainism
    3. ... in Sikhism
  4. Five day of Diwali This section currently has Hindu POV. More is needed on what Jains and Sikhs do.
    1. What is done on day X*
    2. Why it is done on day X* includes legends
  • X is each of the five days.

The sections "Diwali in Jainism" "Diwali in Sikhism" should be blended in avoid an emphasis on Hinduism.

Please post comments below. DaGizzaChat © 03:27, 29 January 2006 (UTC)

I think a section should also be added on the more "modern and secular" form of Diwali, seen more in countries like the U.S., Britain and some in India where people treat the festival less relgiously but haveing more fun such as fireworks, parties, etc... DaGizzaChat © 08:24, 29 January 2006 (UTC)
This site has an interesting lay out, which could be taken into account. DaGizzaChat © 09:36, 29 January 2006 (UTC)
Beautiful write up and the effort taken shows...good work :-) So have we decided the format?--The world salutes the Rising Star...Try to be One 17:21, 21 October 2006 (UTC)

Images

This article need some good imgs. I'm sure lots of people will be having good imgs of the celebrations at their house. I've uploaded a few imgs:

--May the Force be with you! Shreshth91($ |-| r 3 $ |-| t |-|) 16:38, 30 January 2006 (UTC)

Thanks, added an image --Vivek 17:21, 17 May 2006 (UTC)
Would love to :)--The world salutes the Rising Star...Try to be One 17:22, 21 October 2006 (UTC)

The Five days of Diwali replicates a different site

This section is essentially a copy of the page found here, which copyright 2000, all rights reserved etc. Has permission been granted to copy? --Nemonoman 16:09, 15 February 2006 (UTC)

Much of this article replicates a different site

This section is essentially a copy of the page found here, which copyright 2004-2006. Has permission been granted to copy? --Nemonoman 16:46, 15 February 2006 (UTC)

Deleted copyright content

I've deleted portions of this article that were cut and pasted from copyrighted content.--Nemonoman 17:53, 22 February 2006 (UTC)

Merger proposal

Harmful effects of firecrackers

The above article seems to be related specifically to the Diwali festival, so maybe it should be merged in. It needs quite a bit of work though, it doesn't cite sources at all. -- Colm O'Brien 14:32, 3 May 2006 (UTC)

The Harmful effects of firecrackers article might be better if it were more accurately re-titled to indicate its relationship to India’s holiday practices and politics; it also lacks substantive information (comparative or otherwise), documented facts or data of any sort. Once cleaned up and enhanced, the article could then be merged into the Diwali article, which seeks to provide a wealth of information about the traditions, practices, controversies and celebration of the Indian days and holidays leading up to, and following, the festival day of Diwali. ...JC 22:46, 12 May 2006 (UTC)


Clean up

Cleaned up the page, organized sections correctly (section tags were incorrect). Will add in pictures that http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:Shreshth91 contributed. --Vivek 17:18, 17 May 2006 (UTC)

Calendar Section

There seems to be some confusion in the calendar section of the article. First of all, as far as I know, Diwali is celebrated on the new moon day of Kartik, as mentioned in the infobox. It may be that this is the date in the Vikram samvat followed in North India, and the South Indian Shalivahana calendar has Diwali in Asvin/Ashwayuja. If so, this needs to be clarified in the article. The description of the contrasting North/South Indian calendars is correct, (as per Hindu calendar) but the inferences drawn from it are not. In North India, Diwali falls in the middle of the month of Kartik, and I gather from the description of Shalivahana calendar that Diwali in South India is celebrated in the last few days of Ashwayuja and first few days of Kartik. Could someone confirm this? --Longhairandabeard 07:52, 1 August 2006 (UTC)

I already changed this. You are correct, the calendar in south since it starts from new moon has Divali half in Asvhin and half in kartik. It was written exactly opposite in the earlier version for some reason. --Kaveri 18:01, 3 July 2007 (UTC)

Ads

With this year's Diwali drawing near, it seems people are getting desperate. For spammers: Wikipedia is not a place to advertise your website or product. Any ads WILL BE REMOVED. Though I'm glad to see that vandalism gets reverted pretty quickly. -- Longhairandabeard 18:05, 6 October 2006 (UTC)

Diwali and Buddhism

I am puzzled by the reference to Diwali being celebrated by Buddhists. I have a had a long association with Buddhism and have not been aware of this. Can we have a reference?

I'm puzzled too. Can't find anything to back this up, so I'm removing it for the time being. Aside from the obvious overlap between Hindu/Buddhist populations, I can't really see any other reason for this claim. Sukh | ਸੁਖ | Talk 14:39, 22 October 2006 (UTC)
Actually the claim it's celebrated by Buddhists (in India) is appears to be fairly common on the web (try Google). I'm sure some of it came from us but I doubt all of it did. This obviously doesn't make it correct but the fact it's so often repeated makes me think it's at least partially true. I'm guessing it's not really of any implicit religious significance but many Indian Buddhists do celebrate it to some degree for cultural and historic reasons. If this is correct, I would suggest we re-add it and include a footnote explaining this. BTW, I did come across this picture [1] (see picture 5). I won't bother to re-add it however as I don't have any evidence just a hunch and Sukh probably knows more about this then me Nil Einne 09:54, 24 October 2006 (UTC)
I think the distinction between celebrating Diwali as a cultural festival (e.g. like Hindus/Sikhs may celebrate Christmas in Western countries) and celebrating it as a religious festival needs to be made. If Buddhists celebrate for religious reasons (as Hindus/Sikhs do - although for different reasons) then they should be included in the list. If they celebrate it merely because they live in India and it's the main festival of the year, then they probably shouldn't be included in the list.
However, I know very little about Buddhism so I'm not in a position to make a judgement on this one.  :) Sukh | ਸੁਖ | Talk 19:42, 24 October 2006 (UTC)
Does it merit even mentioning then? For instance, Christmas is celeberated "culturally" by many non-christians in United States. You buy gifts, have christmas party, put on the lights, etc etc. Everything but go to the church. Does this mean we start adding how all this other faiths also celeberate Christmas in the article for Christmas? Maybe a sentence or two on how the cultural aspects of Diwali are celeberated irregardless of faith. --Blacksun 13:53, 3 February 2007 (UTC)

UMMM... SINCE WHEN DO BHUDDISTS CELEBRATE HINDU FESTIVALS????

cAN SOME CLEAR UP TO ME WHEN BHUDDISTS AND SIKHS FOR EXAMPLE " CELEBRATE" DIWALI?? UNLESS CHRISTIANS CELBRATE EID THESE DAYS????

Sikhs do celebrate Diwali but Buddhists don't. GizzaChat © 01:25, 20 October 2006 (UTC)
Depends on which type of Buddhists, if they are the Tibetan kind, perhaps. If they are from the NE, maybe, and if they are the pseudo-Buddhists, then no.Bakaman Bakatalk 01:39, 20 October 2006 (UTC)
Hmmm, you see, no one could patronize who does what?! But yes, facts are facts and they should be current...hmmm?--The world salutes the Rising Star...Try to be One 17:25, 21 October 2006 (UTC)

I don't really agree. I think the refernce to Buddhism should be put back. If you look at the Christmas article, notce this:

Observed by Christians around the world as well as by non-Christians who observe the secular aspects of the holiday.

It is unfair to have double standars. So, I will make a parallel to this. Becuase there are Christians, Muslims, and Buddhists who celebrate Diwali as a cultural festival. Remembre, Diwali is the "Holidays" in India!

I don't think anyone would oppose adding that in the article as long as you keep the phrasing similar to the Christmas article.--Blacksun 13:49, 3 February 2007 (UTC)

Reference Required

Please add references to all sections tagged. Rigmahroll 15:40, 18 October 2006 (UTC)

'Mal effects of firecrackers'

This has a POV and furthermore does not belong in this general article about the holiday. If you wish to say 'some object to firecrackers used during the holiday', that's fine; but the current information there is not suitable. Ibanix 18:54, 19 October 2006 (UTC)


Dhanteras

It is belived that on the day of the Dhanteras, Lord Dhanwantri born in churning of the sea. Thus he is considered the elder brother of Goddes Laxami. This day the Ayurvedic practitioners, Vaidya, Indian system of medicine practitioners, celebrates his birthday with great enthusiasm.This is an important day for the Vaidyas.

User:Dbbajpai1945@sify.com 9:09 PM IST 20 August 2006 Sunday

5 days or 1 ?

Since the article states repeatedly that it's "celebrated over five days", why is only 1 day (Oct. 21) listed for 2006? What are the 5 days? - Liberty, 20 Oct 2006

The five days section and the date section in the infobox appears to explain this well enough to me. Diwali is the middle day of the five days and is the actual day Diwali (although not the main day for all people who celebrate the festival it appears). All the other days are known by different names from a quick read of the section. Diwali/Deepavali is also the only day that's a public holiday in countries like Malaysia and Singapore. I note that this is info was likely present when you read the article as it appears to have been around since 18th October [2] so I assume it was around on 20th October when you read the article. If you don't feel the info already present is sufficient or you feel when need to repeat the explaination again, perhaps you could explain further? Nil Einne 09:44, 24 October 2006 (UTC)

Grammer/Spelling

This article is full of typos and grammatical mistakes. I fixed a couple of mistakes, but somebody needs to go through this and fix it up. Rrten00 21:51, 21 October 2006 (UTC)

Grammer? :) Sukh | ਸੁਖ | Talk 14:37, 22 October 2006 (UTC)
Hmmmm, now I didn;t expect to get a giggle here... :-)--The world salutes the Rising Star...Try to be One 10:54, 24 October 2006 (UTC)

Name

The name issue isn't explained very well. I'm guessing from this article Diwali is the Hindi name and Deepavali is the sanskrit name (which the article mentions) Nil Einne 10:00, 24 October 2006 (UTC)

Yeah, Diwali is the common Hindi name while Deepavali is the Formal Hindi/Sanskrit/Some other Indian langauges and the name used in South East Asia. The original word was Deepavali but since languages evolve, it was shortened to Diwali. GizzaChat © 03:31, 25 October 2006 (UTC)

Days of Diwali

The photo of the fireworks used in celebration of Diwali is the same photograph used in the article for Alagoas state in Brazil, the caption there talks of christian holiday. This picture is being misused in one or both of these articles, someone should look into this.



fvbhvbjhdfbvhbvhjfd I feel a bit uncomfortable with this article as it has a north indian bent. In Maharashtra and Karnataka, divali is the name for the festivities and not a particular day. Each day has a different name and significance. The festivities start with Vasubaras (12 th day). So It would be a 6 day festival named Divali. (Vasubaras, Dhanatrayodashi, NarakChaturdashi, LakshmiPujan, Padva, Bhaubij). Some start it with Narakchaturdashi so it would be 4 days. I do not understand where the 5 days comes from. In Northern India 2 days are important LakshmiPuja and the Divali day and Bhaiduj is also celebrated. So I think in the intro it should say that the festivals is celebrated from 3-6 days. I started adding Maharashtra specific info but I realized I would have to change a lot of things to neutralize it and add everywhere that for us Divali is not one day but the whole chunk of 4-6 days. There is a section on Maharashtra but then it sounds like the North Indian version is the main stream version and Maharastrian way of celebrating is a version of it. Divali, for that matter anything in India, is never monolithic. The introduction itself should make it clear and the whole article should keep reminding that none of the versions are the main versions. Instead of saying Divali is the main day and saying first, second, third day of the festivities we can just refer to the actual lunar day. That way none of the version of main day would be more important than the other and none of the versions of total days would be contradictory with the current 5-day version.

--Kaveri 18:23, 3 July 2007 (UTC)


Also I changed the information about the calendars used in North and south. The information about the calendars was correct but the explanation of Diwali falling in 2 months for North and in the middle for South was completely opposite and contradictory to the calendar info. I have corrected it. --Kaveri 18:23, 3 July 2007 (UTC)

In the current version in the Narak Chaturdashi day it says - "In the evening, lamps are again lit and Goddess Lakshmi is worshipped and offered special dishes. This being a no moon day, many will offer special tarpana (offerings of water and sesame seeds) to their ancestors. " But chaturdashi is the 14th day. This looks liks Lakshmi Puja and should be on the no moon day. I think the writer got confused as for last few years the Chaturdashi and Amavasya fall on the same solar day (Called Tithikshaya - shortening of the tithi/lunar day). I am going to move it to the next day or delete it if nobody replies to this post in 1 week. --Kaveri 18:37, 3 July 2007 (UTC)

Proper name

The name says Diwali, but the first word says Divali. Which is the proper name? -- Prod-You 02:16, 8 November 2007 (UTC)

"Deepavali" is the actual proper name, but its commonly called "Diwali" in everyday use, especially in North India. In South India and formally, the occasion is known by the original Sanskrit name "Deepavali" 220.238.196.205 07:24, 9 November 2007 (UTC)

Whose Divali?

I'm just curious, who really celebrates Divali and where and when did it originate from? Because, if Hindus, Sikhs, and even Jains have Divali...why do Buddhists not seem to have this festival? Le Anh-Huy 07:26, 9 November 2007 (UTC)

Buddhists celebrates this festival as well, at least in Nepal. --Eukesh 17:16, 9 November 2007 (UTC)

New year in Diwali

Nepalese celebrate new year according to Nepal Sambat in Diwali. I have also heard that people celebrate new year in Maharashtra during this time. Is it true? Thanks.--Eukesh 17:19, 9 November 2007 (UTC)

Diwali

Diwalia is so cool. I have a person in my class who celebrates it. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 209.232.157.78 (talk) 18:22, 9 November 2007 (UTC)

I celebrate Depawali every year with my family this year (2008) my class has to do an asian culture and history project. I picked to make a cereal box. My topic is the Hindu festival "Depawali". For my cereal I am doing Kheer(rice pudding). It really is a cool festival that represents the welcoming of godess Lakshmi. For every festival my family pujas (prays). From : V

Divali/Diwali/Deepavali

I made some changes throughout the article and the introduction to depict the meaning of Diwali/Deepavali... The sanskrit word is Deepavali but it got corrupted over the period. Mugunth 08:18, 10 November 2007 (UTC)

Sikh

It is simply a mistaken observation that Sikhs celebrate Divali. The actual Sikh Festival is Bandi Chor Divas, celebrating an event in Guru Hargobind Sahib's life. It is not in anyway celebrated as a "Festival of light", the firework tradition merely started as a result of availability of fireworks in india at the time, as there would be increased sale during this time when Diwali was also being celebrated. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 90.192.30.139 (talk) 07:43, 29 March 2008 (UTC)


You have forgot to mention.

That on this day All the Jains Pray and thank Goddess Lakshmi,and start the new books of account for their business.(----) —Preceding unsigned comment added by Anuragawasthi1972 (talk • contribs) 06:25, 3 April 2008 (UTC)

Suitable references for the above?Doug Weller (talk) 07:21, 3 April 2008 (UTC)

Hi, here is a reference for my earlier point about Sikhs and Bandi Chor Divas http://allaboutsikhs.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1147

If it is ok then perhaps my earlier paragraph can replace some of the article?

I recently removed a link spam for this article and one of the new editor had a problem on what constitutes a spam according to Wikipedia. The below was the content (abridged) of the mail he sent me... " Hi Mugunth, i saw that one of my links (http://amitkulkarni.info/pics/diwali-2007/ ) was removed under the comment spam cleanup in the Diwali article of wikipedia . I know you would have your reasons for such cleanup and i would be glad to know what constitutes a spam in the eyes of a wikipedia editor. Specially if you have visited the link, let me know a better collection of diwali lanterns on the internet.

In fact i was going to add this year's diwali pictures at http://amitkulkarni.info/pics/diwali-2005/ to Diwali wikipedia article.

would love to know your comments on the 2 links and questions above "


@Amit, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:External_links#Links_normally_to_be_avoided Read this for more information…

I understand that you have added your link in a good faith edit. But imagine if everyone starts to add their own websites to each article, How long will the External Links List go? Thinking from the readers perspective, when you add an external link, think how that external link will help a reader understand more about the article. Personal blogs, websites should be avoided unless it’s written by recognized authority… If the article is titled, “Diwali Lanterns", then probably your link should be fine... Hope you understood it...

Continue editing Wikipedia.. and share the Knowledge... Thanks...


Others, if you have any points, please add....

Mugunth 11:46, 11 November 2007 (UTC)

Corruption or Adaption?

I got a mail from an editor stating this... " Hello Mugunth,

I see that you have over written my edit to the Diwali page. My concern is over the use of the word 'corruption' when describing the advent of the word Diwali from Deepavali. I see the word 'Diwali' as an adaptation of the word 'Deepavali'.

Hundreds of millions of people in India, mostly in the north, have a religious association with the festival just as fervent as anywhere else in the country or world for that matter.

Given the sensitive religious affiliation of such a large user base I request that you change the word corruption (I followed your link & this means bastardization) to adaptation. "

@abhasb

Corruption in linguistics is way different from the bribery or others... In linguistics, corruption means, change of spelling of a word over time... Ya, of course it also means Bastardization... But in this article, I've used it in the former sense... It means, "The most common way that a word can be said to be corrupted is the change of its spelling through errors and gradual changes in comprehension, transcription, and hearing." For Ex., OK is a corruption of OKAY... Both forms are now accepted...and so is Diwali... Owing to the Sanskrit's loosing popularity, Deepavali is slowly getting changed to "Diwali".. that's it... It does not have any negative connotation here... Linguistic corruption is far different from corruption or bribery... Adaption does not mean anything in linguistics.. to the extent of my knowledge...

If anyone else have a problem.. please reply...

Mugunth 11:56, 11 November 2007 (UTC)

Second image

The second image no longer shows an office building as the description says. Should the image be reverted? SharkD (talk) 17:53, 25 December 2007 (UTC)

Dates in Various Calendars

In this section, it is stated:

"The Amanta ("ending on the new-moon") version of the Hindu Calendar has been adopted as the Indian national calendar. According to this calendar, which is prevalent in southern India and Maharashtra, the 6-day celebration is spread over the last four days of the month of Ashwin and the first two days of the new month of Kartika. According to the Purnimanta ("ending on the full-moon") version prevalent in northern India, it falls in the middle of the month of Ashwayuja/Ashvin"

Can someone confirm this? If you look at the chart at this site [1] it agrees that the main day of Diwali is the first day of Kartik according to the amanta calendar. However, in contradiction to the statement from wikipedia I quote above, it says that according to the purnimanta calendar Diwali falls in the middle of Kartik, NOT Ashvin. I would like to find out the true answer. holyinsaneone (talk) 05:01, 16 October 2008 (UTC)

Etymology

What is this sentence supposed to mean? The [Sanskrit] bine arrayed of lights that stands for victory of brightness over darkness.

--Alastair Rae (talk) 09:55, 24 October 2008 (UTC)

(no title)

My Neighbors are from India and are Hindu, they celebrate Diwali and I want to express some token of friendship on their Holiday (as they do with me on Christmas) but have no idea as to what would be appropriate for an outsider to do for a Hindu person. I just found out about Diwali and am a few days late and am wondering if I can do something "belated" or if it is even appropriate for me to do something at all. I am thinking maybe bring them some sweets and a pack of small firecrackers or poppers? I realise this isn't really about the article but will appreciate any help. Thank you! —Preceding unsigned comment added by 4.224.3.181 (talk • contribs)

There is another festival "gyaras" (a smaller form of Diwali) coming soon (11 days after Diwali), just some sweets and good wishes will be fine. - Unpopular Opinion (talk) 14:30, 31 October 2008 (UTC)

Subject to change

in the infobox it says that the date for Diwali is subject to change in 2009 but no explanation is given in the box or in the text. could someone clarify this? —Preceding unsigned comment added by Curtbash (talk • contribs) 05:23, 27 October 2008 (UTC)

Other sites have clearly declared the date as October 17th. [3] [4] Unpopular Opinion (talk) 08:59, 27 October 2008 (UTC)

Diwali date for 2008

Can anyone provide reference for the 30 October date given for Diwali in 2008. Other sources (on the web) mention it occurring on 28 October. — Ambuj Saxena (talk) 03:55, 22 May 2008 (UTC)

I agree 10/28 is the correct date. Keithbob --Keithbob (talk) 19:13, 27 October 2008 (UTC)

Merge proposal

Diwali in Gujarat

I think the article should be merged into Diwali. --The Firewall 11:13, 22 October 2008 (UTC)

I aggree comment added by 98.208.93.159 (talk) 01:57, 26 October 2008 (UTC)

Even I think this should be merged with the Main Article "Diwali". Akhilesh 27-Oct-2008 —Preceding unsigned comment added by 15.211.169.106 (talk) 09:32, 27 October 2008 (UTC)

  • Support- It doesn't need a page by itself

correction to article

Diwali is a Hindu Festival NOT a Muslim Festival. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 190.80.34.116 (talk) 12:45, 29 October 2008 (UTC)

That was vandalism, removed already. Thanks for noticing and pointing it out. - Unpopular Opinion (talk) 12:48, 29 October 2008 (UTC)

Someone copying us?

I thought at first our section on Malaysia was a copyvio from[5] that had changed over time. But looking at the history [6] [7], it looks like we never looked like the other page and the section was originally written by our contributor (as it originally said it was called Hari Diwali) so it's likely they copied us slightly (but they appear to have modified it a fair amount too). Just letting people know in case they come across the same thing Nil Einne (talk) 14:29, 30 October 2008 (UTC)

Name of Festival : Why is it called Diwali ?

Hindi name is Dipavali (दीपावली) (which is the title of the hindi page, with no shorter name indicated).

So which hindi name does Diwalifg come from ? Anyone knows ? --Azurfrog (talk) 13:10, 10 February 2009 (UTC) this stuff is all wrong completly

Anyone want to explain the dispute over the name?

I've requested that the article be protected from editing by ip addresses and new accounts to stop the edit-warring that's taking place. Clearly there is a cultural dispute on the name and its origins. Would someone like to start explaining what's going on so this can be settled? --Ronz (talk) 15:54, 15 October 2009 (UTC)

From sources such as [8], I'm guessing that "Diwali" is the more common or recognized term. --Ronz (talk) 17:12, 15 October 2009 (UTC)

Given the edit summaries by C21K (e.g. [9]), I've gone ahead changed the article to use "Diwali" consistently throughout except where there are discussions of etymology or cultural/language variations. --Ronz (talk) 20:32, 15 October 2009 (UTC)

Article fully protected

The article is protected from editing. If you'd want the article changed while it is protected, you can make a request here and if others agree to it then we can use the {{editprotected}} notice to get an admin to make the change. --Ronz (talk) 23:48, 15 October 2009 (UTC)

Divali?

The article is named Diwali, but the rest of the article repeats divali. I don't think many people use this spelling. See for youself: Diwali Divali.

Thus, I am renaming it.

Does an English speaker pronounce with a "W" or "V" sound? It would be useful to give the phonetic pronunciation in the page's opening paragraph. Irv (talk) 12:58, 16 October 2009 (UTC)

This article needs substantive additions

This article says Deepavali is celebrated by Hindus of India and Nepal with respect to Lord Rama's return to Ayodhya. While this is true in North India, that is not the case in South India. In the south Deepavali is celebrated to mark the victory of Krishna over Naragasura. And we are talking about some 200 million people here who celebrate Deepavali for this reason. Hope the folks who have locked the article add this info or unlock it to let others do it. Gbalaji82 (talk) 05:53, 16 October 2009 (UTC)

Let's start by listing some possible sources here. --Ronz (talk) 15:21, 16 October 2009 (UTC)

Tags ??

I could not see why tags of neutarlity were placed when no appropiate reasons were specified!! If you have to tag an article as biased please provide reference to ur verdict or reason. Just a user coming and saying that this is there and another using tagging it as biased wont work. Please provide reference and as far as references to this article are concerned, there are enough references to prove the point, if some body sees some differences, please find references and add them rather than tagging the article. Wikipedia is not about tagging, it is about solving the problem and providing correct knowledge and also please specify which reference has problem.

Thanks and Regards --Shekhartagra (talk) 09:00, 16 October 2009 (UTC)

Wikipedia is a work in progress. Tags are used to identify problems in articles.
See Talk:Diwali#Anyone_want_to_explain_the_dispute_over_the_name.3F for why I added the NPOV tag. I'm not comfortable removing the tag when there has been so much recent edit-warring over this problem, that editors are still trying to reintroduce the material, and no one besides myself has participated in the discussion here on the talk page.
There are some very questionable references in the article, references that do not appear to meet WP:RS. Now that the references are partially formatted, I'm going to go through each. --Ronz (talk) 15:43, 16 October 2009 (UTC)

Neutral point of view

Symbolises that age-old culture of India which teaches us to vanquish ignorance that subdues humanity and to drive away darkness that engulfs the light of knowledge. Diwali, the festival of lights, even today in this modern world, projects the rich and glorious past and teaches us to uphold the true values of life.

The above is not, IMO, writen in a Neutral tone.

--213.249.149.102 (talk) 12:10, 16 October 2009 (UTC)Tom M 16/10/09

References for use name in Malaysia/Signapore

http://allmalaysia.info/msiaknow/festivals/deepavali.asp this link can be used where it says citation needed. I lack the authority to change it myself.

for second: http://sgcgo.com/deepavali-2009-singapore/ or http://www.etour-singapore.com/deepavali-in-singapore.html

All sites clearly show the name Deepavali being used in these 2 countries. A1979s (talk) 13:23, 17 October 2009 (UTC)

The sentence with the citation needed tag isn't grammatically correct, but the way I read it in the context of the rest of the article is that the citation is needed to verify that "Deepavali" is specific to Dravidian languages. --Ronz (talk) 02:10, 18 October 2009 (UTC)

Diwali is also celebrated in Nepal.

Hinduism is also in Nepal. They celebrate Diwali, locally known as Tihar in Nepal. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Dkhadka (talk • contribs) 14:04, 17 October 2009 (UTC)

Vandalism

The festival marks the last three days and the first two days of Nepalese era.

I see the upper line in text. I tried deleting the last line but when I open edit box I don't see it.

The Five Days of Diwali describes 6 days

This is nonsensical and confusing. If there are 5 days of Diwali, why are 6 days described? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 71.208.18.107 (talk) 04:08, 10 October 2009 (UTC)

It's quite common to find it confusing if you are not used to thinking in terms of a lunar calendar. Think of these 6 "days" as 6 "events" that are celebrated. These need to be celebrated in 5 days according to the suggested lunar days. These may not be on consecutive days, some may be on the same day. In a nutshell, one may end up celebrating Diwali over a small or a larger series of calendar days. For instance, this year (2009) Diwali started on the 14th and ended on 19th Oct - 6 calendar days. The celebrations were only on 5 days. Below is a break down to help make this easier to digest
  • 14th Oct - Event 1 (Vasu Baras)
  • 15th Oct - Event 2 (Dhanatrayodashi)
  • 16th Oct - Nothing
  • 17th Oct - Event 3 & 4 (Naraka Chaturdashi and Lakshmi Puja)
  • 18th Oct - Event 5 (Govardhan Puja)
  • 19th Oct - Event 5 & 6 ( Bali Pratipada and Bhaiduj)

I hope it makes sense. I am no expert, so anyone else please feel free to correct me.

Mayuresh 11:12, 21 October 2009 (UTC)

Minor changes that can wait until after article is unprotected

I'm going to continue wikifying the references later. --Ronz (talk) 23:54, 15 October 2009 (UTC)

Looks pretty good now. --Ronz (talk) 23:09, 16 October 2009 (UTC)

There are still a number of self-referencing internal links in the article, such as the recently added link to Bandi Chhorh Divas. --Ronz (talk) 23:54, 15 October 2009 (UTC)

I think I've removed the last one. --Ronz (talk) 23:09, 16 October 2009 (UTC)

The WP:LEDE section is very long. I think that everything after, "...teaches us to uphold the true values of life" would be better if incorporated into the main article. --Ronz (talk) 23:54, 15 October 2009 (UTC)

In the section dealing with Jainism I have changed the comparison of Diwali to Christmas, from Christmas to Easter only because I think it is more apt. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Methusedalot (talk • contribs) 15:25, 18 October 2009 (UTC)

Melas?

It's not clear from the article how the melas are related to Diwali. I'm guessing that there are melas to celebrate Diwali. This isn't explained clearly, and its current place in the organization of the article is confusing. Are melas a means of celebrating Diwali that is specific to India? If so, would it make more sense to move the section under the Diwali in different regions of India section? --Ronz (talk) 02:00, 18 October 2009 (UTC)

Pronunciation

Does an English speaker pronounce with a "W" or "V" sound? It would be useful to give the phonetic pronunciation in the page's opening paragraph. Irv (talk) 14:16, 22 October 2009 (UTC)

Proper sound for "व" is just in between, I am afraid... --Azurfrog (talk) 00:58, 9 November 2009 (UTC)

There is conflicts in the importance of Gudi Padwa & Diwali

IF you see why both of the festivals are celebrate, you'll get the same reply " This is the day when Lord Rama returned to Ayodhya after finishing 14 years of Exile" . How come both the days can be celebrated for the same reason. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 121.247.76.51 (talk) 06:35, 15 March 2010 (UTC)


Pronounciation

Is Diwali pronounced with a "w" or a "v" sound in the second consonant? Can we get an IPA on the word? 86.30.200.220 (talk) 08:57, 7 October 2010 (UTC)

Merge_proposal

It has been two years since User:The Firewall proposed a merge. That user has moved to a new identity. I, an anon, think the link from the article's merge notice to a "Merge_proposal" talk section should work, so I have today put this section in talk. Please either discuss the merge or just get rid of the stupid notice that has been sitting on top of the article for two years. - 67.224.51.189 (talk) 06:18, 5 November 2010 (UTC)

so sorry for stupid section meant for Diwali in Gujarat talk page. I'll move it there. 67.224.51.189 (talk) 06:26, 5 November 2010 (UTC)

Use of 1st Person pronouns decreases objectivity

Under the section "Spiritual significance" the author uses the first person singular and plural pronoun in relation to the sacred meaning of the holiday. This gives the article the voice of a practicing Hindu, which while moving, decreases the objectivity of the article over all. I would suggest that this section of the article is edited, maintaining the content, but framing the spiritual significance in a more impoersonal manner. For example, the article includes the following sentence:

"Just as we celebrate the birth of our physical being, Deepavali is the celebration of this Inner Light."

I suggest this as an alternative:

"In Hindu theology the appearance of an Inner Light, connected with the celebration of Diwali, is seen as similar to the physical birth of an individual." —Preceding unsigned comment added by 68.227.221.119 (talk) 22:53, 5 November 2010 (UTC)

Gazetted public holiday?

The phrase "gazetted public holiday" is not explained in the article linked to by that phrase, Public holidays in Singapore. Public holidays in India explains it has a specific legal meaning in India. What does it mean in Singapore? This is not a phrase used in American English, so it needs to be explained in the article, or replaced with a better one. -- Beland (talk) 20:58, 6 November 2010 (UTC)

Consistency

There are a few points where the article switches between the words deepavali and diwali, sometimes within the same sentence or paragraph. These words are both acceptable, but other than the sections where the words themselves are being contrasted, wouldn't it be better for consistency sake to decide on one term and stick with it through an entire paragraph or section instead of flip-flopping? 76.179.52.143 (talk) 19:05, 19 November 2010 (UTC)

burst crackers ?

What are "burst crackers" ? 66.97.214.17 (talk) 10:10, 21 November 2010 (UTC)

Greeting?

Is there any greeting specific to, or used by those celebrating Diwali? That is, is there anything similar to an exchange of 'Merry Christmas'/'Happy New Year' (or 'Eid Mubarak', or 'Tashi Delek'). —Preceding unsigned comment added by 86.136.24.81 (talk) 12:11, 4 January 2011 (UTC)

About Buddhism and Diwali.

The information about Ashoka is given totally wrong. Ashoka did not accepted Buddhism on the day of Diwali. Ashoka became Buddhist on the day of Vijayadashmi (you may say it Dasra of Hindu Religion) This article is misleading people. Neither Buddhist people worship Buddha on the occasion of Diwali. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 120.61.26.168 (talk) 18:46, 1 July 2011 (UTC)

Requested move

The following is a closed discussion of the proposal. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made in a new section on the talk page. No further edits should be made to this section.

The result of the proposal was not moved. Per WP:COMMONNAME the article is at the right place. --regentspark (comment) 01:36, 31 October 2011 (UTC)

Diwali → Deepavali – Deepavali is the original Sanskrit name (and still the name of the festival outside the Hindi belt). Diwali is just a regional version of the name. Snowcream (talk) 06:30, 22 October 2011 (UTC) In many articles related to Hinduism, Wikipedia has used the original Sanskrit name. This article should conform to that consistency and not use the Hindi term. Snowcream (talk) 17:29, 24 October 2011 (UTC)

But whoever uses Deepavali anymore? I mean, in Bangladesh we use Deepavali (pronounced Dipaboli) but Diwali is the most popularly used term. Ratibgreat (talk) 06:34, 22 October 2011 (UTC)
Deepavali, the original term is very popular as well, especially in Southern India. The article's current name of Diwali is a reflection of the systemic bias that exists. The name "Deepavali" - because of being the original term preserves the neutrality of the article title. Snowcream (talk) 21:08, 22 October 2011 (UTC)
If the festival were now universally celebrated under the name of Diwali, i would have concurred with your view; but that is not the case.Snowcream (talk) 21:08, 22 October 2011 (UTC)
That's just the IAST convention, the long "ee" sound is transliterated as "ī". However, the english word uses "ee". if you do a google search for "Dipavali" (click here), it'll redirect you to search results for "Deepavali". Snowcream (talk) 11:23, 24 October 2011 (UTC)
Ironically, that same search is headed "Diwali is on Wednesday October 26, 2012"; make of that what you will... Moonraker12 (talk) 13:37, 24 October 2011 (UTC)
  • Support. Deepavali is the common word used universally. Diwali is just the term used mainly in North India (Hindi speaking areas) only. Diwali is actually shortened from Deepavali. In South India the original term Deepavali only is used. The article sould be named Deepavali to maintain neutrality.
    Anish Viswa 03:32, 24 October 2011 (UTC)
The notion of "common name" that you entertained here is faulty. North Indians and people of North Indian origin form a sheer majority among Hindus and this numerical advantage is what you perceived as a common name. In Britain, this festival is only celebrated by people of Indian origin; among whom North Indians again form a huge majority. My point here is that the name "Diwali" contains a bias in itself, where as "Deepavali" by virtue of being the original name upholds neutrality. Moreover, many North Indians do call the festival "Deepavali" too. "Deepavali" has universal acceptance which "Diwali" does not enjoy. Snowcream (talk) 17:22, 24 October 2011 (UTC)
Plus; in a Google.com search, I got 10.7 m hits for "Deepavali" ([12]) and 11.9 m hits for "Diwali" ([13]). not a significant lead. Snowcream (talk) 17:22, 24 October 2011 (UTC)
Just so you mentioned Britain, i would like bring it to notice that; it's called Deepavali in Singapore where it's a public holiday. ([14]) Snowcream (talk) 06:53, 26 October 2011 (UTC)
The ‘notion’ of common name you say I am ‘entertaining’ is in fact the WP guideline on the subject, so I wouldn't describe it as 'faulty'. But as (I notice) you've conceded the point (below) I'll reply to your comments there, instead. Moonraker12 (talk) 18:28, 27 October 2011 (UTC)
Common name where? universally ? Snowcream (talk) 17:29, 24 October 2011 (UTC)
I am not contesting the name "Diwali" on the basis of "common name" (the reason for which I have already explained). It's about Systemic bias and neutrality in title. You cannot even argue that "Diwali" upholds these values. Snowcream (talk) 17:41, 24 October 2011 (UTC)
Well, the Neutrality section says “When the subject of an article is referred to mainly by a single common name, as evidenced through usage in a significant majority of English-language reliable sources, Wikipedia generally follows the sources and uses that name as its article title” (Common Name, still) it merely provides a caveat for when “that common name will include non-neutral words that Wikipedia normally avoids”. Is that the case here? And WP:NPOV#Naming has “If a name is widely used in reliable sources (particularly those written in English), and is therefore likely to be well recognized by readers, it may be used even though some may regard it as biased.” asking only that “alternative names should be given due prominence within the article itself, and redirects created as appropriate.” So Common Name trumps Neutrality, as a rule.
As for WP:Systemic bias, that is mainly concerned with a predominantly male, middle class, English-speaking majority here not giving sufficient attention to subjects outside its experience; I’d say that is already addressed by having this article. And the project page says the remedy is to address omissions, rather than trying to address how material is presented. If you are alleging that North Indian culture is the predominant one seen by the outside world, it isn’t WP’s task to resolve that, even if it were true.
But if there is an issue (and you’ll need decent sources to back it up), write a paragraph for the article on it. That’d be better than hiding it away where English speakers won’t look for it. Moonraker12 (talk) 18:45, 27 October 2011 (UTC)
  • Deepavali Deepa (Lights) & Vali (Rows of or Plenty of etc.,)
Diwali? I see no meaning in it!
Ben (talk) 22:00, 24 October 2011 (UTC)
Is this another vote, Ben? Or just a comment? Moonraker12 (talk) 18:25, 27 October 2011 (UTC)
The above discussion is preserved as an archive of the proposal. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made in a new section on this talk page. No further edits should be made to this section.

Gujarat

This section arrived here as a result of a merge from Diwali in Gujarat a couple of days ago (22 October 2011). I’ve un-merged it, as this article is certainly not been improved by it. This article is already 58 Kb long, which is plenty big enough; and the DiG article has major problems with it (addressed here), which won't be resolved by bringing it here but certainly make this article worse.
I suggest for this article, and if the celebration in Gujarat is significantly different to warrant it, we should have a summary here (one or two paragraphs) and a main article link to the DiG page. Moonraker12 (talk) 20:04, 27 October 2011 (UTC)

4th day: Navu Varsh (Vikram New Year)

In this reference it is stated that the 4th day of Diwali is called "Navu Varsh", the New Year of the Vikram calendar. I have not found this information on WP sofar. Is it correct? If so, does this apply for the whole of India, or is this regional? Wiki-uk (talk) 08:38, 28 October 2011 (UTC)

Yes. [15] [16] [17]. Regional in nature, at least Gujaratis celebrate the new year on this day. --Redtigerxyz Talk 12:28, 29 October 2011 (UTC)

good but needs improvement — Preceding unsigned comment added by 194.168.49.77 (talk) 19:30, 2 November 2011 (UTC)

Regarding Kannada

It is a small point, but in Kannada, tavaru mane mean's "parent's home", tavaru meaning parents. Am I wrong on that? — Preceding unsigned comment added by Martalli (talk • contribs) 18:25, 5 November 2012 (UTC)

Merge suggestions

As this page is already pretty big, and we now have articles elsewhere on these subjects, can I suggest we summarize these two sections and move the present content to the specific day page? (Comments below, please). Moonraker12 (talk) 14:45, 9 December 2011 (UTC)

Jainism section

I suggest summarizing this section (one paragraph) and moving the content here to Deva Devali, which is specifically about the Jain festival. Moonraker12 (talk) 14:45, 9 December 2011 (UTC)

There’s been no objection to this, so I’ve gone ahead and done it. I trust that’s OK with everyone. 81.141.231.0 (talk) 12:06, 20 December 2011 (UTC)
Oops, forgot to sign in! Moonraker12 (talk) 12:10, 20 December 2011 (UTC) (aka 81.141.231.0)

Sikhism section

Guru Hargobind's name does not have a Singh behind it. Its only Guru Hargobind. Thank you. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 203.6.146.5 (talk) 04:33, 13 November 2012 (UTC)

I suggest summarizing this section (one paragraph) and moving the content here to Bandi Chhorh Divas, which is specifically about the Sikh festival. Moonraker12 (talk) 14:45, 9 December 2011 (UTC)

Not sure about this. It seems to me that the two celebrations, Diwali and Bandi Chhorh Divas, are not the same things. Perhaps we could cut out most of the stuff about Guru Hargobind's freedom from here, leaving a mention of the divas, but the rest of the Sikh diwali content is about diwali rather than about the Divas. --regentspark (comment) 15:35, 9 December 2011 (UTC)
I don't disagree with that, we should have something here about Diwali from the Sikh point of view. I just felt that a lot of the content is about something else. And yes, Bandi Chhorh Divas is a different festival (AFAIK), though it is historically related. It is confusing to suggest (as we do now) it is the same thing as Diwali. Moonraker12 (talk) 17:49, 16 December 2011 (UTC)
I trimmed some of the excess fat from that section. --regentspark (comment) 23:12, 16 December 2011 (UTC)
Fair enough, I’ve trimmed the rest, and added another link. I was going to copy what was here to the BCD page, but it looks like there's a better description there already. I've removed the merge tag, now. Moonraker12 (talk) 12:38, 20 December 2011 (UTC)
Looks good. Much cleaner than before.--regentspark (comment) 17:15, 20 December 2011 (UTC)

'culture of orissa' template & box

is there some particular/specific reason why 'culture of orissa' rates its own 'box' at the bottom of this article?

i.e.: is there something special about (orissa + diwali) that makes it DIFFERENT from diwali in 'non-orissan' culture in such a way and/or to such a degree that we should have a box @ the bottom of this article just for orissan culture? as opposed to india/hindu/etc. culture 'in general'? & if we are going to have a special box for orissan culture links here, shouldn't we have special boxes for all the other cultures that celebrate diwali as well?

i'm really not trying to be a dick about this; but in terms of nnpov, completeness, & relevance, do we have some reason for giving the 'culture of orissa' box special prerogatives in this article that doesn't actually seem to be exclusively or primarily about orissan culture?

Lx 121 (talk) 06:32, 12 November 2012 (UTC)

Edit request on 13 November 2012

Information on Diwali in Africa is wholly missing. Please include a section for Africa:

While Diwali may be celebrated along much of the East coast of Africa, reflecting millenia-old trading links with the Indian sub-continent, the festival perhaps has the strongest presence in South Africa. This is because South Africa has long been home to the largest Indian diaspora in the world.

Diwali is celebrated across South Africa, but is most vivid in the the urban areas, particularly in Durban, Cape Town and the Johannesburg metropolis. While the festival is not a public holiday in the country, local municipalities often stage a large fireworks display, and may collaborate with local communities to stage song, dance, cuisine and other cultural activities. - Rapscalian (talk) 12:35, 13 November 2012 (UTC)


A good request. Out of my knowledge area, but I'll raise it at the Hinduism wikiproject. Manning (talk) 23:12, 13 November 2012 (UTC)

Edit request

Hi all, it looks like the quote from Barack Obama's statement was oddly shortened from "Hindus, Jains, Sikhs and some Buddhists" to "Hindus". Could someone please fix this? ThrowThrow (talk) 02:07, 14 November 2012 (UTC)

 Done - hopefully this is more representative of what he said. Begoon talk 23:45, 15 November 2012 (UTC)

Thank you. ThrowThrow (talk) 01:34, 20 November 2012 (UTC)

Owl Sacrifice

How about owl sacrifices perpetrated in this festival ? --Pixeltoo (talk) 12:42, 25 August 2013 (UTC)

Marathi Section

Akashkandil is integral part of marathi divali celebration it should be mentioned — Preceding unsigned comment added by पुष्कर हेमंत जोशी (talk • contribs) 04:21, 1 November 2013 (UTC)

Edit request on 30 October 2013

Few links are here which provides good information about the festival Diwali and should be added in external link section

Not done:. Please note Wikipedia is not a blog or forum to keep the external links like this. --    L o g  X   15:22, 30 October 2013 (UTC)


Diwali is celebration of the return of Bhagwan Ram, Sita and Lakshman after 14 years of Vanvas (exile). To welcome his return, people of Ayodhaya(Ram's kingdom) lit diyas (ghee lamps). 204.74.159.5 (talk) 19:14, 5 November 2013 (UTC)

Not done: This is not an edit request, has nothing to do with improving this article and will likely be removed shortly. Regards, Celestra (talk) 19:31, 5 November 2013 (UTC)

Edit request on 9 November 2013

Diwali in Maharashtra

Diwali Celebration in Maharashtra First Day: Dhanatrayodashi Second Day: Narak Chatudarshi, or Choti Diwali, Roop Chaturdashi, Kali Choudas Third Day: Laxmi Pujan, Chopda Pujan Fourth Day: Diwali cha padva or Balipratipada, Gudi Padava, VarshaPratipada / Pratipad Padwa Fifth Day: Bhaubeej / Bhav-Bij

Diwali celebration in Maharashtra is interestingly different from what is seen in other parts of the country. In a typical Marathi family Diwali celebrations starts with 'Vasu-baras' that comes on tithi 'Ashwin krushna dwadashi' as per Marathi calendar. Vasu-baras is a celebration held in honor of cows - regarded as mother by Hindus. Following the rituals of the day married women perform 'puja' of cows having calf. The tradition symbolizes a woman’s gratitude towards cow for serving them and their children.

Tulsi-Vivah In Maharashtra, end of Diwali celebrations marks the beginning of Tulsi-Vivah. Under this people organize marriage of sacred tulsi (a basil plant) in their house. In Maharashtra the tradition is that people start organizing marriage ceremonies of their sons/daughters only once Tulsi-vivah starts. Celebration of Diwali ends with Dev-Diwali.

surprisingly no mention of Tulasi che lagna in diwali festival .Please do the needful .Thanks 223.232.56.18 (talk) 02:55, 9 November 2013 (UTC)

Not done: Most of that is already stated in the article's section on Maharashtra. Please make any reqeust in the form "Please change X to Y". Thank you. --Stfg (talk) 19:57, 9 November 2013 (UTC)
  1. ^ http://www.hinduism.iskcon.com/practice/402.htm
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