By Adriana Vicuna

Diwali has been all over social media lately. You are probably noticing Diwali posts on Facebook, Twitter, and even as a story on Snapchat. Grady Explains has all you need to know about Diwali and how it is celebrated.

Diwali: is an ancient Hindu Festival that celebrates good over evil, knowledge over ignorance, and hope over despair. It is one of the largest and brightest festivals in India. It is a New Years celebration for the Hindu calendar.

The festival is celebrated by having millions of lights shine all over cities and towns. Lamps, called diyas, are placed around homes and lights shine on housetops, outside windows and doors, and around temples and other buildings. The festival is celebrated not just in India, but in countries like the United Kingdom and the United States.

University of Georgia student, Meghna Rao, tells us that Diwali is celebrated based on a Hindu mythology. She says “it is a story about a demon who rules the earth and has enough power to challenge the gods, so he terrorizes them until one day, he takes it too far. He steals the earrings of the woman known as the mother of the gods and that’s when the god, Vishnu, chases the demon and kills him.” The triumph is what started the festival and it is celebrated by shinning lights.

Diwali is celebrated by starting with a pooka, a prayer to the gods. Fruits, food, and flowers are offered to the gods, which is then followed by dancing, fireworks, and a feast. Diwali night falls between mid-October and mid-November.