How do Malaysian Indians celebrate Deepavali ?
I hope Indians at YA could answer some of my questions pertaining to Deepavali celebration.
(a) what are the rituals ( in sequence if possible ) on the eve and on Deepavali day and their significances ?
(b) i know it is about celebrating good ( Lord Krishna ) over evil ( what's his name ), perhaps some information about both of them and maybe a pic of Lord Krishna
(c) what is the name of the costume worn by men ( the white sarong like ) on Deepavali ?
(d) what are the type of foods served during Deepavali
(c) i know Deepavali is celebrated over a 5 days period and each day has it's significance and rituals , what are they ?
i hope someone would answer from his/her own experience not from Wikipedia or other websites. Thank you and to all Hindus , HAPPY DEEPAVALI
Comments
I am an Indo-Singaporean, so I guess I can answer this question as well.
a) One the eve of deepavali, we make sure that everything is clean and tidy. Oil lamps are lit up, children play with sparklers, and we hold special prayers for our ancestors/deceased.The prayers are held to remember those who have left us, and in a way, seek their blessings. Food is offered, after which, the family members eat the offerings.
On the morning of deepavali, we have the traditional oil bath, and we are only allowed to use pure sesame oil and nothing else. There's a legend to this: When Krishna slayed the demon, the demon repented for his sins, and made a last wish before he died. The wish was simple, every year, on the morning of his death anniversary (deepavali la..) people should bathe in the Ganges river to purify themselves and get rid of any sins that they may have accumulated, and attain good karma. And for those who cant do so, they can still benefit by having an oil bath, and it will reap the similar benefits.
That rest of the day, relatives and friends visit, or we do the visiting. It's basically merry-making for the whole day; each family has their own customs/ways of celebrating.
b) The people of India were terrorized by the demon, Narakasura, and they lived in darkness. They prayed to Lord Krishna to release them from the misery, and he answered their prayers by battling with Narakasura, and he successfully defeated the demon and brought light and happiness back to the land. This is why we call it the festival of lights, good over evil, light over darkness.
c) It's called the dhoti or veshti.
d) Mutton is a must in most households. And so is chicken and fish. A variety of dishes are cooked, especially if guests are expected. A traditional breakfast would be the idli (rice cake), thosai (pancake) with either sambar, chutney or some non-vegetarian curry.
Lunch and dinner are more lavish, with briyani and a widespread of non-vegetarian dishes. In recent years, Indians have introduced other local favourites such as sweet and sour prawns and sambal sotong. And then, there are the deepavali goodies, like the murukku, jilebi (a sweet thingy), and laddo, just to name a few. Then there are the local favourites, such as kuih tart, kuih makmur/mamot and choc chip cookies.
Food is never confined to a specific cuisine these days, hindus in Singapore and Malaysia are more than eager to whip up multiple dishes to cater to both indian and non-indians friends and relatives.
e) This I am not so sure, coz we dont normally observe this. What we do, however, is to celebrate Deepavali for an entire month. Yes, we do this. For a month following deepavali, indians visit one another, eat and make merry and have open houses where we invite all our friends.
I hope this helps, this is how we normally celebrate. My english may seem bad coz I am a bit sleepy as I wrote this, lol. But yea, I have provided as much information as I can from what I know. We'll see what the rest have to say.
Indian style.
one thing for sure... they do celebrate Deepavali here..
PEACE =D
i not hindus , but i know i allow to go to their temple to eat banana leaf rice cos their open house has not boundary.....lol
im not a Hindu but im Gindu