ISA celebrates Festival of Lights
By Nicki Crisci
Opinion Editor
Bright lime-green, blue, red and yellow garments illuminated the stage for Diwali Night, also known as the Festival of Lights, in the Schwitzer Student Center Atrium Nov. 7.
Diwali Night, hosted by the Indian Student Association, was to commemorate the Hindu religious holiday of Diwali. Students of all religions were invited to celebrate at the event.
A slide show during the performance presented the idea that different religions make up one identity. The theme of the presentation was “Secularism: Our Hallmark.”
Such religions as Hinduism, Jainism, Buddhism, Sikhism, Islam and Christianity were included on the slide, with a letter of each word highlighted to spell out Indian—showing the combination of religions for the Festival of Lights celebration.
According to ISA member Himanshu Saini, Diwali is known as the festival of lights because it is on the day when the moon is not out (and the lunar cycle is at its darkest).
“The lights illuminate the darkness. All of India is lit up during Diwali,” he said.
The festival celebrates the return of the god Rama as he came back from his 14-year exile. People light lamps in their homes to show the triumph of good over bad forces. Also, according to Saini, they pray to the Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth, by lighting candles in hopes of a prosperous year.
Firecrackers usually are set off as an end to the day of prayer and the beginning of the Diwali night celebrations. While firecrackers could not be lit inside Schwitzer, the celebration ended with such festivities as traditional singing, dancing and a fashion show.
“I never thought it would be done. It took a month to get everything organized, but it turned out well,” said ISA president Zain Irfan.
The fashion show included colorful, traditional garments worn by both men and women and ended with many different dances. According to Irfan, the dances were mainly traditional, but a few were western style dances taken from Bollywood, the Indian entertainment industry similar to Hollywood.
At the official end of Diwali Night, students joined the dancers on stage.
“Diwali is a festival of togetherness and friendship. It’s a time to get families together and celebrate,” Saini said.
While the dancers were on stage and the music played, others in the audience went to the long table that held traditional Indian food. Irfan said the food was mainly vegetarian, like the food found in northern India. The food included Naan, a flatbread; a vegetarian rice mix; and non-vegetarian butter chicken.
At another table at the event was a henna tattoo artist. Henna tattoos are made from the paste of a plant that dyes the skin a reddish tint.
“Henna is a medicinal herb that releases heat in the body and is for decoration in most cases,” said ISA member Shubhada Ramani. “Typically, brides use it for more auspicious purposes before traditional Indian wedding ceremonies.”
According to Irfan, more than 200 people attended the event. It was their goal, he said, to bring awareness of the ISA to the community, and he believed the goal was achieved.
“I was amazed that we had so many [people] come to the event. We had the support of many people,” Irfan said. “Everyone held their nerves and pulled it together at the end to put on a good celebration.”
