Boston(USA) : Deepavali Celebrations

Hindu holiday brings light like Christmas
Joe Fitzgerald By Joe Fitzgerald
Monday, October 27, 2008 - Updated 1d 13h ago
+ Recent Articles
Boston Herald Columnist
EmailE-mail PrintablePrintable Comments(23) Comments LargerSmallerText size ShareShare Rate(0) Rate

The nearest thing she could compare it to, aesthetically, was Christmas because of its theme of darkness being dispersed by light.

It’s called Diwali, but if you’re not a Hindu or of Indian descent, it probably won’t mean a thing to you, unless you live in Sharon, in which case by now you might even know its music.

That’s what Sunita Sanan, this year’s president of the Indian American Association of Sharon, was hoping to encourage in overseeing Saturday night’s 26th annual celebration of this holiday that will be officially celebrated in her homeland tomorrow.

“All of India will look like Christmas over here,” she said. “Businessmen will close their accounts to begin a new year, and diyas (small lamps) will be shining everywhere.”

They call it the festival of lights.

“In every faith,” Sunan, a 44-year-old mother of three, observes, “light signifies the victory of good over evil in this world. Though Diwali also is a harvest festival, a time to thank God for the year’s good harvest.”

So what? Who cares? What’s that got to do with us over here?”

Sunan’s answer was disarming.

Her sold-out event (400 residents) at the Sharon Middle School, featuring dancing, dinner, Indian displays and even prayer (Sanskrit), wasn’t meant to proselytize, she said, nor was it an attempt to defuse the anti-immigrant hysteria gripping much of this country today.

“I am not a political person. I just know we have a need to respect the people all around us. My family has not been affected by hatred or bigotry, thank God, because we live in a place where people are caring, where our friends and neighbors are respectful and understanding of our values, as we are of theirs.

“This school system has given so much to our kids that our association wanted to give something back. That’s how this got started, and now we’ve added a community scholarship.”

The wife of a prominent endocrinologist, some might say she’s living the American dream and Sanan would not disagree.

“But that’s another reason why this is important, allowing us to remain in contact with our roots.”

Its message, however, is universal.

“On its most basic level,” she said, “Diwali teaches us to put our ignorance aside, moving towards the light.”

By any faith or standard, that’s heading in a pretty good direction.

http://news.bostonherald.com/news/columnists/view/2008_10_27_Hindu_holiday_brings_light_like_Christmas/srvc=home&position=3