5 Powerful Life Lessons From The Diwali Festival Of Lights

Diwali is an unusual religious celebration in that it is a festival for Sikhs, Hindus, Jains, and some Buddhists. Each of these religions has its own particular take on the festival, and they celebrate it in various ways.

The Diwali holiday is characterized as the festival of lights. The light is to welcome and guide the richness and wealth into their lives for the new time that will come.

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The light is also part of closing out old books, including traits such as anger, hate, and jealousy. So what can we learn from Diwali?

1. Accept that riches and wealth can be good.

There are times where we say that what we need to solve our problems is more money. More often, we think that wealth is something that is likely to corrupt.

The tradition of Diwali views wealth as being a reward for the good that had been done. In this sense, wealth and riches can provide opportunities for you to do good and to be able to do more in this world.

How do you approach the riches that have come into your life?

If you are in a significant relationship, when is the last time you talked together about what your riches really mean to you and your family?

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2. Outer lights point to inner lights and helps to keep them burning.

Diwali is a very joyous festival. Diwali is a time when gifts are given. The height of the celebration is full of light.

While the lights point to different events in the past, there is a deeper sense that they point those celebrating to remember the core of the celebration throughout the year.

The greatest light pointed to is the inner light.

Are you paying attention to your own inner light that goes beyond the physical nature of yourself? How are you feeding the spiritual nature of who you are? How are you encouraging this in your relationship with others, especially your significant other and your children?

What reminders do you put in your life to draw yourself back to what is really important? How do you share those reminders with those in your life?

3. Believe that good can triumph over evil.

It is too easy to get caught up in what is going on and to lose hope. However, hope really is there and your spiritual practices can help you to be able to reach back out for hope.

You may be experiencing feelings of depression at the moment, but your spirituality can help you exactly at this time if you allow yourself to believe that things can be different. When you do this, you can experience a deeper sense of peace than simply the absence of conflict.

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4. Gifts are a good way to express your love and affection.

Gift-giving is an important start of the new year that Diwali brings in. In fact, the Hindu calendar includes a day for men to present gifts to their wives and another day for brothers to give gifts to their sisters.

Who are the significant people in your life to whom you need to express love and affection?

There are times that the gift that you give may be large, but there is also value in giving many smaller gifts – both are valued within the context of Diwali – observers hope to be with the person who got the largest gift or the most gifts.

What are the small things that you could give to your significant other?

It is easy as relationships go on to forget the things you used to do at the beginning such as small notes, an extra sweet in a sack meal, etc. These also have value and are great expressions of your love – take this opportunity to try and revive it.

5. Celebrate the commonality in your spiritual and religious traditions.

Find ways to celebrate what you share in common with your significant other. Diwali is shared in common by several world religions and some of the principles within it are shared by even more world religions.

Focus on how you can share your faith with each other. This will allow you to be connected on a deeper level.

As we go through this celebration, focus on the lights that are in your life. How is light shining brightly in your life? What does that light point to?

What can you commit to doing to be able to grow for yourself? To grow in your relationships? To share with others?

May you be blessed with riches and use your wealth well with others. In so doing, you may find wholeness and peace in your life.

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If you need help in finding peace and wholeness in your life and relationships, Christopher and his staff are available for sessions through Seeking Shalom in New York and Indiana. You can also explore his books.