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Diwali: The lighting of diyas forms a part of celebrations and rituals of the important day in the Hindu calendar. Houses are decorated with small diyas placed at boundaries and entrances. In fact, the name of Diwali is derived from the Sanskrit word Deepavali, which means the row of lights ("deep" means Diya and "avali" means row). Diwali is mentioned in early
Sanskrit texts, such as the
Padma Purana and the
Skanda Purana, both of which were completed in the second half of the 1st millennium CE. The
diyas are mentioned in
Skanda Kishore Purana as symbolising parts of the sun, describing it as the cosmic giver of light and energy to all life and which seasonally transitions in the Hindu calendar month of Kartik. •
Karthikai Deepam:
Kartika Deepam () is a festival of lights that is observed mainly by
Hindu Tamils, and also by adherents in the regions of
Kerala,
Andhra Pradesh,
Telangana,
Karnataka, and
Sri Lanka. Celebrated in
Tamilakam and
Sri Lanka since the ancient period, the festival is held on the
full moon day of the
Kartika (கார்த்திகை) month, called the
Kartika Pournami, falling on the
Gregorian months of November or December. It is marked on the day the full moon is in conjunction with the constellation of
Kartika. It corresponds to the occasion of the
Kartika Purnima, though it falls on a different day due to the correction of equinoxes in the
Tamil calendar. In
Kerala, this festival is known as Trikkartika, celebrated in the honour of Chottanikkara Bhagavati, a form of
Lakshmi. It is celebrated in the name of Lakshabba in the
Nilgiris district of
Tamil Nadu.
Worship and prayers Lit diyas that are placed before deities during prayer in temples and then used to bless worshippers is referred to as an
arati. A similar lamp called a
butter lamp is used in Tibetan
Buddhist offerings as well.
Hindu rituals Birth: The lighting of diya is also part of the Hindu religion rituals related to birth.
Arti () or
Arati () is a
Hindu ritual employed in worship, part of a
puja, in which light (from a flame lit using camphor, ghee or oil) is ritually waved for the veneration of
deities.
Arti also refers to the songs sung in praise of the deity, when the light is being offered.
Sikhs also perform
arti in the form of
arti kirtan which involves only devotional singing but
Nihang Sikhs specifically perform
arti which uses light as well. ==Types==