Diwali symbolism encoded

Diwali, the popular name for ‘ The festival of lights’ is celebrated to commemorate the defeat of the demon Narakasura by Lord Krishna. Another version says that after the war, Lord Ram returns to Ayodhya on this day for taking up the throne of  the kingdom of Ayodhya.Most of us have not paused to go beyond these and celebrate Diwali without understanding its true significance. As we gain more insights into Diwali, the  festivities during the celebration become deeper and meaningful.As founder of the Art of Living  Gurudev  Sri Sri Ravishankar ji says, there are four aspects to Diwali1. The lights are symbolic of spreading the Knowledge. When light exists, darkness ceases to exist. The word darkness here means ignorance. As shared in my previous post, a master is one who removes the darkness of ignorance. In today’s context I would like to take it further to mean mean illiteracy as well. Today, in our country, the so called literates just hold a degree either in Engineering or in Arts & Science, without really having a deep knowledge of the subject. On this Diwali, let us  take a strong vow true Engineers or Scientists come out of our Universities and Schools.2. Fire crackers: When the explosion happens outside, the explosion inside is diffused. Today we find that stress, tension and depression are overshadowing a greater part of life . This is especially true of the the younger generationwho, instead of resonating youthful vigour and enthusiasm, display lack of confidence and preparedness to face the situations that they are exposed to. If they are established in knowledge, they will feel strong and not worry about what others think of them. They can be focused on what needs to be done and lead a peaceful life without Inner Explosions.3. Gift exchange and distribution of sweets: The sweets that we share during Diwali are symbolic of a new beginning to our friendship with others. Sweets literally bring in more sweetness and dispel the bitterness among people! Diwali is a special time for exchanging gifts with each other, visiting the homes of relatives whom we have not visited for a long time. These formalities strengthen the sense of belongingness and bring back the smile on faces of people.The last aspect to Diwali is,4. Feeling the abundance: It is usually said that, if you feel you already have you are given more. It is quite natural. If somebody has been helping you all along, but you always grumble that you haven’t gotten enough, would that person be interested anymore in helping you? Obviously NO. The same is applicable to Nature also. When it has been bestowing you with the maximum you can get, any you are grumbling, your capacity to receive further diminishes. This is the reason why people keep all their valuables in the Pooja Room and perform the Laxmi Pooja with the feeling ofgratitude for having got so  much in their life.Instead of taking ancient customs as superstitions, if we try to see the inner meaning, we can live life more meaningfully rather than living for the sake of living