womenspage.in |women and child development|gold rate today|epapers: rangoli

diwali celebrations

diwali celebrations in india

Diwali or Deepavali, the "festival of lights" is an ancient Hindu festivalcelebrated in autumn every year.Diwali is the biggest and the brightest festival in India. The festival spiritually signifies the victory of light over darkness.The festival preparations and rituals typically extend over a five-day period, but the main festival night of Diwali coincides with the darkest, new moon night of the Hindu Lunisolar month Kartika. In the Gregorian calendar,Diwali falls between mid-October and mid-November.

Before Diwali night, people clean, renovate and decorate their homes and offices.On Diwali night, Hindus dress up in new clothes or their best outfit, light up diyas (lamps and candles) inside and outside their home, participate in family puja (prayers) typically to Lakshmi the goddess of wealth and prosperity. After puja, fireworks follow,then a family feast including mithai(sweets), and an exchange of gifts between family members and close friends. Diwali also marks a major shopping period in nations where it is celebrated.

Diwali is an important festival for Hindus. The name of festive days as well as the rituals of Diwali vary significantly among Hindus, based on the region of India. In many parts of India,the festivities start with Dhanteras, followed byNaraka Chaturdasi on second day, Diwali on the third day, Diwali Padvadedicated to wife-husband relationship on the fourth day, and festivities end with Bhau-beej dedicated to sister-brother bond on the fifth day. Dhanterasusually falls eighteen days after Dussehra.
diwali rangoli

beautiful peacock and Dias art with rangoli colors.

Where can I celebrate Diwali in the UK
Many activities and events are held in United Kingdom to celebrate Diwali, which is known as the “Festival of Lights”. Diwali is a time for spring cleaning in homes and offices. Many homes that celebrate Diwali have assorted sweets, savories and Diwali herbs. Various lights, candles and sparklers are lit inside and outside homes.

Many people wear their finest clothes to celebrate Diwali. Many women wearing jewelry and silk outfits and some have mehendi, which is a temporary henna decoration, on their palms. Many Indian businesses see Diwali as a day to start the new financial year because of Diwali’s ties with Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth.

Many cities throughout the United Kingdom celebrate the Diwali festival with firework displays, dances, plays, street lighting, Diwali lanterns, traditional Indian food, and music. Hindu council representatives, spokespeople from Indian associations, and political leaders publicly announce their greetings to those involved in organizing and participating in Diwali celebrations.

Diwali is not a bank holiday in the United Kingdom but it is celebrated in many towns and cities such as Belfast, Birmingham, Edinburgh, Leicester, and London. There may be traffic congestion and parking places may be full in areas where events are held to celebrate Diwali. Some Indian businesses may close early on Diwali.

What is eaten during Diwali
During Diwali, the most popular food is mithai. Mithai is a combination of a snack, a dessert and a sweet, and it is eaten throughout the Diwali festival. Other favorite dishes include Dahi-Bhalle, Karanji, Samosas, Pakoray, Mathiyaa, Ghathiya and Aloo Tikki.

check here Diwali recipes
for decoration crafts here
How to make pooja thali at home decorative aarti thali how to make puja thali at home Diwali Thali Making
Pistachio Shells flower,pista shells flower,pista shells crafts
Thanks for Visiting womenspage.in

How to make floating rangoli on water

How to make floating rangoli on water
Items Required are:
a shallow bowl, or a plate. You could also use a shallow tray. (It can be a steel, plastic or a glass bowl).
a couple of spoons of oil or ghee (clarified butter).
white rice powder, or white distemper powder.
colors of your usual rangoli powder/dye to use for coloring your rangoli.
water to fill up your bowl or your plate.
Method:
Plan on a design to make as your "rangoli on water".
Choose a place (could be a tabletop or an altar) to display your "rangoli on water".
Take your time to decide upon a place for this, because once you're done with this project, you wouldn't be able to move your "rangoli" without disturbing it.
Any shifting to the arrangement of the bowl with the "rangoli on water" once the rangoli is made, could ruin your design.
You could use a glass or a steel bowl, tray or even a 2" to 3" deep plate as a canvas for the rangoli.
Place your bowl/plate in your chosen space, and apply oil or ghee (clarified butter) to the inside surface of the bowl/plate.
Pour some cold water into the bowl, filling it all the way to the edges of the bowl.
Sprinkle fine rice powder or white distemper powder on the surface of the water in the bowl.
Draw your planned rangoli design on the surface of the water and fill in the colors as required.

How to make floating rangoli on water
Thanks for Visiting womenspage.in

Thanks for Visiting womenspage.in

How to make a Kundan rangoli

Items need:

OHP sheet
Blue tear drop rhinestones
White rhinestones
Ball bead chain is gold color
Fabric Glue
Scissors

Method:
Take OHP sheet for the base which are easily available in any stationery store.Draw the outline and cut out in the required shape. This rangoli is made with one circular piece as the base.

At the center of circle glue on a white rhinestone.Cut a small piece of the bead ball chain and glue it around the white rhinestone like an outline.
Keep glue on the petals of the flower which design we have.Similarly, keep gluing on the stones to form a flower.

Now for the outline of the rangoli, glue on the bead ball chain along the outline of the plastic sheet. Do this slowly so that the circle is neat.

Allow the glue to dry well.The completed design look like below

Thanks for Visiting womenspage.in

Thanks for Visiting womenspage.in

Rangoli
Mahashivratri puja:
Shivaratri Pooja has been given tremendous significance in Hindu mythology. It is said that ritual worship of Lord Shiva on a Shivaratri day pleases Lord Shiva the most. Devotees further believe that by pleasing Lord Shankara on the auspicious Shivaratri day, a person is absolved of past sins and is blessed with Moksha or salvation.
To perform the worship of Lord Shiva on Shivratri, devotees wake up early and take a ritual bath, preferably in the holy waters of river Ganga. This is followed by worship to Sun God, Vishnu and Shiva in accordance with the purification rite observed on all-important Hindu festivals. Devotees then wear fresh new clothes and pay a visit to the nearest Shiva temple. As a tradition, devotees observe a fast on a Shivaratri day. Some do not consume even a drop of water.

Shiva Purana further says that performing abhisheka of Shiva Linga with six different dravyas including milk, yoghurt, honey, ghee, sugar and water while chanting Sri Rudram, Chamakam and Dasa Shanthi pleases Lord Shiva the most. According to the mythology, each of these dravya used in the abhisheka blesses a unique quality:

Milk is for the blessing of purity and piousness.
Yogurt is for prosperity and progeny.
Honey is for sweet speech.
Ghee is for victory.
Sugar is for happiness.
Water is for purity.

Besides, worship of Lord Shiva on Shivratri is also considered to be extremely beneficial for women. While, married women pray to Shiva for the well being of their husbands and sons, unmarried women pray for a husband like Shiva, who is considered to be the ideal husband.

It is suggested to have only single meal a day before Maha Shivaratri fasting. It is one of the common practices during fasting to make sure any undigested food is not left in the digestion system on the fasting day.
On the day of Shivaratri, one should get up early in the morning and take bath. It is suggested to add black sesame seeds into the water. It is believed that the holy bath on the day of Shivaratri purifies not only the body but also the soul. If possible bathing in Ganges is preferred.
After taking bath devotees should take Sankalp to observer full day fast and to break the fast on the next day. During Sankalp devotees pledge for self-determination throughout the fasting period and seek blessing of Lord Shiva to finish the fast without any interference. Hindu fasts are strict and people pledge for self-determination and seek God blessing before starting them to finish them successfully.
Devotees should abstain from all type of food during the fasting. In the strict form of fasting even water is not allowed. However consumption of fruits and milk is suggested during day time which should be followed by strict fasting during night. In other words during day time fruits and milk can be consumed.
Devotees should take second bath in the evening before doing Shiva Puja or visiting temple. If one is not able to visit the temple then makeshift Shiva Ling can be made to perform Puja activities. One can even shape the mud in Linga form and apply Ghee to perform Abhishek Puja at home.
Shiva Puja should be done during night. Shivaratri Puja can be performed one time or four times during the night. The whole night duration can be divided into four to get four Prahar to perform Shiva Puja four times. Devotees who want to perform single Puja should do it during midnight. Please check Maha Shivaratri Puja Timings to know timings of four Prahars for your city.
As per Puja Viddhi, Abhishek of Shiva Lingam should be performed with different materials. The milk, rose water, sandalwood paste, yogurt, honey, Ghee, sugar and the water are commonly used for Abhishek. Devotees, who perform four Prahar Puja, must perform water Abhishek during first Prahar, curd Abhishek during second Prahar, Ghee Abhishek during third Prahar and honey Abhishek during fourth Prahar apart from other materials.
After the Abhishek ritual, Shiva Linga is adorned with the garland made of Bilva leaves. It is believed that Bilva leaves cool down Lord Shiva.
After that Chandan or Kumkum is applied to the Shiva Linga which is followed by lighting lamp and Dhupa. The other items which are used to adorn Lord Shiva include flower of Madar which is also known as Aak , Vibhuti which is also known as Bhasm. Vibhuti is sacred ash which is made using dried cow dung.
The mantra to chant during Puja duration is Om Namah Shivaya.
Devotees should break the fast next day after taking bath. Devotees should break the fast between sunrise and before the end of Chaturdashi Tithi to get maximum benefit of the Vrat. Please check Maha Shivaratri page to know the time to break the fast for your city.

Thanks for Visiting womenspage.in

Women's day special quotes

Every Home,Every Heart, Every Feeling,Every Moment Of happiness is incomplete without you, Only you can complete this world Happy Women’s Day.

women's day special quotes:

After all those years as a woman hearing 'not thin enough, not pretty enough, not smart enough, not this enough, not that enough,' almost overnight I woke up one morning and thought, 'I'm enough.'

A woman performs all the duties of a man but a man cannot do all that a woman can do.

Women, from time immemorial have fought for the right of others, now it’s her time to get her rights realized and get equal participation in the society.

If you want to get a plan, go to a man but if you want it to be done, go to a woman.

A woman should be taught to believe in protecting herself on her own and not to depend on a man for her protection. She has the power to protect the world and not just herself.

A woman is one who walks on her own footsteps rather than following the direction shown by the crowd.

A woman, she is born with the power to save and love, her existence is based on the truthfulness in her eyes.

A woman in any form shall be celebrated and honored, be it, a sister or a wife or a mother or any other form.

A woman’s guess is much more accurate than a man’s certainty – Rudyard Kipling

Sure God created man before woman. But then you always make a rough draft before the final masterpiece.

The best way to change the society and the underlying issues is to channelize the power of woman in every walk of life.

A woman with a voice is by definition a strong woman. But the search to find that voice can be remarkably difficult. – Melinda Gates

A woman should be taught to believe in protecting herself on her own and not to depend on a man for her protection. She has the power to protect the world and not just herself.

Women are the mammoth reservoir of power and talent which has yet not been tapped.

Empower women, empower the human community. The base on which the world stands is a women.

Women are the real architects of society. – Harriet Beecher Stowe

A strong woman is the one who can dare to raise her voice for the cause she believes in, and this strength lives in a corner in every woman’s heart, it just needs to be searched.

The sadness of the women’s movement is that they don’t allow the necessity of love. See, I don’t personally trust any revolution where love is not allowed. – Maya Angelou

As a woman I have no country. As a woman my country is the whole world.

When a woman is talking to you, listen to what she says with her eyes.

A free race cannot be born of slave mothers. – Margaret Sanger

It takes a lot of courage to show your dreams to someone else

Being a woman is a terribly difficult task, since it consists principally in dealing with men.

Our mother is one person who makes us realize our dreams. They are the people in our life who work all day and night and that too without getting paid for it.Cheers to the existence of this great creature of the Universe.