Voices of Light: Critical Reflections on Diwali from Hindus for Human Rights
As we gather to celebrate Diwali this year, a variety of staff, supporters and friends from Hindus for Human Rights are preparing to share reflections on the festival’s significance at various community events, each offering a unique perspective rooted in justice, compassion, and inclusivity.
Pranay Somayajula, Director of Organizing and Advocacy, delves into the layers of Diwali’s traditional narrative, encouraging reflection on the complexities within the Ramayana. He emphasizes the need to confront caste and gender issues embedded in the story, while also cautioning against the Hindutva movement’s use of Diwali to advance exclusionary agendas. Pranay calls for a reimagining of Diwali as a celebration of justice and liberation, lighting diyas as a commitment to the struggle against oppression in India and beyond.
Rajiv Sinha, HfHR UK Director, addresses the tensions around London’s official Diwali celebration, questioning the VHP (UK)’s prominent role due to its affiliation with the RSS, an organization linked to violence against minorities in India. He argues for alternative organizers who can uphold Diwali’s inclusive spirit without ties to exclusionary agendas, asking how communities can create celebrations that reflect true cultural pride. More to come on his call for growth through community accountability and constructive change.
And at the CUNY Law School’s Diwali diya lighting ceremony, HfHR’s New Jersey chapter lead Nerisha Bedi brings attention to Diwali’s deep spiritual significance as well as its complex socio-political backdrop. She reflects on Diwali and Bandi Chhor Divas as symbols of light, justice, and liberation, while also critiquing the appropriation of these symbols by extremist groups. Nerisha calls for a reimagined Diwali that resists hate and upholds peace and justice, lighting her diya in solidarity with those fighting oppression globally. Her message speaks to the need for community and courage in reclaiming Diwali as a festival of pluralism and resistance.
This Deepavali, our Executive Director Sunita Viswanath reflects on a holiday weighed by Islamophobia, divisive election rhetoric, and ongoing global conflict. Recalling her mother’s words, Sunita reminds us that true light lies within—not as pure good or evil, but as the love and justice we choose to nurture, even in the darkest times.
NERISHA BEDI ON DIWALI AND BANDI CHOR DIWAS
Good evening everyone, We are gathered here today to celebrate Diwali, the Hindu Festival of Lights, and Bandi Chhor Divas, the Sikh Festival of Liberation, which fall on the same day this year. As many of you already know, Diwali has various interpretations even among the world’s various Hindu communities. Some Hindus recognize it as the day Lord Rama, after 14 years in exile, returned to his kingdom in Ayodhya with his wife Sita and brother Lakshman after defeating the evil king Ravana. Ram’s decisions were always in line with dharma (duty) and Diwali serves as a reminder for Hindus to maintain their dharma in day to day life.
from the City University of New York diya lighting
In South India, Hindus mark Diwali as the day Krishna defeated the demon Narakasura and freed 16,0000 girls being held in his captivity. In western India, Hindu and Jain communities consider Diwali the first day of the new year and in Nepal the occasion is called Tihar and focuses on the worship of Goddess Lakshmi. Bandi Chhor Divas that translates to Prisoner Release Day marks the release of the 6th guru, Guru Har Gobindji, from Mughal captivity in 1619. Emperor Jahangir who feared the growing influence of Guru Har Gobind imprisoned him in Fort Gwalior and when he eventually ordered his release, Guru Har Gobind refused to leave without the 52 Hindu kings who were in captivity with him. This act of selflessness is at the heart of Bandi Chhor Divas. It reminds Sikhs that true leadership is not about personal gain but about uplifting others and standing for righteousness. It calls us to reflect on how we can bring light to those who need it most and makes us ask ourselves how we can be agents of freedom and justice in our own lives.
These stories are especially meaningful today as we witness the wrongful detainment and unjust imprisonment of many people in different parts of the world. The common theme for both festivals is the victory of light over darkness, good over evil and knowledge over ignorance. However, these simple narratives only serve to mask the more uncomfortable complexities that Diwali holds for many communities. As many of you know, the Hindutva movement and the ruling BJP have adopted Ram as a key rallying point in their campaign to turn India into a majoritarian Hindu ethnostate. The slogan “Jai Shri Ram” is often chanted by far-right mobs as they assault Muslims and other minorities. They have even used Diwali to campaign for a halal-free Diwali in Karnataka. And in January, India’s far-right Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, inaugrated the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya, built of the site of a mosque that was violently torn down by Hindutva mobs. Modi and other BJP leaders have used Diwali and the theme of Ram’s return to Ayodhya to drum up support for the Ram Mandir campaign.
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So as we gather here today amid this sobering backdrop to celebrate Diwali, it is our responsibility to ask ourselves difficult but important questions. What does it mean to celebrate the triumph of good over evil in these polarizing times? How can we reimagine Diwali and reclaim it from the forces of hate, fascism and oppression?My name is Nerisha and I am a Hindu Sikh representing Hindus for Human Rights, an organization that advocates for pluralism, civil and human rights in South Asia and North America, rooted in the values of our faith: shanti, Nyaya and satya i.e. peace, justice and truth. We provide a Hindu voice of resistance to caste, Hindutva (Hindu nationalism), racism and all forms of bigotry and oppression. We educate federal, state and local policymakers on human rights and religious freedom issues, combat misinformation online and confront far right rhetoric through targeted media campaigns and digital advocacy. We actively participate in interfaith social justice movements while building a base of progressive Hindu Americans to speak about social injustice in our communities.
So today, I am lighting my diya to honor the martyrs in Gaza. As I light this diya I am reinforcing my commitment to fight for justice and for the collective liberation in Kashmir, Lebanon, Sudan and the Congo. This year I find hope in the many people like you who are here to raise your voice against injustice, to resist the war machine, to demand justice for all, and to love all people. Thank you to CUNY Law for giving me this opportunity to share some words.
HfHR really appreciates being given this platform to share our mission and if anyone would like to sign up for more information about our organization I have this sign up sheet for you. Thank you. Om Shanti
PRANAY SOMAYAJULA’S DIWALI REFLECTIONS
Of the various holidays and festivals that make up the Hindu calendar, Diwali is by far the most well-known here in the US, and a lot of folks are already familiar with the most dominant version of the story behind the festival—in this story, based on the Ramayan, Diwali represents the return of the divine king Ram to his hometown of Ayodhya after defeating the ‘demon king’ Ravan in an epic battle and rescuing his wife, Sita, from Ravan’s captivity. The diyas that we light each year on Diwali are said to represent the lamps that the people of Ayodhya lit for Ram in order to light his path home.
This is the story of Diwali that I grew up with, and I’m sure many of you all grew up with it as well. Dominant versions of this story tend to present it as a very simplistic narrative of good defeating evil, with Ram meant to represent a paragon of virtue and Ravan representing the personification of evil. But this simplistic narrative only serves to mask the more uncomfortable complexities that Diwali holds for many communities. We know, for example, that in many versions of the Ramayan, Ram kills a caste-oppressed man named Shambuka for performing religious rituals that were restricted to members of the Brahmin caste. We also know that throughout the Ramayan, Sita is portrayed as passive, submissive, and lacking agency—culminating in her being forced to prove that she was not unfaithful by stepping into a burning fire. We cannot afford to sweep these casteist and misogynistic elements of the traditional Ramayan story under the rug—instead, we need to confront them head-on.
This is especially important given the ways that Diwali, and the mythology surrounding it, have been weaponized by the forces of hate and fascism in India today. As many of you may know, the Hindutva movement and the ruling BJP have adopted Ram as a key rallying point in their campaign to turn India into a majoritarian Hindu ethnostate. The slogan of ‘Jai Shri Ram,’ or ‘Victory to Lord Ram,’ is often chanted by far-right mobs as they attack and assault Muslims and other minorities. Far-right Hindu groups have used Diwali as an opportunity to attack Muslims and Christians—whether by campaigning for a ‘halal-free’ Diwali in Karnataka, or by attacking a Catholic school for staging a children’s play about the festival. And in January of this year, India’s far-right prime minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya—a temple to Ram, built on the site of a mosque that was violently torn down by Hindutva mobs in 1992. Modi and other leaders in the ruling BJP have used Diwali, and the themes of Ram’s return to Ayodhya, to drum up support for the Ram Mandir campaign, and in a rally Modi even declared that Hindus should start celebrating Diwali in January to mark the temple’s inauguration.
Diwali is such an important part of the sacred calendar for so many of us—Hindu and non-Hindu, in India and in the diaspora. But as we gather amid this sobering backdrop to celebrate Diwali this year, it’s our responsibility to ask ourselves difficult but important questions—questions like, what does it mean to celebrate Ram’s return to Ayodhya in the age of the Ram Mandir? What does it mean to honor the triumph of “good over evil,” when the most common story we use to convey that message isn’t actually so simple? How can we reimagine Diwali and reclaim it from the forces of hate, fascism, and oppression?
These questions don’t have easy answers. But here at HfHR, we strive to cultivate a community that isn’t afraid to ask these questions. For us, the struggle between good and evil that Diwali represents isn’t about one particular story or scripture, but rather is about the fight against forces of hate, oppression, and injustice here in the real world—from the rise of Hindu supremacy in India, to ongoing genocides in Gaza and Sudan, to systemic racism and white supremacy here in the United States. When we at HfHR light diyas on this and every Diwali, we do so to honor the light that exists in every living being, and to pray for justice and liberation for all people.
We also want to uplift the diversity of ways that this festival season is observed across the Indian subcontinent. In many Bengali communities, for example, this time of year is marked by Kali Puja honoring Kali the goddess of time, while in other parts of Nepal and Northeastern India, the festival of lights is celebrated as Tihar, in which Yama, the god of death, and Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth are honored. Jain communities celebrate Diwali by lighting lamps, but do so to honor the anniversary of Mahavira attaining enlightenment. Sikh communities celebrate Bandi Chhor Divas, commemorating the release of Guru Hargobind and 52 others from prison.
These are just a few of the incredibly diverse array of observances and celebrations that take place in different communities across South Asia and the diaspora at this time of year. As we share in today’s Diwali celebration, I hope we can all keep this diversity in mind, and to leave today with open hearts and a spirit of love, inclusivity, and good-will towards all. Happy DiwalI!
read more on X/Twitter about the sponosrs of the Diwali in London
RAJIV SINHA, HfHR UK Director
Making uncomfortable noise about an old, cultural-religious institution such as the official London Diwali celebration, which may be the festival’s biggest event outside of India, was always going to get pushback. A lot of the pushback I have gotten has been from bots and other nonhumans, a lot has been trolls and ideologues, and a little has been from people understandably feeling defensive about their faith and culture.I share their faith and culture and, as a proud Hindu, I cannot countenance a Diwali event in Trafalgar Square organised by the VHP (UK).
The VHP (UK), which also has an American branch, is the UK wing of India’s Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), an organisation which serves as the religious and cultural arm of the fascist and Nazi-inspired Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) paramilitary group. The RSS and its auxiliaries in India, including the VHP, have been directly implicated in countless instances of deadly violence against dissidents and minorities, including the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi, the 1992 demolition of the Babri Masjid and subsequent anti-Muslim rioting, and the 2002 anti-Muslim pogrom in Gujarat which left more than 2,000 dead.
The distinction that I am drawing is between an organisation like Hindu Council UK, which was founded before the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) current period pf horrific hegemony over India but has come to tow the BJP line, and the VHP (UK), which hasn’t even bothered to change its name to hide its outright affiliation with the RSS. Both are bad, but one is brazen and requires checking.This raises the question of what the alternatives are to these organisations — alternatives without any background activities or influence that sullies the office of the Mayor that could help to put on a Diwali event for Londoners and visitors to enjoy.This is an important, necessary question. You need to have a practical alternative to these organisations if you want to solve the problem of bad-faith actors and if you want ensure, as I do, that London has a dazzling, proud, inclusive Diwali celebration.
People, especially politicians who deal with acute shortages of time and resources, are often more responsive to solutions than problems. Therefore a plea to a politician to disengage with a bad group may be met with a response such as, “do you know anyone else who can deliver this service? If not, am I to deprive the beneficiaries of this service altogether?” It’s a question I’m wrestling with — sadly it’s not that easy to answer because bad-faith groups that advocate for or tacitly support Hindutva dominate the British landscape, falsely claiming a monopoly on Hindu voices.However, with all of the thinking that needs to be done here, the question of alternatives does have its limits. I won’t answer those questions as they don’t pertain to me, but I will answer for what happens in the name of my culture and heritage: I would categorically not be willing to be associated with the VHP in any way whatsoever, and I think that that should be everyone’s red line, including the Mayor’s.
REFLECTIONS FROM SUNITA VISWANATH - HfHR Executive Director
This Deepavali, like last Deepavali but even more so, it is hard for me to celebrate. Whether it is the awful Islamophobic Diwali rhetoric being spouted by Hindutva folks in India and the diaspora, the divisive and racist rhetoric around the US elections, and the ogoing genocide and war escalation in Gaza and beyond, my heart is heavy.I am reminded of the Deepavali message my mother repeated to me every year on this day: there is no pure good and no pure evil. If Rama had been pure good, he would have treated Sita with less cruelty. And if Ravana had been pure evil, he would have brutalized her while she was his captive. The true lesson of Deepavali is that we all have the potential for good and evil within us, and we must find the light of love and justice within ourselves, and let that shine.And so, this Deepavali like every Deepavali, I search for the light within me, and let that shine. Praying for -- and committing to -- peace in our world, and justice for the most forgotten among us.