Diwali · Lakshmi Pujan

1 A night of homecoming, and a home made ready

One of the legends most tied to this night reaches back to Lord Rama's return to Ayodhya after fourteen years of exile. To welcome him home and mark the triumph over evil, the city is said to have lit rows of lamps and performed Lakshmi Puja in celebration — and that act of welcome is what households still repeat every year. In much of North India, this is treated as the single most important night of the whole festival, precisely because of that story.

The belief that shapes the days before Diwali is simple but firm: Goddess Lakshmi enters only homes that are clean and well-kept. That's why the run-up to this night is spent scrubbing, decluttering and decorating. It's tempting to see this cleaning spree as separate from the puja — housework before the "real" worship — but by tradition the two are the same act: a home has to make itself worthy of Lakshmi before it can ask for her blessing; the puja itself is really just the last step of a process that starts days earlier.

2 Rituals of the night, and a ledger blessed for the year ahead

3 From Vasubaras to Mukhed's brightest night

बलिप्रतिपदा पानावर वाचता येते. प्रत्येक दिवस आधीच्या दिवसावर उभा राहणारा, स्वतःचे तर्कशास्त्र असलेला हा एक क्रम आहे.">In Maharashtra, the run of celebrations opens even earlier, with a day called Vasubaras, and continues past Lakshmi Pujan into Diwali Padwa — the day that honours husband and wife, worth its own telling on the Balipratipada page. It's a sequence with its own internal logic, each day building on the one before.

धनतेरसने हंगाम सुरू केल्यानंतर. गावाच्या सण दिनदर्शिकेतील ही सर्वाधिक भरगच्च रात्र असते, आणि ती थेट बलिप्रतिपदेकडे घेऊन जाते.">Mukhed's homes follow the same rhythm as the rest of Maharashtra — the cleaning and decorating in the days before, then lamps and puja on the night itself, not long after Dhanteras opens the season two days earlier. It's the fullest night of the town's festival calendar, and it carries straight on into Balipratipada.

4 The dawn before: Chhoti Diwali

The day before Lakshmi Pujan is Naraka Chaturdashi, known to most simply as Chhoti Diwali — "Little Diwali." The tithi commemorates the defeat of the demon Narakasura, and its emphasis is mostly on purification: an early-morning bath with fragrant oils, symbolising a fresh start that leaves old habits and negativity behind. In many households the day also doubles as the last stretch of cooking faral — the special Diwali snacks such as karanji, chakli and ladoo — that get shared with guests and family over the days that follow.

5 After the main night: Govardhan Puja and Bhai Dooj

The day after Lakshmi Pujan — observed in Maharashtra largely as Padwa — is kept across much of North India as Govardhan Puja. The tradition traces back to a story about Lord Krishna, who told the people of Gokul to worship the Govardhan hill instead of the god Indra, a gesture of respect toward the hill as a source of nature and sustenance. When an angered Indra sent torrential rain, Krishna is said to have lifted the entire hill on his little finger to shelter the village beneath it. The sequence closes with Bhau Beej, the day that honours the bond between brothers and sisters, with its own telling on the Bhau Beej page.

6 Lamps, firecrackers, and staying safe

Diwali is the festival of light, but the same lamps and firecrackers that make it so are also behind a yearly spike in fire incidents and breathing trouble from smoke. A few simple habits cut the risk without taking anything away from the celebration.

• Keep diyas and lamps on a stable surface, away from curtains, cloth or paper decorations.
• Keep a bucket of water or sand nearby when bursting crackers, and never let children handle them unsupervised.
• Avoid loose or synthetic clothing, especially while moving around lamps and firecrackers.
• Anyone with asthma or breathing difficulties should limit time in smoke-filled air and consider a mask if needed.

7 Frequently asked questions