DEV DIWALI : Lamps In The Moonlight

The full moon day in Kartik brings in the festival of Dev Diwali. Lamps are lit under the moonlit sky and a family feast celebrates the end of the Diwali fortnight.

For Hindus, Kartik Purnima also brings the celebration of the Matsya or fish incarnation of Vishnu. According to the Puranas, Vishnu appeared in the form of a gigantic fish to save Manu, the progenitor of the human race from the primeaval flood which destroyed the universe. Manu, who saved all species of animals, birds, reptiles and insects from extinction, is also called the father of the human race. Because of this, man is called manav or manushya in Sanskrit. Jains celebrate Dev Diwali in memory of the final liberation of Mahavira, the great Tirthankara by lighting lamps at midnight and reciting scriptures.