Diwali is the most important festival of the year for Hindus and people of Indian ethnicity.  The story behind the festival of Lights and Homecoming being celebrated on November 12th can be found in the Ramayana, a holy text for the Hindu religion. The story centers on the King Dushrat of Ayodhya who had three wives and four boys.

One day, King Dushrat wanted to give his favorite son, Ram, the throne. However, the youngest of King Dushrat’s wives was brainwashed by her maid and subsequently blackmailed the king. The wife threatened that if her son didn’t become king, then she would leave him. As a result, Ram was sent on a 14-year exile. This broke the king’s heart. Soon after Ram left, the King died. Ram got married to Sita Ranni who chose Ram as her husband because he could break a bow that usually took 10 warriors to even carry. Lakshman and Ram’s wife tagged along with Ram.

Ram, Sita, and Lakshman were camping when the demons of Sri Lanka captured Sita. Ram then teamed with Hanuman–a monkey that could fly. Hanuman also had an army of 1 million monkeys. Together, they built a bridge from India to Sri Lanka. There they had a great battle with the demons including the head honcho Ravan, a ten-headed demon. Ram defeated them and claimed his wife back. This is when Dussehra is celebrated. Twenty days later he returned to Ayodhya. Everyone in the city lit a Diya lamp. This is the reason why Diwali is the festival of lights. Since Ram came back after 14 years, it is also called the festival of homecoming.

Overall, Diwali is the biggest festival in Hinduism. It is celebrated by more than a billion people. Diwali gives happiness to a lot of people.