Celebrated to coincide with the darkest night of the lunar month of Kartik in either late October or early November, Deepawali or Diwali is the Hindu New Year’s Day. It is the biggest and brightest of all Hindu festivals and will be marked this year on Sunday 12 November with four days of festivities to illuminate countries and communities around the world.
Hindu
Nine special nights
From 15 to 24 October, Hindus around the world will take part in a nine-day celebration dedicated to the worship of the Mother Goddess Durga. Shardiya Navratri is one of the most significant Hindu festivals with devotees worshipping each of the nine avatars of Maa Durga, one for each day (or night – Navratri translating as ‘nine nights’) of the festival period. It begins on the first day of the lunar month.