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The Legends Of Narak Chaturdashi
After Dhanteras, the second day of Diwali is known as Narak Chaturdashi or more popularly as 'Choti Diwali'. Narak Chaturdashi is the 14th day of the Hindu month of Kartik. This festival is observed to commemorate the victory of Lord Krishna over the demon king, Narakasur. It is believed that on the day of Narak Chaturdashi, Lord Hanuman reached Ayodhya with the news of Lord Ram's return from exile after 14 long years.
This day is celebrated differently in various regions of India. It is quite clear that even the rituals and legends of Narak Chaturdashi differ from region to region. In Southern India, people wake up before sunrise to prepare a paste by mixing kumkum in oil. They apply this paste called 'Ubtan' on their foreheads and then take a bath.
A white pumpkin is broken and smeared with kumkum. The breaking of the fruit represents the head of the demon king, Narakasur, and the kumkum-oil paste symbolises the blood that Lord Krishna smeared His forehead with.
In Bengal, people prepare 14 different kinds of 'saag' (leafy green vegetables) and light 14 oil lamps in the evening, signifying the Chaturdashi (14th day of the Hindu month of Kartik ). On the next day, Kali Puja commences as Amavasya sets in. Thus, Narak Chaturdashi is an important festival celebrated throughout India.
Let us take a look into the legends and stories of Narak Chaturdashi.
Story
Of
Narak
Chaturdashi
The
story
goes
that
the
demon
king
Narakasur,
ruler
of
Pragjyotishpur
(the
province
to
the
south
of
Nepal),
after
defeating
Lord
Indra,
snatched
away
the
magnificent
earrings
of
Aditi
(the
mother
of
all
the
Gods).
He
also
imprisoned
the
16,000
daughters
of
the
gods
and
saints
in
his
harem.
On the day previous to Narak Chaturdashi, Lord Krishna killed the demon and liberated the imprisoned damsels and also recovered those precious earrings of Aditi. Thus, the day of Narak Chaturdashi came to be celebrated as the day of victory of good over evil.
Story
Of
King
Bali
Another
legend
is
about
King
Bali
who
became
very
powerful
and
a
threat
to
the
Gods.
In
order
to
curb
his
powers,
Lord
Vishnu
took
the
guise
of
a
Batu
Vaman
and
begged
King
Bali
to
give
him
only
so
much
land
which
he
could
cover
with
his
three
steps.
Known
for
his
generosity,
King
Bali
proudly
granted
him
his
wish.
That
very
moment
that
small
boy
transformed
himself
into
the
all-powerful
Lord
Vishnu.
With
his
first
step,
Lord
Vishnu
covered
the
entire
heaven
and
with
the
second
step
the
earth
and
asked
Bali
where
to
keep
his
third
step.
Bali
offered
his
head.
Putting
his
foot
on
his
head,
Vishnu
pushed
him
down
to
the
underworld.
At
the
same
time,
for
Bali's
generosity,
Lord
Vishnu
gave
him
the
lamp
of
knowledge
and
allowed
him
to
return
to
earth
once
a
year
to
light
millions
of
lamps.
This
would
dispel
the
darkness
of
ignorance
and
spread
the
radiance
of
love
and
wisdom.
Hence, Narak Chaturdashi is a celebration of good over evil, light over darkness and wisdom over ignorance.
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