Karthika Masam, the month that follows Deepavali, is considered one of the holiest months of the year. Its central ritual is the lighting of lamps, at home, in temples and on water.
The meaning of deepa daanam
Offering a lamp is offering light: a prayer that ignorance gives way to knowledge. Lamps floated on a river or a pond carry that prayer outward, and many families light them in memory of their ancestors.
How to do it
- Bathe early in the morning, before sunrise if you can.
- Light a lamp at home at dusk, every day of the month.
- On Mondays and on Karthika Pournami, many families float lamps on leaves or in small clay diyas.
If there is no river nearby, a lamp floated in a bowl of water at home carries the same meaning.
