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Why Goddess Lakshmi is Worshipped on Deepavali

Lakshmi Pooja is an important part of the Diwali celebrations in Hindu households.

By AstroVedPublished 2 years ago 4 min read
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Hindus in India and abroad will celebrate the festival of lights, Diwali or Deepavali 2021, is on 4th November 2021. Deepavali is a festival that brings much excitement and happiness, and it is celebrated very grandly. The festival is held on the new moon in October or November. It is a special day because it is very auspicious to worship Goddess Lakshmi, the Mother of the entire universe, on this day. 

The importance of Goddess Lakshmi stems from the fact that she is the divine power behind everything in the world. She is the Goddess of wealth, fortune, luxury, prosperity, power, and beauty. The Goddess is the consort of Lord Vishnu, the deity who preserves the universe. 

Lakshmi’s grace and blessings bring relief from financial problems. They can free us from sorrows and help us attain success. 

Importance of Worshipping Goddess Lakshmi on Deepavali

Diwali is also a festival to usher in prosperity into our lives. Lakshmi Pooja is on the third day of Diwali, which is a 5-day festival. Lakshmi is also the Goddess of wealth and prosperity, so Lakshmi Pooja is an important part of the Diwali celebrations in Hindu households. People light diyas, candles, and fairy lights for the occasion. Even shops, big and small, put up fairy lights, creating a magical atmosphere that attracts customers as well. The entrances of houses sport rangolis of various designs and colors. Many kinds of sweets are offered to the Gods and then to family and friends.

Significance of Diwali: 

Diwali means ‘row of lights’. It was first celebrated when Lord Rama returned to Ayodhya with his wife, Sita, and brother, Lakshmana, from exile after defeating the demon king, Ravana. Diwali is on Amavasya (no moon day), but it is filled with light as all Hindu homes and shops are brightly illuminated for the occasion.

Significance of Lakshmi Pooja:

In Hindu homes, a Pooja is performed as Diwali marks the new year as per the Hindu calendar. People turn out in their festive finery. When the Pooja is going on, the main door is kept open to invite the Goddess into the home. Beautiful and colorful rangolis made of flowers or colored powders, as well as other decorative items, adorn the threshold. Torans or door hangings further add to the beauty of the home. People initiate new ventures and new accounting years on this day by worshipping Goddess Lakshmi.

It is the practice to worship both Goddess Lakshmi and Lord Ganesha during Diwali. As Lakshmi is the Goddess of fortune, wealth, luxury, and prosperity and Ganesha is the lord of wisdom and intellect, the celebration becomes complete only when Ganesha is also worshipped with Lakshmi. Ganesha also removes obstacles, which may prevent us from attaining wealth and success. 

Devotees believe that on the night of Diwali, Goddess Lakshmi visits the homes of her devotees to bless them with wealth and luxuries. And in order to gain wealth, one has to gain wisdom and intellect first with Ganesha’s blessings. Without wisdom and intellect, people tend to misuse their wealth. So we need intelligence to earn and spend wealth in an ethical manner.

Why Both Ganesha and Lakshmi are Worshipped?

A mythological story lies behind the ritual of worshipping Ganesha with Lakshmi. Once, Goddess Lakshmi was talking to her husband, Lord Vishnu. During the entire conversation, Vishnu noticed that Lakshmi kept praising herself and giving herself sole credit for all worldly blessings and pleasures. She felt she was the most worshipped deity in the universe. So Vishnu decided to curb her ego. He declared that a woman is incomplete unless she experienced motherhood and that Lakshmi had never experienced it.

On hearing this, Lakshmi felt upset. She went to Goddess Parvati and requested her help to experience motherhood. She asked if she could adopt one of her two sons (Kartikeya and Ganesha). Parvati did not want to give any of her sons to Lakshmi as the latter had no permanent dwelling place. She was always moving from one place to another. So Parvati felt that Lakshmi would not be able to take proper care of her son.

But Lakshmi assured Parvati that she would take good care of her adopted son and ensure that he would always be worshipped along with her. Those who refused to worship him along with her would not experience wealth, pleasure, luxury, and prosperity. Parvati agreed and handed over Ganesha to Lakshmi. Since then, Hindus worship both Lakshmi and Ganesha during the Diwali festival.

Ganesha and Lakshmi are the main deities for merchants as they are associated with wealth and prosperity. On Diwali, merchants close their last year’s accounts and pray to both deities for bigger profits and better trade prospects in the coming new year. But people doing other jobs, too, now tend to do Diwali Lakshmi Pooja, as they seek more wealth. 

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About the Creator

AstroVed

AstroVed is a #1 online astrology and remedies portal whose focus is to merge the technologies of the ancient traditions with our modern science. https://www.astroved.com/

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