What is Diwali or Deepavali..? Diwali or Deepavali is a festival of lights that heralds a new dawn. In some places it marks the 'birth of Lakshmi (wealth of matter). Lakshmi puja is performed seeking 'material wealth' prosperity. In some places it is marked as victory of Krishna over Naraka and Naraka seeking a boon to celebrate his death. In some places it indicates return of Lord Ram to the city of Ayodhya. In some places it indicates attainment of 'nirvAna' by Mahavir (by Jains). In some places it is the 'start of a new year'. Essentially in all places it heralds the birth of a new transformation that evolved them further. In every place, it marks the movement away from oscillating stagnation to ever changing evolution. Cosmologically, in my view, it heralds the dawn of a new Universe characterized by continuous evolution. This post is about seeing Diwali from a cosmological perspective. Naraka - The oscillating Universe Naraka is said