This is Why Lighting Diyas in Kartik Month is So Beneficial

Deep or lamp signifies light. The fire element predominant in the lamp emphasises our need to search for wisdom and knowledge. In the entire year, Kartik is the holiest month for Hindus. It is in this month that the Deeparadhana, or the Worship of Lamps, attains its highest significance. Deepotsava, or the festival of lights, is an inseparable part of traditional India. Diya, or lamp, is the symbol of fire, or Tej. Our relationship with the diya is ancient and traditional. When artificial or electric light was not a tangible reality, man relied on these oil or ghee lamps to dispel the darkness. But what is it that makes these lamps an important part of the month of Karthik?

The month of Karthik signifies the Sadhana pada. From Sadhana pada, the year swiftly enters Kaivalya pada. Sadhana pada denotes the Purushartha, or the diligent work that we must do in order to achieve the ultimate wisdom. Sadhana pada denotes our mind that is wet like the soft earth. When we sow the seeds on this wet earth and plough it, it gives us the desired results. Lighting the diya in the month of Kartik signifies the hard work that man must undertake to bring about his spiritual transformation. Kaivalya pada comes later-after Sadhana pada. In Kaivalya pada, we reap the results of our hard work that we've done in Sadhana pada. Diya thus becomes the symbol of Sadhana. It signifies our constant burning and longing for Ishwara, or the Ultimate Reality.

A lamp has three main components: the body (the outer body made up of any material like mud or silver), the wick, and oil or ghee. Each of these three components has its own spiritual significance. These three components correspond to the constituents in our body. The outer body of the lamp signifies our own body. Wick is our buddhi, or intellect, and oil signifies dhyana, or concentration. We must stabilise our bodies. Only a stabilised lamp can contain a good amount of oil. An unstable body causes disturbance and does not allow us to focus. It's only when our body becomes stable that it becomes capable of receiving the oil (of concentration).

Wick is our Buddhi, or the discriminative power. Through our Buddhi, when we tirelessly concentrate on the Supreme power, the ultimate light of the Divine becomes visible to us. This oil-the concentration must never exhaust. Like in the diya, when the oil runs out, the flame blows out. Similarly, the moment our oil of concentration exhausts, the Supreme light becomes invisible and we become entangled in the mesh of the material world. To avoid this Divine Flame from blowing out, we must keep filling our body (lamp) with the oil (concentration) so that the wick (Buddhi) takes us to the Divine Light. When there is an ample supply of oil, the flame will never run out. When the flame is kept intact, then slowly our ego and ignorance will disperse and the Supreme will become visible to our inner eye. Oil in terms of lighting the lamp has various connotations. Oil does not only mean dhyana or concentration. It also means devotion, bhakti, selfless service, and surrender.

Diya help us get rid of our negativity and darkness. The darkness not only scares us but also confuses us. We humans are a storehouse of negative emotions. Jealousy, hatred, bitterness, anger—and the list is too long! These negative traits not only dampen our enthusiasm for life but also stop us from surrendering before the Supreme Lord. When we light the lamp, these negative emotions dissipate, clearing our way towards the Divine. Focusing on the lamp's flame in the month of Karthik takes us into our inner world, which is challenging or difficult otherwise. It helps us open our inner eyes and motivates us to look for the Divine-not outside but deep inside us.

Diya resembles the Sun and Moon. However, no matter how bright and luminous they are, both these celestial bodies have their own rising and setting patterns. But that's not the case with the lamp. It can be lit anywhere and at any given time. This signifies that the Divine resides in us all along and only a little effort is needed from our side to see His Divine Power. The month of Karthik gives us an opportunity to make efforts towards realizing the Divine.

Along with Bhagwan Shiva and Bhagwan Vishnu, Yama-the God of Death, is also worshipped in this month. On Trayodashi of this month, Deepak, or lamps, are offered to Yama. This is done to please the Yama and to avoid premature death. Even if there's an early death, the lighted lamps provide a way to the deceased and help him on his journey to salvation. Lighting a lamp frees the soul from the particles of bad karma that keep sticking even after death. Lighted lamps not only purify the souls of the deceased, but also our souls and inspire us to do good. In a nutshell, lamp lighting sends us a secret message that life is too short and we must focus on the Divine without scattering our energies on unwanted/unnecessary things.

Yama is the son of Surya and has Pasha (the rope of death) and Danda (Yama's stick). In Kathopanishad, the conversation between Yama and Nachiketas is well known, where Yama is the Guru, or teacher, and Nachiketa is his student. The conversation and Yama's teachings to Nachiketas are all about death and the afterlife. The month of Kartik also marks the teaching phase. If the lamplight motivates us in the Sadhana pada to perform good karma, then it also guides us into the Kaivalya pada, where we must reap the fruits of our Purushartha without greed. Bhishma Pitamah spent the entire Sadhana pada on his bed of arrows. Refusing to abandon his life in Sadhana pada, he desired to leave his body in Kaivalya pada, where he would see Shri Narayana, or Shri Krishna, as the brilliant and ultimate fruit of all his sufferings.

Diya represents the combined power of the three goddesses—Mata Laxmi, Mata Saraswati, and Mata Durga. These three Shaktis are the root reason for the activation of the Trinity—Shri Brahma, Shri Vishnu, and Shri Mahesh. Together, these three goddesses reside in the lamp in the form of Rajarajeshwari. These three goddesses signify knowledge, wealth, and salvation. When we light the lamps in the Kartik month, we activate the hidden powers in the form of these goddesses.