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Diwali message from Parliamentarians and Community leaders Diwali is a festival that feels ever more relevant in the twenty-first century as we celebrate the victory of good over evil. It is a time to reflect on the year gone by, to brush away our bitterness and negativity and to pray for both forgiveness for our wrongdoings, whilst also praying for wisdom to become better people. Like a diwa lamp I hope that we can bring light and joy to our family, friends, community and to this great country that has given us so much. I would like to wish everyone a very Happy Diwali and a prosperous New Year. Lord Popat of Harrow Diwali is a time of joy and happiness, a time when we reflect on the past and hope for the future. As we celebrate the triumph of good over evil and light over darkness, let us also have a thought for those less fortunate than ourselves: the hungry and thirsty, the lonely and destitute, those who have no home or shelter and those for whom every day is a struggle for the basic necessities that we take for granted. All good wishes to your readers for a Happy Diwali, peace, prosperity and happiness.
Diwali is a time of great celebration amongst family and friends - a festival that marks the triumph of good over evil and darkness over light. It's a time to celebrate the best of human spirit and the determination that we will make the world of tomorrow even better than today. On this auspicious occasion of happiness and prosperity, I wish everyone a wonderful, exciting and happy Diwali. Seema Malhotra, MP I pay a tribute to the very many community organisations who every year, without fail lead events to celebrate key festivals like Navratri and Diwali in my constituency of Harrow and Brent. I thank them for hosting such events and keep- ing the flag of Hindu values flying. The celebrations are more than the religious rituals – they mark our cultural heritage and inspire the young British Hindus to practice and promote the ideals of peace, inclusivity and harmony. Its great to be a Londoner because one gets to celebrate and appreciate a whole host of different events given we are multicultural and multi-religious community. Happy Diwali and a happy New Year. Cllr Navin Shah AM
Shailesh Vara MP I want to wish everyone a very Happy Diwali and a peaceful and prosperous new year! Diwali is a story of celebration of the return of Lord Rama and Sita having vanquished the evil Ravana. It is a story of good over evil and today we can all reflect on the past year to commemorate our own personal achievements in conquering similar evils together. This year, I have been visiting local charities in my constituency of Ealing Southall that work tremendously hard to tackle the everyday evils of our society. I celebrate with them on their hard work and success and hope today they enjoy this special festival of lights.
Deepavali (meaning a garland of lights) also commemorates the death of Narakasura at the hands of Lord Sri Krishna. It is believed that Narakasura, a wicked demon, tortured common people and they prayed to lord krishna to defeat him. The people then celebrated Narakasura's defeat with sparkles, lights and crackers. This celebration was continued down the generations as Deepavali. The day begins with an early morning oil bath, wearing new clothes, burst- ing of crackers, visiting Lord Ganesha, Lord Vishnu/Siva temples. The exchange of sweets between the neighbours, visiting the relations, preparing Deepavali special sweets are tradition of the day. On Behalf of World Tamil Organisation, I wish you, your families and loved ones A Happy Deepavali!
Virendra Sharma MP
Jacob Ravibalan, President
Over the last year; the City Hindus Network (CHN) has experienced an increasing membership of professionals who are interested in networking with like-minded individuals in the City. Highlights over the last year include the introduction of our Advisory Board, a very ambitious Sewa day project, introduction of a new Mentoring Scheme, a three-day meditation series, a very successful series of intimate networking dinners with leading personalities, skiing and camping social trips, and events which aimed to tackle dilemmas for young British Hindus in conjunction with several leading banks, law firms and professional services firms. We have very ambitious plans for the coming year
and look forward to building on our success to date; for more information, please visit: www.cityhindusnetwork.org.uk. The CHN Committee would like thank all of our partners, members and well-wishers and wish them a joyous Diwali. Dimpi Dattani, Pratik Dattani, Dipen Jobanputra, Aekta Mahajan, Bijal Shah, Shonal Tankaria
Gujarat Samachar & Asian Voice 2012 -
Diwali Festival of Light
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