Diwali

Diwali - the Hannuka of the Hindus - the so-called "festival of lights." It's a five day festival but I've read that the "real" Diwali is on the third day. From what I gather, all the legends and stories in Hindu scriptures about Diwali have to do with good vs. evil. Good obviously triumphing over evil. Light in Hindu represents knowledge. During Diwali you are supposed to light the lamp of knowledge within yourself and reflect on life, love, etc. Just as the legends vary slightly, the way Diwali is celebrated varies between different regions. I read somewhere that in the north, part of the celebrations include gambling (seems uncharacteristically Hindu, no?). But everywhere, there are the lights and it is a time to gather with friends and relatives to remember what's important in life. There are also some spectacular firework displays but I feel like we see fireworks going off at least once a month. Indians love the fireworks. I tell you all this because yesterday, the OWC put on a Diwali fiesta to educate all the white ladies about the holiday.

We were invited to the "Asian Women's Spa," which is owned by an Indian women but "managed" by a Singaporean Hindu, Kala. When we walked in, we were greeted with a necklace of yellow flowers and given a bindi which is the jewel that Indian women were between the eyebrows. Then we all gathered around flower petals that were arranged in the shape of a flower with five points. There was a large candlestick with four candles that made the shape of a square with a candle in the middle - like an advent candle in church. And the owner of the spa was invited to light the candles to begin the celebration. After that, the "models" were called away to practice our walk. (It was all very formal.) Aside from myself, there were 3 other OWC models and our "choreographer" who we later learned is an Indian-Singaporean and the former Miss Indian of Singapore (that might not be here exact title but she was a pageant-girl although she didn't act it. Not that she wasn't gorgeous and poised and all that but she was very down-to-earth too). Anyway, we had to model four outfits. Two were kurta (long shirts), one was a sari and one was "evening wear." We modeled the kurtas, then had lunch then did the other two. It was quite the event. There was a newspaper there and a local TV station. None of the clothes were anything I think I would actually buy but once they were on, they were elegant. Very bright colors, lots of sequins and big, heavy jewelry. After the initial embarrassment of being in the spotlight, it was actually more fun than I thought it would be. Vivian took lots of pictures so I will post a few when she sends them.

But in addition to the fashion show, there was demo on how to tie a sari that was as clear as how to perform open heart surgery. It took a team of three to dress us in our saris. They are complicated to put on, uncomfortable to wear and nearly impossible to walk in. The fact that they have lasted thousands of years and still remain the dominant form of dress for Indian women is a testament to the strength of their culture. In what other culture do they wear the same style of clothes in the 21st century that they wore in the first century? There were two Indians hired to paint henna tatooes. I asked if this was significant to Diwali but no one could really give me a good answer other than it's a popular way to celebrate. So, why not?

Brides get the palms of their hands painted so I'm hoping that having this on for our wedding this weekend is not a faux-pas. It's supposed to last 20 days but I've heard it runs and just ends up looking dirty.

There was also a "stone-shell reader" (aka. fortune teller) who claims he was more accurate than any sort of palm reader because he uses the alignment of the planets to gain insight into the intimate details of your life. He had three white, chalk-like stripes painted across his forehead and had drawn, with some white powdery substance, a square with multiple squares inside. In some of the squares he drew a diagonal line. Then he has some flower petals strewn about the squares in no particular order that I could tell. He ran his hand over a large pile of shells, asked only my name then, took a handful of shells to his forehead. He then put the handful of shells in piles of three outside the grid and put others in the squares. He asked me if there was anything specific I wanted to know and I said I was just looking for general information - family, health, career, money...He said that I would be making decisions my family won't agree with...hmmm...he also said a bunch of other rubbish about a serpent and how that was bad and I needed to come and perform a Shanti Sharm (or something like that) within the next 2 months. I asked him what this was - a prayer? a pilgrimage? a sacrifice to the gods? a chant with strips on my forehead? But he didn't really say, he just gave me his card and said I must come back to his "office." Hearing that he saw a serpent and this was "very bad," I have to say I was a little freaked out. But in repeating the story to Sir, a wise-wise man, his response was something like, "so some Indian guy with white stripes painted on his forehead and seashells came to tell fortunes to a bunch of white women and you don't think it was in his best interest to tell you something to make you want to come back and pay him for another 'reading'?" Plus, there was another Indian women selling bangles by the fortune teller and she said it's all rubbish.

So, I'll just light my candles to rid myself of the ignorance of darkness and open myself to the light of knowledge that he really was just a quack and that perhaps it was a gecko he saw and not a serpent (as I did see another baby gecko outside the spa yesterday).