దీపావళి - చరిత్ర.

🪔 The Historical Link Between Buddha and Diwali

1. Diwali’s earliest origins are pre-Buddhist

The festival of lights (Deepavali) has ancient Indian roots — long before Hinduism, Jainism, or Buddhism had fixed forms.

It was likely an agrarian festival marking the end of harvest season and the new moon (Amavasya) of Kartika month, celebrated with lamps and community gatherings.

Over time, different religious traditions attached their own meanings to the same date.

2. Buddhist connection — Emperor Ashoka’s influence

After the Kalinga war (around 261 BCE), Emperor Ashoka promoted Buddhism.

Historical sources (like Ashokavadana and Divyavadana) mention that Ashoka began celebrating “Deepa Dana” (offering of lamps) on this day in memory of his conversion and spread of Dhamma.

He lit lamps throughout his empire to symbolize enlightenment and peace.

This “Deepa Dana” or “festival of lights” gradually merged with existing light festivals.

Thus, in many Theravāda Buddhist countries, a festival of lights was observed as a Buddhist festival of enlightenment, not as a mythological event.

3. Buddha’s return to Kapilavastu tradition (Nepal & Eastern India)

In some Buddhist communities (especially Newar Buddhists of Nepal and parts of Bihar), Diwali is celebrated as the day Buddha returned to Kapilavastu after attaining enlightenment.

Historical rather than mythic explanation: it was a symbolic homecoming of wisdom.

People lit lamps to welcome him — representing light of knowledge dispelling darkness of ignorance.

4. Coexistence with Jain and Hindu observances

Over centuries:

Jains associated it with Mahavira’s nirvana (527 BCE).

Hindus linked it to Rama’s return to Ayodhya, Krishna’s victory, or Lakshmi worship.

Each community interpreted the same lunar date (Kartika Amavasya) according to its spiritual lineage.

The Buddhist version, while less prominent today, was once historically observed in parts of India and Sri Lanka.

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How Brahmins Came to Dominate or “Occupy” Diwali — A Historical Analysis

1. Diwali existed before Brahmanical Hinduism

The earliest form of Diwali (Deepavali = row of lamps) likely emerged from agrarian communities in ancient India — to mark:

The end of harvest,

The new moon (Kartika Amavasya),

The worship of light, prosperity, and fertility.

These were folk or community-based celebrations, not tied to the Vedas or Brahminical rituals.

Lamps, feasting, and sharing crops were common — long before “Rama,” “Lakshmi,” or “Naraka” stories became attached.

2. The Brahminical takeover during later Vedic and Puranic periods

From around 500 BCE to 500 CE, as Vedic Brahminism evolved into Puranic Hinduism, a pattern occurred:

Folk festivals were absorbed into the Sanskritic (Brahminical) calendar.

Priestly classes began giving mythological explanations and ritual frameworks to local traditions to maintain social authority.

🔹 Examples:

The agrarian lamp festival was reinterpreted as:

“Rama’s return to Ayodhya” (epic justification from Ramayana).

“Lakshmi’s festival of wealth” (aligned with the Brahminical focus on artha and dharma).

“Naraka Chaturdashi” (myth of Krishna and Narakasura, giving Kshatriya flavor).

These stories were codified in the Puranas, written largely under Brahminical influence between 300–1000 CE.

By creating religious scripts for originally secular or Buddhist festivals, Brahmins centralized ritual control and sanctified their role as intermediaries between the people and gods.

3. Marginalization of Buddhist and Jain meanings

During the Gupta Empire (4th–6th century CE) — often called the “Brahminical revival” — Buddhism’s influence declined in northern India.

Many Buddhist festivals, including Deepa Dana, were appropriated or rebranded as Hindu festivals.

Brahminical scholars reinterpreted these as “Vedic” or “Hindu” traditions, erasing Buddhist associations.

Thus, what was once a festival of enlightenment and peace (Deepa Dana) in Ashokan Buddhism became a religious festival tied to gods and wealth in Brahminical Hinduism.

4. Mechanism of occupation — “Sanskritization”

Sociologist M. N. Srinivas coined the term Sanskritization — a process where Brahminical practices spread and replace indigenous or local ones.

Local customs → redefined in Sanskrit texts.

Folk deities → merged with Vedic gods.

Simple lamp offerings → became elaborate Lakshmi Puja led by Brahmins.

This process gave ritual and economic power to the Brahmin priesthood, while common people lost control over the meaning of their own festivals.

5. Continuing patterns

Even today:

Lakshmi Puja and Govardhan Puja (both Brahminical/Puranic layers) dominate urban Diwali celebrations.

Buddhist, Dalit, and Ambedkarite communities often reclaim Diwali as “Ashoka Vijayadashami” or “Deepa Dana Day”, celebrating the light of Buddha’s Dhamma rather than religious mythology.

----- Dr. S P Srinivas Nayak

ఆధునిక భారతదేశంలో స్వతంత్ర్యం కొరకు రెండు ఉద్యమాలు జరిగాయి..

1) యురేషియన్‌ బ్రాహ్మణులు చేసిన స్వతంత్ర్య ఉద్యమం
గోపాలక్రిష్ణ గోఖలే, బాలగంగాదర్‌ తిలక్‌, గాందీ, నెహ్రు
నాయకత్వంలో ఆంగ్లేయుల బానిసత్వం నుండి విముక్తి కలగడానికి జరిగింది., ఇది మొదటిది

2) రెండోవది మూలవాసి మహనీయుల స్వతంత్ర్య ఉద్యమం, ఇది యురేషియన్‌ బ్రాహ్మణుల బానిసత్వం నుండి విముక్తి కావడానికి జరిగిన ములనివాసి ఉద్యమం.
ఈ రెండోవా ఉద్యమం మహాత్మా జ్యోతిబా పూలే, సాహు మహారాజ్‌, బాబాసాహేబ్‌ అంబేద్కర్‌, పెరియార్‌ రామస్వామి నాయకత్వంలో జరిగింది..

ఇప్పుడు కేవలం యురేషియన్‌ బ్రాహ్మణుల ఉద్యమాన్ని మాత్రమే మనతో తప్పులతడకగా చదివిస్తున్నరు..

70 సంవత్సరాలుగా మనం ఈ మాటలు వింటున్నం, వినడమే కాదు అదే నిజమని నమ్ముతం.. ఇంత పెద్ద అబద్దపు చరిత్రను ప్రపంచంలో మరెవ్వరు చదివించలేదు..

...... Dr. S P Srinivas Nayak.