News
October 27, 2008
Sarah Irving / The Dartmouth Staff
Fireworks spewed green sparks, illuminating the colorful clothing of the crowd gathered on the Green for Diwali, the Indian "Festival of Lights." The saris and skirts of southern India, the turbans of Punjabi Sikhs and the North Face jackets of Dartmouth students were all brilliantly lit side by side at the Dartmouth celebration of the Hindu New Year.
The ceremony began at Rollins Chapel, where Hindus from Dartmouth and the local area worshipped before the idol of Lakshmi Puja, the goddess of wealth, good fortune and prosperity for the New Year.
"These idols are a way for the human mind to comprehend an omniscient God," Tanuja Kulkarni '10, president of Shanti, the Hindu student organization, said.
Though many of the worshippers at the event were Hindu, there were several Sikhs present as well.