Contrary to how it’s weaponized by India’s political class, Hinduism is actually pretty cool. In that, it’s insanely diverse and there’s no iron-clad definition of who’s a Hindu and what’s Hinduism.
Neither are there rituals, customs, traditions that one must follow to become and remain a Hindu; no matter what they say. There’s no formal initiation to Hinduism either. It’s open house really. Hinduism was born out of both crises and fortune, so it’s plenty accommodating.
Does that mean it’s all song and dance? Not at all! There are social evils such as Casteism and Hindutva (militant Hinduism) that cause deaths, destruction, and discrimination, but that’s for another day.
In Hinduism, there are numerous houses of worship basis the history, geography of various regions of the sub-continent. A good example of this diversity is Diwali.
We know the festival marks the return of King Rama to his kingdom after his victory over King Ravana (if you remember Dwight’s explanation). Dussehra, meanwhile, marks the end of the war between Rama and Ravana with the former’s victory.
Anyway, it’s a symbol of the victory of good over evil and it’s an auspicious day for Hindus, Sikhs, and Jains (separate faiths with connected history) across the world.
Rama is an avatar of Vishnu, God of preservation; hence Vishnu and his consort, Lakshmi, Goddess of wealth/prosperity, are worshiped on Diwali.
Diwali also coincides with Kali Pooja on a new moon night. Who’s Kali? The idol you saw at Kelly Kapoor’s Diwali party, whom Angela described as the “b*sty lady.” It’s fine; it was funny.
Now, she’s the Goddess of destruction and was manifested by Shakti – Goddess of power/energy that binds the world – to destroy demons overruling the lands and wrecking havoc.
Hence, Kali wears a garland of demon heads, a belt of demon limbs around her waist, and drinks blood. However, while out killing demons, she lost control and started killing whoever crossed her way.
So, to stop her and calm her down, the Gods requested Shiva, God of destruction, to intervene. Shiva, the consort of Shakti, from whom Kali was manifested, laid down on Kali’s path.
Overcome by rage and killing everything on her way, Kali didn’t notice and stepped on Shiva, one of the three supreme deities (Vishnu and Brahma being the other two). This brought on shame and guilt, and she bit her tongue.
While the northern, western, and southern India mainly worship Shiva and Vishnu, the eastern India primarily worships Shakti. While the worshipers of Shiva and Vishnu are mostly vegetarian, the worshipers of Shakti are largely non-vegetarian as Shakti commands sacrifice.
That is why Diwali celebrations are a strict vegetarian affair, but Kali Pooja has worshipers offering animal sacrifices (mostly lambs) to the Goddess. The meat (cooked sans onion, garlic) is given to devotees.
P.S. Mindy Kaling, who played Kelly Kapoor, has her maternal roots in eastern India while her father was from the south. Hence, the “b*sty lady” at the Diwali party. 🪔
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