--- description: The ancient festival of lights celebrates the victory of good over evil and is celebrated by people all over the world title: Happy Diwali! Check Out These Photos of the Festival of Lights image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt7db5f71ee36bdd3c/6988708dbc6cfc1ba03da54d/diwali-pakistan.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [World](/section/world/) ## World Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # See the Best Photos of Diwali, the Festival of Lights  by [Naina Bajekal](/author/naina-bajekal/)  ## Naina Bajekal Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Bajekal was executive editor and international editor at TIME. Nov 11, 2015 5:32 PM CUT  Pakistani minority Hindus celebrate Diwali with fireworks in Karachi on Nov. 11, 2015. Pakistani minority Hindus celebrate Diwali with fireworks in Karachi on Nov. 11, 2015.Asif Hassan—AFP/Getty Images  by [Naina Bajekal](/author/naina-bajekal/)  ## Naina Bajekal Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Bajekal was executive editor and international editor at TIME. Nov 11, 2015 5:32 PM CUT Across India and around the world today, millions of Hindus, Sikhs, and Jains gather to celebrate Diwali, the five day festival of lights. Beliefs vary significantly across different regions and sects, but the holiday – celebrated in India for more than a millennium – generally marks the victory of light over darkness and good over evil. The word Diwali comes from the Sanskrit _deepavali_, which means a row of lights. According to Hindu mythology, the festival’s origins can be traced back to the legend of Lord Rama, his wife Sita and his brother Lakshmana who returned to the ancient kingdom of Ayodhya after a 14-year-exile. On that dark night, villagers lit small clay lamps (known as _diyas_) to illuminate their path and to honor Rama’s victory over the demon king Ravana. The festival still centers on the darkest, new moon night at the end of the Hindu lunar month of Ashvin, which this year falls on Nov. 11\. For many in the Hindu community, Diwali marks the beginning of a new year. To celebrate, people dress in new clothes and decorate their homes with _rangoli,_ patterns created on the ground using colored rice or powder. Fireworks, _diyas_ and sparklers light up the night, while family and friends exchange sweets and gifts. Even dogs join in the fun, receiving marigold garlands as thanks for guarding their owners. In the photos above, see how Diwali celebrations literally light up the country.  A police officer sprinkles colored powder onto a police dog at Nepal's Central Police Dog Training School during a dog worship day as part of the Diwali festival, in Kathmandu, on Nov. 10, 2015. Naredra Shrestha—EPA  A boy prepares garlands of marigold at a makeshift flower market as people drop by to purchase flowers and decorate their homes on the occasion of Diwali festival, in New Delhi, on Nov. 11, 2015. Saurabh Das—AP  An Indian Sikh Nihang (a traditional Sikh religious warrior) Baba 'Avtar' Singh wears an oversized giant traditional turban as he pay respects at the Golden temple in Amritsar on the eve of Diwali, on Nov. 10, 2015. Narinder Nanu—AFP/Getty Images  Visitors throng Akshardham temple, illuminated with some 10,000 oil-lit lamps on the eve of Diwali in Gandhinagar, India, on Nov. 10, 2015. Sam Panthaky—AFP/Getty Images  Indian widows burn fire crackers as they participate in an event to mark Diwali in Vrindavan, 100 miles from New Delhi, on Nov. 10, 2015. Harish Tyagi—EPA  Pakistani minority Hindus celebrate Diwali with fireworks in Karachi on Nov. 11, 2015. Asif Hassan—AFP/Getty Images  An Indian boatman waits for customers in Chitrakoot, India, on Nov. 11,2015. Ritesh Shukla—NurPhoto/Corbis  Indian women light lamps on the eve of Diwali festival to mark the event in Bhopal, India, on Nov. 10, 2015. Sanjeev Gupta—EPA ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4108127/diwali-festival-of-light-photos/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4108127/diwali-festival-of-light-photos/"},"headline":"See the Best Photos of Diwali, the Festival of Lights","datePublished":"2015-11-11T17:32:04.000Z","dateModified":"2026-05-11T05:00:59.202Z","description":"The ancient festival of lights celebrates the victory of good over evil and is celebrated by people all over the world","url":"https://time.com/4108127/diwali-festival-of-light-photos/","keywords":["India","Asia","photography"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt7db5f71ee36bdd3c/6988708dbc6cfc1ba03da54d/diwali-pakistan.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Naina Bajekal","jobTitle":"Bajekal was executive editor and international editor at TIME.","url":"https://time.com/author/naina-bajekal/"}],"articleSection":"World","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt7db5f71ee36bdd3c/6988708dbc6cfc1ba03da54d/diwali-pakistan.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Diwali","caption":"Diwali","creditText":"Asif Hassan—AFP/Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/world/","name":"World"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4108127/diwali-festival-of-light-photos/","name":"See the Best Photos of Diwali, the Festival of Lights"}}]}] ```