DIWALI: Nasdaq photo

The NASDAQ Stock Market has added Diwali to the events it commemorates on its fancy seven-storey-tall signage in its HQ in New York's Times Square. And here's the photo to prove it.

I am delighted to see the Indian flag towering over Manhattan traffic, but here are two nit-picky items:

It refers to the "Indian" festival of Diwali. While technically true, it would have been better to call it the Hindu festival of Diwali. Also, the use of the giant India flag, instead of say, a traditional Diwali lamp is rather odd. I wouldn't have minded a lamp AND a flag.

Diwali is celebrated in countries around the world by Hindus, including places where the Hindus have barely a connection to India itself, being fourth-, fifth-, sixth-, seventh-generation immigrants - such as Singapore, Trinidad, Guyana, Fiji, Malaysia, Mauritius, Canada, Sri Lanka, Nepal, the U.K. and, yes, the U.S. (of course few of those countries have South Asian-led companies listed on U.S. stock exchanges).

It's a nice gesture, but the execution could have been better. Diwali is a Hindu festival first.

What do YOU think? Post your comments at the bottom of this item (free, one-time TypePad registration required). Some others have already weighed in.

[ See SAJAforum coverage on the Diwali stamp hoax and also read about the NYC Diwali Parking Holiday ]

PHOTO: Rob Tannenbaum, NASDAQ
© Copyright 2006, the Nasdaq Stock Market, Inc. Reprinted with permission

[POSTED BY SREE SREENIVASAN]

Comments

[Rakesh]

Your points are valid, but still a nice attempt and it does raise awareness overall which fars outweigh any problems in their execution. With time and with some active participation/coaching from our community, the execution will also hopefully improve.

Perhaps someone should reach out to the Nasdaq folks to get this clarified for next year?

[Mihir Meghani]

The following URL leads to the Hindu American Foundation's Diwali website where you can view Diwali greetings from US political leaders, interfaith leaders, and academics. Also, it links to a Congressional resolution on Diwali (not the Diwali stamp) and explains the significance of Diwali. It is not just important for Hindus, but Jains and Sikhs as well.

http://www.hinduamericanfoundation.com/campaigns_deepavali2006_haf_message.htm

[S Jain]

This is awesome. Made my day :)

[Deborah Heiligman]

I'm hoping my new children's book, Celebrate Diwali with Sweets, Lights and Fireworks (National Geographic), will help. I know this seems like a shameless plug and it is, but it's also, as is the book, a sincere effort to spread knowledge--to children and their people. We (me, the photo editor, and our consultant Vasu Narayanan) made every attempt to give an accurate picture of Diwali--its meanings, traditions, customs, and foods. (It was a challenge!) Please visit my web site to learn more... www.DeborahHeiligman.com

[Jaya Kamlani]

In the year 2001, when I lived across the Hudson River in a high-rise building in Guttenberg, N.J., I noticed that Diwali was also celebrated at the Empire State Building. That week, the apex of the building was lit up in the colors of the Indian flag. Orange/white/green.

Please check this Diwali if the tradition still continues at the Empire State Building, where the apex is lit up in different colors to commemorate various holidays of the year (as I don't live in New York area any more). I have that list, if anyone is interested. Everytime the lighting colors changed, I checked the holiday list.
-- Jaya Kamlani

[Anju]

I am delighted that there is a recognition. In many ways, Diwali is celebrated as an Indian holiday just as Christmas is a national holiday in the West. The celebrations (diyas, food, fireworks) overshadow the religious overtones, which varies by each region/community anyway. And,increasingly the level of religiosity in observations has diminished. Fewer people read the original story. Knowledge now comes in biteable size through Amar Chitra Katha. So a recognition of the holiday is a another great step in our collective Indian-American history in the USA....

[manjeet]

I rather like that Diwali is referred to as an Indian rather than a Hindu festival. Identifies it as being secular, which is should be - the conquest of good over evil for Dussera is a universal theme, and welcoming the rightful and virtuous king home with lights is also a universal theme, no? Everyone I know lights diyas at home and some non-Hindus even do rangoli. And I like the Indian flag motif - this is to alert the rest of the uneducated-about-India world, not us insiders. Now people will know two things - that Diwali is associated with India, and they will know what the Indian flag looks like. Maybe next year Nasdaq will put a diya and a flag.
By the way, does anyone know what criteria Bloomingdale's uses when it chooses which flags to fly outside its store on the 60/3rd ave side?

[Shurjendu Dutt-Mazumdar]

Diwali is the return of Lord Ram, a distinctly Hindu avatar, to Ayodhya after his long exile. Bengalis and some other Hindus celebrate it as the festival of Kali after the Dashami (or in Hindi, Dussera) period.

To equate Diwali, therefore, with India, would once again fall into the fallacy of promoting the Hindu as a 'true Indian.' However, as Mihir Meghani, I believe somewhat too categorically states, a lot of Sikhs, Jains, and other Indians have legimitately taken to celebrating Diwali as a secular holiday much as lots of non-Christians (like myself) gladly celebrate Christmas with or without its religious trappings.

So, ultimately, we're faced with the problem of finding a non-governmental holiday (like independence days or all that) that can be called "Indian" without offending minorities. How is this possible? Can the U.S. take the same tack with Christmas, or Thanksgiving for that matter (which raises tough questions about native Americans and their treatment by colonialists), as some people are intimating about Diwali via Indianness and celebrating Indian pride?

No. Minorities need to respect majority sentiments as much as the majority needs to celebrate minority sentiments. So bravo NASDAQ for acknowledging the growing Indian presence by a friendly nod to Diwali. Next they can, for the sake of thoroughness, starting hitting up Sikh, Jain, and Indian Sufi celebrations.

: )

[Suja]

Whatever the opinions, this is still an affirmation that Indians have "arrived"

[Jaya Kamlani]

(P.S: Addendum to my earlier message)
My dear friends at SAJA,

Wish you all a VERY HAPPY DIWALI. May this year bring you the very best of everything. I have thoroughly enjoyed meeting many of you at the SAJA convention over the past six years. Hope to see you again next year.

God Bless you all,
Jaya Kamlani

[Shundell Prasad]

I particularly appreciated Sree's very inclusive, politically correct comment that Diwali is celebrated by Hindus all over the world, not just in India. Being 5th generation Indo-Guyanese, I distinctly remember huge festive parades in Guyana where brightly decorated motorcades carried beautiful Indian girls dressed up as Hindu deities and crowds singing bajans to Mother Laxmi.

I must tell you that for many of us 'PIOs', in the distant reaches of the Diaspora, the divine light of Diwali radiates just as strongly now as it did when our wandering forefathers departed the motherland. And our connection to India itself will never be lost. So I disagree with you on that, Sree. Perhaps it's the rich cultural phenomenon, such as Diwali that has managed to keep the Indian Diaspora intact…

[Bhamy V Shenoy]

Outside India, Indian and Hindu are synonymous. Also when one interprets Hindu as a way of life and not religion, and reprenests all the best in India, calling Diwali as Indian may be more correct. NASADAQ might not have thought deeply about the diffrence between Indian and Hindu. But they served a bigger cause by calling it Indian.

[Anandi A. Premlall]

This is definitely an exciting event and enormous exposure for anyone who celebrates Diwali! Kudos to NASDAQ for such a grand promotion of this beautiful display. Diwali will definitey get recognition in Times Square. Granted it could have been more politically correct with a diya and more specific associations, I think it's a wonderful start! Happy Diwali to all!

[Umesh]

They clearly mention Indian festival rather than religion so Indian flag make sense. And its good to link India with Hindu, the term is widely interchangeable across the board. I don't mind having Indian flag that. But I do understand your point.

[Sonia]

"And its good to link India with Hindu, the term is widely interchangeable across the board."

Huh? Are you serious? You do realize that there are many people in India who aren't Hindu, right? I really hope your comment was a mistake.

[John Laxmi]

Dear Mr. Sreenivasan, You are right; Diwali is primarily a "religious" festival. It is not a nationalist ritual.

However, why are you orchestrating this clamor for your religion to be "recognized" by others! Does the greatness of Hindu religion or Hindus depend on recognition by Nasdaq on the crassly commercial Times Square?

Isn't religion a personal and private matter? If you allow your religious rituals to be publicly celebrated by neon lights, you should be equally agreebale for them to be publicly ridiculed. Religion does not belong in the public square any more than sexuality. These are personal matters.

If Diwali is a religious festival, it belongs in the temple, in the solemn shrine in a person's home. As Diwali (and many other religous occasions) degenerate into social and commerical events, they are exploited by jewelers and other merchants and now, by Nasdaq.

Happy Diwali! Happy Dow 12,000!

John Laxmi
New Jersey

[Ruchira]

Fabulous! It is great to see we're finally being noticed. Your points are very valid, and I agree that we should clarify things to the Nasdaq folks, but a great beginning!

[Anjali Sharma]

I never bother to add my voice to anything. However, since no-one has spoken for me yet ...

There is a difference between being politically correct and correct. Diwali is a Hindu festival with a religious dimension AND a commercial one -- remember the new clothes, mithai, phatakas? Hinduism and indeed nationalism does not preclude us celebrating each other's festivities -- Even for athestheists such as I. I think no Indian will be offended at the correct representation of Diwali. The Thais, Malaysians, Indonesians, Myanmarians of non-Indian origins who celebrate Diwali may actually be happy with a correct representation.

The perpetuation of overarching ... er ... misrepresentations by the US can only be seen as ignorance, neglect or political. In any event, we have seen the consequences of being in a world where the US as a country does not allow public discourse of religion while running it and its foreign policy on its own twisted understanding of a 'just war'. I for one do not associate with a Hindu India -- We are a secular state and we learnt about all the religions that make up our cultural mosiac -- Much as I have seen this breakdown in recent years. If we must follow N. Ameria then go for Trudeau's model for Canada of colourful diversity and not the American model of a murky gruel.

[Anamika]

Diwali is celebrated by Hindus as well as Jains, Sikhs and other Non Hindus in India. Nasdaq had more sense than some of us to see Diwali as an Indian festival! There DOES exist an "Indian" culture beyond mere religion that envelopes different communities of India in its fold. We should take great pride in that. The Indian flag stands for that Indian culture.

[Adam Rizvi]

Dear Sree

Greetings

May this Deepawali and Idd season brings,Peace,prosperity ,health & happiness.

I am a muslim grew up with non muslims,not only me and my family celebtrated this festival,but I know many who were NOT hindus but celebrated Deepawali and Holi.There are a lot of Hindus,who are Jains,Sikh etc and celebrate Deepawali.
I am an Indian First and then comes my religion,so I prefer if it is called INDIAN FESTIVAL.Although it is a hindu festival

truly

Adam Rizvi

[Anamika]

Diwali is celebrated by Hindus as well as Jains, Sikhs and other Non Hindus in India. Nasdaq had more sense than some of us to see Diwali as an Indian festival! There DOES exist an "Indian" culture beyond mere religion that envelopes different communities of India in its fold. We should take great pride in that. The Indian flag stands for that Indian culture.

[Raj]

Hi...ALL INDIANS...

Its a great news for us to see INDIAN Flag on the NASDAQ Tower...

I would say...There is merely any indian , whether Hindu, Muslim, Sikh or Christian who do not lit the candles on this holy day....

Diwali is the festival of Maha Lakshmi the godess of all on this planet...

Lets celebrate it together and we are happy to see our culture exoanding in other countries...

HAPPY DIWALI TO ALL....

[Jaya Kamlani]

Regardless of how Nasdaq celebrates New Year, here are my thoughts:
On St. Patrick's Day, we are all Irish.
On Christmas Day, we are all Christians.
I hope:
On Chinese New Year's Day, we are all Chinese.
On Rosh Hashanah, we are are all Jewish.
On Muhararam/Hijra, we give Id Mubarak to each other to celebrate the Muslim New Year.
On Diwali, I hope we all celebrate the Hindu New Year.
There are many other occasions to celebrate. So let us all celebrate each other's New Year. This way we can all come together in unity and peace for mankind, regardles of race, color or religion.
-- Jaya Kamlani

[Jay]

Christmas in India is also an "Indian" festival celebrated by people of all religions despite the underlying religious significance. So too is Diwali. No, I don't think it should be called a "Hindu" festival first and foremost. NASDAQ got it right the first time.

[Vardhini Mohan]

Great good morning Oct 21st!

I would have liked to see beautiful lamps Deepams(terracotta lamp)on time square! After all light is a positive symbol representing the inner light of everyone's soul! Lamp, Candle, Wick, any light is Joy!

I really liked - Jaya Kamlani's - comment and thoughts. Life is too short and we all need to celebrate each other's festivals and each other too!
This is what we did in India.

Political correctness must come from within the heart, and in good faith and respect to humanity. There is no point just saying things, let us show it in action.

First of all Mix with the people of the host country, and live with the ideal of absorbing and cherishing and practicing the best of both cultures!

Let us all see what we can do to make Diwali a public holiday; to enable all of us to celebrate and travel in the US to be with extended families, and our American friends can take part too!

Indian work force even though the majority of the population is Hindu has major main festivals as a government holiday!

Have a great life! Remember happiness is a choice!

[Rohit]

I beg to differ on both of the nit-picky items listed by the author. Though technically diwali is a Hindu festival, Sikhs, muslims as well as Christians (living in India) celebrate it with equal flair. It seems that the festival has the least religious connotations and is more of a marketting gimmick for retailers and an excuse to celebrate and burst firecrackers amongst the masses! 2ndly, the 2nd 3rd...6th generation outside India that celebrate Diwali are still termed as Indian. Technically there is a suffix attached, but the prefix is nevertheless "Indian" and also technically India recognizes them as persons of Indian origin. The reason for Nasdaq celebrating diwali is purely due to companies from India getting their due recognition in the global stage. Hence the Indian flag is very much justified. Just my 2 cents of nit picking on the author's nit picking ;)

[Srinivas Komanduri]

Diwali is not only a Hindu festival of India but also a festival of lights celebrated by many non Hindus.It is a proud moment that NASDAQ has come out with such a gesture and it is not correct for us to react in a negative way. Diwali is a Indian festival and I agree with NASDAQ people to have brought out a tower with Indian flag. Ofcourse a lamp or a candle along side or above or below Indian flag would have given more definition about the Diwali festival.
Happy Diwali to all.....

[Avantika Chowdhury]

I believe the author wrote such an article merely to instigate comments which he is successful in doing, of course.
i say this, ONLY because my benevolent side believes that the author does not hold such atrocious beliefs for real!!

[Suresh]

India should be linked to Hinduism and Diwali is definitely a Hindu festival which is equally enjoyed by many other religions other than Hindus.

Thanks to NASDAQ for linking Hinduism and India with this gesture!

[roopa]

I believe that Mr. Sreenivasan was technically correct (yes, it is a hindu festival) and even aesthetically correct (images of lamps and fireworks signify diwali for me, and perhaps the Nasdaq can use the tricolor motif when they celebrate Indian independence day...?)....however, having heard Mr. Sreenivasan speak often about how positive feedback is required to get the press to report on South Asian issues, I'd suggest that we applaud the NASDAQ for having taken the first truly public step to celebrate with us (I'm not aware of other American / US-based institutions who have done so -- but do correct me if I'm wrong).

[Some Guy]

What a douche this guy is. :)

[Jaya Kamlani]

Hello my SAJA friends,

Among the Happy Diwali greetings I received this year, this one touched my heart. This young non-Indian lady is a friend of my daughter’s friend. Although I have never met her, but when my daughter Minal asked if I knew anyone in marketing or advertising who could help this friend find a job, I thought of an Indian who owned a marketing company in New York. This young lady interviewed there and was offered the job. She had excellent credentials. But then she was offered a job with a larger company that also offered pay along the lines she was looking for. Here is our email exchange. You can see why her last email to me brought tears to my eyes. Although she is a non-Indian, and a lot younger than me, we connected via email. So, I hope our Diwali festival brings light in her life too.

Hi Ms. Kamlani:
Belated HAPPY DIWALI!
May this festival of lights bring you lots of happiness, good health and luck!
Thought I should share some good news with you, I joined xxxxxxxxx company as a Media Planner last week and I am working on the xxxxxx Account.
Take care.
Juliana

Dear Juliana,
Thank you my dear for your kind wishes. It is very thoughtful of you. I wish you luck on your new job. May all your dreams come true. When good luck comes after a long time, it tends to come in threes. So I hope two more of your dreams come true. God Bless you.
Love,
Jaya Kamlani

Hi Ms. Kamlani
Thank You! That is the sweetest blessing ;-)
My Mom passed away in May after a long struggle with Cancer, I would have traded my every dream in lieu of her life... I know Mom is in a better place now and she is making good things happen to me through people around me.
Lots of Love
Juliana

We can reach across race, color and religion; even age and sex.
-- Jaya Kamlani

[ronita torcato]

This year, several churches, including the Holy Name Cathedral of the Archdiocese of Mumbai celebrated Diwali with a High Mass and lighting of crackers/sparklers etc etc after Mass.
Catholics were also urged to come to Church in "Indian dress".
Sree, you have a point, but we ( Indian Christians) never say "Hindu" or "Muslim" apparel when we wear (or refer to ) the saree or salwar kameez.
Diwali may have become commercialised ( like Christmas is ) but I think NASDAQ did right in using the word Indian alongwith our flag. A diya would have been nice; maybe, they'll use one next year?
A HAPPY DEEPAVALI (& EID MUBARAK)
Ronita

[Asha]

I agree with Sree's comments. I'd be curious who among the responders here grew up in India, and who did not.

Let's remember that the NYC Diwali parking regulation victory was because it is a "religious" holiday. Not because it was a national-origin holiday.

In India, is Diwali always represented with a flag? Do individuals here who celebrate Diwali, as a religious OR secular holiday, go around waving Indian national flags to symbolize their celebration? I think not. A flag for such a holiday seems like something that would only happen in the diaspora. Also, do 2nd and 3rd generation Indians of any religion identify their ethnicity with a national-origin flag? NO not really. Certainly people of Indian descent from the Caribbean, East Africa, and other areas do not associate themselves with a flag. So I'm with Sree.

[dewanand]

This is very good news for all humans on earth. HIndus in the USA have done a good job to build their new country and to live for the American Dream.

Divali is for all creatures who are fighting for justice and peace. The victory of goodness is for the sake of all humans.

I hope that Nasdaq will invest a few billions to promote the peaceloving hindu Dharm all over the world. It could be wise to convert all humans to the hindu philosophy to build a better and peaceful earth, with a place for every one. The vedical truth is the only etarnal truth in our world. For Vedical wise men all other religions are false and bad for mankind.

So far so good for the hindu dharm.

Jai Jai HIndu Dharm

dewanand
hindu writer and researcher
delft, the netherlands
waldo@wanadoo.nl
famous website: Critical Podium Dewanand

[Jaya Kamlani]

To sum up what Diwali means, be it a Hindu festival, or an Indian festival:

Diwali is a festival of lights,
A wish to bring light in your life,
A hope you'll share some of that light,
To bring light into another's life.

-- Jaya Kamlani

[Valand]

Diwali represents to me the light of The (Diya) Lamp that banishes the darkness of Self-ignorance. Hope everyone lights one to lead you on the path of righteousness!
Valand

[Tilly]

Dear Dewanand,

You say (I quote), "The vedical truth is the only etarnal (sic) truth in our world. For Vedical wise men all other religions are false and bad for mankind" (end quote).

It's a small constricted world that you live in, my friend. I wonder why you have chosen to live in the Netherlands where the general population is multi-denominational and where bigots like you are unwelcome.

[Nid]

Diwali is celebrated by not just Hindus, ..Sikhs, Jains, Buddhists....and even some Christians.

[sharetipsinfo]

Hi Everyone
We wish to share one great news with everyone...

Everyone is saying market is expected to touch 15000 mark ,will it or not?
Well the answer is yes it will. For the time being you can take target of 15700 this year though it will be achieved in 6 months.
We would like to tell you one more thing we were the first one who claimed that market will touch 14000 mark in December. also major dip ( May ).
Please play in market accordingly...
Regards
Sharetipsinfo

[Sundararajan]

Hi Everyone,
Interesting discussion this. Just happenned to see it on the net.
As far as NASDAQ is concerned it is just an Indiann festival as they are not aware or do not care for what it means to indians. It is more political as they want to improve their relations with India. But we should know better, Diwali IS a Hindu festival. All this talk of non Hindus celebratiing Diwali is a load of crap. I have never seen anyone in my 27years of existance doing it. It is written more for for the sake of posting a comment in a discussion forum as a politically correct statement always looks nice. So lets be realistic people. Diwali IS a Hindu Festival irrespective of what USA thinks of it. As for the NRIs, aren't they supposed to be Non Returning Indians or Non Reliable Indians who are more bothered about making money in the US and least bothered about what is happenning here. How many of them have contributed to India anyway.

Sundararajan

[Jaya Kamlani]

Sundararajan,

Please speak for yourself when you define what NRIs stand for. Perhaps you really don't know how many NRI Indians have helped India. Perhaps you don't even know the struggles that NRIs have gone through. With your attitude you are not going to win over NRIs as your friends. People in the U.S. have many interests other than money. They even care for the communities they live in.

Jaya Kamlani

[Mustafa Yusuf]

I second what Jaya said! NRI's do contribute a lot towards India's economy, I know I do! As far as Sundararajan's comment about non-Hindus celebrating Diwali, that is completely false. I am a Muslim, and during Diwali, I find reasons to go out with my friends who are Hindus to celebrate Diwali, not only that but all my friends who are non-Muslims enjoy spending Eid with my family. (Trust me, not a political statement to support two religions or what not!)
I don't know why people single out India as a "Hindu" country, it's a secular country and that's what it was founded upon and I would gladly sacrifice my life for my country. I still stand up when the national anthem plays and I still defend my country from Paki's :P.
Bottom line: I'm really happy the Indian flag was displayed high and bright in Manhattan!

[Jaya Kamlani]

Mustafa,

I am sure many mainstream Muslims in India think of themselves as Indians first, Muslims second, like most Hindus do. Even the NRIs feel that way. I had Muslim friends when I attended school and college in India. It did not make a difference to me what caste my friends were so long as I clicked with them and they were there for me when I needed them. I still feel that way about people of any race or religion.

It would be great if there was a project that we could all work on together whether we are Muslims, Hindus/Jains, Christians, Jews, Buddhists, or of any other religion. It would show to the world, especially the politicians, that we can all come together if we want. If we look for fault in each other, we will find it. But if we look for the good, we will find it too, in fact overwhelmingly.

I know it's a little late, but here is wishing you belated Eid Mubharrak.

Jaya Kamlani

[Mustafa Yusuf]

Jaya,

Wishing you a belated Diwali too! Yes! I have been trying to get this same task undertaken here at my university for a long time, but in vain! I also tried to unite the Pakistani's and Indian's by launching a festival in the university itself for awareness that India and Pakistan were essentially one country, and now if not, we still can live in harmony, but I lost that too!

I think it would be a great idea to have a project that would actually unite Hindus, Muslims, Christians , Jains, Sikhs and so forth to one basic goal. This would shape our nation and set an example to everyone world wide as well as nationally.

Overwhelming indeed, but it's still not a perfect world we live in yet!

Mustafa Yusuf

[Avrajyoti Mitra]

You know, I could se this coming. India as the soft-superpower of the world! I just cannot take my eyes off the pic- "Indian flag towering over Manhattan traffic"!! Indian culture is so rich and we the Indians are so proud of it carrying all over the world, the globe cannot ignore it for long.

[vijay bhatt]

respected sir
hello sir how are you i hope that your fine
Iam vijay bhatt i live india i have rajasthani group of indian Rajasthani folk Geet mand song folk dance and musice.Ihave performed in many parts of indiaas well as in so many other european countries and gained so many admirations ther Ihave a variety of Rajasthani sapera dance cherry dance dandiya dance bhawai dance kathi ghori puppet show long men juggler show magic show and other such types of show we have performed in differnt states of aindia and outside andia also
My group have partcipated in many festival in usa japan canada england belgium france paris where our art was admired by the peoples there I performed in 1997 in the national festival of asia
a there for want to forward the proposal of cultural program of my group to you for your kind consideation hope you will consider it and give me chace to further supply your more detail about our show and programs waiting for a favoravle reply
bye bye
plz