A diya, diyo, deya,[1]deeya, dia, divaa, deepa, deepam, deep, deepak or saaki (Sanskrit: दीपम्, romanized: Dīpam) is an oil lamp made from clay or mud with a cottonwick dipped in oil or ghee. These lamps are commonly used in the Indian subcontinent and they hold sacred prominence in Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, and Jain prayers as well as religious rituals, ceremonies and festivals including Diwali.[2]
Symmetrical Diwali diyasDiya for DiwaliA diya lamp with swastika engraved interior
Clay diyas are symbolically lit during prayers, rituals, and ceremonies; they are permanent fixtures in homes and temples. The warm, bright glow emitted from a diya is considered auspicious, regarded to represent enlightenment, prosperity, knowledge and wisdom. Diyas represent the triumph of light over dark, good over evil with the most notable example of this being on the day of Diwali. Diwali is celebrated every year to celebrate the triumph of good over evil as told in the Hindu epic, the Ramayana. Diwali marks the day Rama, Sita, and Lakshmana returned home to Ayodhya after 14 years in exile, after the defeat of Ravana. According to tradition, to welcome Rama, Sita, and Lakshmana home, the citizens of Ayodhya are said to have lit up the streets with diyas. They are regarded to be associated with Lakshmi in Hindu iconography and worship.[3]
Traditionally, diyas are lit every morning within Hindu temples.
FestivalsEdit
Tealight Diyas used for decoration during DiwaliDiwali: The lighting of diyas forms a part of celebrations and rituals of the important day in the Hindu calendar. Houses are decorated with small diyas placed at boundaries and entrances.[4] In fact, the name of Diwali is derived from the Sanskrit word Deepavali, which means the row of lights ("deep" means Diya and "avali" means row).[5]
Lit diyas that are placed before deities during prayer in temples and then used to bless worshippers is referred to as an arati.
A similar lamp called a butter lamp is used in Tibetan Buddhist offerings as well.
Hindu ritualsEdit
Birth: The lighting of diya is also part of the Hindu religion rituals related to birth.[6][7][8]
TypesEdit
Top of the ornamental Nachiarkoil or Annam lamp of Tamilnadu
In terms of the choice of material, the kiln fired earthenware lamps followed by the metallic lamps with multiple wicks, mostly of brass known as Samai, are the most common, though other materials are also used such as patravali floating lamp made from leaves or permanent lamps made of stones.
In terms of wick design, diyas with one wick are most common, followed by the two wick style, but other variations such as four, five or seven wick lamps are also made.
In terms of overall lamps design, the ornamental lamps come in various designs. The iconic Nachiarkoil lamp, also known as "Annam lamp", is produced exclusively in by the Pather (Kammalar) community in Nachiyar Koil of Tamil Nadu.[9][10]
diya, lamp, diya, diyo, deya, deeya, divaa, deepa, deepam, deep, deepak, saaki, sanskrit, पम, romanized, dīpam, lamp, made, from, clay, with, cotton, wick, dipped, ghee, these, lamps, commonly, used, indian, subcontinent, they, hold, sacred, prominence, hindu,. A diya diyo deya 1 deeya dia divaa deepa deepam deep deepak or saaki Sanskrit द पम romanized Dipam is an oil lamp made from clay or mud with a cotton wick dipped in oil or ghee These lamps are commonly used in the Indian subcontinent and they hold sacred prominence in Hindu Sikh Buddhist and Jain prayers as well as religious rituals ceremonies and festivals including Diwali 2 Symmetrical Diwali diyasDiya for DiwaliA diya lamp with swastika engraved interior Contents 1 Traditional use 2 Festivals 2 1 Worship and prayers 2 2 Hindu rituals 3 Types 4 See also 5 ReferencesTraditional use EditClay diyas are symbolically lit during prayers rituals and ceremonies they are permanent fixtures in homes and temples The warm bright glow emitted from a diya is considered auspicious regarded to represent enlightenment prosperity knowledge and wisdom Diyas represent the triumph of light over dark good over evil with the most notable example of this being on the day of Diwali Diwali is celebrated every year to celebrate the triumph of good over evil as told in the Hindu epic the Ramayana Diwali marks the day Rama Sita and Lakshmana returned home to Ayodhya after 14 years in exile after the defeat of Ravana According to tradition to welcome Rama Sita and Lakshmana home the citizens of Ayodhya are said to have lit up the streets with diyas They are regarded to be associated with Lakshmi in Hindu iconography and worship 3 Traditionally diyas are lit every morning within Hindu temples Festivals Edit nbsp Tealight Diyas used for decoration during Diwali Diwali The lighting of diyas forms a part of celebrations and rituals of the important day in the Hindu calendar Houses are decorated with small diyas placed at boundaries and entrances 4 In fact the name of Diwali is derived from the Sanskrit word Deepavali which means the row of lights deep means Diya and avali means row 5 Karthikai Deepam Diyas also known as deepam in Tamil Nadu can be lit especially during the Kartikai Deepam Worship and prayers Edit Lit diyas that are placed before deities during prayer in temples and then used to bless worshippers is referred to as an arati A similar lamp called a butter lamp is used in Tibetan Buddhist offerings as well Hindu rituals Edit Birth The lighting of diya is also part of the Hindu religion rituals related to birth 6 7 8 Types Edit nbsp Top of the ornamental Nachiarkoil or Annam lamp of TamilnaduIn terms of the choice of material the kiln fired earthenware lamps followed by the metallic lamps with multiple wicks mostly of brass known as Samai are the most common though other materials are also used such as patravali floating lamp made from leaves or permanent lamps made of stones In terms of wick design diyas with one wick are most common followed by the two wick style but other variations such as four five or seven wick lamps are also made In terms of overall lamps design the ornamental lamps come in various designs The iconic Nachiarkoil lamp also known as Annam lamp is produced exclusively in by the Pather Kammalar community in Nachiyar Koil of Tamil Nadu 9 10 See also EditOther lamps Butter lamp Navratra Akhand Jyoti Nachiarkoil lamp Nilavilakku lamp Sky lantern Types of Indian oil lamps Related topics Aarti Diwali Rangoli List of light sourcesReferences Edit nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to Diyas lights Sacred Places of a Lifetime Washington DC National Geographic Society 2008 p 270 ISBN 978 1 4262 0336 7 Diwali Significance of a Diya Zee Media Corporation Ltd Retrieved 19 July 2013 Stutley Margaret 9 April 2019 The Illustrated Dictionary of Hindu Iconography Routledge p 390 ISBN 978 0 429 62425 4 The Asiatic Journal and Monthly Register for British and Foreign India China and Australia Front Cover Parbury Allen and Company 1834 page 346 Tej K Bhatia and Naresh Sharma The Routledge Intermediate Hindi Reader Routledge 2015 ISBN 1317962850 9781317962854 Rituals after death as per Hinduism Hindu Janajagruti Samiti Retrieved 25 April 2018 Introduction to death amp dying srimatham com Retrieved 25 April 2018 Hindu Death Rites Asian Cremation USA Retrieved 25 April 2018 PM Narendra Modi gifts Xi Jinping Annam lamp Times of India 11 October 2019 Largest collection of traditional diyas lamps World Records India 9 November 2020 nbsp This article about the culture of India is a stub You can help Wikipedia by expanding it vte Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Diya lamp amp oldid 1156514883, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
