Hare Krishna, We would like to extend greetings to everyone on the occasion of Diwali! Please note that as per our Vaishnava calendar both Diwali and Govardhana Puja fall on Tuesday, October 25th and we will have grand festivities from 6:00pm – 8:30pm. However, we understand that many individuals will be observing Diwali on Monday, October 24th, and wish to visit the Temple on this day. While there is no formal program visitors are welcome; the Darshan schedule is available below:
The story of Diwali stems back to ancient times when inhabitants of Ayodhya celebrated the return of Lord Ramachandra. Lord Rama was in exile, away from His kingdom, for many years. The joyful day on which He finally returned is observed as Diwali, or Dipavali as the residents of Ayodhya lit many lamps to welcome Lord Ramachandra home (“dipa” means candles, and “vali” means numerous).