Diwali Festival of Lights celebrated at Gettysburg College

From left, sophomore Sneha Shrestha, junior Anukul Gurung, and seniors Daiji Kawamura and Shehryar Rashid with Deeyas candles.

Some 50 members of the Gettysburg College community gathered for Diwali, the Festival of Lights celebrated by Hindus, Sikhs, Jains and others.

Participants lit candles, or Deeyas, symbolizing human hope and the victory of good over evil, and shared Indian cuisine at the Oct. 20 event hosted by the College's International Club.

"Celebrating Diwali and other festivals on campus is important because it adds to Gettysburg College's growing efforts to increase cultural diversity awareness," said International Club President Daiji Kawamura, a senior physics major from Singapore. "Some students have never experienced international culture firsthand.  So, this celebration is as close to ‘home' as we can make it here. We want to give back to the community by sharing our own celebrations."

"Lighting the Deeyas reminded me so much of when I was little," said Navdeep Sokhey, a first-year student from East Meadow, N.Y. "Since I won't be home for Diwali this year, this was a nice compensation.  Diwali isn't celebrated only among Hindus. I am Sikh, and we also celebrate it. The International Club is amazing because we recognize this wonderful tradition as well as many others."

"The food and light reminded me of home a lot," said Rennie Joshi, a first-year student from Khumaltar, Lalitpur, Nepal. "It's important for others to know more about our culture."

Gettysburg College is a highly selective four-year residential college of liberal arts and sciences with approximately 2,600 students. It is located on a 200-acre campus adjacent to Gettysburg National Military Park in Pennsylvania. The college was founded in 1832.

Posted Oct. 23, 2007

By Jim Hale 

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