Until last year, I followed suit like everyone else and my two kids birthday parties were never complete without a birthday cake and beautiful candles adorning it! Once Renu Pal Bhabhi asked me why I used candles and I replied - well because everyone else does so and plus kids love to blow them out! It was not an answer she was going to get settled with! What followed was a discussion and finally a decision from my end - never to blow candles at my kids birthday parties again. I tried to put that reasoning into words after gathering from a few websites and editing.
Finally I copied and printed this on to a word doc, laminated it and have left a laminated copy at the Kent Hindi Temple - for anyone else who might like to borrow it; if celebrating birthdays at the temple while avoiding to blow candles!
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Why aren’t Diya’s accompanying the cake?
Following the universal law of life, everything on this planet is composed of five basic elements or the 'Panchamahabhutas'. Loosely translated into English, these are: Akash - Space, Vayu -Air, Jal Water, Agni - Fire and Prithvi - Earth. It is thus true that all natural life including plants, animals and humanity at large are a combination of all these five core elements which are the essence of all life and existence. One of these five - Fire or Vedic God Agni is also the purifier andour witness. Agni is therefore worshiped as the omniscient God.
Lighting a lamp symbolizes new life, new beginning or spreading knowledge. For this reason blowing out a Diya is considered inauspicious or negative. To blow it with our breath would be considered even more impolite and disrespectful to the very basis between us and the Divine.
On a lighter note you could see it as a contest. Fire might find it offending to be 'blown out'; as it usually has dominance over Wind, taking strength from it as it scorches and runs wild!
So why not blow candles like everyone else?
In today’s times, throwing parties and blowing out candles is a normal practice everywhere. It is unknown how and when it started. But, certainly these practices do not have any ethos or a basis of any religion; neither Hindu dharma nor any other faith.Also when we blow out candles, unknowingly tiny bubbles of saliva leave our mouth and settle on the cakes’ top layer.
Tell me -why on earth should I be serving you unnecessary stuff with your slice of this scrumptious delicioso vegan cake? :)
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Finally I copied and printed this on to a word doc, laminated it and have left a laminated copy at the Kent Hindi Temple - for anyone else who might like to borrow it; if celebrating birthdays at the temple while avoiding to blow candles!
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Why aren’t Diya’s accompanying the cake?
Following the universal law of life, everything on this planet is composed of five basic elements or the 'Panchamahabhutas'. Loosely translated into English, these are: Akash - Space, Vayu -Air, Jal Water, Agni - Fire and Prithvi - Earth. It is thus true that all natural life including plants, animals and humanity at large are a combination of all these five core elements which are the essence of all life and existence. One of these five - Fire or Vedic God Agni is also the purifier andour witness. Agni is therefore worshiped as the omniscient God.
Lighting a lamp symbolizes new life, new beginning or spreading knowledge. For this reason blowing out a Diya is considered inauspicious or negative. To blow it with our breath would be considered even more impolite and disrespectful to the very basis between us and the Divine.
On a lighter note you could see it as a contest. Fire might find it offending to be 'blown out'; as it usually has dominance over Wind, taking strength from it as it scorches and runs wild!
So why not blow candles like everyone else?
In today’s times, throwing parties and blowing out candles is a normal practice everywhere. It is unknown how and when it started. But, certainly these practices do not have any ethos or a basis of any religion; neither Hindu dharma nor any other faith.Also when we blow out candles, unknowingly tiny bubbles of saliva leave our mouth and settle on the cakes’ top layer.
Tell me -why on earth should I be serving you unnecessary stuff with your slice of this scrumptious delicioso vegan cake? :)
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