'Diwali is more than just a holiday,’ says NYC mayor Eric Adams in his Diwali message

New York City Mayor Eric Adams said on Tuesday that Diwali is a reminder for all to push away darkness and usher in light. He further urged people to embrace the spirit of Lord Ram, Goddess Sita and Mahatma Gandhi in order to become better humans.

He said this while speaking at the annual Diwali celebration hosted at his New York residence, Gracie Mansion. He further requested everyone to support the effort to eradicate the darkness consuming the world and causing the deaths of innocent people.

“Diwali is more than just a holiday. It is a reminder to all of us that we must push away the darkness wherever we see it and bring light. That is what the Festival of Lights is about,” Adams said. This annual celebration was attended by hundreds of prominent members of the Indian-American and South Asian community as well as diaspora from other nationalities and government officials. Adams said Diwali is more than just lighting a candle; it is about “lighting up our lives”.

“There is so much darkness that we are seeing every day. So if we truly believe in the life of Ramayana, if we truly believe in the life of Sita, if we truly believe in the life of Gandhi, then we must continue Gandhi’s steps. We cannot only be worshippers; we must be practitioners,” he said.

He added that at this time when there is darkness all across the globe and the world is witnessing the loss of innocent lives, “We cannot continue to watch this engulf our future and engulf humanity. Let’s be better human beings. Let’s live in the spirit of Diwali. Let’s live in the spirit of Gandhi. Let’s live in the spirit of Sita. Let’s live in the spirit of Ram, and then we will live up to the expectations of what this holiday really means,” he said.

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New York State Assemblywoman Jenifer Rajkumar, who led the initiative of making Diwali a school holiday in New York City, said that the Indian-American community has never been as powerful as it is now. “We are unstoppable, and we have arrived at the table of power in this state,” she said. 

In light of all that is happening around the globe, including the horrendous violence in the Middle East and the prejudice and hatred directed towards different groups, she added that we can lead the way to peace,

“Ours is the culture of Martin Luther King Jr, who was famously inspired by Gandhi. We feel equally at home in a synagogue, in a mosque, in a church because, as Hindus, we don’t just tolerate people that are different from us; we go one step further and actively love people that are different from us. So now it’s time to spread our beautiful Dharmic light across the city, the nation, the Middle East and the entire world,” said Rajkumar.

Adams, too, ensured that Diwali is made a school holiday in the city from this year onwards. Thanking him, Rajkumar said, “He is the Ram of New York City. Like Ram, he leads when others do not, and he leads our city in confronting the evils” of poverty, hatred, antisemitism, Islamaphobia and indifference. 

“For all that he has done for our community, we all call him the Hindu mayor,” she added.

(With PTI inputs)

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