The night a city lit every lamp it owned because it did not know exactly when he was coming, and wanted the road lit whenever he did.
When it falls
8 November 2026 28 October 2027 29 October 2027
Two stories, depending on where your family is from: Rāma walking home in the north, Naraka's last request in the south. Both are here, and both are worth telling.
Why it has more than one name
Dīvālī and Deepavali are the same word, shortened differently. The bigger difference is which story the night belongs to: in the north it is Rāma coming home to Ayodhyā and the city lighting every lamp it owned; in the south it is the morning after Naraka, and the day before is kept as Naraka Caturdaśī. Neither is the correct one. If your family tells one and your neighbours tell the other, that is the actual tradition, not a mistake in it.
8 November 2026, 28 October 2027 and 29 October 2027. In the south, Naraka Caturdaśī falls on the day before.
Is the Diwali story about Rama or about Krishna?
Both, depending on where your family is from. The northern telling is Rāma's return from exile; the southern telling is Kṛṣṇa and Satyabhāmā and the last request Naraka made. We keep both, told properly, rather than choosing one.
Which one should I read to my child?
The one your family tells, and then the other one the following year. Children take the difference better than adults expect — the fact that a festival can carry two stories is itself worth them knowing.
Why is it called Deepavali in some places and Diwali in others?
Dīpāvali is the Sanskrit — a row of lamps. Deepavali keeps the longer form, common in the south; Diwali is the shortened form more usual in the north and in English. Same festival, same lamps.
Sandhya Katha chooses one story each night against the pañcāṅga, for your child's age, and lays it out to be read aloud. Free, nothing to install.