Today, I join the Hindu community, at home and abroad, and all citizens of Trinidad and Tobago in celebrating Divali, the Festival of Lights.
Divali recalls the return of Lord Ram and Mother Sita to Ayodhya after fourteen years of exile. The rows of deyas that welcomed them proclaimed both joy and the enduring triumph of dharma over injustice, knowledge over ignorance, and light over darkness.
The deya is small, yet it does not bargain with the darkness; it simply gives its light. Divali therefore calls us not merely to admire goodness, courage and truth, but to practise them—especially when doing so is difficult.
Practicing truth, as Divali calls us to do, requires the courage to speak with fairness and responsibility. This responsibility is imposed in both directions. When we speak, we should do so truthfully and without malice; and when we listen, we should receive differing views with patience and generosity. When candour is tempered by compassion, disagreement need not become division, and the exchange of ideas can deepen rather than diminish our common life.
As we prepare our homes for the blessings of Sri Lakshmi, let us also make room within ourselves for conscience, compassion and discernment. Let our words bring light rather than heat, and let our differences enlarge, rather than narrow, our sense of common belonging.
In our multi-religious and multicultural Republic, Divali is a gift to the whole nation. It reminds us that light is most powerful when shared, and that a country’s moral strength is measured not only by the freedoms it proclaims, but by the courage with which its people protect them.
May every deya lit this Divali renew in us the wisdom to recognise truth, the courage to speak it responsibly, and the grace to hear it—even when it is difficult. May its light guide Trinidad and Tobago towards a future shaped by truth, justice and mutual respect.
I wish the Hindu community and the entire nation a happy, peaceful and holy Divali.
Shubh Divali!
