Bhavin Gala @bhavingala - Twitter Profile

Though I don't necessarily mean towards any one side but this is great food for thought. Very well articulated @vivekagnihotri ! Has made me ponder....

Vivek Ranjan Agnihotri

@vivekagnihotri

8 months ago

THE THIRD ARGUMENT: BEYOND FIRECRACKERS Every Diwali, an old debate returns. “Are you in favour of bursting firecrackers?” someone asks. If you say yes, you are branded as a supporter of pollution, cruelty towards animals, and insensitivity towards infants and the elderly. If you say no, you are accused of being anti-Hindu, of betraying tradition, of echoing colonial contempt that once dismissed Indian customs as barbaric. Both sides are partly right and partly wrong. Truth rarely lives at the extremes, and the answer does not lie in the middle either, because the middle path is often a compromise, not evolution. So what is the third argument? 1. THE FALSE OUTRAGE Many who oppose firecrackers look at Diwali only through the lens of smoke and decibels. But reducing an entire civilisation’s festival to firecrackers is like reducing Christmas to cake. Diwali is not merely a night of light; it is the dawn of renewal. It celebrates harvest, cleansing, and the victory of good over ignorance. It revives trade and crafts and brings families together. If critics spoke more about these luminous aspects instead of moralising, Diwali would again become a festival of light, not a battlefield of hashtags. And let us be honest. The air does not turn toxic only on one night. Those who scold others for lighting crackers often drive fuel-guzzling SUVs, run air conditioners all day, and live amid plastic. Their concern for pollution rises only when a diya is lit. So that argument too fails. 2. THE FALSE TRADITION Now to the other side. If you truly wish to defend firecrackers in the name of tradition, then celebrate Diwali in a truly traditional way. Light ghee diyas instead of LEDs. Eat local sweets instead of imported chocolates. Offer handmade gifts, not factory-made ones. Avoid alcohol and gambling. You cannot modernise every ritual for convenience and then suddenly invoke “tradition” when it allows noise and smoke. That is not faith, it is performance. Many people defend firecrackers not because they are religious but because they are reactive. It is confrontation disguised as celebration, a loud display of power. True power is not in making others flinch. It is when others listen to you and respect you. That is not war. That is wisdom. 3. THE THIRD ARGUMENT: EVOLUTION/पुनरुद्गमन The third argument is not about choosing sides but rising above them. Tradition is not a museum piece. It is a living organism that evolves through awareness. If firecrackers once symbolised joy, today they can evolve into community diyas, eco-friendly celebrations, and collective charity. Let everyone unite as one to gift what may mean something to someone. Not a vulgar display of wealth. Let the gifts be consumable by the receiver. Let the gifts be made only in India by local artisans, not the Chinese products and unhealthy chocolates. That is not abandoning tradition. That is upgrading it. Hindu philosophy never worshipped smoke. It worshipped light. Agni, the sacred fire, was meant to illuminate the soul, not choke the air. Modern environmentalism says, “Leave no carbon footprint.” Ancient Hinduism says, “Leave no karmic footprint.” Both teach us to live consciously, in harmony with the world within and without. Let Diwali not be a contest of noise but a chorus of light. Let it unite us as seekers of truth, ever ancient, ever new. - VRA

vivekagnihotri's tweet photo. THE THIRD ARGUMENT: BEYOND FIRECRACKERS

Every Diwali, an old debate returns.
“Are you in favour of bursting firecrackers?” someone asks.

If you say yes, you are branded as a supporter of pollution, cruelty towards animals, and insensitivity towards infants and the elderly.
If you say no, you are accused of being anti-Hindu, of betraying tradition, of echoing colonial contempt that once dismissed Indian customs as barbaric.

Both sides are partly right and partly wrong.
Truth rarely lives at the extremes, and the answer does not lie in the middle either, because the middle path is often a compromise, not evolution.

So what is the third argument?

1. THE FALSE OUTRAGE

Many who oppose firecrackers look at Diwali only through the lens of smoke and decibels. But reducing an entire civilisation’s festival to firecrackers is like reducing Christmas to cake.

Diwali is not merely a night of light; it is the dawn of renewal. It celebrates harvest, cleansing, and the victory of good over ignorance. It revives trade and crafts and brings families together.

If critics spoke more about these luminous aspects instead of moralising, Diwali would again become a festival of light, not a battlefield of hashtags.

And let us be honest. The air does not turn toxic only on one night. Those who scold others for lighting crackers often drive fuel-guzzling SUVs, run air conditioners all day, and live amid plastic. Their concern for pollution rises only when a diya is lit.

So that argument too fails.

2. THE FALSE TRADITION

Now to the other side.

If you truly wish to defend firecrackers in the name of tradition, then celebrate Diwali in a truly traditional way.
Light ghee diyas instead of LEDs. Eat local sweets instead of imported chocolates. Offer handmade gifts, not factory-made ones. Avoid alcohol and gambling.

You cannot modernise every ritual for convenience and then suddenly invoke “tradition” when it allows noise and smoke. That is not faith, it is performance.

Many people defend firecrackers not because they are religious but because they are reactive. It is confrontation disguised as celebration, a loud display of power.

True power is not in making others flinch.
It is when others listen to you and respect you.
That is not war. That is wisdom.

3. THE THIRD ARGUMENT: EVOLUTION/पुनरुद्गमन

The third argument is not about choosing sides but rising above them. Tradition is not a museum piece. It is a living organism that evolves through awareness.

If firecrackers once symbolised joy, today they can evolve into community diyas, eco-friendly celebrations, and collective charity. Let everyone unite as one to gift what may mean something to someone. Not a vulgar display of wealth. Let the gifts be consumable by the receiver. Let the gifts be made only in India by local artisans, not the Chinese products and unhealthy chocolates.

That is not abandoning tradition. That is upgrading it.

Hindu philosophy never worshipped smoke. It worshipped light.
Agni, the sacred fire, was meant to illuminate the soul, not choke the air.

Modern environmentalism says, “Leave no carbon footprint.”
Ancient Hinduism says, “Leave no karmic footprint.”
Both teach us to live consciously, in harmony with the world within and without.

Let Diwali not be a contest of noise but a chorus of light.
Let it unite us as seekers of truth, ever ancient, ever new.

- VRA

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Bhavin Gala @bhavingala

8 months ago

#Xau dhamaal again! @365ForexTrader @TWLCommunity24

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Bhavin Gala @bhavingala

8 months ago

@vkrathoreyil @ARanganathan72 The Mughals didn't even last a full 200 years as 'rulers of India'. Even the 'Empire', in those 180 odd years of rule, faced constant challenges, alternating between expansion & shrinkage. Multiple times, they had to take help from regional rulers to destroy or quash other rulers

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Bhavin Gala @bhavingala

9 months ago

@extraa2AB @WeekendInvestng Because of questions like these by citizens like you, the Govt. shuns away their accountability for making processes easy for the people. For 24 hrs., 365 days a week the system should be efficient...even at 11:59pm on the date of deadline!

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Bhavin Gala @bhavingala

9 months ago

Could not time the shorts to perfection this time. Learning to work within risk appetite. Looking forward to trade today in Team Connect. #ETH #CryptoTrading @TWLCommunity24 @365ForexTrader

bhavingala's tweet photo. Could not time the shorts to perfection this time. Learning to work within risk appetite. Looking forward to trade today in Team Connect.

#ETH #CryptoTrading
@TWLCommunity24 @365ForexTrader https://t.co/NgDh3Ig1ec

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Bhavin Gala @bhavingala

9 months ago

#ETH adding to the magic now @365ForexTrader @TWLCommunity24 #CryptoTrading

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Bhavin Gala @bhavingala

10 months ago

@saketh1998 The downfall began when Tim Cook became CEO.

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Bhavin Gala @bhavingala

11 months ago

@mybmc @mybmcWardPS I'm proud that BMC is very regular with garbage collection from our society premises. Why is this neglected then?!?!! This is weeks, worth of garbage accummulated at the vegetable and fruit market in Mhada, R Mandir West. https://t.co/kUvjWCJJEw