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Good morning. Today, many Hindus & Sikhs around the world are celebrating Diwali, the annual festival of lights. I suspect, many of those in Britain might have found it hard this past weekend not to relate the homecoming story of Rama to our current political scene – the potential return of an exiled ruler, for example. Or the possibility that the King might have a Rishi – the Sanskrit term for a Hindu mystic – as his prime minister. I doubt the parallels from the Diwali story are quite so blatant and political. But one common factor is that, like the inhabitants of Ram’s kingdom, Ayodhya all those years ago, we also face a time of deep anxiety and desperation. The news is full of words like uncertainty, chaos, poverty, shortages, waiting lists, closures, and so on. It is said that, for the citizens of Ayodhya, life had reached a standstill – a despondent struggle without respite. In such circumstances, it’s natural to hope for a saviour – someone to put everything right. For many Hindus, Ram and His consort Sita together personify the potency and compassion of God in relationship with human society. The Bhagavad-gita explains that it the realisation of our relationship with this source of power and love that brings peace to our anxious hearts. The people of Ayodhya acknowledged this interrelationship by receiving Ram and Sita into their lives by each person offering a single tiny light, a diwa. Hence the festival’s name, Diwali or Dipavali. Like a candle, the diwa has long been considered the basic unit of luminosity. For Hindus, it represents the social and spiritual contribution that each individual can make. It symbolises personal commitment to engaging with the greater light of God. But in the real world, this little light of our own spirit often wavers in the whirlwind of our worries and emotions. That’s why, it’s said, that during the several days of Diwali celebrations, devotees are allowed, even encouraged, to express their hopes, fears and aspirations to God – to ask for things. Knowing that God cares, may ease my worries, pacify my heart and enable me to look outward to what I can do in service to Him and others. I hope this Diwali might see a settling down of our country’s politics. Too many people are struggling with a light dimmed by stress and despair. Too many others are straining the flame of their spirt far beyond what should be expected of them. They need the beacon of good governance to relieve and support their exertions. Wishing you all Happy Diwali.