Deepawali, “the festival of lights,” commemorates the victory of good over evil. Hindus believe in the saying Asatoma Sadgamaya, Tamasoma Jyotirgamaya (from untruth to truth and darkness to light); we light lamps during this auspicious celebration to end the darkness and glorify the divine. Focusing on taking this beautiful festival to the masses in the United States, numerous organisations have joined hands to serve the needy and foster togetherness. The growing food insecurity is a significant threat to harmony in American society.
Chasing Away Hunger
According to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), approximately one in ten people in America was affected by food insecurity in the year 2018. Many Dharmic centres, yogic, spiritual, and linguistic organisations and Indian socio-cultural organisations in the United States decided to address this issue by launching a massive food donation campaign during Deepawali that year. Interestingly, SewaDiwali, the food drive, is now in its fifth year. It is an attempt by these organisations to chase away the darkness of hunger and provide a great start to the holiday season in America.
Making the Breakthrough
For the first SewaDiwali in 2018, with over 150 volunteers from New Jersey – belonging to 25 organisations – collected and donated 18,000 pounds of food to 15 Food Banks. It was a fantastic start, but more, the merrier. In 2019, more than 70 Dharmic organisations came together, and SewaDiwali was spread to 11 States involving 1,130 volunteers. That year, the SewaDiwali campaign donated over 49,000 pounds of non-perishable food to 73 food banks. Impressed by the campaign, many townships applauded the tremendous efforts of the Dharmic organisations to help their local communities.
In the Dharma tradition, one of the paths to moksha (liberation from the cycle of birth and death) is Karmayoga or virtuous action. In this path, work is a service always offered to Bhagwan. Many Dharmic scriptures state Sewahi Paramo Dharmaha- service to society is the service to divinity. Keeping this in mind, volunteers of SewaDiwali aimed to expand the food drive even further. As the fall of 2020 entered, many volunteer families started preparing not just for Diwali in their homes but also for Sewa Diwali in their communities!
COVID-19 Served As Energiser For Karyakartas
The SewaDiwali campaign allowed individuals to register their homes as food donation collection centres to increase donations. Suddenly, each community had multiple centres boosting the overall food items collected as part of Sewa Diwali. The campaign’s success in previous years encouraged more volunteers to join. However, the deadly COVID-19 pandemic struck the country in 2020, killing over 170,000 people. As the pandemic raged, the economy tumbled, and thousands lost their jobs. But volunteers from Dharmic organisations bravely stepped out of their homes, risking their lives to help suffering people. COVID-19 served as an energiser for the Karyakartas rather than becoming a barrier. As a result, the total donation crossed 290,000 pounds of food- over five times the previous year!
SewaDiwali in 2020 reached 26 States and benefited 400 organisations. The number of drop-off locations touched 175.
Quoting Martin Luther King Jr., the Governor of Indiana, Eric Holcomb, said, “Life’s most persistent and urgent question is ‘what are you doing for others?’. When many people are going through physical, financial, and spiritual hardships, your actions shine as a beacon of hope.”
The SewaDiwali campaign allowed individuals to register their homes as food donation collection centres to increase donations. Suddenly, each community had multiple centres boosting the overall food items collected as part of Sewa Diwali
Selfless service never-ends, and the SewaDiwali volunteers proved that once again. As the pandemic refused to go away and thousands of families still could not put food on their tables, the Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh (HSS) USA nationally coordinated SewaDiwali in 2021, and the food collected reached 550,000 pounds. The numbers kept increasing: over 30 States, 8000 donors, 1800 volunteers, and 315 partner organisations made the 2021 SewaDiwali a roaring success. Over 200 townships recognised these efforts and commended Dharmic organisations’ selfless service. The Mayor of Indianapolis, Joe Hogsett, said, “The overwhelming participation from Indy Dharmic Organisations during SewaDiwali is a shining example of unity and generosity.” When the food reached many deserving homes, volunteers must have felt the same sense of fulfilment they would feel by worshipping the divine in a temple.
As the 2022 holiday season approaches, thousands of people across America are participating in SewaDiwali. In 33 States of the country, volunteers are working tirelessly to serve the needy. Many States inaugurated SewaDiwali on October 15th/16th in the presence of Mayors and local council members. Lighting a lamp and serving a meal is a great way to convey Diwali’s message to all Americans.
