Little Black Book:
Mayor Eric Adam’s Diwali Reception at Gracie Mansion
Diwali Comes Early to New York City!
Endless Samosas, Mithai and a DJ too!
On October 17, over 1130 New Yorkers dressed in their festive best turned up for Mayor Eric Adam’s Diwali bash. It was a joyful, inclusive celebration of all the many different South Asian communities in New York. Check out the photos and the video – as well as the Mayor’s great remarks.
Mayor Adams on Ram, Sita and Diwali
“We hear about the greatness of Ram and what Ram represented. He was the power and the force against evil, and he pushed to ensure to rid the entire globe of darkness. But there was another significant part of the story of Ramayana. It was Sita. Sita was his other half. She was a woman of strength and integrity. She was willing to sacrifice her life to ensure that Ram was able to accomplish the task.
And so as we move forward in a particularly male dominated society, let’s not forget, we will never be able to defeat darkness if we do not acknowledge all the Sitas that are in the universe fighting on behalf and side by side with us.
And so years ago when I was in India, I’ll never forget going to the home of Mahatma Gandhi and seeing his last steps. They were permanently in the sidewalk in the pavement. And it’s symbolic that the bullet took his life, but it’s up to us to continue the journey. His physical transformation through that murder should not stop the spiritual journey.
And Diwali is more than just a holiday. It is a reminder to all of us that we must push away the darkness wherever we see it and bring light. That is what the festival of lights is about. It’s more than lighting the candle, it’s more than lighting oil. It is lighting up our lives. Add there is so much darkness that we are seeing every day.
So, we truly believe in the life of Ramayana. If we truly believe in a life of Sita, if we truly believe in the life of Gandhi then we must continue Gandhi’s steps. We cannot only be worshippers, we must be practitioners. And so as we leave today from under this tent of Gracie Mansion, let’s leave with the energy of taking away the darkness that we are seeing all across our globe and the loss of innocent lives. We cannot continue to watch this engulf go our future and engulf humanity.
Let’s be better human beings, and let’s live in the spirit of Diwali. Let’s live in the spirit of Gandhi. Let’s live in the spirit of Sita. Let’s live in the spirit of Ram. And then we will live up to the expectations of what this holiday really means.”
PHOTO GALLERY – Many Different Communities Celebrating Together – we invite all the hundreds of guests clicking selfies and pictures with their families to send them in to us at lavinaphotos@gmail.com and we’ll add them in!
