YOUNG CHRONICLE October 23rd , 2014

THE YOUNG CHRONICLE

Say No to Crackers this Diwali!

Page 2 23/10/14

YOUNG CHRONICLE Oct 23rd, 2014

Ron and Pranks love

Diwali. They don’t burst

crackers, because

crackers cause pollution,

disturb the elderly, and

Birds and Animals feel

tortured. Ron and Pranks

are also against child labour and when

they found that many cracker companies

hire children, they completely stopped bursting crackers.

But they love lighting diyas and gorging on sweets. But Ron

was curious and kept asking mumma why Diwali is

celebrated.

Mumma then decided to tell Ron and Pranks the story.

Here’s how it goes.

Once upon a time, there was a king, Ravana, who had

pleased the gods and had got the boon for immortality from

gods and daemons. However, he felt that he was superior to

other humans, so never took immortality against humans.

With immortality, Ravana was unstoppable. The gods were

disturbed with the power Ravana had.

Lord Vishnu then decided to be born as prince Rama. Rama

was the eldest son of King Dashrath, and was expected to be

king after his father died. However Rama’s step-mother

wanted her own son to be king, and made King Dashrath

send Rama away from the kingdom for 14 years.

So Rama, one of his other brothers, Lakshmana, his and

wife Sita, went away to live a simple life in the forest. But

when they were living in the forest, the demon Ravana's

sister fell in love with Rama and tried to get Rama to leave

Sita and come live with her. When Rama said no, Ravana's

sister attacked him, but Rama and his brother Lakshmana

fought her off and Lakshmana cut off her nose.

Ravana’s sister then went back to her brother Ravana in

Lanka (modern Sri Lanka) and complained to him. Ravana

was very angry. Also, he had heard how beautiful Sita was,

so he set out to the forest to take revenge. Revenge, as we all

know is a very bad thing.

When Ravana got to the forest, he found that Sita was very

beautiful, and he stole her away from Rama and took her

back to Lanka with him. Sita was very sad there and missed

Rama very much.

Rama and his brother

Lakshmana needed help to

rescue Sita, so they went

to see the king of the

monkeys. Hanuman, who

had the magic power to

make himself bigger or

smaller. Hanuman found

Sita on the island of Lanka

and told her that Rama

was coming to save her. But Ravana caught Hanuman and

set his tail on fire! In the end, though, Hanuman escaped

and set fire to the whole island of Lanka.

Hanuman went back to the forest and got Rama and

Lakshmana, and they all went back with the whole monkey

army to attack the island of Lanka. There was a terrible

battle, but finally Rama killed the Ravana and rescued his

wife Sita!

After completing 14 years in the forest, when Rama came

back home, the villagers celebrated Rama’s home-coming

and victory by lighting lamps and bursting crackers. This

celebration is called Diwali.

Who is Rama and why do we celebrate Diwali?

YOUNG CHRONICLE Oct 23rd, 2014

3

Word Meanings Pollution: The action or process of making land, water, air etc., dirty and not safe or suitable to use. Noise pollution happens when crackers are burst, causing a huge noise. Tortured: The act of causing severe physical pain as a form of punishment or as a way to force someone a lot.

Boon: A power that gives you an advantage over others.

Immortality: When someone can not die.

Daemons: Devils, Rakshas

Immortality against humans: When someone can not die when a human kills him.

Revenge: to inflict pain in return for an insult. Escaped: To run free from something.

Rescued: To free someone from danger.

Victory: To win

Hire: To Employ or to pay for work.

Gorge: To eat a large amount greedily.

Dos and Don’ts this Diwali

- Don’t burst crackers this Diwali. Make it a silent one. Elderly people, ill people, animals, and birds find the crackers most discomforting.

- A number of cracker companies hire children, and the material that goes in the crackers is bad for lungs. So by bursting crackers, you are promoting child labour and bad health for the makers. The more you burst crackers, the more the companies will make them. So stop bursting crackers.

- Last but not the least, Crackers cause air and noise pollution, and dirty the roads and compounds.

- Crackers are dangerous and can hurt you. So there really is no reason to burst crackers.

If you still plan to burst crackers, then you should

- Be as careful as you can when you burst crackers - Carry a bucket of water with you, so that if you burn your hand by mistake, you can dip it in

water immediately - Ensure you are not wearing synthetic clothes. You should preferably wear cotton clothes while

bursting crackers - Clothes should be well fitting. Lehangas, Dupattas and Sarees etc should be avoided as they can

catch fire fast. So warn your mother too, if she is bursting crackers with you. - Check your surroundings before you burst crackers. Crackers should be burst on level ground,

far from roads, cars, people, street dogs etc.

Ideally, you should celebrate diwali with Dias, and sweets.

Thought for the Day Instead of Bursting Crackers, People Should Burst all Evil in the World. Happy Diwali!