Social Science Questions & Answers

What do we worship at Diwali festival? Diwali festival is a 5 day Hindu festival in India which occurs on the fifteenth day of Kartika. Diwali when translated means “rows of lighted lamps” and the occasion is also referred to as the “Festival of Lights”. During Diwali, Indian homes are cleaned and windows are opened to welcome Lakshmi, the goddess …

Indira Gandhi was the first woman Prime Minister of Independent India. She was born on 19th November 1917 in Allahabad. At that time there was great political tension in India. India was struggling hard to gain Independence. Her father Jawahar Lal Nehru, a great Indian leader, and mother Kamla Nehru gave a second name as well Priyadarshini, or “dear to …

How is Navratri celebrated? Navratras are celebrated with great vehemence especially in West Bengal where it is known as “Durga Pooja“. The Hindus in Gujarat celebrate it with nine days of Garba dance. In Chhattarpur Temple in Delhi, over a million devotees visit during these days. How is Navratri celebrated? During this period most of the Hindus go to Temples …

What are Legends of Navratri? The most popular legend has it that a demon named Mahishasura obtained a boon from Lord Brahma in disguise of a buffalo according to which he could not be killed by any man on the earth. Overconfident, he started committing atrocities on the people and set out to win all the three lokas (Worlds) and …

Navratri is divided into sets of three days to adore different aspects of the supreme goddess. On the first three days, the Mother is invoked as powerful force called Goddess Durga in order to destroy all our impurities, vices and defects. The next three days, the Mother is adored as a giver of spiritual wealth, Goddess Lakshmi, who is considered to …

Contrary to popular belief, Muharram is not a particular day, but the name of a month that marks the beginning of the year according to the Islamic calendar. Muharram is one of four months that have been designated as holy according to the Islamic calendar, the other three being – Dhul-Qa’adah, Dhul-Hijjah and Rajab. Muharram is the first month of …

Who was the father of Lord Rama? Dasaratha was the great king in the epic Ramayana, who was the father of Rama, the hero of the epic and the avatar of Lord Vishnu. Dasaratha was the scion of Raghuvamsa and the king of Ayodhya. He had three wives namely Kaushalya, Kaikeyi and Sumitra. The son of Kaushalya was Rama, son …

The word oceanarium could mean two things. It can either mean a marine mammal park, which is a commercial theme park where dolphins, Beluga whales and sea lions are kept in water tanks and displayed to public in special shows. It could also mean a large scale aquarium such as the Lisbon Oceanarium, which is a vivarium consisting of at …

The Easter season is the most joyful and festive season of the Christian year. Worship during this time features the prominent return of the Gloria in Excelsis (“Glory in the highest”) and the Alleluia (“Praise the Lord”), expressions of joy and praise that were removed from the liturgy at the beginning of Lent. Hymns and organ music are often reinforced …

On Easter Sunday, many children wake up to find that the Easter Bunny has left them baskets of candy. He has also hidden the eggs that they decorated earlier that week. Children hunt for the eggs all around the house. Neighborhoods and organizations hold Easter egg hunts, and the child who finds the most eggs wins a prize. The Easter …