A Diwali so different.....Celebrating with Team Umed....

A Diwali so different.....Celebrating with Team Umed....

Diwali, the very word brings forth dazzling lights in front of our eyes and fills our world with luminosity. Celebrations are an inseparable part of this festival. There is much joie de vivre at home with family and friends. However for working people who spend most of their waking hours at office celebrating with colleagues also becomes important. This not only creates camaraderie but also strengthens the bond among colleagues creating a congenial atmosphere at work. 

Thebefore for the last four years at the State Mission Management Unit of MSRLM Umed we have been celebrating Diwali. Of course it has been a Diwali with a difference not because the whole office gets a decorative look but because the celebrations centre around a theme. Last year the theme centred around the forts of Maharashtra and it was heartening to see the various forts of Maharashtra like the Sindhudurg, Raigad, Sinhgad etc come to life.

This year's theme centered around festivals of India. 

On my entry into office I observed a flurry of activity in each section which was working hard to put forth their creative best. Their efforts and creativity were amazing 

Our office had a surprise guest, Ayush Prasad, IAS , CEO ,Zilla Parishad , Akola and it was fun to show him around the office. 

We began our tour with the Convergence cell which had created Holi , the most colorful festival in our country. The team dressed almost like actors of a film were full of life. They welcomed us warmly with natural , eco-friendly colors. I could not escape the coloured speck on my cheek. The whole place was a riot of colors and had been transformed using placards made by colorful hand prints. The Holi Ka Dahan, burning of the Holi had also been made imaginatively depicting the burning flames. The evils of society like untidiness, dowry, superstition, oppression of women, child labour etc were to be burnt in the Holi. 

Energized by the concept, we moved on to the Skills section celebrating Eid. The melodious qawwali and delicious sheer korma added sweetness to our life. As we bowed in obeisance to the Holy Quran and raised our hands in prayer we could experience a feeling of solemnity. 

Moving ahead we were celebrating Christmas at the Social Inclusion Section. Santa claus's joy was infectious with his generous gifts and the popular song of jingle bells. As rightly explained, the Christmas spirit envisions joy and cheer and was similar to what MSRLM was doing by spreading joy among rural households through self help groups. Infant Jesus in the crib and the Christmas tree added charm to the look. 

Diwali time , the actual festival for which we all had gathered to celebrate was being celebrated by the MIS section which had used innovative ideas to transform the place. The story of Naraka Cahturdashi and lighting of lamps in celebration were brought out graphically. The best part of Diwali are the various eatables and the MIS section was generous in having a good spread of Diwali sweets which each of us happily devoured. 

From the world of feast to the world of fast , we were transported to Pandharpur to celebrate Aashadi Ekadashi. As I took darshan of Lord Vitthal through the peep-hole, I was immersed in chants of Jai Hari Vitthal and Gyanba Tukaram. The importance of Ashadi Ekadashi, the Varkari Sampraday were explained beautifully by the team members of the procurement section. Lord Vitthal's chandan tilak symbolizing the Google search mark was thoughtfully explained. 

The Human Resource and Knowledge Management Cell had put up the "Gudi" and were celebrating Gudi Paadva. The Umed Gudi set up by them symbolized the path of SHGs to prosperity. 

The capacity building section was celebrating Ganesh Utsav with Lord Ganesh, the vignaharta emphasizing the need to capacitate oneself through training and refresher courses. The mission's thrust was capacity building and who else but Lord Ganesha as the remover of obstacles could fulfill that. With chants of Ganapati Bappa Moraya we moved on to the Livelihoods Section which was celebrating Dashera. 

Stree Shakti is the core of our mission and the mission depends on its Community Cadre, its sakhis for it's progress. The livelihoods section presented all the sakhis as Nava Durgas. They also created a Durga killing the demon of poverty. The Goddess Durga here was not armed with weapons but was equipped with the Dashasutras of the mission, Regular meetings, savings, internal lending, repayment of loans, writing books of accounts and the social aspects of health, nutrition and sanitation, education, entitlements, participation in panchayat raj institutions and sustainable livelihoods. The team also sang a traditional song, "Gaarhana" seeking blessings of the Goddess for the progress of the Mission and the SHGs . 

The blessings of Durga led us to the celebration of Gokul Ashtami at the administration section where coloufully dresssed gopikas and gopalas waited to receive us. They had created all the episodes of Krishna's birthday and life with waste cardboard and disposed papers from the office. One could make Little Krishna swing in the cute little swing and also listen to his melodious flute. The Gopalas enthusiastically broke the Dahi Handi with much fervour. 

The Accounts Section reflected the Malayala culture of Kerala for the celebration of Onam. The team was dressed traditionally with the ladies looking beautiful in off-white Malayali sarees and the gentlemen in white Mundu. They explained the importance of the ten days leading to Thiru Onam as also Mahabali's penance and his boon of invincibility leading to his ego and its ultimate destruction by Lord Vishnu in the Wamana Avtaar. The celebration of Onam therefore had a message of giving up the ego which the team endorsed by taking an oath. 

The last theme made by the Financial Inclusion cell symbolically centered around Buddha. Between chants of Buddham Sharanam Gacchami we understood the eight fold path of right view, right resolve, right speech, right conduct, right effort, right mindfulness, right samadh and right livelihood,

As said before our mission centres around livelihoods and it was a great feeling to know that the venerable Lord Buddha had also propagated right livelihoods. Our journey celebrating all the festivals ended with Buddha Pournima. 

This festivities were also more exciting specially since we were also celebrating our recent award of Best State and Best Natural Product and packaging at the Ajeevika Saras Mela. 

The decoration, theme, presentation and costumes were marked by a team of eminent judges including Marathi actress Samira Gujar and Mr.Waghmare , Ex Dean of the JJ School of Art. The seriousness of the competition was followed by a fun-filled afternoon of games and fun and of course a lot many prizes. 

The winners of the decoration were declared thereafter amongst much joy. 

Diwali can also be a time for reflection, a time to re-visit our thoughts, actions and words and to get rid of the darkness and negativity. The lamps and fireworks would be illuminating different corners of the world. Just like MSRLM Umed, this light would brighten every individual's home and heart. 

Happy Diwali.....