9 Ethnic and cultural diversity 47 Language in use: Diwali – The festival of lights Read the text about the Hindu Diwali festival. Some words are missing. Complete the text by writing one word for each gap (1–12) in the spaces provided. The first one (0) has been done for you. Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights, is the most popular of all the festivals originating in South Asia. It extends over five days and is a great favourite … 0 children because of the lights, fireworks and sweets involved. The festival celebrates the victory of good over … 1 , light over darkness and knowledge over ignorance. What the festival of lights … 2 for today is a reaffirmation of hope, a renewed commitment to friendship and goodwill, and a celebration of the joys of life. In Britain, as in India, the festival is a time for thoroughly spring-… 3 the home, wearing new clothes and, most importantly, decorating buildings with fancy lights. The British city of Leicester is well-known for its Diwali celebrations with … 4 to 35,000 people attending the switch on of the lights on Belgrave Road and even more attending Diwali day itself in the heart of the city’s Asian community. The name of the festival comes from the Sanskrit word “dipavali”, meaning row of lights. On that occasion, houses, shops and public places are decorated with small oil lamps made of clay called diyas. These lamps, which are traditionally … 5 by mustard oil, are placed in rows in windows, doors and outside buildings to decorate them. The lamps are lit to help the goddess Lakshmi find her way into people’s homes. In India oil lamps are often floated across the river Ganges – it is regarded as a good omen if the lamp manages to get all the … 6 across. Fireworks are a big part of the Diwali celebrations, although in recent years there has been a move … 7 them because of noise and pollution and the number of accidental injuries and even deaths. The … 8 on which Diwali is celebrated is set by the Hindu calendar, so it varies in the Western calendar. It usually falls in October or November. Business people regard it as a favourable day to … 9 a new accounting year because of the festival’s association with Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth. Many Indians see Diwali as an occasion to gamble. This comes from a legend in … 10 the goddess Parvati played dice with her husband on this day and said that anyone who gambled on Diwali night would do well. Diwali is very much a time for buying and exchanging gifts. Traditionally sweets and dried fruit were very common gifts to exchange, but the festival has … 11 a time for serious shopping, leading to anxiety that commercialism is eroding the spiritual side of the festival. In most years shopkeepers expect sales to rise substantially in the weeks … 12 the festival. (www.bbc.co.uk; adapted and abridged) 0 with 1 7 2 8 3 9 4 10 5 11 6 12 3 ✔ Nur zu Prüfzwecken – Eigentum des Verlags öbv
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