1. According to the Ramayana, after 14 years of exile and the defeat of the demon king Raavana, Lord Rama, his wife Sita, and brother Laxmana at last returned to Ayodhya. Diwali marks his return to his home.
2. According to popular belief, Diwali commemorates the birth of Goddess Lakshmi from Samudra Manthan, the churning of the cosmic ocean of milk by the gods and demons. On the night of Diwali, Lakshmi chose Vishnu as her husband, and the two were united in holy matrimony.
3. In the epic Mahabharata, the Kauravas exiled the five Pandava brothers for a period of12 years after tricking them into losing a wager in gambling. According to the epic, the Pandavas return to Hastinapur on Diwali after spending the previous night celebrating Kartik Amavasya.
7. Diwali is observed as Kali Puja in Eastern India, particularly in West Bengal, in honor of Goddess Kali, who is reputed to have gone on a destructive rampage to purge the earth of all demons.