KUCHING: As Hindus in Sarawak prepare to celebrate Deepavali, two young devotees say the Festival of Lights continues to bring people together, even for those far from home.
For Rahul Gaurav Puvandran, 19, a student and volunteer at the Sri Srinivasagar Kaliamman Temple in Jalan Ban Hock, the temple has become a place of comfort and belonging.
“During my free time, I spend most of it here,” he said, explaining that he assists the temple’s chief priest, Pushparajan Muniandi, in preparing for the celebration from cleaning shrines to performing rituals.
Rahul said that the temple cleaning ritual, known as abhishekam, involves bathing the deities with water or milk and changing their clothes – an act symbolising renewal before the festival.
“We usually start as early as 5:00 am. Even when I have exams, I’ll still come to help. This is how I serve God,” he said.
Another devotee, Vijitharan Sadhananthan, 42, an engineer who hails from Thiruvarur, Tamil Nadu, India, said that this will be his first Deepavali in Sarawak since arriving in Kuching two months ago.
“I found this temple on Google Maps and came here by bicycle. It’s my first time celebrating Deepavali away from home, but the temple feels like family,” he said.
He said while celebrations in Tamil Nadu are much larger and livelier, the sense of devotion and community spirit here in Kuching makes the occasion just as meaningful.
“In India, there are lights and music everywhere. Here, it’s smaller, but people are kind. I’m happy to celebrate Deepavali here,” he said.
Like many Hindus in the city, Vijitharan will join the prayers at the temple tomorrow morning, followed by vegetarian meals served to devotees who cannot return home for the festival.
Rahul, however, will miss the celebration due to his university exams, but said he was glad to have contributed to the temple’s preparations ahead of the festival.
For the two young men, faith and fellowship have turned Kuching into a home away from home, proving that the light of Deepavali shines wherever unity and kindness are found.
