Chino Hills mandir celebrates Diwali, the Festival of Lights, with a spectacular show

In Chino Hills, hundreds gathered over the weekend to celebrate Diwali, also known as the Hindu Festival of Lights.

The free Community Diwali Festival at the BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir Los Angeles began Friday, Nov. 1, and continues with religious celebrations and festivities this weekend through Sunday evening.

The event included cultural performances, a youth theatrical production, kids' activities, information booths and more. The three-day western Hindu tradition of Annakut — when vegetarian foods are displayed in front of sacred images, as a devotional food offering — rang in the Hindu New Year.

Diwali preserves Indian cultural art and tradition and is open to everyone, said organizer Mehul Patel. The Festival of Lights is celebrated annually each fall , usually in October or November, by people of Hindu, Sikh, Jain, Buddhist and other faiths.

The BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir serves as a place of worship and promotes a charitable way of life, according to Patel.

"Our spiritual leader has a motto that he lived by — 'In the joy of others' — and that helps push me to think about being in service to others, and the joy that brings," Patel said. "Service is so important to me and I get to find a home for it here."

That communal, hopeful spirit upholds values reflective of the Diwali religious festival.

The festival's main attraction — the nightly spectacular mandir light and sound shows from Friday through Sunday — drew large crowds.

"It's really a moment where you see all the families, the children's faces light up," Patel said. "It's just a beautiful kind of moment."