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The Color and Lights of Diwali 2026

The Atlanticby Alan TaylorOpen original ↗

A person kneels on the floor of a temple, lighting small candles laid out around them.
Thein Zaw / AP
A devotee lights candles during Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights, at a temple in Yangon, Myanmar, on November 8, 2026.
People walk through a room illuminated by many colorful lights and projections.
Indranil Mukherjee / AFP / Getty
Visitors are immersed in the projections at an installation celebrating Diwali at the Nita Mukesh Ambani Cultural Center, in Mumbai, on November 6, 2026.
A person on a motorcycle dodges a sparking firework in a street.
Yanni Rawat / JNA / ZUMA / Reuters
People celebrate Diwali by lighting fireworks on roadsides and outside residential homes in New Delhi.
A performer in makeup looks toward the camera.
Rajesh Kumar Singh / AP
A Gussadi dancer performs during a Deepotsav procession ahead of Diwali in Ayodhya, India, on November 7, 2026.
A child holds a small oil lamp, backdropped by decorative lights.
Saddman Zaman / ZUMA / Reuters
Hindu devotees gather to celebrate Diwali at Bashabo Kali Mandir in Dhaka, Bangladesh, on November 7, 2026.
Priests pray in a temple filled with many candles, lamps, and other lights.
Vishal Bhatnagar / NurPhoto / Getty
Priests perform aarti at the BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Akshardham temple in Jaipur, India, on November 8, 2026, during the Diwali festival.
Children play with sparklers.
Channi Anand / AP
A child plays with fireworks on the eve of Diwali at an orphanage in Jammu and Kashmir, India, on November 7, 2026.
A man crouches down to light a small oil lamp.
Firdous Nazir / NurPhoto / Reuters
A Hindu devotee lights diyas, traditional earthen oil lamps, during Diwali celebrations near the Ghanta Ghar (Clock Tower) in Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir, India, on November 8, 2026.
Women offer prayers while holding lit oil lamps.
Akhtar Soomro / Reuters
Women carry lit diyas as they celebrate Diwali at Shri Swaminarayan Temple in Karachi, Pakistan, on November 8, 2026.
Performers dance on a stage, among many beams of light.
Nick Lachance / Toronto Star / Getty
Sukshinder Shinda takes the stage as the headliner at the Diwali celebrations at Sesquicentennial Park in Brampton, Ontario, Canada, on November 8, 2026.
An adult helps a child hold onto a sparkler.
Sudipta Das / NurPhoto / Reuters
People enjoy Diwali celebrations in Kolkata, India, on November 8, 2026.
Smog shrouds an illuminated residential area, seen from above at night.
Himanshu Sharma / AFP / Getty
Smog shrouds an illuminated residential area as seen from the Taragarh Fort in Ajmer on November 8, 2026 on the occasion of Diwali.
A person stands in shallow water, surrounded by colorful lights, holding a small oil lamp.
Saddman Zaman / ZUMA / Reuters
Hindu devotees gather to celebrate Diwali in Dhaka, Bangladesh, on November 8, 2026.
The hand of a person holding a small earthen oil lamp
Faisal Bashir / SOPA Images / LightRocket / Getty
A Hindu devotee lights traditional earthen oil lamps during Diwali celebrations in Srinagar.
People celebrate Diwali, dancing in a street.
Kevin R. Wexler / NorthJersey.com / USA Today / Reuters
People celebrate Diwali in the Little India section of Jersey City, New Jersey, on November 8, 2026.
People celebrate Diwali with fireworks in a street.
Kevin R. Wexler / NorthJersey.com / USA Today / Reuters
People celebrate Diwali with fireworks in the Little India section of Jersey City on November 8, 2026.
An illuminated temple, with many colorful light decorations in its surrounding courtyard and garden.
Vishal Bhatnagar / NurPhoto / Getty
An illuminated view of the BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Akshardham temple on the occasion of the Diwali festival in Jaipur, Rajasthan, India, on November 8, 2026.
A child celebrates, arms wide open, after lighting firecrackers.
Mahesh Kumar A. / AP
A person celebrates after lighting Diwali firecrackers in Hyderabad, India, on November 8, 2026.
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