[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 153 (2007), Part 23]
[Senate]
[Page 31393]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                   RECOGNIZING THE FESTIVAL OF DIWALI

  Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Judiciary 
Committee be discharged from further consideration of S. Res. 299 and 
the Senate then proceed to its immediate consideration.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered. The clerk 
will report the resolution by title.
  The legislative clerk read as follows:

       A resolution (S. Res. 299) recognizing the religious and 
     historical significance of the festival of Diwali.

  There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the 
resolution.
  Mr. DURBIN. I ask unanimous consent that the amendment at the desk be 
considered and agreed to, the resolution, as amended, be agreed to, the 
preamble be agreed to, the motions to reconsider be laid on the table, 
and any statements be printed in the Record.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The amendment (No. 3677) was agreed to, as follows:

       On page 2, strike lines 4 and 5 and insert the following:
       (2) in observance of Diwali, the festival of lights, 
     expresses its deepest respect for Indian Americans and the 
     Indian diaspora throughout the world on this significant 
     occasion.

  The resolution (S. Res. 299), as amended, was agreed to.
  The preamble was agreed to.
  The resolution, as amended, with its preamble, reads as follows:

                              S. Res. 299

       Whereas Diwali, a festival of great significance to Indian 
     Americans and South Asian Americans, is celebrated annually 
     by Hindus, Sikhs, and Jains throughout the United States;
       Whereas there are nearly 2,000,000 Hindus in the United 
     States, approximately 1,250,000 of which are of Indian and 
     South Asian origin;
       Whereas the word ``Diwali'' is a shortened version of the 
     Sanskrit term ``Deepavali'', which means ``a row of lamps'';
       Whereas Diwali is a festival of lights, during which 
     celebrants light small oil lamps, place them around the home, 
     and pray for health, knowledge, and peace;
       Whereas celebrants of Diwali believe that the rows of lamps 
     symbolize the light within the individual that rids the soul 
     of the darkness of ignorance;
       Whereas Diwali falls on the last day of the last month in 
     the lunar calendar and is celebrated as a day of thanksgiving 
     and the beginning of the new year for many Hindus;
       Whereas for Hindus, Diwali is a celebration of the victory 
     of good over evil;
       Whereas for Sikhs, Diwali is feted as the day that the 
     sixth founding Sikh Guru, or revered teacher, Guru Hargobind, 
     was released from captivity by the Mughal Emperor Jehangir; 
     and
       Whereas for Jains, Diwali marks the anniversary of the 
     attainment of moksha, or liberation, by Mahavira, the last of 
     the Tirthankaras (the great teachers of Jain dharma), at the 
     end of his life in 527 B.C.: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) recognizes the religious and historical significance of 
     the festival of Diwali; and
       (2) in observance of Diwali, the festival of lights, 
     expresses its deepest respect for Indian Americans and the 
     Indian diaspora throughout the world on this significant 
     occasion.

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