Diwali 排燈節

Diwali, or Deepavali, is one of the most popular festivals of Hinduism, celebrated throughout India and in many other countries around the world.

A longstanding tradition dating back to ancient times in India, it is celebrated every year over five days between mid-October and mid-November in the northern hemisphere. This year, it started on Tuesday and wraps up today. The main festivities took place on Thursday, the third day of the festival.

The name diwali derives from the Sanskrit words dipam, meaning “light, lamp” and oli, for “glow of light.” The festival signifies the victory of light over darkness, of good over evil, hope over despair, and of knowledge over ignorance.

The first day, Dhanteras, is all about celebrating wealth. People clean their houses thoroughly in preparation for this day, in order to welcome Lakshmi, the goddess of prosperity, into their homes.

On the main day, the third of the five days, fireworks are set off, and diyas — small clay lamps — and candles are placed around the home. This is what gives diwali the name “the festival of lights.”

(Paul Cooper, Taipei Times)

排燈節是最受歡迎的印度教節慶之一，印度各地和許多國家都過排燈節。

排燈節的傳統由來已久，可追溯至古印度時期，每年十月中至十一月中北半球都會舉行五天的慶祝活動。今年的慶典自本週二開始，到今天結束；主要的慶祝活動是在第三天，也就是本週四舉行。

排燈節的原文diwali源自梵文的dipam和oli：dipam意指「光」和「燈」，而oli指「光芒」。此節慶象徵光明戰勝黑暗、良善戰勝邪惡、希望戰勝絕望，以及知識戰勝無知。

慶典的第一天是慶祝財富的財神節。人們為了準備這天會把房子徹底清掃乾淨，以迎接印度教繁榮昌盛之神吉祥天女的來訪。

在這為期五天的慶典中，主要的活動是在第三天，當天會放煙火，也會在住家各處擺放陶土製小燈以及蠟燭。這就是為什麼排燈節又叫做「光明節」。

（台北時報編譯林俐凱譯）

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International Day of Peace 國際和平日

Vocabulary: Self study/Review here

1. Global (adj)
2. Headquarters (n.)
3. Commitment (n.)
4. Workshop (n.) 研討會，討論會
5. Speech (n.) 演說；發言；談話
6. Celebrate (v.)
7. Individual (n.)
8. Support (n.)
9. Colleague (n.)
10. seriously (adv.)
11. something devoted to something: 將…貢獻給，把…奉獻給 EX: September 21st is devoted to peace.
12. war torn: 飽經戰亂的；受戰爭蹂躪的
    EX:It is a long-term task to rebuild the infrastructure of a war-torn country such as Angola.重建像安哥拉這樣飽受戰爭蹂躪的國家的基礎設施是一項長期的任務。

13. prayer: 禱文，禱詞

EX: a prayer of thanks 表示感謝的禱文

She always says her prayers (= prays) before she goes to sleep. 她睡前總要念禱文。

The International Day of Peace should be one of the most important days of the year. It occurs annually [every year] on September 21st. It is dedicated to peace as well as the absence [不存在；缺乏]of war. This day also serves as a global ceasefire [停火協定] day. Many countries, political groups and military groups observe [obey a custom] it. The day starts when the U.N. rings the “Peace Bell” at its New York headquarters. This bell was a gift from the people of Japan. There is a message on the side of the bell that says: "Long live absolute [total] world peace." The U.N. said: "Peace Day should be devoted to commemorating [officially respect] and strengthening the ideals[理想；標準極高的原則] of peace [and] that our permanent [長久的；永久的] commitment, above all interests [利益，好處] or differences of any kind, is to peace."

Thousands of Peace Day events take place around the world every year. These include concerts involving rock superstars to football tournaments [錦標賽] for peace and baking cakes for peace. Many organizations hold educational workshops in schools, especially those in war-torn countries. Nobel Peace Prize laureates [諾貝爾獎得獎者] also make speeches to show the world their work has not finished. Anyone can celebrate Peace Day. It can be a simple, individual act such as lighting a candle and saying a prayer. For those who want to be more active, it can involve getting the support of friends and colleagues to plan a large event. Hopefully, this day will take off and people will think about peace more seriously.

++ This is taken from my 8th grade Social Studies class.

Humming Bee Breath/ Bhramari Pranayama

90 percent less bees this year worries beekeepers 蜜蜂少九成　養蜂人家苦

Chang Ching-po, head of the beekeeper class at Keelung Farmers’ Association, holds up a beehive in Keelung on March 21.
基隆市農會土蜂養蜂班班長張清波三月二十一日在基隆市拿養蜂箱。

Photo: Yu Chao-fu, Liberty Times
照片：自由時報記者俞肇福

With flowers not blooming due to a climate in chaos and a long rainy season, only 150 of 500 hives kept by the 19 beekeepers at Keelung Farmers Association’ are left. Chang Ching-po, head of the beekeeper class there, said that each hive originally had 20,000 bees but now only has 3,000, leaving only a million of the usual 10 million bees, which is a big loss.

Chang said there are still two months until the spring honey is harvested during the fourth month of the lunar calendar, and that all they can do now is hope for normal weather and that it will stop raining so much. This way the number of bees increases, they have a normal harvest, and can lower their losses.

Chang also said it has been raining nonstop in Keelung since October last year and that there have been very few days with nice weather, which is a huge thorn in the side for beekeepers in the Keelung area. Abnormal weather coupled with low temperatures is making bees unwilling to leave their hives.

He said the main problem is that it keeps raining, which has affected the blooming of flowers in the Cidu mountain area. Flowers are now withering before they even begin to bloom because of the heavy rains. While they wait in their hives for good weather, the bees do not go out to get pollen and nectar, seriously affecting the amount of honey being produced. Chang said the scope of beekeeping at Keelung Farmers’ Association includes the Cidu mountain area, and Nuannuan and Anle districts, all of which are facing the same problem. Chang originally had 110 hives, which should each have 20,000 bees, but now there are only 20 hives left with less than 4,000 bees in each one.

Chang also said he has not seen such strange phenomena in over a decade. If bees are not freezing to death, they are dying outside. Aside from affecting the honey harvest, it will also influence the price of honey. He just hopes good weather comes quickly and things return to normal in the remaining two months.

(LIBERTY TIMES, TRANSLATED BY KYLE JEFFCOAT)

氣候亂、雨季長花不開，造成基隆農會土蜂養蜂班十九戶養蜂人家五百箱土蜂，僅剩下一百五十箱；土蜂養蜂班班長張清波說，每箱本來有兩萬隻土蜂，現在剩下三千隻，造成大約一千萬隻土蜂只剩下不到一百萬隻土蜂，損失慘重。

張清波說，距離農曆四月底春蜜採收還剩兩個月，現在只能希望天氣正常、雨不要再下個不停，讓土蜂數量再增加，採收能夠如常，以減少損失。

他說，基隆地區從去年十月下旬迄今，一直持續下雨，好天氣屈指可數，讓基隆地區的養蜂人家十分頭痛。天氣異常加上氣溫低，養蜂箱中的土蜂都不願出門採蜜。

他表示，最主要就是雨一直下，讓七堵山區的樹木開花受影響，花還沒開就被大雨給淋到凋零，等到好天氣時，土蜂出門身上都黏不到花粉也吸不到花蜜，更影響到蜂蜜產量。他說，基隆農會養蜂範圍包括七堵山區、暖暖區、安樂區，大家都面臨同樣問題；以他自己為例，本來有一百一十箱，一個蜂箱原本應該有兩萬隻的土蜂，但是現在只剩不到二十個養蜂箱，而且剩下的養蜂箱每個箱子剩不到四千隻。

他說，十幾年來從沒見過這樣怪異的現象，蜜蜂不是凍死，就是在外面死亡；除了影響蜂蜜採收外，連帶也會影響蜂蜜價格，他只希望趕快好天氣，在剩下兩個月時間恢復正常。

（自由時報記者俞肇福）