Dear Shri.Nara,
"Vaithikasri' is a periodical magazine published by a learned Sastrigal from West Mambalam ,Chennai.
Shri.VijayRamanathan has just quoted from the magazine.I presume Shri.VijayRamanathan is also a follower of what is written in that magazine.
This practice of taking oil bath, wearing Newcloths consumingSweets etc on Deepavali day before sunrise and then perform Amavasai tharpanam in the noon time after taking bath
is being followed by most of the Tamil Brahmins(Smarthas).Persons living in Chennai can request the publishers of'Vaithikasri' magazine to clarify the position.
As Shri Nara says, Deepavali is a festival celebrated by Hindus (other than the Sudras, as per the Puranas, since whatever was instructed in the Puranas also applied to the dwija groups only, I think). The popular story of Narakasura vadham by Krishna (Satyabhaamaa, according to some versions of the story) has no immediate bearing on this festival.
According to Dr. P.V. Kane's "
History of the Dharmasastras" (Vol. V, pp.188-210) more than one independent work has influenced the celebration of this festival in different parts of India. It originally spanned three days of festivity/observance and the name given was also different :dīpālikā (bhaviśyottara purāṇa), sukharātrī (rājamārtāṇḍa), yakṣarātrī (kāmasūtra), sukhasūptikā (hemādri’s vratakhaṇḍa), kau mudī utsava (nirṇayasindhu & kāltatva vivecana) are some of those.
Before going into the details of the five-day festival comprising dhana pūjā (āśvina kṛṣṇa trayodaśī), narakabhaya mocana - naraka caturdaśī (āśvina kṛṣṇa caturdaśī), lakṣmīpūjana (āśvina kṛṣṇa amāvāsyā), bali pratipadā (āśvina śukḷa prathamā), it is relevant to note that these observances will not have the same level of importance or weightage from the point of view of orthodox hinduism or brahmin way of living. The amāvāsyā tarpaṇa will rank first and then only the rest.
As a real-life example, I may inform you all that till my family shifted to Trivandrum city with its large tabra population from our maternal ancestral home in a central Travancore village, I do not remember having seen any "pattaas" except for Chithirai Vishu which is a Kerala festival and even on that day only the youth used to light these "vaaNa vEDikkai" in open paddy fileds which had already been harvested, or not sown for some reasons. I also do not recollect being woken up early in the morning, compelled to take bath etc., except on Chithirai Vishu days and the bad and uncomfortable memory of the broken sleep, viewing the
kaNi etc., are still there in memory. Thus I can truthfully say that at least some tabra families did not celebrate Dipavali in the way it is done by tabras and many others today.
This is an example of our so-called orthodoxy forgetting what exactly was a brahmin expected to do, accepting some new-found social enjoyment with some puranic story to substantiate it. and then arguing that what they feel enjoyable in doing is what the Shastras say. But when some people like Shri Kunjuppu, Nara, etc., advocate conscious steps for improvement of the community to enable it to live in the emerging world scenario, orthodoxy, Shastras, customs, etc., are put forward to malign those members as Brahmin Bashers etc.