Fireworks light up the skies as Hindus celebrate Diwali - in pictures

An Indian woman holds her child and watches a firecracker light up in New Delhi, India. Altaf Qadri /AP Photo

Tenements housing in Mumbai illuminated with lights to celebrate Diwali. Rafiq Maqbool/ AP Photo

An Indian man dressed as monkey god Hanuman walks in a procession on the eve of Diwali in Allahabad, India. Rajesh Kumar Singh/AP Photo

A police officer sprinkles coloured powder onto a police dog at Nepal’s central police dog training school as part of the Diwali festival, also known as Tihar Festival, in Kathmandu, Nepal. Narendra Shrestha/ EPA

A Hindu devotee walks past god statues during Diwali at Sri Maha Mariamman Temple in Klang, outside Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Lai Seng Sin/ AP Photo

Children with special needs light firecrackers as they celebrate Diwali at the Shishu Sarathi School in Gauhati. Anupam Nath/AP Photo

Firecrackers light up the sky as people celebrate the festival of lights in Mumbai, India, Tuesday, Oct. 21, 2014. Rajanish Kakade/AP Photo

Indians crowd a market selling marigold flowers early morning on Diwali in Mumbai. Marigold flowers are popularly used as offerings and for rituals and decorations during Hindu festivals. Rafiq Maqbool/AP Photo

Sikh men sit near lit lamps in front of the illuminated Golden Temple, the holiest of Sikh shrines, on the occasion of Diwali festival and Bandi Chorh Diwas in Amritsar, India. Devotees started to visit the Golden Temple from pre-dawn hours to seek blessings. Raminder Pal Singh/EPA

Widows, who have been abandoned by their families, light sparklers after offering prayers on the banks of the river Yamuna as part of Diwali celebrations in the northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh on October 21, 2014. Ahmad Masood/Reuters

Indian labourers carry a huge idol of Hindu goddess Kali ahead of the Kali Puja festival in Kolkata, India. Kali Puja is primarily celebrated in the West Bengal region coincides with the Diwali this year and fell on October 23. Bikas Das/AP Photo

Youngsters light lamps on the eve of Diwali festival to mark the festival in Bhopal, India. Sanjeev Gupta/EPA

Widows celebrate Diwali in the northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh October 21, 2014. The annual festival of lights will be celebrated across the country on October 23. Ahmad Masood /Reuters

Diwali, the festival of lights, is one of Hinduism’s most important festivals dedicated to the worship of Lakshmi, the Hindu goddess of wealth.