We don’t. This is what I did this Diwali; the same thing I do most Diwalis. I have the day off, so I slept in a little. Woke up and had coffee and then made breakfast. Watched a lot of Youtube and played music. Sang along with some of my rock n metal favourites. I check for any good deals on Flipkart/Amazon. I then watched movies and relaxed at home.
It’s another day for us on the calender like any other day, only with a lot of noise outside due to various crackers and fireworks (although it has been less this year) being set off. No God in mind, no Ramayana or Mahabharata to be believed in. Just another day perhaps with a lot more light around you. How do other atheists in India mark this day? By spending good quality time with the family. Eating a dangerous amounts of sweets. And doing rest of the deewali stuff.
It’s just another day. But I am glad that we get the day off from work. We can always use more days off. Let’s get more holidays on the calendar people. Let’s not pick religion for that – Star Trek Day, Stargate Day, Superman/Batman/The Flash/Deadpool day? Let’s give the day off for everyone.