It is said that after defeating Lord Indra, demon King Narakasur snatched away the magnificent earrings of Aditi, the Mother Goddess and imprisoned 16,000 daughters of the Gods and saints in his harem. To free the people from the evil deeds of Narakasur, Lord Krishna killed the demon a before Choti Diwali and liberated the women besides recovering the precious earrings of Goddess Aditi. To celebrate Narakasur-Vadh, Lord Krishna smeared his forehead with the demon's blood and returned home in the wee hours of Narakachaturdashi day. Elated with Krishna's victory, womenfolk massaged scented oil on the Lord's body and gave him a special bath to wash away the demon's blood. From then on began the custom of taking a bath before sunrise on the Narak Chaturdasi day. Bhudevi- the Mother of Narakasura declared that the death of Narakasura should not be mourned but celebrated by all.

Rituals and Celebrations of Choti Diwali
The day of Choti Diwali or Narak Chaturdasi is celebrated on a smaller scale than the ‘Badi Diwali' that is celebrated the next day. On Choti Diwali people light diyas and burn crackers. Markets see a very busy day as people go in for last minute shopping for the festival.

In Maharashtra and in several parts of South India, it is customary to take an early bath on the day of Narak Chaturdasi. Following the custom, people mix marigold petals in water meant for bath. An oil and uptan massage of the body is also performed before the bath. The uptan is a paste of gram flour and fragrant powders. In some parts of South India, people break a bitter fruit that symbolize the head of Narakasura and apply the mix of kumkum, oil and fruit on their forehead. They later take an oil and sandalwood paste massage.