Dhanteras:Fest of light begins with fest of wealth

New Delhi/Bangalore/ Mumbai, Nov 3: As the people across the country are gearing up to celebrate Diwali, the grand festival of lights, the five-day celebrations kicked started on Nov 3 with Dhanteras, the festival of wealth.

The first day of the five-day Diwali celebrations is marked by Dhanteras on the Hindu calender. The auspicious day, which falls on the 13th lunar day of Krishna Paksha in the Hindu month of Karthik (Oct-Nov), also goes by the names of 'Dhantrayodashi' and 'Dhanwantari Triodasi'.

The festival 'Dhanteras' literally breaks down to 'Dhan", which means wealth, and 'Tera" referring to the date 13th.

Lord Yama, the god of death, is worshipped on this day. Praying for prosperity and well being, people will swarm jewelers to buy gold or silver.

Besides jewelry, silver articles are brought to adorn the house, while iron, copper or brass utensils are purchased for the kitchen.

While Dhanteras marks the beginning of the five day Diwali festival, the last day is marked by Yama Dvitiya. Diwali or Deepavali is one of the most important Hindu festivals.

OneIndia News