Dhanteras 2009 – Date, Legends and Celebrations

Posted on October 1, 2009 in About Diwali

Dhanteras 2009 is the first day of the five-day long festival Diwali. It is also known as Dhantrayodashi and Dhanvantari Trayodashi. Dhanteras consists of two factors: ‘Dhan’ means wealth and ‘Teras’ means ‘Thirteen’. It is celebrated on the thirteenth day of Krishna Paksha of the month of Kartik (October-November). This year (2009) Dhanteras falls on October 15.

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The Legends for Dhanteras 2009:
Dhanteras as Yamadeepan: Once upon a time there ruled a King called Hima. He ruled whole earth and was very influential. He had a son whose horoscope said that the prince will die on the thirteenth night of Kartik at the age of sixteen by snakebite. The prince was married early and when the newly wed princess learnt this truth, she prepared a strategy to save her husband from the clutches of death. On that dangerous night she accumulated huge collections of gold, silver and diamonds that dazzle and put them at the enterance of the house. She lit thousands of tiny lamps whose reflection got multiplied by gold and silver. She started telling the stories for the pleasure of prince.

When Yama, the Lord of death came in the guise of snake, he got blinded by the the glitter of the light in the home. He waited at the threshold and started listening to the stories narrated and the songs sung by the princess. By doing this the time of death surpassed and the sun broke in marking the dawn. As a result Yamaraj had to leave the place and the prince was saved from death. Since then the ritual of ‘Yamadeepan’ is observed on the occassion of Dhanteras so as to commemorate Lord Yama and get his blessings.

Dhanteras as Lord Dhanvantari Appearance Day: Vedas describe the story of appearance of Lord Dhanvantari on the day of Dhanteras. Dhanvantari is known as the physician of the gods who appeared with Ayurveda for the welfare of the mankind. The story is as follows:

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Once Sage Durvasa cursed Lord Indra, the king of demigods, for his pride and arrogance. Subsequently, Indra lost his heavenly kingdom and was defeated by demons. Seeing havoc all over the heaven and the pitiable condition of Indra the head of sages, Sage Brihaspati recommended that demon and devatas should perform Samudra Manthan (Churning of Milky Ocean). The sage emphasised that it was needed to get back Goddess Lakshmi so that all can live happily. Both the parties agreed and the grand event of Samundra Manthan commenced. Many valuable gems were produced by the churning. On the thirteenth day Dhanvantari appeared and brought a pot of the extraordinary elixir. Thus this day is celebrated in honour of Lord Dhanvantari.

Dhanteras Celebrations:
On the day before Dhanteras the house is made clean and tidy. On the night of Dhanteras the first lamp of Diwali-’Yama Diya’ is lit and kept on the threshold. Women in the house offer prayers to Lord Yamaraj to protect them. They worship Lord Dhanvantari for health, wealth and prosperity. They purchase a new utensil, gold or silver jewlery or any precious metal as a sign of good luck on the day of Dhanteras. Sweet made of corainder seeds and jaggery is the special dish of the day.

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