Anupama Nair
Danteras in Hindu calendar is the beginning of the biggest and most celebrated festival in India – Deepawali or festival of lights. Danteras in 2021 falls on the 2nd of November. I saw people in Mumbai and the rest of India ready to celebrate the festival. Last year Diwali was not much celebrated due to the global pandemic. I hope we do not forget social distancing and other Covid-related norms, and see a steep increase as the Third Wave strikes. It is nowadays celebrated across the world as Indians live in most countries of the world.
What is Danteras? Dhanteras, an amalgamation of Sanskrit words dhan, that stands for wealth, and teras that refers to the 13th day of the Hindu calendar, and is marked by praying to goddess Lakshmi and the purchase of objects made of metal. The logic behind buying that something made of metal is the fact that it is considered the harbinger of good luck and is supposed to keep negative energy at bay. This belief is said to have been originated from a legend according to which the God of Death, Yama, was enticed by the sight of gold.
It is said that King Hima's 16-year-old son's death had been predicted on the fourth day of his marriage, through a snake bite. However, as the new bride got to know about it, she placed a heap of her ornaments on the entrance of the room and kept her husband awake throughout the night by singing and narrating stories. When Lord Yama visited King Hima's son in the guise of a snake, in order to bite him, he was blinded on seeing the dazzling metal, and instead sat on the pile listening to the new daughter-in-law's tales. Since Yama missed the time set for the boy's death, he slinked away in peace and the prince was saved, leading to the celebration of Dhanteras.
According to another popular legend, when the gods and demons churned the ocean for Amrit or nectar, Dhanavantri (the physician of the gods and an incarnation of Vishnu) emerged carrying a jar of the elixir on the day of Dhanteras.
The deities which are worshipped on this auspicious festival are Dhanvantari, who is considered as the originator of Ayurveda and the teacher of all the physicians, and Lord Kubera and goddess Lakshmi, the deities of wealth. It is important to be noted that although the festival is celebrated by buying of precious metals and its jewelry, Dhanvantari, the god who is worshipped on the festival is a god of health, rather than wealth. However, lord Kuber and goddess Lakshmi are associated with wealth and it has become a tradition for people to buy gold and silver on Dhanteras. So, we can consider Dhanteras as the festival where we worship “health and wealth”.
To mark the auspicious day, houses and business premises are renovated and decorated. Entrances are made colorful with lovely traditional motifs of Rangoli designs to welcome the Goddess of Wealth and Prosperity. To indicate her long-awaited arrival, small footprints are drawn with rice flour and vermilion powder all over the houses. Lamps are kept burning all through the night.
I wish you all a Happy Dhanteras!
Dhanteras is celebrated with gusto and enthusiasm. “Lakshmi-Puja” is performed in the evenings when tiny diyas of clay are lit to drive away the shadows of evil spirits. Bhajans – devotional songs – in praise of Goddess Laxmi are sung and “Naivedya” of traditional sweets is offered to the Goddess. There is a peculiar custom in Maharashtra to lightly pound dry coriander seeds with jaggery and offer as Naivedya. In villages, cattle are adorned and worshiped by farmers as they form the main source of their income. In South India, cows are offered particularly special veneration because they are thought of as incarnations of the Goddess Lakshmi.
