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Akshaya Tritiya falls on the third day of the brighter half of the moon in the month of Vaisakha according to the Hindu Lunar calendar. It generally occurs in late April and early May.
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Akshaya Tritiya Date
In 2020, Akshaya Tritiya will be celebrated on the 26th of April .
What is Akshaya Tritiya?
In Sanskrit, the word Akshaya(अक्षय्य) means ‘money, never-ending’ in the sense of “success, prosperity” and Tritiya means Third. This auspicious occasion is celebrated by the Hindu and Jain community across India and Nepal.
It is considered to be one of the most important days by the Hindus as it is the birthday of Lord Parashurama. Follow the link to know more about some interesting facts about Lord Parashurama.
Why is Akshaya Tritiya Celebrated?
Story 1: Lord Krishna and Sudama
The most popular story is of Lord Krishna and Sudama who were best friends during their childhood. Sudama was poor, and was going through some financial difficulties and he went to Krishna to ask for help to gift him some money as a friend. Since he didn’t have anything to offer Krishna when he reached his palace, he gave him a small pouch of Poha(rice flakes) that was in his pockets. He felt ashamed giving so, but Lord Krishna treated it as though it was a big meal. Sudama was astonished by the hospitality given to him by Lord Krishna and he decided not to ask him for any financial help which left him to go back home empty-handed.
On his way back home, he was worried about what his wife would say about returning home empty-handed. With those worrying thoughts, when he reached home he was surprised to see his run-down house converted into a huge bungalow and his wife was in a royal attire.
He knew this was due to the blessings of Lord Krishna who blessed him with wealth he could never imagine.
This is the main reason Akshaya Tritiya is associated with material gains.
Story 2: Lord Krishna visits Panch-Pandavas during their exile
When the Pandavas were in exile in the forest, they received many sages, kings and other reputed guests from various backgrounds very often. This made it very difficult for Draupadi to extend customary hospitality to numerous guests as they were living in a forest with nothing available.
One day, Lord Krishna came to visit Pandavas along with his men. The Pandavas came and greeted him with happiness and they all sat down in their house.
But, Draupadi didn’t come outside to greet Krishna but instead, she was weeping in the kitchen. Krishna sensed that something was wrong, so he made the excuse of drinking water and came to the kitchen to see Draupadi crying.
He asked her what was wrong and she showed an empty pot which she had cooked rice in the morning and said “This is all I have in my kitchen, Krishna’.
To this Lord Krishna replied ‘ Thank you sister. This is all I need. Look carefully inside the pot, is the pot really empty?’
Then, Draupadi looked at the pot and it had a grain of rice stuck inside the pot.
Lord Krishna then said, even a single grain of rice if offered with love and humility , becomes the primary seed which satiates the hunger of the entire universe.
He had that grain of rice with happiness and there was no hunger in the entire world that day.
Hence,this miraculous day is called Akshya Tritiya.
Story 3: Akshya Patra given by Lord Surya to Yudhishtira
When Pandavas were sent to exile for 13 years in the forest as Dharmaraja lost a bet to Kauravas, his people from the kingdom also followed him and he could not send them back. The Panadavas were worried because they will not be able to feed everybody as they were in a forest with food not being easily available.
So, Dharmaraja requested the sages who had followed him along with the others to the forest to go back, to which the sages asked him to perform penance to Sun God, Surya. Obeying this, he performed the penance and prayed to Lord Surya with utmost devotion which pleased Lord Surya and he appeared before him. He continued during the penance without realizing the fact that Lord Surya had appeared before him. This eternal devotion impressed Lord Surya and he provided him Akshaya Patra.
Akshaya Patra means a vessel that will keep filling until the last person among the Pandavas eats resulting in nobody going hungry.
Top 5 Unknown Facts about Akshaya Tritiya
Jain Philosophy
Lord Aadinath ended his long fast with sugarcane juice and according to Jain philosophy, the food of the kitchen from where a Tirthankara accepts alms never ends until all have eaten or becomes ‘Akshaya’ (A Tirthankara is the possessor of Akshaya Riddhi) hence the day is called as Akshaya Tritiya.
Akshaya Tritiya Day never absent unlike other Tithis in the Hindu Calendar
In Jain and Hindu calendars, some days of the month are absent in counting and some days (tithi in lunar calendars) come extra, but Akshay Tritiya is one day which is never “absent” from the lunar calendar.
Beginning of Treta Yuga
According to Hindu mythology, on this day the Treta Yuga began and the river Ganges, the most sacred river of India, descended to the earth from heaven. It was on this day that Goddess Annapoorna Devi( the Goddess of food) was born.
Lucky day to start any New Venture
This day is generally observed by fasting and worship of Lord Vishnu with rice grains. A dip in the river Ganges on this day is considered to be very auspicious. According to Vedic scriptures, knowledge gained or charity done on this day is considered very fruitful. It is considered to be a very lucky day to start any new venture or business.
Most Beneficial day to perform Meritorious Deeds
This day is auspicious to perform any good deeds such as penance, donation or charity, ritual bathing in Holy rivers, sacrifices(Havan), obligations to fire(Homam), Conducting sacred thread ceremonies(Upanayanam), ending of fast, house construction and commitments.
Happy Akshaya Tritiya!
