Dhanteras

Dhanteras
Dhanvantari, Hindu god of medicine
Official nameधनतेरस
Also calledDhanatrayodashi
Observed byHindus
Typea constituent part of Diwali
Significancecelebration of health
DateAshvin 28 (amanta tradition)
Kartika 13 (purnimanta tradition)
2023 date10 November
2024 date29 October
FrequencyAnnual
Related toDiwali
Explanatory note
Hindu festival dates

The Hindu calendar is lunisolar but most festival dates are specified using the lunar portion of the calendar. A lunar day is uniquely identified by three calendar elements: māsa (lunar month), pakṣa (lunar fortnight) and tithi (lunar day).

Furthermore, when specifying the masa, one of two traditions are applicable, viz. amānta / pūrṇimānta. If a festival falls in the waning phase of the moon, these two traditions identify the same lunar day as falling in two different (but successive) masa.

A lunar year is shorter than a solar year by about eleven days. As a result, most Hindu festivals occur on different days in successive years on the Gregorian calendar.

Dhanteras[1] (Hindi: धनतेरस), also known as Dhanatrayodashi (Sanskrit: धनत्रयोदशी), is the first day that marks the festival of Diwali or Tihar in most of India and Nepal

It is celebrated on the thirteenth lunar day (Trayodashi) of Krishna Paksha (dark fortnight) in the Hindu calendar month of Ashwin (according to the amānta tradition) or Kartika (according to the Bikram Sambat tradition). Dhanvantari, who is also worshipped on the occasion of Dhanteras, is considered the god of Ayurveda who imparted the wisdom of Ayurveda for the betterment of mankind and to help rid it of the suffering of disease.[2] The Indian ministry of Ayurveda, Yoga and Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homeopathy announced its decision to observe Dhanteras as the "National Ayurveda Day", which was first observed on 28 October 2016.[3]

  1. ^ "এবারের ধনতেরাস ঘুরে দাঁড়ানোর, এবারের ধনতেরাস পাশে দাঁড়ানোর". Nagarik News. 13 November 2020.[permanent dead link]
  2. ^ Hope-Murray, Angela (2013). Ayurveda For Dummies. John Wiley & Sons. p. 10. ISBN 9781118306703.
  3. ^ "Dhanteras to be observed as National Ayurveda Day". Times of India. 30 September 2016. Retrieved 13 October 2018.