Hari Aum.
Today is an extremely auspicious day in the Vedic calendar. It is called Akshaya tritiya. What does this mean? In Sanskrit, 'akshaya' means undecaying, imperishable, that which will never be destroyed. And 'tritiya' is the Sankrit word for the third day of a lunar fortnight (there are two in each lunar month associated with the waxing and the waning moon). This day is characterised by certain astrological placements-- the sun and moon are both said to be in 'exaltation' on this day (respectively in the zodiac signs of Aries and Taurus).
This is a day which is regarded as being very special for the following reasons:
1. Success: any endeavour or venture which is started on this day will be successful according to the yogis. It is an excellent day to begin something or start something afresh. This applies to both material and spiritual endeavours, such as starting a new job, a new project, buying something important, and even getting married! It is a wonderful day to begin spiritual practice and meditation.
2. Imperishable: Whatever auspicious act is done on this day is said to be everlasting. It will never decay say the yogis. It is therefore a superb day for spiritual practices, including mantra japa, homam, puja, kirtan, tarpanam and so on.
3. Increasing: Any auspicious act done on akshaya tritiya is said to multiply and increase significantly. Again a very good reason to do spiritual practice. Furthermore, this is said to be a special day to donate money generously for noble and charitable causes.
The yogis say that some special events in spiritual history took place on this day (it is the anniversary of these events). These include the following:
1. Krishna's activities: He is said to have given a vessel that produced an unlimited supply of food to His friend and devotee, Draupadi, wife of the Pandavas on this auspicious day. This helped the Pandavas and Draupadi survive while they were cast into exile by their wicked cousins, the Kauravas.
This is also supposed to be the anniversary of the day when Krishna gave another friend and devotee, Sudama, the great blessings of devotion to Him and extraordinary material wealth.
Thus this day is associated with the generosity of Krishna towards His devotees. In other words, it is a great day to worship God (any name or form based on one's own liking) to please Him and obtain His grace.
2. Parashurama: This is supposed to be the day that Parashurama, an important avatar of Narayana, manifested on Earth to establish dharma (righteousness) and destroy wickedness. He is said to be present here even today and is available to those who call upon Him. Today would be a good day to remember and worship Him.
3. Annapurna: The Goddess Annapurna, the Divine Mother in a form that nourishes and provides food to all, is said to have manifested on this day. This is an excellent day for worship of the Divine Mother.
4. Mahabharata: the sage, Vyasa, is said to have begun the composition of this great spiritual epic on this auspicious day. This book contains numerous spiritual teachings for humanity and it is an important text for many spiritual seekers even today.
There are other auspicious events too that took place on this day; the four mentioned above are some of the most signficant.
I wish all of you a very happy akshaya tritiya. May we all do plenty of spiritual practice on this day and experience the beneficial results.
I plan to worship Narayana and the Divine Mother Jagadamba on this day by doing some extra japa, a homam at home, a puja and make some donations to charity. If I manage to get all of this done, I will consider this to have been a spiritually productive day! I thought I would write a quick blog entry to remind you too (if you were not aware already) that this is a special day that can be utilised for spiritual and material benefit.
Om Namo Narayanaya.
Om Sri Durgayai Namah.
Om Sri Gurave Namah.
Hari Aum Tat Sat.
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