धनतेरस (Dhanteras):-An ancient legend ascribes the occasion to on interesting
story about the 16 year old son of King Hima. His horoscope predicted his death
by snake-bite on the fourth day of his marriage. On that particular day, his
newly-wed wife did not allow him to sleep. She laid out all her ornaments and
lots of gold and silver coins in a heap at the entrance
of the sleeping chamber and lit lamps all over the place. Then she narrated
stories and sang songs to keep her husband from falling asleep. The next day,
when Yama, the god of Death,
arrived at the prince’s doorstep in the guise of a Serpent, his eyes were dazzled and blinded by
the brilliance of the lamps and the jewellery. Yama could not enter the Prince's
chamber, so he climbed on top of the heap of gold coins and sat there the
entire night listening to the stories and songs. In the morning, he silently
went away. Thus, the young prince was saved from the clutches of death by the
cleverness of his new bride, and the day came to be celebrated as Dhanteras.
The following day came to be called Naraka Chaturdashi ('Naraka' means hell and
Chaturdashi means 14th). It is also known as ‘Yamadeepdaan’ as the ladies of
the house light earthen lamps or ‘deep’ and these are kept burning
throughout the night glorifying Yama, the God of Death.
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