Dhanteras 2026धनतेरस

When is Dhanteras?

Observed on Krishna Trayodashi, Kartik month. Dates follow the Panchang for New Delhi and can differ by a day in other places — check the Panchang for your city.

What Dhanteras means

Dhanteras — Dhanatrayodashi — falls on the thirteenth day (teras) of the dark half of Kartik in the North Indian calendar, two days before Diwali, and opens the five days of Deepavali. It is the day of Dhanvantari, the divine physician and god of Ayurveda, who rose from the ocean of milk holding the pot of amrita; so it is also kept as Dhanvantari Jayanti.

'Dhan' in the festival's name is often taken to mean wealth, and the day is famous for buying gold, silver, utensils and new things for the home. The older emphasis is on health as the first wealth — 'pehla sukh nirogi kaya' — and on cleaning and lighting the home to welcome Lakshmi. Kubera, the treasurer of the gods, is also worshipped.

At dusk a lamp is lit outside the home facing south for Yama, the lord of death — Yama Deepdaan — praying that no untimely death come to the family. With the doorways lit and rangoli drawn, the house is ready for the festival of lights.

The story of Dhanteras

The Bhagavata Purana tells that when the devas and asuras churned the ocean of milk, many treasures rose from it. Last of all came Dhanvantari, a form of Vishnu, dark and radiant, carrying the vessel of amrita, the nectar of immortality. He is the teacher of Ayurveda, and physicians and Ayurvedic practitioners honour him on Dhanteras.

A popular story explains the Yama lamp. It had been foretold that King Hima's son would die of snakebite on the fourth night after his wedding. On that night his young wife would not let him sleep: she heaped her gold and silver ornaments at the door, lit lamps all around, and told stories and sang songs. When Yama came in the form of a serpent, he was dazzled by the glitter and sat listening to her songs until dawn, then went away. The lamp lit for Yama on Dhanteras, and the custom of buying gold and silver, are traced to this story.

Tradition also remembers Kubera, the treasurer of wealth, and Lakshmi, who rose from the same ocean as Dhanvantari. Many business families worship their account books and safes in the evening and begin the preparations for Lakshmi Puja on Diwali night.

Dhanteras puja vidhi, step by step

A simple Dhanteras puja for home: Dhanvantari, Lakshmi and Kubera, and the lamp for Yama. Customs vary by region and community.

What you need

• Images of Dhanvantari, Lakshmi and Kubera (or Lakshmi-Ganesha)
• Roli, akshat, flowers, a garland, sandal paste, a ghee diya and incense
• Naivedya: sweets, dhaniya (coriander seeds) with jaggery, kheer, fruit
• A four-wick clay lamp with mustard or sesame oil for Yama Deepdaan
• Rangoli colours and diyas for the entrance
• Any new utensil, coin or item you have bought, to place before Lakshmi

When to do the puja

In 2026 Dhanteras falls on Friday, 6 November; in 2027, on Wednesday, 27 October. Trayodashi prevails through the evening on these days. The puja and Yama Deepdaan are done after sunset, in pradosh kaal. Check the Panchang for your city's muhurat. See the Panchang for your city.

Steps

1. Clean and decorate. Finish cleaning the house, draw rangoli at the entrance and hang a toran of mango leaves or marigolds.
2. Purchases. If you buy something, choose what the home actually needs — a utensil, a broom, a lamp, a silver coin. Place it before Lakshmi in the evening puja.
3. Dhanvantari puja. Offer flowers, a diya and naivedya to Dhanvantari and chant his mantra, praying for the health of the family.
4. Lakshmi and Kubera. Worship Lakshmi and Kubera with roli, akshat and flowers. Offer dhaniya with jaggery; many families sow some of the coriander seeds afterwards.
5. Yama Deepdaan. After sunset, light the four-wick lamp and place it outside the main door facing south, reciting the Yama Deepdaan verse.
6. Light the home. Light diyas at the entrance, the tulsi and around the home — the first lamps of the five days of Diwali.

Offerings & food: Panchamrit, dhaniya, kheer, naivedya in silver bowls, pedas

Mantras for Dhanteras

Dhanteras across India

Dhanteras is pan-Hindu, but the shopping tradition is particularly strong in North and West India. Dhanteras is also Dhanvantari Jayanti, honoured especially by Ayurvedic physicians and at Dhanvantari temples in South India.

North and West India

Markets stay open late for the busiest shopping day of the year — gold, silver coins, steel and brass utensils, and brooms, which are bought as a symbol of Lakshmi sweeping away poverty.

Maharashtra

Women pound dry coriander seeds with jaggery as naivedya. Vasu Baras, the worship of cow and calf, falls the day before.

Gujarat and Rajasthan

Business families worship their account books (chopda) and cash boxes; Labh Pancham after Diwali opens the new business year.

South India

Dhanvantari Jayanti is kept in Ayurvedic hospitals and colleges and at Dhanvantari temples, such as those in Kerala and at Srirangam; the Diwali bath and lamps follow on Naraka Chaturdashi.

Ayurveda institutions

Physicians, vaidyas and Ayurvedic colleges worship Dhanvantari as the founder of their science and offer free health camps.

Prayers to recite

Do’s and don’ts

Frequently asked questions