Shop till you Drop on Dhanteras

Yesterday was Dhanteras the first celebration

of the five day festival of Diwali or Deepawali I went out on a short walk
to watch the eager shoppers
and take photographs.

These are street stalls selling
decorations and religious items for puja.
Everyone was in a hurry to get their bag full.

Down this post I have provided excerpts from Wikipedia
which will give you more information
about Dhanteras


A stall selling puffed rice or lie-lava
and sugar animals which are offered to deities and eaten
during this festival.

Clay idols of gods and goddesses

These are baskets of raffia grass
you can buy them for your house or as gifts.
They are very pretty

This is an attractive wall piece.

More than a 100 years ago

Dr Sam Higginbottom and his wife Ethel,Presbyterian

missionaries came to Allahabad to establish

an Agricultural college

(which is a very large university now)

Ethel taught the women of the nearby villages how

to make baskets with raffia grass so that

they could get income by selling them.

This trade is flourishing till today.

Decorative items made with clay and painted.

Little houses, pots and toys

all fashioned with clay.

Children of all religions must

have them to play with.

When we were little our parents used to

buy them for us.

These are earthen diyas or oil lamps.

Lighted shops to attract customers

This is a jewellery shop

Its raining lights.

This shop beckons you to

come and buy gold and silver from them on this auspicious occasion.

This is a short video to give you a feel

of the atmosphere.

Don 't the vehicles honk loudly?

Dhanteras is the first day of the five-day Diwali Festival. The festival, also known as "Dhantrayodashi" or "Dhanwantari Triodasi", falls on the auspicious thirteenth lunar day of Krishna Paksha in the Hindu month of Ashwin (October/November).[1]
The word Dhanteras, Dhan stands for wealth. On Dhanteras, the "Owl" form of the Goddess Laxmi is worshiped to provide prosperity and well being. Dhanteras holds special significance for the business community due to customary purchases of precious metals on this day
Preparations
To mark the auspicious day, houses and business premises are renovated and decorated. Entrances are made colorful with traditional motifs of Rangoli designs to welcome the Goddess of Wealth and Prosperity. To indicate her long-awaited arrival, small footprints are drawn with rice flour and vermilion powder all over the houses. Lamps are kept burning all through the nights.
Traditions
On Dhanteras Hindus consider it auspicious to purchase gold or silver articles or at least one or two new utensils. It is believed that new “Dhan” or some form of precious metal is a sign of good luck. "Laxmi-Puja" is performed in the evenings when tiny Diyas of clay are lit to drive away the shadows of evil spirits. "Bhajans"-devotional songs- in praise of Goddess Laxmi are also sung.
Celebrations
"Naivedya" of traditional sweets is offered to the Goddess. There is a peculiar custom in Maharashtra to lightly pound dry coriander seeds with jaggery and offer as Naivedya.
In villages, cattle are adorned and worshiped by farmers as they form the main source of their income. In south India, cows are offered particularly special veneration because they are thought of as incarnations of the Goddess Lakshmi.