Akshaya Tritiya अक्षय तृतीया

The word akshaya means that which does not diminish, and the day is understood as a time when good deeds, giving and fresh beginnings are said to bear lasting fruit. It falls on the third lunar day of the bright half of Vaishakha. Tradition connects it to a number of events: the beginning of Treta Yuga, the descent of the Ganga in some tellings, the birth of Parashurama according to many accounts, and the day the Pandavas received the Akshaya Patra, the inexhaustible vessel, from the Sun in the Mahabharata story.

One of the best-loved stories is that of Sudama, the poor friend who brought Krishna a gift of beaten rice and returned to find his home transformed. Jains observe the day as the end of the year-long fast of Rishabhanatha, the first Tirthankara, who broke it with sugarcane juice at Hastinapur, and they call the celebration Varshi Tap. The portals of the Char Dham yatra open around this time, and the temple at Badrinath and the other Himalayan shrines are associated with that opening of the pilgrimage season.

In many homes the day is marked by buying gold or starting a business, but the older emphasis is on dana, charity, with gifts of water pots, fans, sandals and food at the start of the summer. It is not a day for debt or impulse spending, and thoughtful teachers remind people that the real treasure the festival speaks of is merit and good conduct. Jewellers tend to run offers, and it is wise to treat those as commerce and not as a religious requirement.