Akshay Tritiya

Akshaya Tritiya day is the very auspicious day - there's no inauspiciousness to be found today so even checking muhurthas is considered unnecessary, so auspicious it is. Whatever one does for devotees, and for Krsna that person will get more benefit and it is eternal benefit and never lost.


5 Things You Must Do on Akshaya Tritiya

  • Glorify the Supreme Lord who appeared as Parasurama
  • Recite 18 chapters of Bhagavad-gita on Akshaya Tritiya
  • Offer Oblations to the Forefathers
  • Annadana – Distribute Prasadam (Spiritual Food Offered to Lord)
  • Donate Towards Charitable Causes

Some important events have taken place on Akshay Tritiya -

  • Appearance of Lord Parasurama.
  • Appearance of Mother Ganga.
  • Beginning of chandan yatra (sun is directly above our head for 21 days and hence chandan yatra lasts that long).
  • Krishna presented Draupadi with the akshay patra.

Glorify the Supreme Lord who appeared as Parasurama

The third day in the bright fortnight of vaishaakha is the day of the incarnation of Lord Vishnu as PARSURMA. The icon is decorated with an axe, to depict Him in a heroic pose.

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The Supreme Lord appeared as Parasurama, the son of Jamadagni Maharsi and Srimati Renukadevi, on the auspicious day of Akshaya Tritiya. He uprooted all the unwanted kings who appeared as thorns on the surface of the earth. Sri Jayadeva Goswami glorifies this incarnation of the Supreme Lord as follows:

knatriya-rudhira-maye jagad-apagata-pāpam
snapayasi payasi śamita-bhava-tāpam
keśava dhṛta-bhṛgupati-rūpa jaya jagadiśa hare

O Kesava! O Lord of the universe! O Lord Hari who have assumed the form of Bhrgupati [Parasurama]! All glories to You! At Kuruksetra You bathe the earth in the rivers of blood from the bodies of the demoniac ksatriyas that You have slain. The sins of the world are washed away by You, and because of You people are relieved from the blazing fire of material existence. On the auspicious day of Akshaya Tritiya please chant this verse and glorify the Supreme Lord who appeared as Lord Parashurama. Also chant the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra at least 108 times.


Ganga Devi Appereance

GANGA DEVI also descended to earth on this day. Many common people have special puja on this day. One should bathe in a sacred river, give charity, perform japa and offer barley in a sacred fire, and offer barley preparations to the deity.

Because the Pandavas were concerned how to feed the 'brahmanas' who accompanied them to the forest, Srimati Draupadi Devi was given a pot by the sun god called by Aksayapatra. This pot would never be empty until Draupadi had taken her meal and turned the pot upside down. Then it would produce no more for that day.Once Draupadi had finished cooking and had just taken her meal when the DURVASA MUNI arrived with many of his disciples. The angry sage Durvasas and his disciples had secretly been asked to go there by the Kauravas who knew that by this time Draupadi would have taken her meal, and if she was unable to offer them anything to eat, she would incur the wrath of Durvasa. Durvasas and his disciples went to the river to bathe and freshen up before taking their meal. Draupadi, full of anxiety, prayed to Lord Krsna to help her. Lord Sri Krsna then told Draupadi that if there was a morsel of food left He would be satisfied if that were offered by Draupadi, His pure devotee with love to Him. Seeing a fragment of spinach stuck to the side of the pot, Krsna asked for it, Draupadi offered it to Krsna, and simply by eating that morsel of foodstuffs, all of Durvasas' men and Durvasa himself became completely full and satisfied and out of embarrassment slipped away and didn't come to demand a meal from Draupadi as the sinful Duryodhana had arranged for them to do.

Significance of 'Akshay Tritiya'

  • If the Deity that bestows constant happiness and prosperity is worshipped on the day of 'Akshay-Tritiya' with the feeling of gratitude, the Deity's grace never wanes. One should worship the Deity with gratitude on 'Aksahy-Tritiya' for acquiring her constant grace.
  • It is beleived that one can get an abundant yield of fruits if the ditches in the soil are made on the auspicious day of 'Akshay Tritiya'. Even the medicinal plants /herbs that are sown on the auspicious day of Akshay Tritiya, grow in abundance i.e. there is never a shortage of medicinal plants.

Recite 18 chapters of Bhagavad-gita on Akshaya Tritiya

It is believed that Vyasadeva, the great sage who is the literary incarnation of the Supreme Lord, started composing Mahabharata on the auspicious day of Akshaya Tritiya. Mahabharata is considered to be the fifth-veda and it contains Bhagavad-gita, the essence of all Vedic literatures. It is said that the effects of the past sinful reactions will not act upon one who reads Bhagavad-gita sincerely, with all seriousness. So to get rid of the material dirt accumulated from our previous births, we should take bath in the holy water of Bhagavad-gita.


On the auspicious day of Akshaya Tritiya try to recite all the 18 chapters of Bhagavad-gita. It takes almost 2 to 3 hours. If not, at least recite one chapter or one verse.

Offer Oblations to the Forefathers

One should perform sraddha ceremony on the Aksaya-trtiya day. (Srimad Bhagavatam 7.14.21)


Sraddha is a Vedic ritual to offer oblations to departed souls and even today people go to Gaya to perform the sraddha ceremony to liberate their forefathers, who may be suffering from various types of sinful reactions, by offering water and remnants of food offered to Lord Vishnu. In the first chapter of Bhagavad-gita, Arjuna expresses his concern that due to the fratricidal war, the observance of such ritualistic ceremonies would stop and the forefathers would fall down to hellish conditions. So it is very important to observe this sraddha ceremony and it is very auspicious to perform this ceremony on the day of Akshaya Tritiya.


On the auspicious day of Akshaya Tritiya you may offer oblations to your departed forefathers to save them from sufferings due to various types of sinful reactions.


Donate Towards Charitable Causes


It is advertised that buying gold on the day of Akshaya Tritiya will make you rich. However, this is not a fact as per Vedic scriptures. Traditionally the rulers and rich people of the society used to perform sacrifices (yajna) and distribute their wealth in charity on such auspicious days. Charitable activities can be performed out of compassion to the poor or for the spiritual upliftment of oneself. In Bhagavad-gita it is recommended that one should perform charity without expecting any returns, at a proper time (solar eclipse, lunar eclipse, and various other auspicious muhurthas like akshaya tritiya) and place (in a place of pilgrimage or in temples), and to a worthy person (a qualified Brahmana or a Vaishnava devotee). It is also said that one should never abandon yajna-dana-tapah-karma (prescribed duties of performing sacrifice, charity, austerity).


On the auspicious day of Akshaya Tritiya you can donate towards charitable causes.

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Foundation Course of Bhagavad Gita