The katha of King Hima's son
When a son was born to King Hima, astrologers foretold that he would die of a snakebite on the fourth day after his wedding. In time the prince was married. His wife was very wise and knew about this.
On the night of the fourth day she did not let her husband sleep. She piled all her gold and silver jewellery and coins at the door of the room and lit many diyas all around. Then all night she told her husband stories and sang bhajans.
At midnight Yamraj came in the form of a snake, but the glitter of the diyas and jewellery dazzled his eyes. He could not enter the room and sat on the heap of jewellery listening to the songs. At dawn he quietly went back and the prince's life was saved.
Since then there is a tradition of lighting a diya in Yamraj's name outside the house, facing south, on the evening of Dhanteras, so the family has no fear of untimely death.
The appearance of Lord Dhanvantari
During the churning of the ocean, on Kartik Krishna Trayodashi, Lord Dhanvantari appeared holding a pot of amrit. He is the god of Ayurveda and good health, so Dhanteras is also called 'Dhanvantari Jayanti'. Because he appeared with a pot, the tradition of buying utensils on this day began.
This is OmKiran Bhakti's retelling of the traditional katha in simple English; details of the katha vary slightly from region to region.
