Diwali  Happy Diwali
From 101lifeStyle.com
Five Days Of Diwali: Diwali is celebrated with great joy and enthusiasm for 5 continuous days. Each day has a significance to the Festival and can celebrate in the true sense on knowing about them. The message and philosophies that each day provide teach people to spread love and harmony by foregoing the paths of enmity and wrong doings. First Day: Dhanteras:  Alternatively known as 'Dhantrayodashi' or 'Dhanwantari Triodasi', Dhanteras is the first day of the five-day Diwali Festival. It falls on the thirteenth lunar day of Krishna Paksh in the Hindu month of Kartik ( Darkest fortnight in the month of Ashwin - Kartik). This day marks the beginning of grand Diwali festivities. The word 'dhan' means wealth and 'teras' denotes the thirteenth day and therefore the name 'Dhanteras'. On this day the Goddess of Wealth and her 'Vahana' - the Owl are worshipped to bring wealth and prosperity. As a sign of good luck, gold and silver coins and utensils are purchased on this day. This day is especially auspicious to the business community and businesses and offices are renovated, painted and entrances are decorated with 'torans' and diyas and rangolis. Small footprints of Goddess Lakshmi are also drawn with rice - flour and vermilion to welcome the Goddess.
In the evening at the time of sunset Hindus bathe and perform Lakhsmi Puja and light clay diyas to ward off evil spirits. They also sing bhajans in praise of Goddess Lakhsmi and Naivedya of traditional sweets are offered to the Goddess Lakhsmi.
In villages, cows are adorned and worshipped by the farmers as they are a source of income for them. In South India, cows are offered special veneration as they are considered incarnations of Goddess Lakshmi.
Legends associated with Dhanteras:  1. According to a legend, when the Gods and 'Asuras' (Demons) churned the waters of the Ocean for 'Amrit' or Magic Nectar, Samudramanthan took place. It was then on the day of Dhanteras that Dhanwantary, the physician who treated Gods and an incarnation of Lord Vishnu, emerged from the Ocean carrying the jar of Amrit.
2. Another popular legend describes how the son of King Hima was doomed to die of snake-bite on the fourth day of his marriage. Hearing this on the fourth day of his marriage his wife did not let him sleep all night and laid all ornaments and gold and silver coins at the entrance and lighted lamps all over the place and kept on singing songs and telling stories. When Yama, the God of death arrived in the guise of a serpent, the light from the lamps and ornaments dazzled him and he could not enter the Prince's chamber. He sat on top of the ornaments and listened to the songs whole night and went away quietly at dawn. Since then, Dhanteras is also known as 'Yamadeepdaan' and people buy ornaments and gold and silver coins and keep lamps lit all night.
 Legends/Origin Of Diwali
5 Days Of Diwali: Day 2 | 