
Akshaya
TritiiyA
Candana yatra starts on this
day, which is celebrated as well as the day on which treta yuga began.
Barley, one of the main ingredients for homa, which is the yuga dharma
of Treta Yuga, was also created on this day. 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.
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.
He said one story of a brahmana: there
was a brahmana who had a very good wife and was poor. Whatever little money
he got would get spent somehow. Also he did not have children. So under
the strong request of his wife he went to Vasishta muni to know the reason
for his suffering. Vasishta muni told him that in his previous life he
was very rich and also had many children. But he was very stingy, he was
not even spending for his own children. This is the reason for his being
poor, also without children. Then that brahmana asked Vasishta muni why
he got a good wife. So that Muni replied that somehow with some reason,
he observed that the vrata of Vaishaka month for the last 5 days. So he
got a good wife and also the brahmana birth. Then the muni advised him
to follow at least the last 7 days left of Vaishaka month, with devotion
to Lord Krsna.
Since that brahmana observed the vrata of Vaishaka month
for that at least the left out 7 days, he got sons, he became rich, ultimately
he got Love of Godhead and went back to the spiritual world!
It is important to hear such a story/pastimes as this
so that at least by hearing this, we engage ourselves in the service of
Guru, the Vaishnavas and Krsna. Thus becoming inspired to always render
service the devotee is always the beneficiary of such interaction with
the Vaishnavas, one's Guru and Lord Sri Krishna.
Akshaya tritiiyaa: (from the Calendar of the Madhwa
Vaishnavas)
The third day in the bright fortnight of vaishaakha is
the day of the incarnation of Lord Vishnu as Parashurama.
The icon is decorated with an axe, to depict Him in a heroic pose.
This coincides with the anniversary of passing of Sri
Vijayadhvaja Tiirtha, the sixth piiThaadhipati in the lineage of Sri
Pejawar Mutt. He is famous for his commentary upon the Srimad Bhaagavata
epic. He lived in the 15th century and his vrindavana (samadhi) is
in Kanva Tiirtha. There is also a pipal tree by the side of the vrindavana
under which he is believed to have written his commentary.
During the tenure of Sri Pejawar MaTha a special festival
is arranged in Sri Krishna Mutt on this day and the akshaya paatra given
by Sri Madhva is offered a special puuja. This akshaya patra is said to
have been given by the Sun god, it is the same pot that mother Draupadi
used to cook in. It is said that from the time of turning it upwards for
use on a day the pot will provide unlimited amounts of foodstuffs for the
satisfaction of the Lord. There is a story in this connection wherein the
angry sage Durvasas came to Draupadi demanding foods:

On the Pandavas return to Hastinapur they resided in the
palace created for them by the demon Maya Danava. Mayasura built this palace
out of gratitude to Krsna for saving him in the forest fire in the Khandava
Forest where he was hiding when Agni devoured it. He also presented Bhima
with a magnificent fighting club. After the Rajasurya sacrifice was performed,
Duryodhana, being always envious of the Pandavas, came to the mansion created
by Maya Danava's illusions. Bewildered by illusions of many kinds, Duryodhana
mistook the solid floor for water and lifted the end of his garment to
walk forward on what he thought was shallow water but it was solid floor,
and after a few more steps he fell into waist deep water mistaking it for
a solid floor. Proud Duryodhana, who was wearing his crown and a costly
necklace was very angry, but when he fell into the water everyone laughed,
especially Draupadi and Bhima. Yudhisthira tried to check the laughing
of all the women in the palace, by raising his hand and his glances. Lord
Krsna however, encouraged it by the suggestive gestures of His eyebrows.
Humiliated and swearing revenge, Duryodhana turned his face downwards and
went back to Hastinapura.
The Kurus then made a conspiracy to trick Yudhisthira
into a gambling match by which the Kauravas (Kurus) could cheat the Pandavas
out of everything with the dice made from Sakuni's bones. During the match
Yudhisthira lost his kingdom, wealth, jewelry, clothing and finally even
gambled and lost his wife. When Dussasana went to fetch the chaste Draupadi,
she said she couldn't come to the assembly as she was undergoing her monthly
period, and was only dressed in one piece of cloth (a simple 'sari'). Draupadi
had a beautiful bunch of hair which was sanctified at the ceremonial Rajasurya
Yajna, but Dussasana defiled that sacred lady and grabbed her by her hair
just to insult her. When he started to pull off her sari just to make her
naked, Draupadi, realizing that she had no hope of help from her husbands
as they too had been lost, by Yudhisthira being tricked into upholding
mundane moralistic codes and now had no free will to act (though Bhima
was transcendentally situated from such sentimental codes his brothers
tried to make him restrained to follow Yudhisthira's mood and etiquette).
Draupadi then cent per cent, completely surrendered to Krsna, and to the
amazement of the assembly, as much 'sari' as Dussasana took from her body,
as much again replaced it. Lord Krsna, though protecting his surrendered
devotee, decided that for their sinful behaviour the Kurus would be inevitably
killed at the Battle of Kuruksetra and all of their wives would too loosen
their hair in public, but this time as widows.
When the Pandavas were exiled to the
forest for twelve years after a second gambling match, the Kurus made a
clause, that after the completion of twelve years the Pandavas had then
to spend one year incognito, thus making thirteen years all told. If, during
the final year the Pandavas's whereabouts were discovered, they again had
to spend another twelve years in the forest.
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 Muni Durvasas
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.