Akshaya Tritiya : Significance, Traditions, and Food Donation

Dr Roshan Singh – Jyotishacharya Shastri Pundit

Akshaya Tritiya will be celebrated on Wednesday, 30 April 2025. Akshaya Tritiya, also known as Akha Teej, is an auspicious Hindu festival celebrated annually on the third lunar day of the bright half (Shukla Paksha) of the Indian month of Vaishakha. It holds profound spiritual significance and is believed to bring luck, prosperity, and abundance to those who observe it.

Helping each other is what makes life truly beautiful. It doesn’t have to be anything huge—sometimes it’s just being there for someone when they need a hand or a little bit of encouragement when they’re feeling lost. Life can be hard, and none of us are meant to go through it alone. 

When we take care of each other, we’re creating little pockets of light in a world that can sometimes feel overwhelming.

Lord Krishna, with all his wisdom and love, reminds us of this in so many of his stories. He didn’t just fight battles or perform miracles; he was always there for his friends and loved ones, whether it was guiding Arjuna through his doubts or just sharing simple moments of joy with those around him. 

Krishna teaches us that helping others is an act of love—one that flows naturally when we truly care about someone, when we see their struggles as part of our own journey.

It’s not about being perfect or having all the answers. It’s about showing up, offering whatever we can, and knowing that even the smallest act of kindness can make a huge difference. 

When we help each other, we remind ourselves that we’re all connected, and that together, we can carry the weight of life’s challenges a little easier.

Akshaya Tritiya is considered to a very auspicious day in India.

Draupadi feeds the Brahmans

What happened is, once the five Pandavas, (the five brothers from the Mahabharata epic) and their wife were in exile. At that time a saint called and said, ‘I am going to have food with you.’ When the message came, they had no food. They had already eaten and had kept their pots away. Draupadi (the wife of the 5 Pandavas) prayed to Lord Krishna. At the same time, Krishna came to their house and said, ‘Oh I am very hungry.’ When he came in, he saw that there was only one grain of rice stuck to the pot. He picked that one grain of rice and ate it, and turned the pot into an Akshaya Patra. Akshaya Patra means that which never diminishes. When the saint came with 400 people, Draupadi could feed all of them from the same pot. The more she took from the pot, the more would come from it. It would never go down.

So it is a common expression in India to say, ‘This is an akshaya patra‘, which means it always keeps giving.

If people are very generous and they are always doing seva and contributing to others, then you say, ‘This is an akshaya patra’, means it never goes down; a perennial source. A magical pot which keeps feeding millions.

The transcendental meeting of Krishna and Sudhama

The other story is, Krishna had a friend who was very poor. His name was Sudhama. Sudhama means a good place, or a very benevolent place.

So, one day his wife said, ‘We are living in such poverty and Krishna is so rich. Why don’t you go and get something from him. He is your close friend.’ Sudhama said, ‘Okay, I’ll go, but I can’t go to a friend empty handed. I have to take something’. So his wife packed three handful of puffed rice in a scarf and gave it to him. It is like rice crispies.

When Sudhama went to Krishna and Krishna welcomed him, and washed his feet. The story goes that they were such good friends and in the friendship there was so much love that Sudhama forgets to give the rice to Krishna and also forgets to ask him for anything. He came to ask him for a favor but he could not ask him anything because he was so overwhelmed with love. They were so close that he forgot to ask. He could not ask. He could not even speak.

When he was about to leave, Krishna asked, ‘Hey, you have brought me something? Give it to me. I know your wife has sent something. Why are you not giving it to me. Come on, give it.’ Krishna took the rice and he ate one handful, then he ate the second handful, by that time his wife Rukmini came and said, ‘I want to take the third one’.

While all this was happening, Sudhama left without asking him for anything. When he reached home, he found his house flooded with riches and gold.

This is why people buy Gold on this day

So, people today buy gold and they gift each other. Today if you get anything, it will always grow. You gift, or you buy, it all grows. That is the belief. We are encouraged not to buy gold but to donate to the poor and needy that die of hunger and thirst in this material world that is governed by demons, false leaders and thieves that steal from the poor and live in luxurious homes and enjoy all the pleasures of the world while the poor suffer.

Every day is a celebration! All that we need to know is that this world that we are in, all these things, are ultimately nothing! One day we will leave all this here only. Our body too will go back to this Earth. But you, the spirit will be alive. You will rise up because you are eternal.

Nothing is impossible. Not only spiritual upliftment, even material things can flow when the devotion is very strong. That is the essence of this story.

We are all here just for a few years, but the world remains for so many millions of years. The trees are there, the birds are there, the clouds are forming, rain comes, Sun is shining. This whole phenomenon is happening since billions of years. In another 40-50 years all of us will be gone, but this whole thing will continue. That is the Divinity.

Importance of Anna Daan (Food Donation) on Akshaya Tritiya

One of the most revered traditions associated with Akshaya Tritiya is the act of charity, particularly food donation (Annadanam). Giving food to the needy is regarded as a virtuous deed that not only helps alleviate hunger but also earns immense blessings and merit according to Hindu scriptures. It is believed that by feeding others on this auspicious day, one ensures perpetual prosperity and blessings from the divine. Get together with other families and cook a nice nourishing meal and serve this to the poor and needy. Take a vow and make this a regular practise. This will automatically bring progress and true happiness to you and your family.