Posted on : 6th October 2009
Bhai Dooj is celebrated on the last day of Diwali. This is the fifth day celebration of the diwali festival celebrating the eternal love between brothers and sisters. Bhai means brother, and Dooj represents the two days after new moon, i.e., two days after Diwali in Kartik month of Hindu calendar. Just like Raksha Bandhan, bhai dooj is a festival of brothers and sisters. The cutomary ritual of this celebration is to apply sacred tika by the sisters on their brother's forehead and pray for their long life. In returen, brother promise to take care of their sisters and bless them for a happy and prosperous life. Every religious festival has its own significance and there is always a story behind it. The bhai dooj festival is also associted with some legends which we have given below.

The Legend of Yamaraj and Yamuna
According to ancient reliious scriptures, Yama is god of the dead. Lord Yama was the son of the Sun God, Vivasvat, and had a twin-sister by the name of Yami or Yamuna. It is said that Yami was transformed into the sacred river Yamuna and many people used to take bath on holy days in the purifying waters of Yamuna. It is believed that once Yama was welcomed by his sister with an auspicious tilak (a red dot) on his forehead when he went to visit her. She also welcomed hime with a beautiful garland and fed him a delicious meal and sweets. Yama was very pleased by this gesture of her sister and as a token of love, he gave her a special gift. Yami also presented his brother a gift made with her own hands. Yamraj proclaimed that anyone who receives tilak from his sister will prosper in life. From then onwards, sisters welcome their brothers with the traditional tilak and sweets and brothers in turn give them gifts. The Bhai Dooj festival is also known as Yamadwititya.

The Legend of Shree Krishna
There is another legend associated with the festival. It is believed that when Lord Krishna went out on his mission to kill the demon Narakasur, after killing him he visited his sister Subhadra's house. Subhadra welcomed his brother with diya, flowers and sweets, and applied the holy red spot on her brother's forehead, symbolizing protection from all evils.

The Legend of Lord Mahavir
There is yet another story behind the origin of Bhai Dooj. It is said that when Mahavir, the founder of Jainism, attained nirvana, his brother King Nandivardhan was very sad. He missed his brother a lot and it was then his sister Sudarshana consoled and comforted him. Since then, women have been revered and respected during Bhai Dooj.