Why is Kurma Jayanti Important to Hindus?

Significance Of Kurma Jayanti

Kurma Jayanti is a very auspicious festival of Hinduism. This day is celebrated as the event of Lord Shri Hari Vishnu’s second Avatar – Kurma. On this day, sculptures of Lord Vishnu are worshipped all over India, and special events are organised to receive blessings and live a happy and prosperous life.

Why is Kurma Jayanti Important to Hindus?

Kurma Jayanti is celebrated as Lord Vishnu on this day manifested himself in the form of a tortoise, which is known as “Kurma” in the Sanskrit language. According to the Hindu Calendar or “Panchang”, Kurma Jayanti is celebrated on the full moon day(Purnima) of the month of “Vaishakh”.

According to the holy scripture “Bhagavata Purana,” it is believed that to support the Madaranchal Parvat, Lord Vishnu took this avatar during “Ksheer Sagar Manthana”, and in the remembrance of this day, people started celebrating Kurma Jayanti. As this incarnation is in the form of a tortoise, it is believed to be very lucky to start construction work or to shift to a new house according to “Vaastu”. So, this is what Kurma Jayanti Story is.

Why did Lord Vishnu need to take such an Avatar?

According to the Hindu Holy Scripture “Bhagavata Purana”, it is believed that when the “Ksheer Samudra Manthan” was taking place, the Madaranchal Parvat was used as the rod, and the Vasuki-the naga raj(The Chariot of Lord Vishnu) was used as the rope to churn the ocean during extraction.

During the course of extraction, the gods and the demons were asked to churn it to take out Elixir from it. However, due to the gravitational pull and the weight of the mountain, the mountain began to sink and to stop the mountain from sinking, Lord Vishnu incarnated himself in the form of a Large Tortoise and took the Mandrachal mountain on his back so that the process could be continued. Without the Kurma Jayanti Avatar of Lord Vishnu, the process of churning the ocean and extracting the 14 gems from it for the Gods couldn’t be completed.

During the course of extraction, both Elixir and Poison was extracted, and there was huge chaos between the two groups, namely, the devas(Gods) and Asuras(Demons), to drink the Elixir. Still, the third Avatar(Incarnation) of Lord Vishnu resolved the fight.