Vasant Panchami 2024

Vasant Panchami falls on the fifth day of the bright half of Magha. It is a day to worship Saraswati, mark the start of a child’s learning and welcome spring. Customs vary by region. This story comes from the local tradition of the Gnana Saraswati Temple in Basara, Telangana, where Ved Vyasa is said to have established three forms of the Goddess by the Godavari.

After the Mahabharata war, Ved Vyasa travelled south in search of peace of mind. He reached the Dandakaranya region. He liked the quiet surroundings on the banks of the Godavari and stayed there to worship Saraswati and practise austerities.

There was a cave in the area known as Kumarachala. Vyasa practised his austerities there. Each day he rose early and went to bathe in the Godavari. He would return to sit in meditation and worship Saraswati until sunset. In the story, Saraswati appeared to him and blessed him.

During this time Vyasa had a dream. Saraswati told him to bring sand from the Godavari each day after bathing. Before sitting down to meditate, he was to place the sand in three heaps in the cave. Vyasa began following her instructions.

Day after day he brought sand from the river, made the three heaps and continued his worship. In time, through Vyasa’s austerities and meditation, three forms of the Goddess appeared from the heaps. One was Mahasaraswati, one Mahalakshmi and one Mahakali.

Vyasa installed the three images and began to worship them. He lived there for a long time. In the local story, the place first came to be called Vasara and later Basara. This is how a place of worship for Saraswati, Lakshmi and Kali came to stand on the banks of the Godavari.

At this festival people worship Saraswati as the goddess of knowledge, music and the arts. The day is also associated with the beginning of a child’s learning and the welcome of spring.

Families and temples worship Saraswati according to their own traditions. Students place books and writing materials in the place of worship. Some families have young children write their first letter to begin their learning. In many places people wear yellow. On Vasant Panchami, families come to Basara to see Saraswati and help their children write their first letter. The time for worship follows the local calendar and the family’s tradition.

In West Bengal and Odisha this festival is also celebrated as Saraswati Puja. In West Bengal, the ceremony of having a child write their first letter is called Hate Khori. At Basara in Telangana, the worship of Saraswati and the first-letter ceremony have special importance. In the Swaminarayan tradition, the Shikshapatri is remembered on this day. BAPS also celebrates the birth anniversary of Shastriji Maharaj.