Bhāi Dūj, also called Yama Dvitīyā, is the sister and brother day that closes the Dīpāvali festival. Its name comes from the story of Yama, god of death, who visited his sister Yamunā on this tithi after a long absence. She received him with ārati, a tilaka mark and a meal of his favourite dishes. Pleased, Yama declared that any brother who receives his sister's tilaka on this day and eats at her home will be protected from untimely death (akāla mṛtyu). The custom kept in homes today re-enacts that welcome. How the day is fixed: The pañcāṅga takes Kārttika Śukla Dvitīyā at local sunrise. That is two days after the Dīpāvali new moon and the day after Govardhana Pūjā. Keep in mind: Because this is a bright-fortnight tithi, amānta and pūrṇimānta calendars both call it Kārttika Śukla Dvitīyā. The tithi is read at local sunrise, so when the Dvitīyā begins or ends near dawn the day can differ by one between places. This year: The 2027 date shown here is worked out from sunrise at the place you chose, so in another city the same day can fall a day earlier or later. Tilaka and ārati: The sister applies tilaka to her brother's forehead and performs ārati with a lit lamp. In Bengal the phonta is made of sandal paste, curd and kajal, placed three times with the little finger while the rhyme is recited. The meal and the gifts: The brother eats at his sister's home, and she serves the dishes he likes best. He in turn gives gifts or money and pledges his protection and support. When there is no brother: Where a sister has no living brother, some traditions have her worship Candra, the moon, in his place. The heart of the rite, tilaka, ārati and shared food, stays the same everywhere. Worth remembering: Bhāi Dūj closes the festival run that opens with Dhanteras and continues through Naraka Caturdaśī, Dīpāvali and Govardhana Pūjā. It is not Rakṣā Bandhan, the Śrāvaṇa Pūrṇimā day of the rākhī, and it is separate from regional sibling days such as the Tamil Kanu Pidi and the Odia Bhai Jiuntia. The day goes by many names: Bhāī Dūj in the Hindi belt, Bhāu Bīj in Mahārāṣṭra and Goa, Bhai Phõṭā in Bengal, Bhai Ṭīkā in Nepal and Bhaginī Hasta Bhōjanaṁ in Telugu homes. The order of the rite varies only a little between them, and some families also count a bath in the Yamunā as meritorious on this day. What goes on the plate, who travels to whose home and how the gifts are given are best settled by following the elders of one's own house.
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