The Ministry of AYUSH has selected three renowned Ayurveda experts namely Vaidya Shiv Kumar Mishra, Vaidya Madhav Singh Bhagel and Vaidya Itoozhi Bhavadasan Namboothiri for the prestigious National Dhanwantari Ayurveda Award for the year 2018.
The day will also mark the launch of AYUSH-Health Management Information System (A-HMIS), a dedicated software application for Electronic Health Record (EHR) for the AYUSH systems of Healthcare.
Historical significance of Dhanteras:
Dhanteras, which is also known as Dhantrayodashi or Dhanawantari Jayanti, is celebrated a couple of days before Diwali. According to hindu calendar Dhanteras is celebrated on the 13th lunar day of Krishna Paksha in Vikram Samvat in the month of Karthik. On the this day the God of Ayurveda, Dhanvantari, is worshipped to acquire the knowledge and wisdom of Ayurveda.
Why we celebrate Dhanteras:
According to hindu mythology when Devas (Gods) and Asuras (Devil) came together for Samudra Manthan (churning of Sea) for Amrit (Elixir), on the day of Dhanteras, Lord Dhanvantari emerged out of the ocean carrying a jar of elixir.
As Goddess Lakshmi also emerged out of the ocean on the very same day during Samundra Manthan, she is also worshipped along Kuber (God of Money).