4/20/2020 Dhanvantari - Wikipedia

Dhanvantari
Dhanvantari is the Hindu god of medicine and an avatar of
Lord Mahavishnu. He is mentioned in the Puranas as the god of Dhanwantari
Ayurveda. He, during the Samudramanthan arose from the God of Ayurveda
Ocean of Milk with the nectar of immortality. It is common Physician of the Gods
practice in Hinduism for worshipers to pray to Dhanvantari
and Doctors
seeking his blessings for sound health for themselves and/or
others, especially on Dhanteras or Dhanwantari Trayodashi. The
Indian Government has declared that Dhanwantari Trayodashii
Kumara every year would be celebrated as "National Ayurveda
Day".[1]

Contents
Textual sources
Iconography
Birthday celebration
Temples in India
See also
References
Further reading
External links

Dhanvantari
Textual sources Pali ඕ ධ ව ත නම
Affiliation Adi Narayana, Deva
"Ramayana Balakaand" and Bhagavata Purana state that
Dhanvantari emerged from the Ocean of Milk and appeared with Abode Samudra
the pot of amrita (elixir for immortality) during the story of the Mantra नमािम...
Samudra (or) Sagara Mathana whilst the ocean was being
Weapon Shankha, Chakra
churned by the Devas and Asuras, using the Mandara mountain
and the serpent Vasuki. The pot of Amrita was snatched by the Symbols Amrita, Leech
Asuras, and after this event another avatar, Mohini, appears and Mount Lotus
takes the nectar back from the Asuras. It is also believed that
Festivals Dhanteras
Dhanvantari promulgated the practice of Ayurveda.[2] Of special
mention here is the treatise of Dhanvantari-Nighantu, which
completely elucidates Dhanvantari's medicinal plants.[3]

Iconography
According to the ancient Sanskrit work Vishnudharamottara, Dhanvantari is a handsome individual
and should usually be depicted with four hands, with one of them carrying Amrita, the ambrosia.
Dhanvantari is depicted as Vishnu with four hands, holding Shankha, Chakra, Jalauka (leech) and a
pot containing Amrita. He is often shown with a leech in his hand rather than the scripturesres.

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In ancient texts there are some shlokas devoted to origin of Lord Dhanvantari:

ॐ शंखं च ं जलौकां दधदमृतघटं चा दोिभ तुिमः।

सू ाित ां शुक प रिवलस ौिलमंभोजने म॥

काला ोदो लां गं किटतटिवलस ा पीतां बरा म।

व े ध ंत रं तं िन खलगदवन ौढदावाि लीलम॥

सू ाित ां शुक प रिवलस ौिलमंभोजने म॥

Birthday celebration
His birthday is celebrated by the practitioners of Ayurveda every year, on Dhanteras, two days before
Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights. It is also celebrated as National Ayurveda Day in India.[1] The
National Ayurveda Day celebrations started since 2016.

Temples in India
Dhanvantari temple in Maharashtra:

In Konkan, There is a Dhanvantari temple at Dapoli, District

Ratnagiri, Maharashtra. It belongs to Dongare family and is
owned and run by Vaidya Aniruddha Dongare. Many devotees
from konkan and rest of Maharashtra visit the temple and offer
their prayers. Statue of Dhanvantari at
Tarakeshwar temple
There are a few dedicated temples to Dhanvantari in South India
especially in Kerala and Tamil Nadu, where ayurveda is highly
practised and patronised. The Thottuva Dhanwanthari temple in Kerala is
a particularly famous temple, where Lord Dhanvantari's idol is almost six
feet tall and facing east. On the right hand the lord holds Amrith and with
the left hand the lord holds Atta, Shanku and Chakra. The 'Ekadasi' day
celebration, which falls on the same day as the 'Guruvayur Ekadasi' is of
special significance.

In Tamil Nadu, in the courtyard of Sri Ranganathaswamy Temple

(Srirangam), there is a Dhanvantari shrine where daily worship of the
deity is performed. In front of this temple there is an engraved stone
believed to be from the 12th century. According to the writings on the
stone, Garuda Vahana Bhattar, a great ayurvedic physician, established
the statue inside the temple. A prasada or theertham, a herbal decoction,
is given to the visitors. The shrine is the oldest Dhanvantari shrine in the
state.[4] Another Dhanvantari shrine is found in the second precinct of
Varadaraja Perumal Temple in Kanchipuram.[5] God Shri Dhanvantari at
Ayurved Sankul Anand,
Dhanvanthari temples in Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Puducherry include: which is a premier
institute of Ayurveda
Nelluvai Dhanwantari Temple, Wadakkanchery, Thrissur, Kerala situated in the Milk City of
Sri Danvantri Arogya Peedam, Walajapet, Vellore District, India, Anand, Gujarat.
Tamilnadu[6]

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Thevalakkadu Sree Dhanwanthari Temple, Kulasekharamangalam Post, Vaikom, Kottayam,

Kerala[7]
Aanakkal Dhanwanthari Temple, Thaniyathukunnu, Thrissur[8]
Sree Dhanwanthari Temple, Ramanathapuram, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu[9]
Sree Dhanwanthari Temple, Maruthorvattom, Cherthala, Kerala[10]
Sree Dhanwanthari Temple, Prayikara, Mavelikara, Alleppey, Kerala[11]
Sree Dhanwanthari Temple Elanthoor, Pathanamthitta, Kerala
Sri Dhanvantri Swamy Sannidhi within the Sanjeevi Vinayakar Temple, JIPMER campus
Shri Aalkkalmanna Dhanwanthari Temple is situated at Eranthod Village, Angadippuram
Panchayat, Perintalmanna Taluk of Malappuram District.
There is also Sri Murrari Dhanvantri Moorthi Kshetram temple in kollam district(boothakulam)
paravur.It belongs to a family called Thundvilla, it is owned and run by the family members itself
.People offer prayer for there beloved ones and offer paalpayasam to god .
Shri Dhanvantari Temple, Palluruthy, Kochi, Kerala is a small temple managed by Gowda
Saraswath Brahmin Community.

In Varanaseya Sanskrit Vishwavidyalaya, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh state, one statue of Dhanvantari is
present in the University museum. Two statues are at the headquarters of the Central Council for
Research in Ayurveda and Siddha at New Delhi. There is another statue inside the Ayurveda Maha
Sammelan office, Dhanawantari Bhawan at New Delhi and one statue of Dhanvantari is present at
Mohyal Ashram in Haridwar.

See also
Ashvins
Ayurveda

References
1. "Dhanteras to be observed as National Ayurveda Day - Times of India" (http://timesofindia.indiati
mes.com/city/varanasi/Dhanteras-to-be-observed-as-National-Ayurveda-Day/articleshow/545990
37.cms).
2. Madhavan 2007, p. 107
3. Dhanvantari-Nighantu [1] (https://www.exoticindiaart.com/book/details/studies-on-medicinal-plane
ts-and-drugs-in-dhanvantari-nighantu-two-volumes-NAD479/)[2] (http://www.saujanyabooks.com/
details.aspx?id=34040)[3] (https://www.scribd.com/doc/290274952/dhanvantari-nighantu-pdf)[4]
(http://www.vaidyaraj-ayurveda.com/dhanvantari.html)[5] (https://docslide.us/documents/dhanvant
ari-nighantupdf.html)[6] (https://www.amazon.in/Dhanvantari-Nighantu-Sanskrit-Text-English-Tran
slation/dp/8189469126)
4. Madhavan 2007, p. 108
5. Madhavan 2007, p. 110
6. "Sri Danvantri Temple" (http://www.danvantritemple.org). www.danvantritemple.org.
7. "Thevalakkadu Sree Dhanwanthari Temple Kulasekharamangalam, Vaikom, Kottayam, Kerala,
India" (http://www.sreedhanwantharitemple.in). www.sreedhanwantharitemple.in.
8. "Archived copy" (https://web.archive.org/web/20131022060438/http://aanakkaldhanwanthari.com/
home.htm). Archived from the original (http://aanakkaldhanwanthari.com/home.htm) on 22
October 2013. Retrieved 15 October 2013.
9. http://temples.avpayurveda.com Archived (https://web.archive.org/web/20140301222422/http://te
mples.avpayurveda.com/) 1 March 2014 at the Wayback Machine

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10. "Official website of Maruthorvattom Sree Dhanwanthari Temple: Temple of Lord Dhanwanthari,
the Master God of Ayurveda" (http://www.dhanwantharitemple.org).
www.dhanwantharitemple.org.
11. "Sree Dhanwanthari Temple Prayikara, Mavelikara" (http://sreedhanwantharitemple.com/index.ht
ml). sreedhanwantharitemple.com.

Further reading
Madhavan, Chitra (2008). Vishnu temples of South India, Volume two. Chitra Madhavan.
ISBN 978-81-908445-1-2.
Kalyan Hindi monthly magazine, March 2001 issue, Geeta Press, Gorakhpur, UP

External links
Hindu God Dhanwantari: The promulgator of Ayurveda. (http://www.sanatansociety.org/hindu_god
s_and_goddesses/dhanwantari.htm)
Does Ayurveda begin with Dhanvantari, the ancient physician? By D.P. Agrawal (http://www.infinit
yfoundation.com/mandala/t_es/t_es_agraw_physician_frameset.htm)
Dhanvantari in the Bhagavata Purana (https://web.archive.org/web/20070930163831/http://vedab
ase.net/sb/9/17/4/en1)

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