Gold & Diwali: Everything You Need to Know
Each year, millions of Hindus, Sikhs, Jains and Buddhists worldwide celebrate Diwali, also known as the Festival of Lights. The origins of Diwali date back more than 2,500 years.
While the festival is a joyous celebration of light triumphing over darkness, it also marks a time for new beginnings, prosperity, and wealth. One of the most cherished Diwali traditions is purchasing gold, a symbol of wealth, purity, and good fortune.
Diwali typically falls between late October and mid-November, with this year’s celebrations landing on October 31st and November 1st.
The Origins of Diwali
Among the many legends linked to Diwali is the story of Dhanteras, the first day of the five-day festival.
What Is Dhanteras?
The legend tells the story of the 16-year-old son of King Hima, who is newly married and told of his demise in a horoscope reading. He is told that on the fourth day of his marriage, he will die from a snakebite.
On the day of his prophesied death, his new wife prevents her husband from sleeping and lays ornaments, jewellery and gold and silver coins at the door of their sleeping chamber. She also lights lamps in the room, sings songs and tells stories to keep her husband awake all night and ward off Yama, the God of Death.
When Yama, the God of Death, arrived as a serpent to kill the prince, he was blinded by the brilliance of the coins and lamps and could not enter the chamber. Instead, he just sat and listened intently to the songs and stories told by the princess before slithering away at dawn, leaving the prince completely unharmed.
The ingenuity of his new wife and the prince’s brush with death came to be celebrated as Dhanteras, the first day (followed by Choti Diwali, Diwali, Betsu Baras, and Bhai Beej) of the five-day festival.
As a result, today, Dhanteras has become auspicious for making new purchases, including gold and silver, as new precious metal purchases signify protection, prosperity, and good fortune for the year ahead.
To put Diwali into true context, it is often considered the Indian equivalent of Christmas. Retail sales of gold jewellery are known to increase up to 30-40% during Dhanteras.
India’s relationship with gold has evolved over centuries of tradition. It is purchased during Dhanteras to celebrate wealth, purity, and prosperity.
Gold in Indian Traditions
Precious metals and their associated legends run deep in Indian culture. They transcend Diwali and tap into different aspects of society, such as religion, family, and social status.
Gold has grown stronger over the centuries and is a standard fixture in the homes and hearts of the Indian people. India is the second biggest importer of gold in the world.
Gold as a Religious Symbol
Gold is a vital component of religious events across India. Hindus, Sikhs, Jainists, and Christians consider gold a key part of their worship. Sharing and presenting gold as a gift is customary at many religious gatherings.
The Role of Gold in Family Inheritance
Gold is present in most Indian households in some form and is often passed through generations. On wedding days, mothers commonly bequeath gold jewellery to their daughters and relatives, and this is considered the best way to preserve wealth within the family.
Gifting Gold
Offering gold gifts is considered prosperous. Gifting gold represents the value of the individual and is regarded as being free from impurities. Gold often exchanges hands at births and birthdays, even in more impoverished areas of the country.
Gold Indicates Social Status
In India, gold is the most prominent indicator of social status. With a population of over 2.2 billion, gold allows its owner to stand out in the crowd. This is by no means a new phenomenon; it has carried the same sense of significance throughout the ages.
Invest in Gold This Diwali
Over the past few years, Diwali gifts have moved into other, more gold investment-heavy avenues. Many consider gold coins and bullion an excellent investment opportunity at this time of year.
Gold is spiritually connected to Indian culture, but making these purchases now requires a distinct level of financial savviness. For centuries, gold has been a buffer against inflation and flailing economies.
Although global markets have largely recovered from the financial crises, social and geopolitical concerns create a volatile marketplace. India primarily follows this trend, with inflation increasing exponentially as the value of the rupee has plummeted.
For many Hindus celebrating Diwali, purchasing gold is essential to the religious tradition and is seen as a sensible investment in difficult times.
When To Buy Gold
In September, gold prices continued to rise, with record prices causing a dip in consumer demand everywhere except India, following their import duty cut. Analysis indicates that Diwali will see gold prices rise; in previous years, this has caused increases of 3.9%. Dynamic charts can help track the price of gold (Source: Sharps Pixley September Market Update).
Each year in October and November, Hindus in every corner of the world celebrate Diwali – the festival of lights; a tradition stretching back more than 2,500 years. Although it is widely observed all over the world, nowhere is it more important than in India,where it is deemed the most significant festival on the national calendar.