Hindu Festival Calendar 2026: Dates, Muhurat & Significance

Introduction to the Hindu Festival Calendar (हिन्दू त्योहार कैलेंडर का परिचय)

The Hindu festival calendar is lunisolar: it tracks the Moon's phases for the day of the month and the Sun's position for the month itself. That is why festival dates move by roughly eleven days against the Gregorian calendar each year, and why a date copied from last year's calendar is always wrong. Each festival is anchored to a specific tithi, the lunar day defined by the angular gap between Sun and Moon, so its Gregorian date has to be recomputed annually rather than remembered.

The year 2026 corresponds to Vikram Samvat 2082-2083 and Shaka Samvat 1948. Every date below is computed from the JPL DE421 planetary ephemeris rather than transcribed, and each one applies the classical rule specific to that festival, since a festival is not simply observed on the day its tithi begins. Times are given for New Delhi; tithi start and end instants hold everywhere, but sunrise, sunset and the pradosh window shift by minutes to about an hour elsewhere in India. For personalised festival guidance based on your birth chart, consult our expert Vedic astrologers.

Where Onam Is (ओणम के बारे में)

Onam is absent from the month lists above, deliberately. It is fixed by Thiruvonam nakshatra within the Malayalam solar month of Chingam rather than by a tithi, and in some years Chingam contains two Thiruvonams — 2024 had one on 19 August and another on 15 September, and the observed date was the later. We could not derive a rule that reproduces 2023, 2024 and 2025 together, so rather than print a date we are not confident in, we have left it out. If you need the Onam date for 2026, take it from a Kerala panchangam.

Major Festivals in Detail: Puja Vidhi and Muhurat (प्रमुख त्योहार विस्तार में: पूजा विधि और मुहूर्त)

The windows below are pradosh kaal, which runs from sunset to about two hours and twenty-four minutes after it, and nishita kaal, the hour around local midnight. Both derive directly from sunrise and sunset and so are stated exactly. Where a festival's classical muhurat depends on the rising sign rather than on sunset — the Vrishabha-kaal refinement for Lakshmi Puja, for instance — we have not asserted a time, because we have no validated way to compute it. Use the panchang tool or ask an astrologer for those.

Makar Sankranti — January 14, 2026 (मकर संक्रांति)

The Sun crosses into sidereal Capricorn at 15:04 IST on January 14, beginning Uttarayan. Punya Kaal is the daylight following the ingress, so on this occasion the afternoon rather than the morning carries it. Devotees bathe, offer til and gur to Surya, give in charity and fly kites. Because the festival tracks the Sun rather than the Moon, its date barely moves — which is exactly why an incorrect Makar Sankranti date can sit unnoticed on a page for years. Sunrise is 07:15 and sunset 17:45. This day matters especially to those with a prominent Sun in their horoscope.

Maha Shivratri — February 15, 2026 (महा शिवरात्रि)

Maha Shivratri falls on the Chaturdashi of the waning fortnight — Magha krishna 14 by amanta reckoning, which the same tithi is called Phalguna krishna 14 in the north Indian purnimanta system. In 2026 that Chaturdashi runs from 17:05 on February 15 to 17:34 on February 16, and because the festival is judged at nishita kaal, the midnight hour, it belongs to the night of February 15. Devotees fast, keep a vigil through four prahars, and offer bel patra, milk, water and dhatura to the Shiva Lingam while chanting Om Namah Shivaya.

Holika Dahan and Holi — March 2 and March 3, 2026 (होलिका दहन और होली)

The Phalguna Purnima runs from 17:56 on March 2 to 17:07 the next day. Holika Dahan needs that Purnima to prevail at pradosh, so the bonfire belongs to the evening of March 2, with pradosh kaal running 18:21-20:45. Rangwali Holi follows the next morning, March 3. One caveat worth stating: Bhadra, the Vishti karana, occupies the first half of every Purnima, and authorities differ on whether its mukha or puchha portion disqualifies the muhurat. That disagreement is why published Holika Dahan dates occasionally split between two evenings, and it is a genuine difference of jurisprudence rather than a calculation error on anyone's part.

Ram Navami — March 26, 2026 (राम नवमी)

Ram Navami is Chaitra shukla Navami, judged at madhyahna because Rama is held to have been born at midday. In 2026 the Navami runs 11:49 on March 26 to 10:07 on March 27. Madhyahna on March 26 falls inside that window; by the following midday the tithi has already ended. This is precisely the case where a sunrise rule would give the wrong day, since the Navami is still current at sunrise on March 27. Devotees fast, recite the Ramayana, perform the Ram Lalla Janmotsav with cradle rocking and offer panjeeri.

Chaitra and Sharad Navratri 2026 (चैत्र और शारदीय नवरात्रि)

Chaitra Navratri begins March 19 and Sharad Navratri October 11, 2026. Both are nine nights of Durga in her nine forms — Shailputri, Brahmacharini, Chandraghanta, Kushmanda, Skandamata, Katyayani, Kaalratri, Mahagauri and Siddhidatri. Ghatasthapana is performed on the first morning. In the Sharad cycle, Durga Ashtami falls October 19 and Maha Navami October 20; note that Maha Navami and Vijayadashami share October 20 in 2026, because the Navami ends at 12:50 that morning and the Dashami begins at 12:50 the same day. Devotees fast, recite the Durga Saptashati and perform kanya pujan on Ashtami or Navami. For how the Navratri period interacts with your own chart, see a kundli analysis.

Raksha Bandhan — August 28, 2026 (रक्षा बंधन)

Raksha Bandhan falls on the Shravana Purnima, which in 2026 runs from 09:09 on August 27 to 09:48 on August 28. Since the tithi ends at 09:48 that morning, the tying should be completed before then rather than through the day. Bhadra is the other constraint traditionally observed for the tying, and it sits in the earlier part of the Purnima. Sisters tie the rakhi on the right wrist, apply tilak and offer sweets; brothers reciprocate with gifts and a pledge of protection.

Krishna Janmashtami — September 4, 2026 (कृष्ण जन्माष्टमी)

Janmashtami is the Ashtami of the waning fortnight, judged at nishita kaal since Krishna was born at midnight. In 2026 that Ashtami runs 02:25 on September 4 to 00:14 on September 5, placing the midnight puja on the night of September 4. The Moon is in Rohini nakshatra, which is the traditional Janmashtami signature and a useful confirmation that the date is right. Be aware that Smarta and Vaishnava traditions observe Janmashtami a day apart in many years, so seeing two dates published is normal. Devotees keep a waterless fast, decorate a jhula for the infant Krishna and perform the midnight abhishekam with milk, curd, honey, ghee and tulsi.

Ganesh Chaturthi — September 14, 2026 (गणेश चतुर्थी)

Ganesh Chaturthi opens a ten-day festival that closes at Anant Chaturdashi on September 25. The Chaturthi runs 07:07 on September 14 to 07:44 the next morning, and the pranapratishtha is done at madhyahna, between sunrise at 06:05 and sunset at 18:27. The vidhi includes pranapratishtha, shodashopachara worship, modak and durva grass, and the Ganapati Atharvashirsha. An oddity of 2026: Hartalika Teej also falls on September 14, because the Tritiya is still current at that morning's sunrise and gives way to the Chaturthi only at 07:07.

Dussehra / Vijayadashami — October 20, 2026 (दशहरा / विजयादशमी)

Vijayadashami is judged in aparahna, the fourth of the five equal parts into which daylight is divided. With sunrise at 06:24 and sunset at 17:46 on October 20, that window sits in the early-to-mid afternoon, and the Dashami — running 12:50 that day to 14:12 the next — covers it. This is one of the three great abujh muhurats, auspicious for any new venture, journey or purchase without further checking. Shami Puja and Aparajita Puja belong to this window; the Ravana effigies burn in the evening.

The Five Days of Diwali — November 6 to November 11, 2026 (दिवाली के पांच दिन)

Diwali 2026 falls on Sunday, November 8. The Amavasya runs from 11:28 on November 8 to 12:32 the following day, and Lakshmi Puja requires it to prevail at pradosh. Pradosh kaal on November 8 runs 17:31-19:55, sunset being 17:31. The Amavasya ends at 12:32 on November 9, well before that evening's sunset, so the date is unambiguous in 2026 — unlike years such as 2024, when the Amavasya straddled two evenings and panchangs split between two dates.

Ganesha is worshipped first for the removal of obstacles, then Lakshmi for wealth and Saraswati for knowledge. Business families perform Chopda Puja on their account books. Note that Govardhan Puja falls on November 10 rather than the day immediately after Diwali, because the Amavasya persists through the sunrise of November 9 and the Pratipada only takes over later that day. For a fuller treatment see our Diwali 2026 muhurat guide.

Chhath Puja — November 15, 2026 (छठ पूजा)

Chhath spans four days: Nahay Khay, Kharna, Sandhya Arghya and Usha Arghya. The Sandhya Arghya, the evening offering to the setting sun, falls on November 15 with sunset at 17:27. The Usha Arghya to the rising sun follows the next morning, around 06:43, concluding a thirty-six hour waterless fast. Devotees stand in water offering thekua, fruit and sugarcane. The festival is kept chiefly for the health and welfare of children.

How Festival Dates Are Actually Fixed (त्योहार की तिथि कैसे निर्धारित होती है)

A tithi is the period during which the Moon gains twelve degrees of longitude on the Sun. Thirty tithis make a lunar month, fifteen waxing and fifteen waning. Because the Moon's speed varies, a tithi lasts anywhere from about nineteen to twenty-six hours, so it rarely lines up with a civil day. This single fact is the source of nearly all apparent inconsistency between calendars.

The consequence is that each festival needs a rule for which moment of the day its tithi must be current at. The rules actually in use are:

• Sunrise: the default. The tithi prevailing at sunrise names the day, which is how most vrats and Ekadashis are fixed.
• Madhyahna (midday): Ram Navami, Ganesh Chaturthi, Akshaya Tritiya and Bhai Dooj. This regularly falls a day earlier than the sunrise answer.
• Aparahna: the fourth of five parts of daylight. Vijayadashami uses it, and a sunrise rule gets Dussehra wrong in most years.
• Sayahna: the fifth part. Narasimha Jayanti needs the Chaturdashi to cover the whole of it, so a tithi starting mid-evening defers to the next day.
• Pradosh: sunset to about 2 hours 24 minutes after. This fixes Dhanteras, Narak Chaturdashi, Diwali, Chhath and Holika Dahan.
• Nishita: the hour around local midnight. Maha Shivratri, Janmashtami and Sharad Purnima are night observances and are judged here.

Two further rules resolve the awkward cases. A tithi shorter than a day can begin after one sunrise and end before the next, prevailing at no sunrise at all — tithi kshaya — and convention then observes it on the day it begins. Conversely a long tithi can span two sunrises, and the rule for that festival decides which day takes it. Alongside tithi, the panchang's other four limbs are nakshatra, the Moon's position among the twenty-seven lunar mansions; yoga, from the combined longitudes; karana, half a tithi; and vara, the weekday. Inauspicious spans such as Rahu Kaal, Yamaghanta and Gulika Kaal are avoided for starting ritual, while Abhijit Muhurat, roughly forty-eight minutes centred on solar noon — some twenty-four either side of it — is broadly auspicious. Our expert astrologers can compute these for your coordinates and chart.

Amanta, Purnimanta and Why Diwali Is “Kartik Amavasya” (अमांत और पूर्णिमांत)

Two month-naming conventions are in use, and confusing them shifts a date by a full month. In the amanta system, used in the south and west, a lunar month runs new moon to new moon. In the purnimanta system, used across the north, it runs full moon to full moon. For the waxing fortnight the two agree. For the waning fortnight the purnimanta month is one ahead of the amanta one.

Diwali is the clearest illustration. It is popularly called Kartik Amavasya, and that is correct purnimanta usage — but the same new moon closes the amanta month of Ashwina. Maha Shivratri is described as Phalguna krishna 14 in the north and is Magha krishna 14 by amanta reckoning; Janmashtami is called Bhadrapada krishna 8 but is Shravana krishna 8. The underlying astronomy is identical, which is why both systems land on the same civil day. Only the label differs. Each amanta month is named for the solar ingress that falls inside it, so the lunation containing the Sun's entry into Libra is Ashwina, and the Amavasya that ends it is Diwali.

An adhika maas arises when a lunation contains no ingress at all, which happens roughly every thirty-two months and reconciles the twelve lunar months of about 354 days with the solar year of about 365. The rarer kshaya maas is a lunation containing two. 2026 has an adhika maas, Adhika Jyeshtha, from May 17 to June 15, and it is excluded for auspicious beginnings.

Frequently Asked Questions (अक्सर पूछे जाने वाले प्रश्न)

Q1: When is Diwali in 2026, and what is the Lakshmi Puja muhurat?

Diwali 2026 is Sunday, November 8. Lakshmi Puja is performed in pradosh kaal, which runs 17:31-19:55 at New Delhi, sunset being 17:31. The Amavasya is current from 11:28 that day until 12:32 the next, so it covers that entire window. Adjust the times for your own city, since they follow local sunset. Many panchangs further narrow the muhurat to the portion falling in Vrishabha lagna; that refinement depends on the rising sign at your location, which is why we point you at a location-specific panchang rather than printing one time for the whole country.

Q2: Why do Hindu festival dates change every year?

Because the calendar is lunisolar. Twelve lunar months run about 354 days against a 365-day solar year, so festivals drift about eleven days earlier each year, then jump forward by roughly a month when an adhika maas is inserted to correct the accumulated gap. 2026 has one, which is why several festivals fall later than you might expect from 2025. There is no way to carry a date forward from last year; it has to be recomputed, which is what the derivation behind this page does.

Q3: Two calendars give me different dates for the same festival. Which is right?

Usually both are defensible. The three common causes are a genuine difference of tradition, as with Janmashtami's Smarta and Vaishnava observances; a disputed rule, as with which portion of Bhadra disqualifies Holika Dahan; and location, since sunrise and sunset differ across India and a tithi boundary falling near either one puts two cities on different days. Where a tithi boundary sits close to the deciding moment, expect disagreement and follow your family or regional tradition. Where the dates differ by a whole month, though, one of them is simply wrong — often a purnimanta month name applied to an amanta calculation.

Q4: Can I perform a festival puja if I miss the exact muhurat?

Yes. The tradition weights devotion above precise timing. If you miss the prescribed window, Abhijit Muhurat around midday or Brahma Muhurat, the ninety-six minutes before sunrise, both serve for most rituals. What matters more is a clear sankalpa and following the vidhi. The exception is a festival whose entire nature is a moment — the midnight abhishekam at Janmashtami, moonrise at Karva Chauth — where the timing is the observance itself.

Q5: Are these timings valid for my city?

The dates and the tithi start and end instants are valid everywhere, because a tithi is an angular relationship between Sun and Moon and does not depend on where you stand. Sunrise, sunset and therefore pradosh and nishita windows do depend on location, and shift by a few minutes to about an hour across India — enough that a tithi boundary landing near sunrise can put Mumbai and Kolkata on different days for the same festival. These are computed for New Delhi. Our astrologers can give you the windows for your exact coordinates.

Conclusion (निष्कर्ष)

2026 runs from Paush Purnima on January 3 to Geeta Jayanti on December 20, with Adhika Jyeshtha and a four-month Chaturmas shaping much of the second half. The dates here are computed rather than copied, and the classical rule fixing each one is stated so you can check the reasoning rather than take it on trust. Where we could not derive something reliably — Onam's date, the lagna-based refinement of the Lakshmi Puja muhurat — we have said so instead of filling the gap.

For anything tied to your own chart rather than the shared calendar — which festivals matter most for your planetary positions, when to begin something specific, whether a date works for your family — a general calendar cannot answer it. That needs your birth chart read alongside the panchang.