Festival · Vishnu and Lakshmi

Akshaya Tritiya

Akshaya means "never diminishing". Good deeds and new beginnings made today are believed to bring lasting results.

Akshaya Tritiya 2027
Sunday 9 May 2027
New Delhi

For New Delhi, Sunday 9 May 2027

Shukla Tritiya tithi

Begins
11:43 am, 8 May
Ends
9:04 am
Sunrise
5:35 am
Sunset
7:01 pm
Moonrise
7:45 am
Moonset
10:21 pm

Worked out for your city. Panchangs can differ by a minute or so.

Full panchang for this day →

Puja times

For New Delhi, Sunday 9 May 2027

Puja and new beginnings

5:35 am to 9:04 am

Purvahna Kaal
5:35 am to 12:18 pm
Midday
12:18 pm
Tritiya begins
11:43 am, 8 May
Tritiya ends
9:04 am

Worked out for your city. Panchangs can differ by a minute or so.

How it is kept

Customs vary by region and family

  • Give to charity
  • Begin new work or buy gold, a popular custom
  • Worship Vishnu and Lakshmi

What it remembers

Akshaya Tritiya is the third day of the bright fortnight of Vaishakha. Akshaya means never diminishing: whatever is begun or given on this day is held to grow and last, so it is the day for new ventures, for charity, for marriages, and for the gold that families buy as a token of lasting wealth. The whole day is auspicious; no muhurat need be sought.

Krishna and Sudama

The poor brahmin Sudama walked to Dwarka to see his childhood friend Krishna with nothing to offer but a handful of beaten rice. Krishna ate it with joy, and Sudama went home to find his hut a palace. The story is told on this day: a gift given with love, however small, returns without end.

The Akshaya Patra

In the forest the Pandavas had nothing to feed the sages who visited them. Draupadi prayed to the Sun, who gave her the Akshaya Patra, a vessel that was never empty until she herself had eaten. Krishna later saved them from Durvasa’s curse with a single grain left in it.

Parashurama and the Ganga

The day is the birthday of Parashurama, Vishnu’s sixth avatar, and the day the Ganga is said to have come down to earth from heaven. In the Mahabharata, Vyasa began dictating the epic to Ganesha on Akshaya Tritiya.

Kubera’s treasure

Tradition says that on this day Kubera, the treasurer of the gods, worshipped Lakshmi and received the keeping of the world’s wealth. Families worship Lakshmi and Kubera together in the evening, which is where the custom of buying gold comes from.

Giving and beginning

The day belongs to charity and to beginnings. The morning puja is kept while Tritiya holds; the giving goes on all day. Families keep it in many ways; follow your own tradition where it differs.

  1. Bathe early, ideally in a river; a dip in the Ganga on this day is held to be especially fruitful.
  2. In the morning, while Tritiya holds, worship Vishnu and Lakshmi with tulsi leaves, flowers and a lamp. Many also worship Kubera.
  3. Give what cools: water in earthen pots, buttermilk, fans, umbrellas, sandals, and fruit, since the day falls at the start of the hot season. Grain, clothes and money to the poor carry the same merit.
  4. Begin something: a new account book, a first lesson, the foundation of a house, a marriage. No separate muhurat is needed on this day.
  5. Buy gold or silver if your family keeps the custom, even a small coin; it is a token of Lakshmi, not the point of the day.
  6. Feed brahmins or anyone in need, and share a meal with the family.
  7. In the evening, light a lamp before Lakshmi and read the story of Sudama.

What you need

  • Images of Vishnu and Lakshmi, tulsi leaves and flowers
  • Earthen pots of water, buttermilk, fruit and grain to give away
  • A lamp, incense and sandalwood
  • A new account book or the first thing of a new venture
  • A small piece of gold or silver, if the family buys one

Across India

Across India

New ventures, marriages without a muhurat, and gold bought in every city; the jewellers’ busiest day of the year.

Odisha

Akhi Muthi Anukula: farmers sow the first paddy of the year, and at Puri the carpenters begin building the chariots for the Rath Yatra.

Vrindavan and Mathura

The only day of the year the feet of Banke Bihari are shown, and the deities are anointed with sandalwood paste against the heat.

Badrinath

The doors of the Badrinath temple open for the year on or near this day, after the winter closing.

Bengal

Halkhata: shopkeepers open new account books for the year with a Lakshmi-Ganesha puja and sweets for their customers.

Jain tradition

The day the first Tirthankara, Rishabhanatha, broke a year-long fast with sugarcane juice; Jains who keep the Varshi Tap fast end it today at Palitana and Hastinapur.

When it falls

Shukla Tritiya of Vaishakha. Kept on the day this tithi holds at sunrise.

These are the usual rules. A few days can differ by a day in your tradition, so check with your temple.

Akshaya Tritiya in the coming years

New Delhi, India time

  1. 2027Sunday 9 May 2027
  2. 2028Thursday 27 April 2028

Questions

When is Akshaya Tritiya in 2027?

Sunday 9 May 2027, in New Delhi. In a few places it can fall a day apart, so the date above is worked out for your city.

When does Akshaya Tritiya fall?

Shukla Tritiya of Vaishakha. Kept on the day this tithi holds at sunrise.

How is Akshaya Tritiya kept?

Families give to charity, begin new work or buy gold, a popular custom and worship Vishnu and Lakshmi. Customs vary by region and family.

Who is honoured on Akshaya Tritiya?

Vishnu and Lakshmi. Akshaya means "never diminishing". Good deeds and new beginnings made today are believed to bring lasting results.

Is Akshaya Tritiya only about buying gold?

No. The old meaning is that good done on this day never diminishes: charity, a bath in the Ganga, a new beginning, a marriage. Gold came in through the worship of Lakshmi and Kubera, as a token of lasting wealth; a single coin keeps the custom.

When is the puja done?

In the morning, from sunrise to midday, while the Tritiya tithi holds; the page shows that time for your city. The giving and the new beginnings are good all day; the day as a whole is held to be auspicious.

Why does the day need no muhurat?

Akshaya Tritiya is one of the three and a half unbroken muhurats of the year (with Ugadi, Vijayadashami and half of Diwali’s Pratipada), when any good work may begin at any hour. That is why marriages and house-warmings crowd on to it.

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