Moon day · The ancestors
Amavasya
The new moon, a day to remember the ancestors. Offerings of water and sesame (tarpan) are made for them.
- Next Amavasya
- Monday 9 November 2026
- New Delhi
For New Delhi, Monday 9 November 2026
Amavasya tithi
- Begins
- 11:28 am, 8 Nov
- Ends
- 12:32 pm
- Sunrise
- 6:39 am
- Sunset
- 5:31 pm
- Moonrise
- 6:40 am
- Moonset
- 5:12 pm
Worked out for your city. Panchangs can differ by a minute or so.
Full panchang for this day →How it is kept
Customs vary by region and family
- Offer tarpan to the ancestors
- Give food or charity
- Keep the day quiet and simple
What it remembers
Amavasya, the new moon, closes the dark fortnight every month. It is the day for the ancestors, the pitrs: water and sesame are offered for them (tarpan), food is given in their name, and the day is kept quiet. Auspicious beginnings are avoided. Some Amavasyas are great days of their own: Mahalaya, Diwali, Mauni Amavasya, and Somvati Amavasya when it falls on a Monday.
Remembering the ancestors
Amavasya is kept simply. Tarpan is offered in the morning or Aparahna (the afternoon), and the rest of the day is quiet. Families keep it in many ways; follow your own tradition where it differs.
- Bathe early, in a river if you can.
- Offer tarpan for the ancestors: facing south, pour water mixed with black sesame through the fingers, saying their names.
- Give food, clothes or grain to the poor or to a brahmin in the ancestors’ names, and feed crows, cows and dogs, held to carry offerings to the pitrs.
- Light a lamp of sesame oil under a peepal tree in the evening.
- Keep the day quiet: many fast or eat simply, and avoid starting new work, buying new things or cutting hair.
What you need
- Black sesame and water for tarpan
- Rice, food or grain to give away
- A lamp of sesame oil
- Kusha grass, if your family uses it
Across India
Across India
Tarpan at river ghats on the new moon, above all at Gaya, Varanasi, Prayagraj and Haridwar.
Bengal
Mahalaya: tarpan at the Ganga at dawn, and the radio recital of Mahishasura Mardini that calls Durga home.
Tamil Nadu
Thai, Aadi and Mahalaya Amavasai: tarpan at the sea at Rameswaram and Kanyakumari.
North India
Somvati Amavasya: women walk around the peepal tree 108 times when the new moon falls on a Monday.
When it falls
Once a month, on Amavasya. Kept on the day the 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.
Coming Amavasya dates
New Delhi, India time
- Mon 9 Nov 2026
- Tue 8 Dec 2026
- Thu 7 Jan 2027
- Sat 6 Feb 2027
- Mon 8 Mar 2027
- Tue 6 Apr 2027
- Thu 6 May 2027
- Fri 4 June 2027
- Sun 4 July 2027
- Mon 2 Aug 2027
- Tue 31 Aug 2027
- Thu 30 Sept 2027
Questions
When is Amavasya in 2026?
Monday 9 November 2026, 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 Amavasya fall?
Once a month, on Amavasya. Kept on the day the tithi holds at sunrise.
How is Amavasya kept?
Families offer tarpan to the ancestors, give food or charity and keep the day quiet and simple. Customs vary by region and family.
Who is honoured on Amavasya?
The ancestors. The new moon, a day to remember the ancestors. Offerings of water and sesame (tarpan) are made for them.
Why are new beginnings avoided on Amavasya?
The new moon is the darkest night, the moon at its lowest, and the day is given to the ancestors. So new ventures, purchases and ceremonies wait for the bright fortnight. Diwali, on the Amavasya of Kartika, is the great exception.
What is tarpan?
An offering of water mixed with black sesame, poured through the fingers while naming the ancestors, to satisfy them. It is made on every Amavasya, and above all during Pitru Paksha and on Mahalaya.
What are Somvati and Shanishchari Amavasya?
A new moon falling on a Monday (Somvati) or a Saturday (Shanishchari). Somvati Amavasya is held to be especially fruitful for a holy bath and for married women’s vows; Shanishchari for worship of Shani.