Festival · Kaal Bhairav
Kalabhairav Jayanti
The appearance of Kaal Bhairav, the fierce form of Lord Shiva and guardian of Kashi, on the eighth day of the waning moon in Margashirsha (Kartika in the southern calendar). Also called Bhairava Ashtami; devotees keep watch through the night.
- Kalabhairav Jayanti 2026
- Tuesday 1 December 2026
- New Delhi
For New Delhi, Tuesday 1 December 2026
Krishna Ashtami tithi
- Begins
- 12:12 am
- Ends
- 11:14 pm
- Sunrise
- 6:56 am
- Sunset
- 5:24 pm
- Moonrise
- 12:42 am, 2 Dec
- Moonset
- 12:33 pm
Worked out for your city. Panchangs can differ by a minute or so.
Full panchang for this day →Puja times
For New Delhi, Tuesday 1 December 2026
Night puja, while Ashtami lasts
5:24 pm to 11:14 pm
- Nishita Kaal (Ashtami is over)
- 11:43 pm to 12:37 am, 2 Dec
- Pradosh Kaal
- 5:24 pm to 8:06 pm
- Ashtami begins
- 12:12 am
- Ashtami ends
- 11:14 pm
Worked out for your city. Panchangs can differ by a minute or so.
How it is kept
Customs vary by region and family
- Fast through the day and worship at night, with an aarti at midnight
- Light a lamp of mustard oil and offer black sesame and flowers
- Recite the Bhairav Chalisa and feed dogs, his mount
What it remembers
Kalabhairav Jayanti, also called Bhairava Ashtami, marks the appearance of Kaal Bhairav, the fierce form of Lord Shiva who is Time itself and the guardian of Kashi. It falls on the eighth night of the waning moon in Margashirsha by the northern calendar, the month the southern calendar calls Kartika, so all of India keeps the same day. It is a night festival: devotees fast, keep watch, and gather for his aarti at midnight.
Keeping the night
Kalabhairav Jayanti is kept through the night, with the main worship at midnight. Families keep it in many ways; follow your own tradition where it differs.
- Fast through the day, on fruit and milk or without food, as you are able.
- Bathe in the evening and set up an image or picture of Kaal Bhairav, or worship at a Bhairav or Shiva temple.
- Light a lamp of mustard oil, and offer black sesame, flowers, incense and a coconut or sweets.
- Recite the Bhairav Chalisa, or the Kalabhairava Ashtakam of Adi Shankaracharya, and chant Om Kalabhairavaya Namah.
- Keep watch through the night, with bhajans, and join the aarti at midnight, in Nishita Kaal.
- Feed dogs, his mount, with bread or milk, and give to those in need.
- Break the fast the next morning, after sunrise.
What you need
- An image or picture of Kaal Bhairav
- Mustard oil and a lamp
- Black sesame, flowers and incense
- A coconut or sweets to offer
- The Bhairav Chalisa to read from
Across India
Varanasi
At the Kaal Bhairav temple the cloth that covers his image all year is taken away for the day, and he is dressed in a garland of silver skulls. Devotees queue through the night for the midnight aarti.
Ujjain
The Kal Bhairav temple, a guardian of the city of Mahakal, known for its old custom of offering liquor to the god, is crowded through the night.
Karnataka
Kept as Karthika Bahulashtami, by the southern calendar, above all at Adichunchanagiri, the seat of Kala Bhairaveshwara.
Nepal
In Kathmandu, the great image of Kal Bhairav in Durbar Square, the old royal square, is worshipped with lamps and offerings.
When it falls
Krishna Ashtami of Kartika (Margashirsha in North India). Kept on the day this tithi holds at night, a ghati after Pradosh Kaal.
These are the usual rules. A few days can differ by a day in your tradition, so check with your temple.
Kalabhairav Jayanti in the coming years
New Delhi, India time
- 2026Tuesday 1 December 2026
- 2027Saturday 20 November 2027
- 2028Thursday 9 November 2028
Questions
When is Kalabhairav Jayanti in 2026?
Tuesday 1 December 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 Kalabhairav Jayanti fall?
Krishna Ashtami of Kartika (Margashirsha in North India). Kept on the day this tithi holds at night, a ghati after Pradosh Kaal.
How is Kalabhairav Jayanti kept?
Families fast through the day and worship at night, with an aarti at midnight, light a lamp of mustard oil and offer black sesame and flowers and recite the Bhairav Chalisa and feed dogs, his mount. Customs vary by region and family.
Who is honoured on Kalabhairav Jayanti?
Kaal Bhairav. The appearance of Kaal Bhairav, the fierce form of Lord Shiva and guardian of Kashi, on the eighth day of the waning moon in Margashirsha (Kartika in the southern calendar). Also called Bhairava Ashtami; devotees keep watch through the night.
Is Kalabhairav Jayanti in Margashirsha or Kartika?
Both names point to the same day. In the northern calendar the month ends at the full moon, so the waning half after the Kartika full moon belongs to Margashirsha; the southern calendar, whose months end at the new moon, still counts it as Kartika. The eighth night of that waning moon is his Jayanti everywhere.
Why is it kept at night?
Kaal Bhairav is worshipped at night, and his Jayanti is a night fast. The day is the one on which Ashtami lasts into the night, past Pradosh Kaal, and the main aarti is at midnight. When Ashtami holds into the night on two days, the later day, the one on whose sunrise Ashtami holds, is kept.
Is it the same as Kalashtami?
It is the greatest of the year’s Kalashtamis. Every eighth night of the waning moon is his Kalashtami; the one in Margashirsha is the night he appeared, kept as Kalabhairav Jayanti. The calendar shows it under that name alone.