Festival · Parvati, Shiva and Ganesha
Karwa Chauth
Married women fast from sunrise until the moon rises, praying for their husbands’ long life and wellbeing.
- Karwa Chauth 2026
- Thursday 29 October 2026
- New Delhi
For New Delhi, Thursday 29 October 2026
Krishna Chaturthi tithi
- Begins
- 1:07 am
- Ends
- 10:11 pm
- Sunrise
- 6:31 am
- Sunset
- 5:39 pm
- Moonrise
- 8:17 pm
- Moonset
- 9:52 am
Worked out for your city. Panchangs can differ by a minute or so.
Full panchang for this day →Puja times
For New Delhi, Thursday 29 October 2026
Moonrise (the fast ends)
8:17 pm
- Karwa Chauth puja
- 5:39 pm to 6:56 pm
- The fast
- 6:31 am to 8:17 pm
- Chaturthi begins
- 1:07 am
- Chaturthi ends
- 10:11 pm
Worked out for your city. Panchangs can differ by a minute or so.
How it is kept
Customs vary by region and family
- Eat sargi before dawn
- Fast through the day, often without water
- Break the fast after seeing the moon
What it remembers
Karwa Chauth is the fourth day of the dark fortnight of Kartika (Ashvina where months end at the new moon). Married women, mostly in the north and west, fast from sunrise until the moon rises, without food or water, for their husbands’ long life. The karwa, an earthen pot, gives the day its name; the fast is broken after seeing the moon through a sieve.
Keeping the fast
The fast runs from sunrise to moonrise; the puja is in the evening, just after sunset, and the fast ends when the moon is seen. Families keep it in many ways; follow your own tradition where it differs.
- Before dawn, eat the sargi given by the mother-in-law: fruit, sweets, mathri, dry fruit and feni.
- Fast from sunrise without food or water (nirjala), or with water if health needs it. Dress in red or bridal clothes and apply mehndi.
- In the evening puja time, sit with other women in a circle with a thali of the karwa (filled with water or sweets), a lamp, roli and rice; an image of Gauri and Shiva.
- Pass the thalis around the circle seven times while singing the Karwa Chauth songs, and hear the story of Veeravati.
- When the moon rises, look at it through a sieve, offer it water (arghya) from the karwa, then look at the husband’s face through the sieve.
- The husband gives the first sip of water and first bite of food; the fast is broken, and elders are given their bayana, a gift of sweets and clothes.
What you need
- A karwa (earthen pot) and a sieve
- A thali with a lamp, roli, rice and sweets
- Sargi for the morning
- An image of Gauri and Shiva
- Water for the arghya to the moon
Across India
Punjab and Haryana
Sargi before dawn, the evening circle of thalis with the songs, and the moon seen through a sieve.
Rajasthan
Women worship Gauri with the karwa, and the fast is broken with the moon; old songs tell of Karva and the crocodile.
Uttar Pradesh and Delhi
The bayana gift to the mother-in-law, and the karwa exchanged among women of the neighbourhood.
Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat
Kept in many families who came from the north; in Gujarat, kept by some on the same day as elsewhere.
Andhra Pradesh and Telangana
Atla Taddi, a related fast of the same season on the third of the dark fortnight, broken at moonrise with dosas (atlu).
When it falls
Krishna Chaturthi of Ashvina (Kartika in North India). Kept on the day this tithi holds at moonrise.
These are the usual rules. A few days can differ by a day in your tradition, so check with your temple.
Karwa Chauth in the coming years
New Delhi, India time
- 2026Thursday 29 October 2026
- 2027Monday 18 October 2027
- 2028Saturday 7 October 2028
Questions
When is Karwa Chauth in 2026?
Thursday 29 October 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 Karwa Chauth fall?
Krishna Chaturthi of Ashvina (Kartika in North India). Kept on the day this tithi holds at moonrise.
How is Karwa Chauth kept?
Families eat sargi before dawn, fast through the day, often without water and break the fast after seeing the moon. Customs vary by region and family.
Who is honoured on Karwa Chauth?
Parvati, Shiva and Ganesha. Married women fast from sunrise until the moon rises, praying for their husbands’ long life and wellbeing.
When does the Karwa Chauth fast end?
At moonrise, after the moon is seen and offered water. The page gives moonrise for your city; it can be later where the sky is cloudy, and many families then follow the time given for their city.
Why is the date sometimes a day before the Chaturthi in the calendar?
The day is set by the tithi at moonrise, since the fast ends then: it is the day Chaturthi holds when the moon rises. If Chaturthi begins in the evening, before moonrise, that day is Karwa Chauth, even though Chaturthi is not yet running at sunrise.
Can unmarried women or men keep the fast?
Yes. Many unmarried women keep it for a future husband, and many husbands now fast alongside their wives. The vrat is a promise of care, kept in whatever way the family chooses.