छठ पूजा
Chhath Puja
Four days of worship of the Sun and Chhathi Maiya, with arghya to the setting and the rising sun.
About Chhath Puja
Chhath Puja is centred on Kartika Shukla Shashthi, six days after Diwali. It is the biggest festival of Bihar, Jharkhand and eastern Uttar Pradesh, and is now celebrated wherever families from these regions live.
Over four days the vratis keep a strict fast, including a 36-hour nirjala fast. They stand in rivers or ponds to offer arghya to the setting sun on Shashthi and the rising sun the next morning.
How to celebrate
Nahay Khay: bathe in a river and eat a single sattvic meal of rice, chana dal and lauki.
Kharna: fast all day and break it at night with kheer and roti, then begin the nirjala fast.
Sandhya Arghya: on Shashthi evening, stand in water and offer arghya to the setting sun with a soop of thekua and fruit.
Usha Arghya: at dawn the next day, offer arghya to the rising sun and break the fast.
Do
- Keep the prasad pure, cooked without onion or garlic
- Reach the ghat before sunset and sunrise
- Use a bamboo soop for the offerings
Avoid
- Tasting the prasad before it is offered
- Using salt in the Kharna meal
Questions
When is Chhath Puja in 2026?
Chhath Puja 2026 is on Sunday, 15 November 2026. Shukla Shashthi tithi begins at 11:24 PM on Saturday 14 November and ends at 2:01 AM on Monday 16 November IST.
What are the arghya times for Chhath Puja 2026?
In New Delhi, the evening arghya is at sunset, 5:27 PM IST, and the morning arghya at sunrise, 6:44 AM on Monday 16 November IST. Pick your city in the timings card to see local times.
Why is arghya given to the setting sun on Chhath?
Chhath is the only major festival where the setting sun is worshipped. It honours Surya and his consort Pratyusha at the end of the day and Usha at dawn.
What is thekua?
A sweet made from wheat flour, jaggery and ghee, shaped with a mould and fried. It is the main prasad of Chhath.
Around Chhath Puja
Coming up
- Karva ChauthThu 29 Oct
- Ahoi AshtamiSun 1 Nov
- Rama EkadashiThu 5 Nov
- DhanterasFri 6 Nov
- DiwaliSun 8 Nov
- Narak ChaturdashiSun 8 Nov
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