Diwali 2026: date, meaning and how it is observed

Diwali is the new-moon night of Kartika, kept as the principal Lakshmi Puja of the year and as the day Rama is said to have returned to Ayodhya. The listed date is the main Lakshmi Puja day; Diwali is a sequence rather than a single festival, running from Dhanteras through Bhai Dooj.

The house is cleaned and lit, the doorway is opened and marked with rangoli, and Lakshmi with Ganesha is worshipped after sunset in the pradosh period. Families exchange sweets, settle small debts, and light rows of lamps rather than only electric strings. Accounts are closed and reopened in many trading households.

Tamil Nadu observes Deepavali chiefly in the pre-dawn of Naraka Chaturdashi with an oil bath. Bengal, Odisha and Assam keep the same new moon as Kali Puja. Gujarat begins its new year the following day, and Jain tradition marks the night as Mahavira's nirvana. Nepal observes it within Tihar.

Fix the puja time from your own city's panchang, since the evening window differs by sunset and the new moon does not begin at the same clock hour everywhere. Order sweets and lamps early. If you burn crackers, check your city's rules and timing limits, and keep them away from lamps and fabric.

The date follows the Kartika new moon, so it falls between mid-October and mid-November and shifts each year. The 2026 reference date is 8 November 2026, and the 2027 date is 29 October 2027. Check the current year's calendar rather than reusing last year's date.

Dates on this page use New Delhi, India (Asia/Kolkata) as the reference location and were cross-checked against more than one published Hindu calendar. Ritual hours, tithi boundaries and regional conventions vary by city and tradition, so the descriptions here are indicative guidance for planning rather than a substitute for your family's or temple's own practice.

• Open the festival calendar
• Check your city’s Panchang
• Ask about the observance context