# Navratri (Sharad) begins 2026 -- Date, Significance & How It's Celebrated > Navratri (Sharad) begins falls on Sunday, 11 October 2026. Exact dates for 2026 and 2027, the real mythology, honest rituals and regional variations, plus the computed panchang for the day -- no fear-selling. - **Canonical URL**: https://merirashi.com/en/festivals/navratri - **Language**: en --- 1. [Home](https://merirashi.com/en) 2. / 3. [Festivals](https://merirashi.com/en/festivals) 4. / 5. Navratri (Sharad) begins Hindu Festivals 2026 - Lunar (tithi) observance ## Navratri (Sharad) begins 2026 Sunday, 11 October 2026 ![](https://merirashi.com/_next/image?url=%2Fimages%2Ffestivals%2Fnavratri.png&w=3840&q=85) When is Navratri (Sharad) begins in 2026? Navratri (Sharad) begins falls on **Sunday, 11 October 2026** -- Ashwin Shukla Pratipada -- the first day of the waxing moon in Ashwin, opening the nine nights of Sharad Navratri, the principal Navratri of the year. Pratipada - Shukla Paksha chitra nakshatra Sunrise 06:21 AM Panchang computed live from the sidereal (Lahiri) ephemeris at Ujjain, the classical Hindu reference meridian -- not a stored guess. [Check today's Panchang & muhurat](https://merirashi.com/en/panchang)[All 2026 festival dates](https://merirashi.com/en/festivals) Dates ## Navratri dates: 2026 & 2027 Exact verified dates for each covered year, with the computed tithi for the day. | Year | Date | Tithi | Status | | ---- | --------------------------- | ------------------------- | -------- | | 2026 | Sunday, 11 October 2026 | Pratipada - Shukla Paksha | Upcoming | | 2027 | Thursday, 30 September 2027 | Amavasya - Krishna Paksha | | Overview ## What Navratri marks Navratri -- "nine nights" -- opens the autumn festival season with nine nights dedicated to the Goddess in her nine forms (Navadurga). Sharad Navratri, beginning in Ashwin, is the most widely observed of the year's four Navratris and builds directly into Dussehra on the tenth day. Its expression varies enormously by region -- from Gujarat's dance floors to Bengal's elaborate pandals -- but the underlying nine nights of worship, fasting, and devotion to Durga are shared across all of them. Significance ## Mythology & meaning The festival's central story concerns Mahishasura, a demon who had won a boon making him virtually unkillable by any god or man. Growing increasingly tyrannical, he drove the gods from heaven, and in response, the combined divine energies (shakti) of the gods coalesced into a single being -- Durga -- created specifically to defeat him, since the boon left an opening only a being born of pure feminine power could use. Each god armed her with his own signature weapon: Shiva's trident, Vishnu's discus, Indra's thunderbolt, among others, until she rode into battle fully equipped and, after an extended fight recounted with real drama in the Devi Mahatmya, slew Mahishasura, restoring balance and giving her the epithet Mahishasuramardini. The nine nights are traditionally understood as walking through nine distinct forms or aspects of the Goddess -- Shailaputri, Brahmacharini, Chandraghanta, Kushmanda, Skandamata, Katyayani, Kalaratri, Mahagauri, and Siddhidatri -- each representing a different quality, from fierce protection to serene wisdom, worshipped on successive nights before the climactic victory is marked on the tenth day, Vijayadashami. A popular modern custom, especially strong in Gujarat and Maharashtra, assigns a specific colour to each of the nine days, and participants dress accordingly at Garba and community gatherings -- a widespread and enjoyable tradition, though a comparatively recent addition rather than a classical scriptural requirement. Anyone fasting across the nine days is well served by treating hydration and sensible food choices as part of the observance rather than in tension with it; there is no merit in a fast that leaves a person unwell. Rituals ## How it's celebrated Practices vary sharply by region but commonly include daily fasting (often limited to fruits, milk, or specific grains like singhare ka atta or sabudana), evening aarti, and reciting the Devi Mahatmya or Durga Saptashati. Gujarat's Navratri is built around nightly Garba and Dandiya Raas -- communities dancing in circles around a central lamp or image of the Goddess, sustained across all nine nights and drawing enormous public participation well beyond religious households. In Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, and Karnataka, homes arrange Golu (Bommai Kolu) -- tiered displays of dolls and figurines depicting deities, everyday life, and mythological scenes, with friends and neighbours visiting each other's displays. Kanya Puja, honouring young girls as living representations of the Goddess with a small ritual meal and gifts, is widely observed on Ashtami or Navami, the eighth or ninth night. In West Bengal, the final days of Navratri build into the grand, separately named Durga Puja, with elaborately sculpted idols in community pandals culminating in Vijayadashami's emotional immersion. At Garba gatherings, dancers move in concentric circles around a central lamp or image of the Goddess, and at Dandiya Raas events, two decorated sticks (dandiya) are struck rhythmically between partners in time with the music -- newcomers are welcomed to join without needing prior experience. In Bengal, the final days of the shared nine-night window are named individually within Durga Puja -- Shashthi, Saptami, Ashtami, Navami, and finally Dashami (Vijayadashami) -- each with its own specific rituals building toward the immersion. Across India ## Regional variations Same festival, many names Gujarat's nightly Garba and Dandiya define the festival there. West Bengal's Durga Puja, though it shares the same nine-night window, is often treated as its own named festival with distinct artistic and community traditions, especially in its final days. Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, and Karnataka observe Golu doll displays (also called Bommai Kolu or Bombe Habba). Himachal Pradesh's Kullu Valley holds a distinctive week-long Kullu Dussehra that actually begins after Vijayadashami, running later than the rest of the country's Navratri-Dussehra cycle. Odisha's version of the festival overlaps closely with its own regional Durga Puja traditions, distinct in artistic style from Bengal's elaborately sculpted idols. In northeastern states such as Assam, the nine nights are often observed with a more restrained, temple-centred style of worship rather than the large public dance floors seen in Gujarat, reflecting how the same nine-night window supports very different regional expressions of devotion to the Goddess. Punjab and Haryana mark the period with their own strict fasting customs and Kanjak/Kanya Puja traditions, sometimes observed with even greater emphasis than in the regions better known for public celebration. Dates ## Navratri in 2027 In 2027, Navratri (Sharad) begins falls on Thursday, 30 September 2027 -- Ashwin Shukla Pratipada -- the first day of the waxing moon in Ashwin, opening the nine nights of Sharad Navratri, the principal Navratri of the year. At Ujjain the day runs Amavasya (Krishna Paksha), with the Moon in hasta nakshatra. Tithi-based dates move with the lunar calendar each year; the rituals and significance stay the same. ## Frequently asked questions When is Navratri in 2026? Sharad Navratri begins on 11 October 2026, Ashwin Shukla Pratipada, and runs for nine nights leading into Dussehra (Vijayadashami) on the tenth day. When is Navratri in 2027? Sharad Navratri begins on 30 September 2027, Ashwin Shukla Pratipada, and runs for nine nights leading into Dussehra (Vijayadashami) on the tenth day. Why nine nights and nine forms of the Goddess? Tradition holds that Durga was worshipped across nine successive nights in nine distinct forms (Navadurga) -- from Shailaputri to Siddhidatri -- each embodying a different aspect of her power, building toward the climactic victory over Mahishasura marked on the tenth day. What is the difference between Navratri and Durga Puja? They occupy the same nine-night window, but Durga Puja is the specific, elaborately artistic form of the celebration most associated with West Bengal and eastern India, centred on large community pandals and idol immersion, whereas "Navratri" more broadly covers the diverse regional observances nationwide, including Gujarat's Garba and South India's Golu. What is Kanya Puja? Kanya Puja honours young girls, typically pre-pubescent, as living representations of the Goddess -- washing their feet, offering a small ceremonial meal, and giving gifts -- usually performed on Ashtami or Navami, the eighth or ninth night of Navratri. Is Sharad Navratri the only Navratri in the year? No -- the Hindu calendar marks four Navratris a year (Chaitra/Vasant, Ashada/Gupt, Sharad, and Magha/Gupt), but Sharad Navratri, in autumn, is by far the most widely and publicly celebrated, which is why it's the one most people mean by "Navratri." What is the Navratri colours tradition? In Gujarat and Maharashtra especially, each of the nine nights is popularly assigned a specific colour, and participants dress to match at Garba and community events. It's a widely enjoyed modern custom rather than a classical requirement, and skipping it takes nothing away from the festival's core observance. Explore ## Related festivals [<- Mahalakshmi Vrat - 03 Oct 2026](https://merirashi.com/en/festivals/mahalakshmi-vrat) [Bathukamma - 18 Oct 2026 ->](https://merirashi.com/en/festivals/bathukamma) [Dussehra (Vijayadashami) - 20 Oct 2026](https://merirashi.com/en/festivals/dussehra) [Ganesh Chaturthi - 14 Sep 2026](https://merirashi.com/en/festivals/ganesh-chaturthi) ## Plan around the real muhurat See today's tithi, nakshatra, and Rahu Kaal for your own city, or compute your full birth chart -- free, no fear-selling. [Panchang for New Delhi](https://merirashi.com/en/panchang/new-delhi)[Calculate my chart](https://merirashi.com/en/birth-chart-calculator)