# Raksha Bandhan 2027 -- Date, Significance & How It's Celebrated > Raksha Bandhan falls on Tuesday, 17 August 2027. 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/raksha-bandhan - **Language**: en --- 1. [Home](https://merirashi.com/en) 2. / 3. [Festivals](https://merirashi.com/en/festivals) 4. / 5. Raksha Bandhan Hindu Festivals 2027 - Lunar (tithi) observance ## Raksha Bandhan 2027 Tuesday, 17 August 2027 ![](https://merirashi.com/_next/image?url=%2Fimages%2Ffestivals%2Fraksha-bandhan.png&w=3840&q=85) When is Raksha Bandhan in 2027? Raksha Bandhan falls on **Tuesday, 17 August 2027** -- Shravana Purnima -- the full moon of the month of Shravana. Purnima - Shukla Paksha dhanishta nakshatra Sunrise 06:03 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 2027 festival dates](https://merirashi.com/en/festivals) Dates ## Raksha Bandhan dates: 2026 & 2027 Exact verified dates for each covered year, with the computed tithi for the day. | Year | Date | Tithi | Status | | ---- | ----------------------- | ----------------------- | -------- | | 2026 | Friday, 28 August 2026 | Purnima - Shukla Paksha | Past | | 2027 | Tuesday, 17 August 2027 | Purnima - Shukla Paksha | Upcoming | Overview ## What Raksha Bandhan marks Raksha Bandhan celebrates the bond between siblings, most traditionally sisters and brothers: a sister ties a rakhi (a decorated thread) around her brother's wrist, and he responds with a promise of protection and support. "Raksha bandhan" literally means "the bond of protection." It falls on the full moon of Shravana, and while its core custom is simple, its mythological roots and modern reach -- extending well past biological siblings -- give it unusual staying power across regions and communities. Significance ## Mythology & meaning The Bhavishya Purana tells of Indrani, wife of Indra, king of the gods, tying a protective thread on her husband's wrist before his battle against the demon Vritra, a gesture credited with strengthening his resolve and helping secure victory -- an early template for the thread as a ward of protection rather than a purely familial gesture. A second, widely loved story comes from the Mahabharata: Draupadi, seeing Krishna cut his finger, tore a strip from her own saree to bind the wound; Krishna, touched by the gesture, is said to have vowed to protect her in return -- a promise he is remembered as fulfilling during her humiliation in the Kaurava court, when he is said to have miraculously extended the length of her saree to prevent her disrobing. A more historical (though semi-legendary) episode involves Rani Karnavati, the widowed queen of Chittor, who is said to have sent a rakhi to the Mughal emperor Humayun appealing for protection against an invading force; whatever the full historical truth, the story has become part of the festival's popular memory as an example of the thread crossing lines of religion and even hostility. Together these stories frame the rakhi not as an obligation between blood relatives specifically, but as a symbol of a protective bond that can be extended to anyone the tying person chooses to trust and honour. Shravani Upakarma, observed by some Brahmin communities on the very same Shravana Purnima, involves ritually changing the sacred thread (janeu/yajnopavita) worn since a boy's initiation ceremony, a renewal of vows that runs alongside, rather than as part of, the sibling rakhi custom. The festival also carries a notable modern political layer: during the 1905 partition of Bengal, Rabindranath Tagore encouraged Hindus and Muslims to tie rakhis on one another as a public gesture of unity against the British administration's attempt to divide communities along religious lines -- a use of the festival's protective symbolism well beyond family bonds. Rituals ## How it's celebrated The core ritual is brief and consistent nationwide: a sister ties a rakhi on her brother's wrist, applies a tilak to his forehead, performs a small aarti, and the brother offers a gift along with his promise of protection and support, often followed by a shared meal of sweets. Many families extend the custom well beyond biological siblings -- to cousins, close friends, or anyone considered a protective figure -- and it has increasingly been adopted as a gesture of solidarity between people regardless of gender in some circles. On the same full-moon day, several other, less publicised observances coincide: some Brahmin communities perform Shravani Upakarma, a ritual renewal of the sacred thread (janeu), and coastal Maharashtra and Goa mark Narali Purnima, offering coconuts to the sea to seek its calm before the fishing season resumes. Rakhis themselves range from simple handmade cotton threads to elaborate, jewelled designs, and neither is considered more or less valid than the other -- the gesture matters more than the object. For siblings living far apart, including overseas, sending a rakhi by post ahead of the day is a long-established and entirely accepted way to keep the custom without being physically present. Across India ## Regional variations Same festival, many names Narali Purnima (coastal Maharashtra and Goa) marks the same full moon with offerings to the sea rather than a sibling ritual. Kajari Purnima, observed in parts of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, ties the day to agrarian and folk traditions around sown crops. Jhulan Purnima in Bengal and Odisha celebrates Radha and Krishna on a decorated swing around the same period. The core rakhi-tying custom itself is remarkably uniform nationwide, with variation mainly in the accompanying regional festival rather than the central sibling ritual. In parts of Rajasthan and among several trading communities, sisters also tie a rakhi on business partners or long-standing family friends considered as close as blood relations, extending the festival's protective symbolism into working relationships. Nepal observes a related festival, Janai Purnima, on the very same full moon, centred on the renewal of the sacred thread rather than the sibling rakhi custom, which shows how the same lunar date can carry entirely distinct meanings just across the border. Among some South Indian Brahmin communities, the day is marked quietly through the Upakarma ritual alone, with little of the rakhi-tying tradition more prominent further north. ## Frequently asked questions When is Raksha Bandhan in 2027? Raksha Bandhan falls on 17 August 2027, the full moon (Purnima) of the month of Shravana. When is Raksha Bandhan in 2026? Raksha Bandhan falls on 28 August 2026, the full moon (Purnima) of the month of Shravana. What is the story behind the rakhi thread? Several stories are associated with it, including Indrani tying a protective thread on Indra before a battle with demons, and Draupadi binding Krishna's wound with a torn strip of her saree, after which Krishna vowed to protect her -- both framing the thread as a bond of protection rather than a purely familial custom. Is Raksha Bandhan only for blood siblings? No -- while it's most traditionally observed between sisters and brothers, the underlying idea (a bond of protection, freely chosen) has long been extended to cousins, close friends, and other trusted relationships, and its popular retellings, like the Karnavati-Humayun story, reinforce that the bond isn't limited by blood. Why does Raksha Bandhan fall on a full moon? It's set by the lunar calendar as Shravana Purnima, the full moon of that month, which is also why several other, separate observances (Narali Purnima, Jhulan Purnima, Shravani Upakarma) fall on the exact same day in different regions and communities. What is the difference between Raksha Bandhan and Bhai Dooj? Both honour the brother-sister bond, but Raksha Bandhan (Shravana Purnima) centres on the sister tying a protective thread, while Bhai Dooj (Kartik Shukla Dwitiya, in the Diwali cluster) centres on a sister applying tilak and hosting her brother for a meal, rooted in the separate legend of Yama and Yamuna. What is the Tagore/Bengal-partition connection to Raksha Bandhan? In 1905, when the British partitioned Bengal along religious lines, Rabindranath Tagore encouraged Hindus and Muslims to tie rakhis on each other as a public act of unity against the division -- extending the festival's protective, bonding symbolism well beyond family and into a moment of civic solidarity. Explore ## Related festivals [<- Onam (Thiruvonam) - 12 Sep 2027](https://merirashi.com/en/festivals/onam) [Varalakshmi Vrat - 13 Aug 2027 ->](https://merirashi.com/en/festivals/varalakshmi-vrat) [Bhai Dooj - 10 Nov 2026](https://merirashi.com/en/festivals/bhai-dooj) ## 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)