Chhath Puja Countdown
Chhath Puja 2026: 13–16 November, arghya timings
Chhath Puja 2026 runs 13–16 November. The Sandhya Arghya is at sunset on Sunday, 15 November, which is 5:28 PM in Delhi. In Patna the sun goes down 27 minutes earlier, at 5:01 PM. If you're standing in the water, use your own city's sunset below.
Checked by the festcountdown team against Drik Ganit panchang, last verified 17 September 2026.
The four days
- 13 NovNahay Khay, FridayThe fast begins. Devotees bathe in a river or pond and eat one sattvic meal, usually lauki with chana dal and rice. The house gets a full clean, and from here the kitchen stays strictly pure.
- 14 NovKharna, SaturdayA full day without water, broken after sunset with jaggery kheer and roti. When that meal ends, the nirjala fast begins, with no food or water until the morning of the 16th.
- 15 NovSandhya Arghya, SundayThe main day. Families reach the ghat in the afternoon and offer arghya to the setting sun, standing waist-deep in water with baskets of thekua, fruit and sugarcane. Sunset in Delhi is 5:28 PM.
- 16 NovUsha Arghya, MondayBefore dawn, the family goes back to the same water and offers arghya to the rising sun. The 36-hour fast ends right after, with the prasad. Sunrise in Delhi is 6:44 AM.
Arghya timings
- Sandhya ArghyaAt sunset, 15 NovWhat it means: the evening offering to the setting sun, on the main day of Chhath.
- Usha ArghyaAt sunrise, 16 NovWhat it means: the morning offering to the rising sun. The fast is broken straight after.
- Shashthi tithi11:23 PM, 14 Nov to 2:00 AM, 16 NovWhat it means: the sixth lunar day of Kartik. "Chhath" comes from chhathi, sixth, so it's also called Surya Shashthi.
Muhurat & Choghadiya calculator
Sunday, 15 November 2026 · Sandhya Arghya · pick your city to update the times
For Chhath, the sunset shown here is the arghya time itself. Pick your city and use that sunset.
Day Choghadiya
Night Choghadiya
Sunrise, sunset, Pradosh Kaal and Choghadiya are worked out for the city you pick. Lagna windows such as Vrishabha Kaal are New Delhi times.
Chhath Puja 2026 kab hai? When is Chhath?
छठ पूजा 2026 कब है? इस साल छठ 13 से 16 नवंबर तक है। संध्या अर्घ्य रविवार, 15 नवंबर को सूर्यास्त के समय (दिल्ली में शाम 5:28 बजे), और उषा अर्घ्य अगली सुबह सूर्योदय पर।
Chhath Puja 2026 centres on Sunday, 15 November, Kartik Shukla Shashthi. Shashthi is the sixth lunar day, and that's where the name comes from (chhathi, sixth). The tithi starts at 11:23 PM on 14 November and runs to 2:00 AM on 16 November. It always falls on the sixth lunar day after Diwali's new moon. In 2026 that's a week after Diwali on 8 November.
Why your city matters more for Chhath than any other festival
For most festivals, the muhurat is a window worked out from sunrise or sunset, and a few minutes either way is fine. Chhath is different. The arghya is offered to the sun as it sets and again as it rises, so the ritual moment is sunset and sunrise.
That makes a Delhi time the wrong time in most of the places people keep Chhath. On 15 November the sun sets at 5:01 PM in Patna, 27 minutes before it sets in Delhi. That's long enough to miss the moment completely while you're standing in the river. Pick your city in the calculator above and go by the sunset it shows.
The fast, and why it's called the hardest
Chhath's vrat is nirjala, meaning no water. It starts when the Kharna meal ends on the evening of 14 November and doesn't break until after Usha Arghya on the morning of the 16th, about 36 hours later. That's no food and no water through two nights and a full day.
Much of that time is spent at the ghat, standing waist-deep in November river water, often after walking there barefoot. The prasad is made under strict purity rules in a kitchen nobody else enters. Thekua, the hard wheat-and-jaggery biscuit, is the signature, carried to the water with fruit and sugarcane in bamboo baskets. If you're the one driving the family to the ghat, leave well before 4 PM. Every road near the water will be packed.
One more thing sets Chhath apart. No priest is needed at any point. The vrati does every part of the rite, offering straight to the sun with no idol in between.
Chhath Puja 2026 FAQ
When is Chhath Puja 2026?
Chhath Puja 2026 runs four days, Friday 13 November to Monday 16 November. The main day is Sunday, 15 November, with Sandhya Arghya at sunset, 5:28 PM in Delhi. Usha Arghya to the rising sun follows at dawn on Monday, 16 November.
How many days are left until Chhath Puja 2026?
The countdown at the top of this page runs to the Sandhya Arghya at sunset on Sunday, 15 November 2026. The arghya time is sunset itself, so it's different in every city. Use the calculator on this page for yours.
What are the four days of Chhath Puja?
Day one, 13 November, is Nahay Khay: a ritual bath and one sattvic meal. Day two, 14 November, is Kharna: no water all day, then jaggery kheer after sunset, and the 36-hour nirjala fast starts when that meal ends. Day three, 15 November, is Sandhya Arghya to the setting sun at the ghat. Day four, 16 November, is Usha Arghya at sunrise, and then the fast is broken.
What time is the Chhath Puja arghya?
There's no separate muhurat. The arghya times are sunset and sunrise: 5:28 PM on 15 November and 6:44 AM on 16 November in New Delhi. In Patna, sunset on the 15th is 5:01 PM, 27 minutes earlier. Use the city calculator on this page, not the Delhi time.
Why is Chhath Puja considered the hardest Hindu fast?
Because of the nirjala stretch. After the Kharna meal on the evening of 14 November, vratis take no food and no water until after Usha Arghya on the morning of the 16th, about 36 hours. Much of that time is spent standing waist-deep in cold November water, often after walking to the ghat barefoot.
Who is worshipped during Chhath Puja?
Surya, the sun god, and Chhathi Maiya, seen as his sister and the protector of children. The offerings go straight to the sun, with no idol in between. No priest is needed at any point, because the vrati performs the whole rite.
Where is Chhath Puja celebrated?
Mainly in Bihar, Jharkhand, eastern Uttar Pradesh and much of Nepal. Families from those regions have carried it much further. Delhi and Mumbai see huge ghat crowds, and Bihari communities keep it in Mauritius, the UAE, the US and the UK. It's always kept beside water, whether that's a river, a pond or a tank filled for the day.