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Showing posts with label Naraka Chaturdashi. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Naraka Chaturdashi. Show all posts

Tuesday, November 3, 2026

Naraka Chaturdashi (Narak Chaturdashi, Choti Diwali) 2026, November 7 and 8: Abhyanga Snan Time for US, India and More

Naraka Chaturdashi (Choti Diwali) 2026 is on Saturday, November 7 in the United States, Canada and the UK, and on Sunday, November 8 in India, the Gulf, Singapore, Australia and Fiji. In India it falls on the same Sunday as Lakshmi Puja this year, so the early morning oil bath and the evening lamps of Diwali come on one day.

Naraka Chaturdashi, also called Narak Chaturdashi, Choti Diwali and Roop Chaturdashi, is the second of the five days of Diwali. It falls on the Chaturdashi (fourteenth day) of the dark half of Ashwin in the Amanta calendar, which is Kartika Krishna Chaturdashi in the Purnimanta calendar. The most important custom of the day is Abhyanga Snan, the oil bath taken early in the morning before sunrise. In Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and other parts of the South, this day is celebrated as Deepavali itself.

How Krishna freed the captives of Naraka

The Bhagavata Purana and the Vishnu Purana tell of Naraka, also called Bhauma, the son of the Earth, who ruled the city of Pragjyotisha. He grew proud and cruel. He carried off maidens from the families of gods, sages and kings and shut them up in his palace. He took the umbrella of Varuna and snatched away the earrings of Aditi, the mother of the gods.

Indra came to Dvaraka and told Lord Krishna all this. Krishna seated his queen Satyabhama on Garuda, his eagle, and flew with her to Pragjyotisha. The city was ringed with walls of rock, fire, water and wind, and with the nooses of the five headed demon Mura. Krishna broke through them all and struck down Mura with his discus. When Naraka himself came out on an elephant with a great army, Krishna ended his life with the discus.

The Earth goddess, Naraka's mother, then came before Krishna. She returned Aditi's earrings and Varuna's umbrella and asked him to protect Naraka's frightened son, and Krishna gave the boy his protection. Inside the palace Krishna found the captive princesses, sixteen thousand of them (the Vishnu Purana says sixteen thousand one hundred). He gave them fresh clothes and sent them to Dvaraka with honour.

Another telling, popular especially in the South, says that Satyabhama was the Earth goddess born again, and so Naraka's own mother, and that it was Satyabhama who struck him down. Before he died, Naraka repented, and Krishna and Satyabhama granted that the day would be remembered every year with joy.

Kali Chaudas is a separate day

Gujarati families keep Kali Chaudas, the night of Mahakali, the fierce Mother who drives away fear and every evil influence before Lakshmi is welcomed on Diwali. Kali Chaudas and Naraka Chaturdashi are two separate observances, and they can fall on different days. In 2026 they do: in India, Kali Chaudas is on Saturday, November 7 and Naraka Chaturdashi is on Sunday, November 8. Please check each one on its own page for your city.

On Kali Chaudas many families keep a simple custom for the household. The family members cover their heads, and the mother or father circles a plate of vadas over them seven times clockwise and seven times counter clockwise, praying for their wellness and for the removal of the evil eye. Then they go out and throw the vadas away.

Abhyanga Snan time 2026, city by city

These are the Abhyanga Snan (oil bath) times for each city. Click your city for the full page and the story of the day.

United States (Saturday, November 7)

Canada (Saturday, November 7)

United Kingdom (Saturday, November 7)

India (Sunday, November 8)

Middle East and Singapore (Sunday, November 8)

Australia and Fiji (Sunday, November 8)

Your city is not here? Open mypanchang.com/narakachaturdashi.php and choose your city.

The other days of Diwali: Dhanteras (Friday, November 6), Lakshmi Puja (Sunday, November 8), Govardhan Puja and Bhai Dooj. Each page shows the date for your own city.

For the full sankalpa for any day and your city: mypanchang.com/sankalpa

May Lord Krishna remove every darkness from your home, as he freed the captives of Naraka. Wishing you and your family a bright and blessed Deepavali.

Pundit Mahesh Shastri
www.mypanchang.com

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