Diwali 2026 in India: Date, Lakshmi Puja Muhurat, the 5-Day Festival and Its Meaning

Diwali, the festival of lights, is the greatest and most joyful of Hindu festivals, when homes and temples across India glow with countless lamps, families gather and Goddess Lakshmi is worshipped for prosperity. It is a five-day celebration, from Dhanteras to Bhai Dooj, at the heart of which is the main Diwali night of Lakshmi Puja. In 2026, Diwali falls on Sunday, 8 November, with the main Lakshmi Puja muhurat in the evening. Here, from one born in Braj, is the complete, up-to-date guide to Diwali 2026: the date, the Lakshmi Puja muhurat, the full five-day calendar with each day's rituals, the meaning and where to experience it most beautifully. Plan your visit with our Mathura Vrindavan tour packages.

Key takeaways

• Diwali 2026 in India is on Sunday, 8 November (the main Lakshmi Puja day).

• The Lakshmi Puja muhurat is generally 5:54 PM to 8:27 PM, varying by your city's sunset.

• The five-day festival runs from Dhanteras (6 Nov) to Bhai Dooj (10 Nov).

• Govardhan Puja (Annakut) is on Monday, 9 November; Bhai Dooj on Tuesday, 10 November.

• Diwali marks Lord Rama's return to Ayodhya and the worship of Lakshmi and Ganesha.

• In Braj, Diwali is followed by the grand Govardhan Puja (Annakut), a signature Krishna festival.

I am Gurudutt, born in Gokul in the Mathura district, guiding pilgrims through Braj since 2018, more than 50,000 of them. Diwali is a festival I know both as a devotee and as a host, for in Krishna's Braj it is celebrated with special beauty and the great Govardhan Puja follows the very next day. This guide gives you the essentials for Diwali 2026, the dates, the muhurat and each day's rituals and then how to experience it most beautifully, in the land of Krishna.

Diwali 2026 date and Lakshmi Puja muhurat

Here are the key date and timing details for the main Diwali in 2026.

Diwali 2026 date and Lakshmi Puja muhurat. The muhurat varies by a few minutes with your city's sunset; confirm locally.

The most auspicious time for the Lakshmi Puja on the main Diwali night is the Pradosh Kaal, the sacred evening window just after sunset. In 2026, the Lakshmi Puja muhurat generally falls between 5:54 PM and 8:27 PM, when Goddess Lakshmi and Lord Ganesha are worshipped at home with lamps, sweets and prayers, to invite prosperity and good fortune. Because the exact window depends on the moment of sunset, it varies by a few minutes from city to city, so confirm the precise muhurat for your own place.

Diwali 2026: the full 5-day festival calendar

Diwali is not one day but a five-day festival, each day with its own meaning and rituals. Here is the complete day-by-day calendar for 2026.

The full Diwali 2026 five-day calendar, with each day's rituals. Bhai Dooj is kept on 11 Nov in some regions.

Day 1: Dhanteras (Friday, 6 November 2026)

The festival opens with Dhanteras ('dhan' meaning wealth, 'teras' the thirteenth day). It is considered highly auspicious to buy gold, silver, new utensils or other valuables on this day, as a sign of incoming prosperity and markets are at their busiest. Devotees worship Lord Dhanvantari, the divine physician who arose from the ocean of milk, for health and Goddess Lakshmi for wealth. Lamps are lit at the threshold in the evening to welcome the goddess.

Day 2: Naraka Chaturdashi / Choti Diwali (Saturday, 7 November 2026)

The second day is Naraka Chaturdashi, also called Choti ('small') Diwali, which commemorates Krishna's victory over the demon Narakasura. Many perform early-morning purifying rituals and an auspicious oil bath and the first lamps of the festival are lit in the evening, a gentle prelude to the great night to come.

Day 3: Lakshmi Puja / Main Diwali (Sunday, 8 November 2026)

The third day is the main Diwali, the night of Lakshmi Puja, the climax of the festival. Homes are cleaned and decorated, rangoli is drawn at the door and rows of diyas and lights fill every house and street. In the evening muhurat (generally 5:54 to 8:27 PM in 2026), families perform the Lakshmi-Ganesha puja, praying for prosperity and the removal of darkness and the night glows with lamps and, for many, fireworks. It is the heart of Diwali, the triumph of light over darkness.

Day 4: Govardhan Puja / Annakut (Monday, 9 November 2026)

The fourth day is Govardhan Puja and for Braj it is the grandest of all, for it honours the day Krishna lifted the Govardhan hill on his finger to shelter Braj from Indra's storm. The hill is worshipped as Giriraj, a form of Krishna and a mountain of food, the Annakut or 'fifty-six dishes' (chappan bhog), is offered to the Lord and shared. Pilgrims circle the sacred hill in the Govardhan parikrama. See the dedicated section on Braj below.

Day 5: Bhai Dooj (Tuesday, 10 November 2026)

The festival closes with Bhai Dooj, celebrating the loving bond between brothers and sisters, much like Raksha Bandhan. Sisters apply a tilak on their brothers' foreheads and pray for their long life and wellbeing and brothers give gifts in return. (Some regions observe Bhai Dooj on 11 November, depending on the tithi.) In Braj, it is specially linked to the Yamuna, the sister of Yama, the lord of death and bathing in the Yamuna on this day is held to be very auspicious.

The significance of Diwali

Diwali carries several beautiful strands of meaning, woven together:

• The return of Rama: it celebrates Lord Rama's return to Ayodhya with Sita and Lakshmana after fourteen years of exile and the defeat of Ravana, the people lighting lamps to welcome him home.

• The worship of Lakshmi: on the main night, Goddess Lakshmi (of wealth and fortune) and Lord Ganesha (of auspicious beginnings and wisdom) are worshipped, to invite prosperity and peace into the home.

• The victory of light over darkness: above all, Diwali symbolises the triumph of good over evil, of knowledge over ignorance and the awakening of the inner light of the soul.

How Diwali is celebrated

Across India, Diwali is celebrated by cleaning and decorating homes; drawing rangoli at the threshold; lighting rows of diyas (oil lamps) and lights; performing the Lakshmi-Ganesha puja at the evening muhurat; sharing sweets and gifts with family and friends; wearing new clothes; and, traditionally, fireworks, though many now choose a quieter, greener celebration. It is, above all, a time of family, of light and of hope, when the whole land glows with lamps and the new year of prosperity is welcomed in.

Diwali in Vrindavan and Braj: the most beautiful place to celebrate

If Diwali is beautiful everywhere, it is most beautiful in Krishna's Braj. In Vrindavan and Mathura, the thousands of temples are lit and decorated, the marble Prem Mandir glows in colour, the beloved Banke Bihari shines with lamps and, most magically, deepdaan is offered at the Yamuna ghats, where thousands of little diyas are set afloat and the river becomes a ribbon of light. To spend Diwali among the temples and ghats of Braj is unforgettable. For the full Braj celebration, see our Diwali in Mathura and Vrindavan guide.

Govardhan Puja and Annakut 2026: Braj's great festival after Diwali

On Monday, 9 November 2026, the day after Diwali, comes Govardhan Puja and nowhere is it grander than in Braj. It commemorates the day the young Krishna lifted the Govardhan hill on his little finger for seven days, to shelter the people and cows of Braj from the furious storm sent by Indra. On this day, the hill is worshipped as Giriraj, Krishna himself in the form of the hill and before him is offered the Annakut, a 'mountain of food', the fifty-six dishes (chappan bhog), heaped high and later shared as prasad. Devotees make small Govardhan hills of cow-dung and flowers and pilgrims flock to circle the sacred hill in the 21-km Govardhan parikrama. It is one of the greatest festivals of Braj and a wonderful reason to be here at Diwali. See our Vrindavan and Govardhan guide and the Mathura Vrindavan festivals calendar.

Tips for Diwali 2026

• Confirm your city's exact Lakshmi Puja muhurat, as it varies by a few minutes with local sunset.

• Perform the Lakshmi-Ganesha puja during the evening muhurat (about 5:54 to 8:27 PM in 2026).

• Shop for gold, silver or utensils on Dhanteras (6 Nov), the auspicious day for it.

• Clean and decorate the home, draw rangoli and light diyas at the threshold and windows.

• Choose a greener Diwali: prefer diyas and lamps over heavy fireworks, for cleaner air.

• To experience it at its most beautiful, spend Diwali and Govardhan Puja in Krishna's Braj.

• Book Braj stays early, as Diwali and Kartik are a peak, crowded season in Vrindavan and Mathura.

The honest bit

Honest words from one born in Braj. Diwali is the most joyful of festivals, but a few honest notes. The Lakshmi Puja muhurat above (about 5:54 to 8:27 PM) is the general evening window, but it shifts by a few minutes with your city's sunset, so confirm locally for the exact timing; and Bhai Dooj can fall on 10 or 11 November by region, so check that too. On fireworks, I will gently say what many now feel: a quieter, greener Diwali of lamps and diyas is kinder to the air, the animals and the elderly and loses nothing of the festival's true light. And if you wish to feel Diwali at its deepest, come to Braj, not for the loudest crackers but for the ghats aglow with floating diyas and the great Govardhan Puja, where the festival's light is spiritual, not just bright. Celebrated with heart, Diwali is a festival of the soul.

Why Experience My India is the right choice

I was born in Gokul in the Mathura district and every Diwali and Kartik I host guests, families and international visitors among them, through the beauty of the season in Braj. Guiding since 2018, more than 50,000 pilgrims, 4.5 stars on Google, WhatsApp first, 8 AM to 9 PM daily. For a Diwali visit we secure your stay early, plan your days around the lit temples and the ghat deepdaan, bring you to the great Govardhan Puja and Annakut, arrange your puja and seva and host you through the crowded peak season, with a local's access and no touts. One clear fare and never a charge for free darshan.

Tip from Gurudutt: if you can, do not spend Diwali only at home; come and spend at least the Govardhan Puja in Braj. On the main Diwali night, see the temples of Vrindavan lit like the sky and offer a diya to the Yamuna at the ghats, watching your little flame join a thousand others drifting on the dark water. Then, the next day, join the pilgrims circling Govardhan hill and share in the Annakut, the mountain of food offered to Krishna. To celebrate the festival of light in the land of Krishna is to understand what Diwali truly means, not only lamps in the dark, but the light of the divine on earth.

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Plan your Diwali trip to Braj

Diwali and Kartik are the peak season in Braj, so book early. Tell me your dates and group and I will secure your stay, plan your days around the lit temples, the ghat deepdaan and the Govardhan Puja and host you, families and international guests especially welcome, for one clear price. Our Mathura Vrindavan tour packages from Delhi and our Mathura tour packages cover the heart of Braj. WhatsApp +91 7302265809, any day 8 AM to 9 PM. Packages from ₹1,999 per person, 4.5 stars on Google. Born in Gokul, Mathura.