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Dussehra 2026: Vijayadashami Date, Muhurat and Meaning

Dussehra, also called Vijayadashami, is the tenth lunar day of the bright half of Ashvin, the day that follows the nine nights of Sharad Navratri. It celebrates victory in more than one form, from Rama’s triumph over Ravana to Durga’s over Mahishasura. Read on for how the day is fixed and how it is kept; the 2026 date and the afternoon Vijay Muhurat on this page are calculated for New Delhi.

Dussehra 2026: date and timings (New Delhi)

Dussehra 2026 falls on Tuesday, 20 October 2026 (New Delhi). In 2026, Dussehra comes 9 days after Sharad Navratri on 11 October and 9 days before Karva Chauth on 29 October.

DateTuesday, 20 October 2026
TithiAshwina Shukla Dashami
Dashami tithi20 October, 12:52 – 21 October, 14:13
Aparahna20 October, 13:13 – 15:28
Vijay Muhurat (11th muhurta of the day)20 October, 13:58 – 14:43

Calendars differ: Some calendars list 19 October or 21 October.

All times are IST for New Delhi. Sunrise, sunset and moonrise move these windows in other cities, so check a local panchang if you live elsewhere.

Panchang for 20 October 2026 · 20 अक्टूबर 2026 का पंचांग

About Dussehra: meaning, rules and customs

The victories Vijayadashami remembers

Vijayadashami means “the tenth of victory”, and the popular name Dussehra is usually traced to dasha-hara, “the removal of the ten”, read as Ravana’s ten heads. Across North India the day belongs to Rama. Tradition holds that he killed Ravana on this tenth day, so the Ramlila staged through Navratri ends with that battle and the demon king’s effigy in flames.

Two other stories share the date. The Devi Mahatmya tells how Durga, born of the combined radiance of the gods, destroyed the buffalo demon Mahishasura; the nine nights are read as her battle and the tenth day as her triumph, which is why Bengal bids the goddess farewell on this day. In the Mahabharata, the Pandavas hid their weapons in a Shami tree before their year in disguise at King Virata’s court, and tradition holds that Arjuna recovered them on this day, the origin of the afternoon Shami puja. With every one of these stories ending in arrogance brought low, the day has long been used for beginnings, from royal campaigns after the monsoon to a child’s first letters.

How the date of Dussehra is fixed

Dussehra is Ashvin Shukla Dashami, the tenth tithi (lunar day) of the waxing fortnight of Ashvin. Being a bright-half festival, it carries the same month name in the North Indian purnimanta panchang, which runs from full moon to full moon, and in the amanta panchang of Gujarat, Maharashtra and the South, which runs from new moon to new moon. It follows Navami, the last day of Sharad Navratri, and usually falls between late September and late October.

The governing time is aparahna, the afternoon, and the rule is that Dashami should be running then. Inside that afternoon lies the Vijay muhurat, the eleventh of the fifteen muhurtas of about 48 minutes into which daylight is divided; Shravana nakshatra in the afternoon makes the day still more valued. Because Dashami may begin around midday and end around midday the next day, both afternoons, or neither in full, can carry it. The Nirnaya Sindhu and the Dharma Sindhu settle such cases, panchang makers sometimes read them differently, and so a search for “Dussehra kab hai” can throw up two dates. The date here applies the aparahna rule for New Delhi.

Puja vidhi: from Aparajita to Ravan Dahan

Families who kept the Navratri fast break it with parana in the morning, and where barley was sown on the first day of Navratri the grown shoots are offered to the goddess. In the afternoon the goddess Aparajita, “the unconquered”, is worshipped at a cleaned spot towards the north-east of the house with flowers, kumkum, akshat (unbroken rice) and a lamp. The family then walks to a Shami tree, circles it, offers water, rice and a lamp, and gathers a few leaves to hand out as tokens of good fortune. This was once paired with seema ullanghan, a symbolic crossing of the village boundary, as a king did when setting out on campaign.

Shastra puja is performed the same day: weapons, tools, account books, machines and vehicles are cleaned, marked with kumkum and honoured. The South calls this Ayudha Puja and usually keeps it on Navami. At dusk, after the final Ramlila scene, effigies of Ravana, his brother Kumbhakarna and his son Meghnad are set alight amid fireworks, and people then call on elders, touch their feet and share sweets. Glimpsing the Neelkanth, the blue-winged Indian roller, is a folk good omen on this day.

Customs to follow, and a few to avoid

As one of the sade-teen muhurat, the three and a half days that are auspicious in themselves, Vijayadashami is traditionally used for beginnings that would otherwise need a chosen muhurat: buying a vehicle, gold or property, opening a shop or starting a course. Many families still keep the afternoon Vijay muhurat for the most important of these. New or freshly washed clothes, elders’ blessings and an exchange of Shami or apta leaves are customary almost everywhere.

In many southern homes, books and tools placed before the goddess on Navami stay untouched until Vijayadashami morning, when the first reading or work of the day marks a fresh start. Traditionally the day is kept free of quarrels and harsh words. Take only a few Shami leaves rather than stripping the tree, and at effigy burnings keep children close, stand well back from the fire and fireworks, and follow local instructions.

Dussehra across India and beyond

Ramnagar near Varanasi stages a Ramlila of about a month whose action moves from one part of the town to another, and Kota in Rajasthan holds a well-known Dussehra fair. Kullu Dussehra in Himachal Pradesh begins on Vijayadashami itself and runs for a week, with Raghunath ji’s chariot drawn through the town and deities carried in from villages across the valley. Mysuru Dasara climaxes in the Jamboo Savari, when goddess Chamundeshwari rides through the city on an elephant in a golden howdah. Bastar Dussehra in Chhattisgarh lasts about 75 days and honours the goddess Danteshwari, with no Ravana in it at all.

Bengal keeps Bijoya Dashami: married women play Sindoor Khela before the images leave for immersion, and the evening is for Bijoya visits and sweets. Maharashtra exchanges apta leaves as sona, gold, recalling King Raghu, the young scholar Kautsa and the gold Kubera showered on the trees. Kerala’s children write their first letters in a plate of rice at Vidyarambham, Kulasekarapattinam in Tamil Nadu fills with devotees in costumes and masks, and Gujarat follows its last night of garba with fafda and jalebi. In Nepal, Vijaya Dashami is the main day of Dashain, when elders give tika and jamara (barley shoots) to younger relatives, and Trinidad’s open-air Ramleela is among the best-known celebrations abroad.

The astrology behind Vijayadashami

On Dashami the Moon stands 108° to 120° ahead of the Sun. Muhurta Chintamani names Yama, lord of dharma and of death, as the tithi’s deity, and Dashami belongs to the Purna, or “full”, group with the fifth and fifteenth tithis. A tithi of completion suits a festival about endings that open the way to new beginnings. Vishti karana, known as Bhadra, never falls on Shukla Dashami, so there is no Bhadra period to work around.

The Sun is then in sidereal Virgo (Kanya), occasionally early Libra (Tula), which usually places the Dashami Moon in Capricorn (Makara), the sign where Mars, the planet of courage, is exalted. The nakshatra is often Shravana, whose deity is Vishnu, and the classical preference for Shravana in the afternoon ties the day to Rama, his avatar. Being the eleventh daytime muhurta, the Vijay muhurat moves with local sunrise and sunset, and many choose it for journeys, signatures and the Shami puja. Vijayadashami counts as a full day among the sade-teen muhurat, beside Chaitra Shukla Pratipada, Akshaya Tritiya and the half day of Kartika Shukla Pratipada.

What else falls this week

More vrat and festival dates in October 2026

Dussehra 2026: frequently asked questions

When is Dussehra in 2026, and what is the Vijay Muhurat?

Dussehra 2026 falls on Tuesday, 20 October 2026 (New Delhi). Dussehra is the Ashvin Shukla Dashami that prevails in the afternoon, and the Vijay Muhurat is that day’s eleventh muhurta. The 2026 date and the muhurat window for New Delhi are listed with this article.

Why do some panchangs list Dussehra 2026 on a different day?

Dashami often starts or ends in the middle of the day, so it can touch two afternoons or fully cover neither. Calendar makers then apply the tie-break rules of the texts, which also weigh Shravana nakshatra, and they do not always agree.

What time is Ravan Dahan on Dussehra 2026?

Effigies are traditionally lit at dusk, soon after sunset, once the last Ramlila scene is over. There is no scriptural muhurat for it; each organising committee announces its own time, so check locally.

Is Dussehra the same as Vijayadashami?

Yes. Vijayadashami is the classical name of the day and Dussehra the popular one. Bengal calls it Bijoya Dashami, Karnataka knows it as Dasara, and in Nepal it is the main day of Dashain.

Is Dussehra a good day to buy a vehicle or start something new?

By tradition Vijayadashami is one of the three and a half self-auspicious days, so purchases and beginnings are not tied to a separate muhurat. Many people still prefer the afternoon Vijay Muhurat for the most important of them.

Does Dussehra always fall on the day after Navratri ends?

Usually, yes: Navratri closes with Navami and Vijayadashami follows. Because tithis shorten and stretch, Navami and Dashami can occasionally share one civil day. Those who kept the nine-day fast break it with parana on Dashami.

Other years and festivals

Festival calendar 2026

Dates follow the classical rule for each festival, applied to the calc engine's panchang for New Delhi and cross-checked against published panchangs. Regional and family customs differ; your family priest or local panchang has the last word for your household.