Festival · 2027
Anant Chaturdashi 2027 — Tuesday, 14 September 2027
Anant Chaturdashi, the fourteenth day of the bright half of Bhadrapada, is the day of Vishnu as Anant, the endless one, and the day the ten-day Ganesh festival ends with visarjan.
In 2026
Friday, 25 September 2026
- Tithi
- Shukla Chaturdashi: 24 Sep, 11:18 PM – 25 Sep, 11:07 PM
- Lunar month
- Bhadrapada
- Sunrise / sunset
- 6:10 AM / 6:14 PM
Rule: Bhadrapada Shukla Chaturdashi at sunrise: the last day of Ganeshotsav (Ganesh Visarjan).
In 2027
Tuesday, 14 September 2027
- Tithi
- Shukla Chaturdashi: 14 Sep, 12:40 AM – 15 Sep, 2:48 AM
- Lunar month
- Bhadrapada
- Sunrise / sunset
- 6:05 AM / 6:27 PM
Rule: Bhadrapada Shukla Chaturdashi at sunrise: the last day of Ganeshotsav (Ganesh Visarjan).
Times follow New Delhi’s sunrise and sunset. In other cities the muhurat shifts by some minutes, and occasionally the day by one. Full festival calendar
What is Anant Chaturdashi?
Anant Chaturdashi is kept on Bhadrapada Shukla Chaturdashi, the day before the full moon. Its first meaning is the worship of Vishnu as Anant, the infinite, often pictured resting on the serpent Shesha, who is also called Ananta. Devotees tie on the arm a thread with fourteen knots, the anant sutra, as a sign of Vishnu’s protection, and many keep it on for the following year.
The vrat katha is usually told as a conversation in which Krishna explains the vow to Yudhishthira during the Pandavas’ exile. It tells of Sushila and her husband Kaundinya: Sushila kept the Anant vrat and wore the thread, and the household prospered; Kaundinya, not understanding it, threw the thread into the fire, and hard times followed. He then set out to find Anant, and after a long search Vishnu showed himself to him. The story is less about loss than about humility, and about the steadiness that returns once it is found.
The fourteen knots are commonly explained as the fourteen worlds of Puranic cosmology, over all of which Anant presides. The thread is dyed with turmeric or saffron, and in many homes it is prepared and worshipped along with an image of Vishnu or a representation of Shesha made of kusha grass, then tied with a short prayer.
For a very large number of people, especially in Maharashtra, the day is known above all as the day of Ganesh visarjan. The Ganesh festival that began on Bhadrapada Shukla Chaturthi closes on Anant Chaturdashi, and the great public images of Mumbai, Pune and many other cities are carried in procession to the sea, rivers and lakes, with drums, dancing and the call to return soon next year.
How it is observed
- After a morning bath, Vishnu is worshipped as Anant, often with a kusha-grass figure of Shesha and a kalash, with flowers, tulsi, sandal and lamps.
- The anant sutra, a turmeric-dyed thread with fourteen knots, is worshipped and then tied: by custom on the right arm for men and the left for women.
- The Anant vrat katha of Sushila and Kaundinya is read or heard.
- Many keep a fast or eat once in the day; in some homes the meal is made without salt.
- In homes and public mandals where Ganesha was installed for ten days, a final aarti is done and the image is carried for visarjan in water.
- Where the anant sutra is kept for a year, last year’s thread is taken off and respectfully immersed when the new one is tied.
How the date is fixed
Anant Chaturdashi is kept on Bhadrapada Shukla Chaturdashi, on the day the Chaturdashi holds at sunrise. The texts ask that it last at least two muhurtas after sunrise, about an hour and a half, so that the morning worship can be done within it. If the Chaturdashi is kshaya, touching no sunrise at all, we take the day on which it begins. The date and the Chaturdashi’s start and end times are shown above; the time for visarjan is set by each family or mandal.
Where practice differs
In Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka, Telangana and Gujarat, Anant Chaturdashi is known chiefly for Ganesh visarjan, though many families there also keep the Anant vrat. In Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Odisha the Anant puja and the thread are the heart of the day. Among Digambara Jains, Anant Chaturdashi closes the ten days of Das Lakshana Parva, and the day that follows is kept for asking and giving forgiveness. Families that bring Ganesha home for one and a half, five or seven days finish their visarjan earlier. There is no month-name confusion for Anant Chaturdashi: it lies in the bright half, which every calendar assigns to Bhadrapada.
Dates and times are computed by our own engine (sunrise, tithi and kalas for New Delhi, Lahiri ayanamsa). In another city, or in an almanac of another tradition, the day can differ by one — follow your family’s tradition.
Questions people ask
Why does the anant sutra have fourteen knots?
The usual explanation is that they stand for the fourteen worlds described in the Puranas, all held by Anant. Some families also link them to fourteen years of keeping the vow.
On which arm is the anant sutra tied?
By common custom, men tie it on the right arm and women on the left. Family practice varies, and the intention matters more than the side.
Is Ganesh visarjan always on Anant Chaturdashi?
For the full ten-day festival, yes. Many families keep Ganesha for one and a half, three, five or seven days instead and do their visarjan on that day.
What is the connection between Anant Chaturdashi and Vishnu?
Anant, the endless, is a name of Vishnu, and also of Shesha, the serpent on whom he rests. The vrat of the day is the worship of Vishnu in that form.