Festival · 2026
Govardhan Puja 2026 — Tuesday, 10 November 2026
Govardhan Puja, just after Diwali, remembers Krishna lifting Govardhan hill to shelter the people of Braj, and offers a mountain of food in thanks.
In 2026
Tuesday, 10 November 2026
- Tithi
- Shukla Pratipada (Shukla): 9 Nov, 12:32 PM – 10 Nov, 2:00 PM
- Lunar month
- Kartika
- Sunrise / sunset
- 6:39 AM / 5:30 PM
| Pratah kaal muhurat | 6:39 AM – 8:49 AM |
|---|
Rule: Kartika Shukla Pratipada at sunrise.
In 2027
Saturday, 30 October 2027
- Tithi
- Shukla Pratipada (Shukla): 29 Oct, 7:06 PM – 30 Oct, 5:52 PM
- Lunar month
- Kartika
- Sunrise / sunset
- 6:31 AM / 5:37 PM
| Pratah kaal muhurat | 6:31 AM – 8:44 AM |
|---|---|
| Sayahna kaal muhurat | 3:24 PM – 5:37 PM |
Rule: Kartika Shukla Pratipada at sunrise.
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 Govardhan Puja?
Govardhan Puja falls on Pratipada, the first day of the waxing moon of Kartika, usually the day after Diwali. In Braj and across the north, families shape a small Govardhan hill from cow dung or clay in the courtyard, decorate it with flowers and grain, and walk around it in worship. Temples prepare Annakut, literally a mountain of food, with dozens or even hundreds of dishes offered to Krishna.
The Bhagavata Purana tells that the people of Braj used to worship Indra for rain. The young Krishna persuaded them to worship Govardhan hill instead, since it fed their cows and gave them shelter. Angered, Indra sent a week of storms; Krishna lifted the hill on his little finger and held it like an umbrella over the villagers and their cattle for seven days, until Indra relented and the rain stopped.
The story is read as one of humility and gratitude to the land that sustains us. That is why the day centres on cows, grain and shared food: the Annakut is distributed to everyone who comes, and farmers honour their cattle. The same day is also Bali Pratipada, which honours the generous king Bali, and the start of the new year for Gujarati communities.
How it is observed
- A Govardhan hill is shaped from cow dung or clay, decorated and worshipped with a parikrama around it.
- Annakut is prepared: many dishes of grains, vegetables and sweets are offered to Krishna and then shared.
- Cows and bullocks are bathed, decorated and fed special food.
- Devotees in Braj walk the Govardhan parikrama around the hill near Mathura.
- In Gujarat people greet each other for the new year, Bestu Varas, and visit temples and elders.
- In Maharashtra, Bali Pratipada or Diwali Padwa is celebrated, and husbands and wives exchange gifts.
How the date is fixed
Govardhan Puja is Kartika Shukla Pratipada. Our engine keeps it on the day Pratipada is present at sunrise. If Pratipada begins after one sunrise and ends before the next, so that it touches no sunrise at all (a kshaya tithi), the day on which it begins is taken. Because of how the tithis fall, there is sometimes a one-day gap between Diwali and Govardhan Puja.
Where practice differs
In Braj and much of the north the day is Govardhan Puja and Annakut. In Gujarat it is Bestu Varas, the new year, because the amanta month of Kartika begins now. In Maharashtra it is Bali Pratipada or Diwali Padwa, a day for couples, and in Karnataka Bali Padyami is kept with lamps and the worship of cattle.
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 is Govardhan Puja sometimes not the day after Diwali?
The date follows Pratipada at sunrise. When the tithis fall a certain way, Pratipada is not yet present at the next sunrise, so Govardhan Puja comes two days after Diwali.
What is Annakut?
Literally a mountain of food: many dishes of grains, vegetables and sweets offered to Krishna on Govardhan Puja and then shared with everyone.
Is Govardhan Puja the Gujarati new year?
It falls on the same day. In Gujarat that day is Bestu Varas, the new year, because the amanta month of Kartika begins then.