Festival · 2026
Holika Dahan 2026 — Tuesday, 3 March 2026
Holika Dahan is the sacred bonfire lit on the evening of Phalguna Purnima, remembering Prahlad and opening the festival of Holi.
In 2026
Tuesday, 3 March 2026
- Tithi
- Purnima: 2 Mar, 5:56 PM – 3 Mar, 5:07 PM
- Lunar month
- Phalguna
- Sunrise / sunset
- 6:44 AM / 6:22 PM
| Holika Dahan muhurat | 6:22 PM – 8:50 PM |
|---|---|
| Bhadra (avoid) | 2 Mar, 5:56 PM – 5:28 AM |
- Holi: 4 March 2026
Rule: Phalguna Purnima prevailing at pradosh, outside Bhadra (Vishti karana). This year Bhadra covers the first evening past midnight, and on the next day Purnima lasts 3½ prahar after sunrise with Pratipada growing, so the fire is lit in that evening’s pradosh.
In 2027
Sunday, 21 March 2027
- Tithi
- Purnima: 21 Mar, 6:21 PM – 22 Mar, 4:13 PM
- Lunar month
- Phalguna
- Sunrise / sunset
- 6:24 AM / 6:32 PM
| Pradosh kaal | 6:32 PM – 8:54 PM |
|---|---|
| Bhadra (avoid) | 6:21 PM – 22 Mar, 5:15 AM |
- Holi: 22 March 2027
Rule: Phalguna Purnima prevailing at pradosh, outside Bhadra (Vishti karana). This year Bhadra runs past midnight and the next-day exception does not apply, so the fire is lit in pradosh; many priests use the tail of Bhadra (bhadra punchha).
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 Holika Dahan?
Holika Dahan is the lighting of a bonfire on the evening of Phalguna Purnima, the last full Moon of the Hindu lunar year. It is the first night of Holi, held the evening before the day of colours. In towns and villages, a pyre of wood, cow-dung cakes and dry twigs is built at a crossroads or on open ground over the preceding days, and the community gathers to light it after sunset.
The festival takes its name from Holika, sister of the demon king Hiranyakashipu. Angered that his son Prahlad worshipped Vishnu, the king had Holika, who was said to be protected from fire, sit in a blaze with the boy on her lap. The story goes that Holika burned while Prahlad came out unharmed. The fire is read as the victory of faith and goodness over arrogance and cruelty.
In rural India the fire is also a harvest ritual. Farmers roast ears of new wheat and barley, and green gram, in the flames and share them as prasad, an offering from the first crop. Families walk around the fire, and many take home a little of its ash. The timing matters to observers, which is why the lighting is fixed by the full Moon, the evening window and the avoidance of Bhadra.
How it is observed
- Building the Holika pyre over several days with wood, cow-dung cakes and dry twigs.
- Worshipping the pyre before lighting it, with roli, rice, flowers, raw cotton thread, turmeric and coconut.
- Winding raw cotton thread around the pyre while walking around it, often three or seven times.
- Lighting the fire in the evening muhurat after sunset, avoiding Bhadra.
- Roasting ears of new wheat or barley in the flames and sharing them.
- In some households, rubbing on ubtan (a gram-flour paste) during the day and adding the peeled-off paste to the fire.
- Taking a little of the ash home, a custom many believe brings protection.
How the date is fixed
Holika Dahan needs three things together: Phalguna Purnima, the evening window called pradosh, and the absence of Bhadra (the Vishti karana), which tradition considers unsuitable for the lighting. Pradosh here runs from sunset through the first fifth of the night. Our calendar takes the evening when Purnima prevails at pradosh and then checks for Bhadra. If Bhadra covers pradosh but ends before the middle of the night, the fire is lit after Bhadra ends, before midnight. If Bhadra runs past midnight, the next evening’s pradosh is used when, on that next day, Purnima lasts three and a half prahars after sunrise and the following Pratipada is longer than Purnima (vriddhi). Otherwise the lighting stays at pradosh; this case is called bhadra punchha, when the tail end of Bhadra is considered acceptable.
Where practice differs
Holika Dahan is at its largest in north and central India, including Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Haryana and the Braj region around Mathura and Vrindavan, where the celebrations last for days. In Maharashtra and Goa the bonfire is called Holi or Shimga, and in parts of the south the same full Moon is Kama Dahanam, remembering Shiva burning Kamadeva. In Bengal and Odisha the full Moon is Dol Purnima, centred on Krishna rather than the fire, though some communities there light a bonfire the evening before.
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 Holika Dahan not done during Bhadra?
Tradition regards Bhadra, the Vishti karana, as unsuitable for this fire, so the lighting is timed to avoid it where possible. When Bhadra lasts deep into the night, set rules decide whether to wait, move to the next evening or light it in Bhadra’s tail; this year’s window is shown above.
Is Holika Dahan the day before Holi?
Yes. Holika Dahan is lit on the evening of Phalguna Purnima, and Holi, the festival of colours, is played the next day.
What is the story behind Holika Dahan?
It recalls Prahlad, a devotee of Vishnu, whom his father Hiranyakashipu tried to kill by seating him in a fire on the lap of his aunt Holika. Tradition holds that Holika burned while Prahlad was untouched, so the fire marks goodness overcoming cruelty.