Festival · 2027
Ratha Saptami 2027 — Saturday, 13 February 2027
Ratha Saptami, the seventh day of the bright half of Magha, honours the Sun as he turns his chariot toward spring, with a bath before sunrise and offerings of water to the rising Sun.
In 2026
Sunday, 25 January 2026
- Tithi
- Shukla Saptami: 25 Jan, 12:40 AM – 25 Jan, 11:10 PM
- Lunar month
- Magha
- Sunrise / sunset
- 7:12 AM / 5:54 PM
| Snan (bath) muhurat | 5:36 AM – 7:12 AM |
|---|
Rule: Magha Shukla Saptami at sunrise; the bath is taken at arunodaya, the 96 minutes before sunrise.
In 2027
Saturday, 13 February 2027
- Tithi
- Shukla Saptami: 13 Feb, 2:59 AM – 14 Feb, 2:07 AM
- Lunar month
- Magha
- Sunrise / sunset
- 7:01 AM / 6:09 PM
| Snan (bath) muhurat | 5:25 AM – 7:01 AM |
|---|
Rule: Magha Shukla Saptami at sunrise; the bath is taken at arunodaya, the 96 minutes before 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 Ratha Saptami?
Ratha Saptami falls on the Saptami, the seventh lunar day, of the bright half of Magha. Saptami is the tithi traditionally dedicated to Surya, the Sun, and this one is regarded as the most important of the year. It is also called Surya Jayanti, the birthday of the Sun, as well as Magha Saptami, Achala Saptami and, in some places, Arogya Saptami, the Saptami of good health.
The name means the Saptami of the chariot. In the tradition, the Sun drives across the sky in a chariot drawn by seven horses, which are often read as the seven colours of light or the seven days of the week, with Aruna, the dawn, as charioteer. On this day, tradition says, the Sun turns his chariot toward the north and the warmer half of the year. Coming a few weeks after Makar Sankranti, the day is felt as the first real turn from winter toward spring, and in much of the south it is treated as the start of the warm season’s farm work.
Surya worship on the seventh tithi has a long history. The Puranas, the Bhavishya Purana in particular, describe Saptami vows for the Sun, and the Sun has been worshipped in India as a visible god since Vedic times, in hymns such as the Gayatri and the Aditya Hridayam from the Ramayana, which many recite on this day. The Sun is honoured as the source of light, warmth, food and health.
The best-known custom is the bath at arunodaya, the hour and a half before sunrise. Many observers place seven leaves of the arka plant (calotropis, known in Hindi as aak) on the head, shoulders and body while bathing, sometimes with a little rice and sesame, and recite a short prayer to the Sun. After the bath, water is offered to the rising Sun, and in many homes a rangoli of the Sun’s chariot is drawn and a sweet dish of milk and rice is cooked in the open, in the sunlight.
How it is observed
- Bathing at arunodaya, before sunrise, with seven arka leaves placed on the head and body, as many families do.
- Offering arghya, water from a copper vessel, to the rising Sun, often with red flowers and a little rice.
- Reciting the Aditya Hridayam, the Gayatri or the twelve names of the Sun.
- Drawing a rangoli of the Sun’s chariot with seven horses at the entrance.
- Cooking a sweet of milk and rice in the open sunlight and offering it to the Sun.
- Giving food, clothes or grain, and for some, keeping a light fast.
How the date is fixed
Ratha Saptami is Magha Shukla Saptami, the seventh tithi of the bright half of Magha. The same month name is used by amanta and purnimanta calendars for the bright half, so there is no naming difference. Our calendar keeps it on the day the Saptami holds at sunrise, and the bath is timed at arunodaya, the 96 minutes before that sunrise. If the Saptami begins and ends without touching any sunrise (a kshaya tithi), the day it begins is taken. The date and the arunodaya window above are worked out this way for your place.
Where practice differs
Ratha Saptami is observed most widely in the south and west. At the Tirumala temple the utsava deity, Malayappa Swami, is taken out on seven different vahanas, one after another, from dawn to night, a celebration often called a one-day Brahmotsavam; several other Vishnu and Surya temples in Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu hold chariot processions. In Maharashtra the arka leaf bath and the chariot rangoli are common household customs. In Odisha, a large gathering bathes at Chandrabhaga near Konark on this day. In the north the same Saptami is kept more quietly as Achala Saptami or Surya Saptami, and some regional almanacs keep it on another day when the tithi spans two sunrises.
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 Ratha Saptami called Surya Jayanti?
Tradition holds that the Sun was born, or first appeared in his chariot, on Magha Shukla Saptami, so the day is celebrated as his birthday. The seventh tithi is in any case the Sun’s own day in the lunar month.
What is the arka leaf bath?
Many observers bathe before sunrise with seven leaves of the arka plant placed on the head and body, reciting a short verse to the Sun. It is a household custom handed down in families, especially in Maharashtra, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh.
What time should the Ratha Saptami bath be taken?
At arunodaya, the roughly 96 minutes before sunrise, followed by arghya to the rising Sun. The arunodaya window and sunrise for your place are shown above.
Is Ratha Saptami the same as Achala Saptami?
Yes, they are names for the same Magha Shukla Saptami. Different regions and texts use different names for it, including Magha Saptami, Surya Saptami and Arogya Saptami.