Festival · 2026
Vivah Panchami 2026 — Monday, 14 December 2026
Vivah Panchami celebrates the wedding of Rama and Sita in Mithila, remembered each year in the bright half of Margashirsha.
In 2026
Monday, 14 December 2026
- Tithi
- Shukla Panchami: 13 Dec, 4:48 PM – 14 Dec, 7:16 PM
- Lunar month
- Margashirsha
- Sunrise / sunset
- 7:05 AM / 5:25 PM
Rule: Margashirsha Shukla Panchami at sunrise.
In 2027
Friday, 3 December 2027
- Tithi
- Shukla Panchami: 2 Dec, 1:44 PM – 3 Dec, 4:13 PM
- Lunar month
- Margashirsha
- Sunrise / sunset
- 6:57 AM / 5:23 PM
Rule: Margashirsha Shukla Panchami 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 Vivah Panchami?
Vivah Panchami falls on the Panchami, the fifth day, of the bright half of Margashirsha, the month that follows Kartika. Tradition holds that on this day Rama, prince of Ayodhya, was married to Sita, daughter of King Janaka of Mithila. The day is celebrated as a wedding anniversary, with the joy and the songs of a family wedding, in the temples of Rama and above all in the two cities of the story, Janakpur and Ayodhya.
The Ramayana tells how Janaka had set a condition for Sita’s marriage: she would wed the one who could lift and string the great bow of Shiva kept in his court. Many kings failed. Rama, who had come to Mithila with his brother Lakshmana and the sage Vishvamitra, lifted the bow, and as he drew it the bow broke. Sita garlanded him, word was sent to Ayodhya, and King Dasharatha came with the wedding party. At the same ceremony Rama’s three brothers were married to Sita’s sister Urmila and her cousins Mandavi and Shrutakirti.
In the Ramcharitmanas of Tulsidas the wedding is one of the most loved passages of the Bal Kand, full of the songs of the women of Mithila, the teasing of the bridegroom’s party and the tender farewell of Sita from her father’s house. Those passages are read and sung on Vivah Panchami, and in many places the wedding is enacted in Ramlila style, with the procession, the garlanding and the rounds of the sacred fire.
The day is loved in Mithila, the region across north Bihar and the Terai of Nepal that regards Sita as its daughter and Rama as its son-in-law. Maithili wedding songs are sung for them as if for a family wedding. At the same time, some families in Mithila and elsewhere do not fix their own weddings on this day, remembering the separation and hardship that followed in Sita’s life. That is a family custom, and others hold the day to be especially auspicious; both views are held with respect.
How it is observed
- Rama and Sita are worshipped together in temples and homes, dressed as bride and groom.
- The wedding passages of the Bal Kand in the Ramcharitmanas are read or sung, and some families complete a full reading on this day.
- Temples in Ayodhya and Janakpur enact the wedding with a procession, garlanding and the rounds of the fire.
- Maithili and Awadhi wedding songs are sung by women’s groups through the evening.
- Many devotees keep a fast until the evening worship and then share prasad.
- Some families, by their own custom, avoid fixing a wedding on this day; others choose it gladly.
How the date is fixed
Vivah Panchami is the Panchami of the bright half of Margashirsha. Since it falls in the bright fortnight, the month name is the same in amanta and purnimanta calendars; it comes a little over two weeks after Kartik Purnima. The day is the one on which Panchami is present at sunrise, the udaya tithi, as for most day-long observances. Temples in Janakpur and Ayodhya may begin their celebrations several days earlier and hold the wedding itself on this day.
Where practice differs
Janakpur in Nepal, held to be the capital of Janaka’s Mithila, keeps the largest celebration at the Janaki Mandir, with a festival of several days and a symbolic wedding party arriving as if from Ayodhya. In Ayodhya the temples dedicated to Sita and Rama, such as Kanak Bhawan, hold their own wedding rites and processions. Across Mithila in north Bihar the day is a festival of songs. In the rest of north India it is kept mainly in Rama temples and by Ramcharitmanas reading groups. The custom of avoiding weddings on this day is found mostly in parts of Mithila, Nepal and eastern Uttar Pradesh, and it varies from family to family.
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
What is celebrated on Vivah Panchami?
The wedding of Rama and Sita in Mithila, after Rama broke the great bow of Shiva at King Janaka’s court. The day is kept as the anniversary of that wedding.
Is it auspicious to marry on Vivah Panchami?
Views differ. Some families treat it as a lovely day for a wedding, while others, especially in parts of Mithila and Nepal, avoid it out of regard for the hardships in Sita’s life. It is a matter of family custom, and families consult their own muhurta.
Where is Vivah Panchami celebrated most?
In Janakpur in Nepal, at the Janaki Mandir, and in Ayodhya, along with Rama temples across north India and the Mithila region of Bihar.
How can Vivah Panchami be observed at home?
Many families worship a picture of Rama and Sita, read the wedding passages from the Ramcharitmanas, sing wedding songs and share sweets. A fast until evening is kept by some.