Vrat katha and puja vidhi

Karwa Chauth 2027: moonrise, vrat katha and puja vidhi

Monday, 18 October 2027. In New Delhi the Moon rises at 7:30 pm. Everything for the day in one place: sargi, samagri, the puja step by step, the katha and breaking the fast.

Listen: Karwa Chauth 2027

A calm computer-voiced recitation over soft music, checked line by line against the text. It is an aid to reading along, not a replacement for a priest or a family elder.

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Karwa Chauth 2027 at a glance

Date: Monday, 18 October 2027.
Tithi: Kartik Krishna Chaturthi (the fourth day of the waning Moon), from 5:52 pm on 18 October to 4:42 pm on 19 October. In the amanta calendar of Gujarat, Maharashtra and the South the month is called Ashvin; it is the same day.
Moonrise in New Delhi: 7:30 pm (other cities below). The Moon is in Krittika nakshatra that evening.
Sargi: before sunrise. In Delhi, Brahma muhurta is 4:42 to 5:33 am and sunrise is 6:23 am.
Evening puja: after sunset (5:48 pm in Delhi) and before moonrise; most families gather in the hour or two before the Moon is due.
The fast in Delhi: sunrise to moonrise, about 13 hours 7 minutes.

What Karwa Chauth is

Karwa Chauth is a one-day fast kept by married women, above all in Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh, for the long life and wellbeing of their husbands. Karwa is the small clay pot with a spout that is used in the puja, and chauth means the fourth: the fourth day after the full Moon in the month of Kartik.

The day has a simple shape. Before dawn the woman eats sargi, usually sent by her mother-in-law. Then she fasts through the day, traditionally without food or water. In the evening the women of the family and neighbourhood dress as brides, gather for the puja of Gauri (Parvati) as Karwa Mata, and listen to the katha. When the Moon rises she offers it water, looks at it and then at her husband through a sieve, and he gives her the first sip of water and the first bite of food.

Today many unmarried women keep it for the partner they hope for, and many husbands fast alongside their wives. The vrat is an offering of love and patience, not a test. If you are pregnant, nursing, diabetic or unwell, a fast with water and fruit (phalahar) is fully within the tradition; please ask your doctor before going without water.

Moonrise time on Karwa Chauth 2027, city by city

Times are for Monday, 18 October 2027, for New Delhi (UTC+5:30); for your city, see the panchang. The fast runs from sunrise until you see the Moon.

City	Sunrise	Moonrise	Fast lasts
New Delhi	06:23	19:30	13h 07m
Mumbai	06:33	20:10	13h 37m
Kolkata	05:34	18:58	13h 25m
Chennai	05:59	19:52	13h 53m
Jaipur	06:27	19:40	13h 13m
Lucknow	06:07	19:19	13h 12m
Chandigarh	06:26	19:26	12h 59m
Bengaluru	06:10	20:04	13h 54m
Hyderabad	06:09	19:51	13h 41m
Ahmedabad	06:37	20:03	13h 26m
Patna	05:49	19:05	13h 16m
Indore	06:24	19:50	13h 26m

Computed with the Sunyra engine: the time the upper edge of the Moon clears a flat horizon, with standard refraction. Hills, buildings and haze make the Moon visible a few minutes later.

Moonrise in your own city

Choose your town; the panchang below shows its moonrise for the date (the date is filled in for you).

Your panchang

Sunrise, sunset, moonrise and the full panchang for your town will appear here.

Sargi: the meal before dawn

Sargi is eaten before sunrise, ideally in Brahma muhurta (4:42 to 5:33 am in Delhi). It is traditionally sent by the mother-in-law with her blessings; if she is far away, the woman prepares it herself. Choose food that keeps you steady through a long day:

Pheni or sevaiyan cooked in milk, the classic sargi dish.
Fruit, especially banana, apple and pomegranate.
Soaked almonds, cashews, raisins and dates.
Mathri, a paratha or a light sabzi if you like a proper meal.
Coconut water or plenty of plain water. Keep salt and very sweet food light: they make you thirsty later.
Sargi also carries shringar: bangles, bindi, sindoor and mehndi, sent as blessings for the day.

Puja samagri (what you need)

A karwa: a clay (or metal) pot with a spout and a lid, filled with water. Many families keep two, one for the woman and one to exchange.
A picture or clay image of Karwa Mata / Gauri, with Shiva, Ganesha and Kartikeya; many families use a printed Karwa Chauth calendar picture.
A puja thali: roli or kumkum, rice (akshat), turmeric, a diya with ghee, incense, flowers and a small bowl of water.
A sieve (chhalni) for seeing the Moon, and a lota or glass of water for the arghya.
Sweets, fruit, mathri or puas for the bhog, and a few grains of wheat or rice to hold during the katha.
The baya: a gift for the mother-in-law (sweets, dry fruit, clothes or a saree, a little money), given after the puja.
Bridal shringar for yourself: red or bright clothes, sindoor, bindi, bangles, mehndi.

Puja vidhi, step by step

Families differ in the details; follow your elders where they differ from this. The evening puja takes about 45 minutes, plus waiting for the Moon.

Morning sankalp. After sargi and bathing, sit for a moment facing east, hold a little water and rice in your right hand, and say in your own words that you are keeping the Karwa Chauth vrat for your husband's long life and your family's happiness. Let the water fall.
Through the day. Rest, keep the mind calm, and avoid quarrels and harsh words. Apply mehndi if you like. Many women do not sew or cut cloth on this day.
Prepare the place. Before sunset, bathe again and dress in your shringar. Clean the puja place, draw a small square with rice flour or turmeric, and set the picture of Karwa Mata on a low stool. Place the filled karwa beside it with a diya, the thali and the bhog.
Ganesha first. Light the diya and incense. Offer roli, rice and a flower to Ganesha and ask that the vrat be completed without obstacles.
Puja of Karwa Mata. Offer roli, sindoor, rice, flowers and sweets to Gauri as Karwa Mata, and to Shiva, Ganesha and Kartikeya. Mark the karwa with roli and tie a red thread (kalava) around its neck.
The katha. Sit together, hold a few grains of wheat or rice, and read or listen to the katha below. Afterwards keep the grains aside to offer with the arghya.
The feri (where it is the custom). The women sit in a circle and pass their thalis from hand to hand seven times while singing the traditional Karwa song of their region.
Baya. Touch your mother-in-law's feet (or an elder woman's) and give her the baya; she blesses you to stay sada suhagan.
Aarti. End with the aarti of Gauri or Ganesha, then wait calmly for the Moon.

Karwa Chauth vrat katha: the story of Veeravati

This is the story most families tell. We have written it fresh in simple Hindi, with an English rendering below each part. Reading it aloud takes about eight minutes.

बहुत समय पहले की बात है। एक नगर में एक साहूकार रहता था। उसके सात बेटे थे और एक ही बेटी थी, जिसका नाम वीरावती था। सातों भाई अपनी बहन को प्राणों से भी ज़्यादा प्यार करते थे। वे उसे खिलाए बिना ख़ुद भोजन नहीं करते थे।

Long ago, in a certain town, there lived a merchant. He had seven sons and one daughter, Veeravati. The seven brothers loved their sister more than their own lives, and would not eat until she had eaten.

समय आने पर वीरावती का विवाह हो गया। विवाह के बाद पहली करवा चौथ आई तो वह अपने मायके में थी। उसने अपनी भाभियों के साथ पूरे मन से निर्जल व्रत रखा। पर वह कोमल थी, और शाम होते-होते भूख और प्यास से बेहाल होकर मूर्छित-सी हो गई।

In time Veeravati was married. When her first Karwa Chauth came, she was at her parents' home. She kept the fast without food or water, with all her heart, together with her brothers' wives. But she was delicate, and by evening hunger and thirst had left her faint.

भाइयों से बहन की यह हालत देखी नहीं गई। वे जानते थे कि वह चाँद देखे बिना व्रत नहीं खोलेगी, और चाँद अभी निकला नहीं था। तब उन्होंने एक उपाय सोचा। एक भाई दूर पीपल के पेड़ पर दीया और छलनी लेकर चढ़ गया। छलनी के पीछे जलता दीया दूर से ऐसा दिखा जैसे पेड़ों के पीछे से चाँद उग रहा हो।

The brothers could not bear to see her like this. They knew she would not break the fast before seeing the Moon, and the Moon had not yet risen. So they made a plan. One brother climbed a distant pipal tree with a lamp and a sieve. The lamp glowing behind the sieve looked, from afar, like the Moon rising behind the trees.

भाइयों ने आकर कहा, “बहन, चाँद निकल आया है, अर्घ्य देकर भोजन कर लो।” वीरावती ने अपनी भाभियों से भी कहा, पर वे सच जानती थीं और बोलीं, “तुम्हारे भाइयों का चाँद निकला है, हमारा अभी नहीं।” भोली वीरावती ने बात नहीं समझी। उसने दीये को चाँद मानकर अर्घ्य दिया और भोजन करने बैठ गई।

The brothers came and said, “Sister, the Moon has risen. Offer arghya and eat.” Veeravati asked her sisters-in-law to come too, but they knew the truth and said, “Your brothers' moon has risen, not ours.” Innocent Veeravati did not understand. Taking the lamp for the Moon, she offered water to it and sat down to eat.

पहले कौर में बाल निकला। दूसरे कौर पर उसे छींक आ गई। तीसरा कौर उठाया ही था कि ससुराल से संदेश आया कि उसके पति बहुत बीमार हैं, और जब वह वहाँ पहुँची तो उन्होंने प्राण त्याग दिए थे। वीरावती का हृदय टूट गया। वह रो-रोकर कहने लगी कि उसने तो पूरे मन से व्रत रखा था, फिर यह क्या हुआ।

In the first morsel there was a hair. At the second she sneezed. She had barely lifted the third when word came from her husband's home that he was gravely ill, and when she reached him, he had already passed away. Veeravati's heart broke. She wept and asked how this could happen when she had kept the fast with all her heart.

उसका विलाप सुनकर देवी इंद्राणी (कुछ कथाओं में स्वयं माता पार्वती) प्रकट हुईं। उन्होंने स्नेह से बताया, “बेटी, तुम्हारा कोई दोष नहीं। तुम्हारे भाइयों ने प्रेम में तुम्हें नक़ली चाँद दिखाया, और व्रत अधूरा रह गया। अब धैर्य रखो। साल भर हर महीने की चौथ का व्रत श्रद्धा से करो, और अगली करवा चौथ पर पूरे विधि-विधान से व्रत रखो।”

Hearing her grief, the goddess Indrani (in some tellings Mother Parvati herself) appeared. She told her gently, “Daughter, you are not at fault. Out of love your brothers showed you a false moon, and the fast was left incomplete. Now be patient. Keep the fast of every month's Chauth with faith for a year, and keep the next Karwa Chauth fully, in the proper way.”

वीरावती ने पति के शरीर को न छोड़ने का प्रण लिया और साल भर उसकी सेवा करती रही। उसने हर महीने की चौथ का व्रत किया। फिर अगली करवा चौथ आई। उसने सूर्योदय से चंद्रोदय तक निर्जल व्रत रखा, करवा माता की पूजा की, कथा सुनी और असली चाँद निकलने पर ही अर्घ्य दिया।

Veeravati vowed not to leave her husband's side, and for a whole year she cared for him. She kept the fast of every month's Chauth. Then the next Karwa Chauth came. She fasted from sunrise to moonrise, worshipped Karwa Mata, listened to the katha, and offered arghya only when the true Moon had risen.

उसकी अटूट श्रद्धा और धैर्य से माता प्रसन्न हुईं, और उनकी कृपा से उसके पति फिर से जीवित हो उठे, जैसे गहरी नींद से जागे हों। दोनों ने सुख से लंबा जीवन बिताया। कथा के अंत में स्त्रियाँ कहती हैं: “जैसे करवा माता ने वीरावती का सुहाग लौटाया, वैसे ही सबका सुहाग अमर रखें।”

Pleased by her unbroken faith and patience, the Mother blessed her, and by her grace Veeravati's husband came back to life, as if waking from deep sleep. The two lived long and happily. At the end of the katha the women say: “As Karwa Mata gave Veeravati back her husband, may she keep every woman's marriage whole.”

Other stories are also told on this day: the faithful Karwa who saved her husband from a crocodile, Savitri who won back Satyavan from Yama, and Draupadi, who kept this vrat on Krishna's advice while Arjuna was away. They carry the same meaning: love that is patient and steady.

Seeing the Moon and breaking the fast

When the Moon is up, go to a roof, balcony or open ground with your thali, the karwa of water, the sieve and a lit diya.
Offer roli, rice and a little sweet to the Moon, then pour water from the karwa or lota as arghya, with the grains you held during the katha. A simple prayer is enough: “Chandra Dev, accept my arghya; bless my husband with long life and our home with peace.”
Light the diya in the sieve or hold it beside the sieve. Look at the Moon through the sieve, then look at your husband through it.
Touch your husband's feet if that is your family's custom. He offers you the first sip of water from the karwa and the first bite of a sweet; the fast is complete.
Eat slowly. Start with water and something light (fruit, kheer or dal) before a full meal.
If clouds hide the Moon, wait a little after the moonrise time for your city. If it stays hidden, many families offer arghya towards its direction at the computed time, or to a picture of the Moon, and break the fast; ask your elders.

Questions

When is Karwa Chauth in 2027?

Karwa Chauth 2027 is on Monday, 18 October 2027 (Kartik Krishna Chaturthi). The Moon rises at 7:30 pm in New Delhi.

What time will the Moon rise on Karwa Chauth 2027?

On 18 October 2027 the Moon rises at 7:30 pm in New Delhi, 8:10 pm in Mumbai, 6:58 pm in Kolkata, 7:52 pm in Chennai, 7:40 pm in Jaipur, 7:19 pm in Lucknow and 7:26 pm in Chandigarh. The page computes it for any town.

When should sargi be eaten?

Before sunrise, ideally in Brahma muhurta. On 18 October 2027 that is 4:42 to 5:33 am in Delhi, and sunrise is at 6:23 am.

Can I drink water during the Karwa Chauth fast?

The traditional fast is nirjala, without water. But if you are pregnant, nursing, diabetic, on medication or unwell, a fast with water and fruit is fully accepted; health comes first, and the vrat is about devotion, not hardship.

Which story is read on Karwa Chauth?

Most families read the story of Veeravati, the sister of seven brothers who broke her fast on a false moon and won her husband back through a year of faith. It is given above in Hindi and English.

Can unmarried women keep the Karwa Chauth fast?

Yes. Many keep it for the partner they hope to marry, often breaking it by looking at the Moon or at the stars, as their family prefers.

Text and sources

The date and every time on this page are computed with the Sunyra engine (sidereal Lahiri calendar, purnimanta months as in North India) and move on to the next year by themselves the day after the festival; they are the same numbers as our panchang. The katha, vidhi and notes are written fresh by us from the common oral telling; family customs vary, and your elders' way is the right one for your home.

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