Pradosh Vrat Dates 2026-27: List, Puja Vidhi & Rules

Pradosh Vrat is kept on Trayodashi, the thirteenth lunar day, twice every month. The dates below are for New Delhi, worked out by our panchang engine with the rule most calendars follow: the vrat falls on the day Trayodashi is running at sunset. Sunset changes from city to city, so in a few places a date can move by a day. Check your local panchang or our daily panchang before you fast.

• Thursday 8 October 2026: Guru Pradosh
• Friday 23 October 2026: Shukra Pradosh
• Friday 6 November 2026: Shukra Pradosh, the same day as Dhanteras
• Sunday 22 November 2026: Ravi Pradosh
• Sunday 6 December 2026: Ravi Pradosh
• Monday 21 December 2026: Som Pradosh (in Delhi, Trayodashi begins at 5:37 pm, just after sunset, so some calendars may show a different day)
• Tuesday 5 January 2027: Bhaum Pradosh
• Wednesday 20 January 2027: Budh Pradosh
• Wednesday 3 February 2027: Budh Pradosh
• Thursday 18 February 2027: Guru Pradosh
• Friday 5 March 2027: Shukra Pradosh
• Saturday 20 March 2027: Shani Pradosh

The word before "Pradosh" is simply the weekday: Som for Monday, Bhaum for Tuesday, Budh for Wednesday, Guru for Thursday, Shukra for Friday, Shani for Saturday and Ravi for Sunday. Many families give Som Pradosh and Shani Pradosh extra importance, but the vidhi for every Pradosh is the same.

Pradosh means the evening twilight. In the Shiva tradition, pradosh kaal is the time around sunset on Trayodashi, and the evening puja in this window is the heart of the vrat. Calendars describe the window in slightly different ways. Most count it from sunset for a little over two hours, and many temples begin the Pradosh puja shortly before sunset so that the main offerings happen as the light fades.

A belief widely held in the Shiva tradition is that on Trayodashi evening Shiva dances in joy on Mount Kailash and the gods gather to praise him. For this reason devotees treat this evening as a special time to worship Shiva and Parvati together. Some traditions also link it with the story of the churning of the ocean, when Shiva drank the poison that rose from it and the devas worshipped him.

Because the date depends on sunset and not on the calendar day, two families in different cities can occasionally keep Pradosh on different dates. Neither is wrong. Follow the panchang your family or your local temple uses.

1. Morning: bathe, wear clean clothes and take a simple sankalp before your home altar. Say your name, your gotra if you know it, and that you are keeping the Pradosh Vrat.
2. Through the day: fast the way your family does. Some keep a nirjala fast without water, but most take water, fruit and milk.
3. Before sunset: bathe again, or at least wash your hands, feet and face, and change into clean clothes. Many people prefer white or light colours.
4. Set up: sit facing east or north-east. Place a Shivling or a picture of Shiva and Parvati on a clean cloth and light a lamp of ghee or sesame oil.
5. Ganesh first: offer a flower and a short prayer to Ganesh.
6. Abhishek: in pradosh kaal, pour water or Gangajal over the Shivling, then milk, then water again, chanting Om Namah Shivaya. Many homes also use panchamrit, a mix of milk, curd, ghee, honey and sugar.
7. Offerings: sandal paste, akshat (unbroken rice), bilva leaves, dhatura, white flowers, fruit and a sweet as bhog.
8. Recitation: read the Shiv Chalisa or the Lingashtakam. If you wish, chant the Mahamrityunjaya Mantra 108 times on a rudraksha mala.
9. Katha: read or listen to the Pradosh Vrat katha for that weekday from a vrat katha book.
10. Aarti: sing Om Jai Shiv Omkara, wave the lamp, and ask forgiveness for any mistake made during the puja.

If you can reach a Shiva temple on Pradosh evening, the puja there follows much the same order, and joining it is a complete way to keep the vrat.

Rules differ by family and region. These are the ones most widely followed:

• Food: keep the day sattvic. No onion, garlic, meat, eggs or alcohol.
• How to fast: some take only fruit, milk and water; others eat one simple meal after the evening puja. A nirjala fast is a personal vow, not a requirement.
• Grains and salt: many families avoid ordinary grains and table salt during the fast and use sendha namak in phalahar.
• Conduct: avoid anger, arguments and gossip. Keeping the mind steady is a large part of the vrat.
• Timing: the evening puja matters more than how long or how strictly you fast. If you are travelling, do a short puja wherever you are, in pradosh kaal.
• Parana: the fast is usually opened the next morning after sunrise with a simple sattvic meal, after first offering the food to Shiva. Families who eat after the evening puja treat that meal as the close of the fast.

On 6 November 2026, Pradosh and Dhanteras fall on the same day. Many households do the Pradosh Shiva puja and the Dhanteras lamps and Lakshmi prayers in the same evening.

There is no single rule. A common practice is to keep 11 or 26 Pradosh Vrats in a row and then do an udyapan, a closing ceremony. Others keep every Pradosh for a year, or keep it whenever they can without counting. Some families begin with a particular weekday Pradosh, such as Som Pradosh or Shani Pradosh, because that weekday matters in their tradition.

Start on a date that fits your life. Many families prefer to begin in Shukla Paksha, the bright half of the lunar month. Avoid starting when you know you will be travelling or unwell in the coming weeks, because a vow broken off halfway tends to feel like a burden instead of devotion.

Most homes keep the udyapan simple: a Shiva puja with havan if a priest is available, a meal for a few people or a brahmin family, and daan of clothes, grain or fruit according to your means. Your family priest can tell you the exact form your tradition uses.

A note on health: people who are pregnant, diabetic, elderly, on regular medication or unwell should speak to their doctor before any strict or nirjala fast. Tradition itself allows a lighter fast with milk and fruit for anyone whose body needs it. The puja is the centre of the vrat, not going hungry.

If you cannot reach a temple on a Pradosh evening, the home puja above is complete in itself. If you would like an abhishek done at a temple in your name, you can book a Shiva Abhishek at Sree Vinayak Mandir in Delhi. The temple's pandit performs a panchamrit abhishek of the Shivling with bilva leaves and Rudra mantra chanting, which takes about an hour. At the time of writing it costs Rs 400. You receive photos, a video of the abhishek and a completion certificate by email, usually within 24 hours of the pooja.

When you book, enter your name, gotra (optional), date of birth and your prayer, and choose the Pradosh date as your preferred date. If you cancel before the pooja is performed, you get a full refund.

To add a Monday practice alongside Pradosh, read our guide to the Somvar Vrat.