Purnima
The full moon, once every lunar month.
When it falls
Next dates
- Saturday, 26 September 2026
- Monday, 26 October 2026
- Tuesday, 24 November 2026
- Wednesday, 23 December 2026
- Friday, 22 January 2027
- Saturday, 20 February 2027
- Monday, 22 March 2027
- Tuesday, 20 April 2027
- Thursday, 20 May 2027
- Friday, 18 June 2027
- Sunday, 18 July 2027
- Tuesday, 17 August 2027
- Wednesday, 15 September 2027
By the sunrise at Har Ki Pauri, Haridwar
- The rule
- Shukla Purnima, tithi 15
- Which day
- Sunrise (udaya-vyapini)
- The day on which the tithi is running at sunrise (udaya-vyapini).
- Weight
- A recurring parva
- Returns
- Every lunar month
What it is
Purnima is the fifteenth tithi of the waxing fortnight, the night the moon stands full. It closes the bright half of the month. In the Purnimanta reckoning used at the northern ghats it closes the lunar month itself. Tradition keeps the day with a snan, a gift and a simple vow. Every lunar month has one. Kartika, Magha and Vaishakha Purnima carry their own names and their own crowds. The others pass quietly, and they are the ones that make a practice regular.
Where it is kept
Kept at all six waters. Purnima belongs to every river alike, so choose the one you grew up near.
Ganga
Har Ki Pauri, Haridwar
Purnimanta reckoning
Where the Ganga leaves the hills
Triveni Sangam
Sangam, Prayagraj
Purnimanta reckoning
Where Ganga, Yamuna and Saraswati meet
Yamuna
Vishram Ghat, Mathura
Purnimanta reckoning
Krishna's own river
Godavari
Ram Kund, Nashik
Amanta reckoning
The Dakshin Ganga
Shipra
Ram Ghat, Ujjain
Purnimanta reckoning
Home of the Simhastha Kumbh
Kaveri
Talakaveri, Kodagu
Amanta reckoning
The source of the Kaveri
The windows
Brahma Muhurat
about 48 minutes
From sunrise
- Definition
- Two muhurtas of the night before sunrise, until one muhurta before it. A night muhurta is a fifteenth of the night, about 48 minutes at the equinox and longer in winter.
Brahma Muhurat falls before sunrise, so it belongs to the panchang day that opened at the previous sunrise, and the Gregorian date beside it is the next day. The calendar keeps the two apart.
Pratah Snan
about 96 minutes
From sunrise
- Definition
- Sunrise, until two muhurtas of the day after it. A day muhurta is a fifteenth of the daylight, about 48 minutes at the equinox and longer in summer.
This window sits after sunrise, so its panchang day and its Gregorian date agree.
Every time is given at the ghat first, and in your own zone beside it. How the clock is read
Where the timing comes from
- Source
- Computed here, checked against Drik Panchang
- Ayanamsa
- Lahiri (Chitrapaksha)
- Ghat coordinates
- Har Ki Pauri, Haridwar: 29.9457, 78.1642
Textual basis
Purnima snan and daan are prescribed across the dharmashastra nibandha literature. A citable edition and passage is still to be added.
Every date here is computed: the tithi at the ghat's sunrise, the month named by the sankranti it holds, and the sun's entry into each sign under the Lahiri ayanamsa. Tithi, nakshatra, sunrise and windows were checked against Drik Panchang for Haridwar on eight days between September 2026 and March 2027, to the minute. The dates roll forward each morning.