Lakshmi Puja 2026 Date and Time: Everything Bengal Needs to Know

Lakshmi Puja 2026 date and time is the question on every Bengali household’s mind the moment Durga immerses into the Ganga. Barely has the dhaak fallen silent when the household turns its attention to welcoming Ma Lokkhi — the goddess of wealth, grace, and quiet abundance — back home.

📅 Lakshmi Puja 2026 Date

Kojagari Lakshmi Puja 2026 will be celebrated on Sunday, October 25, 2026 — four days after Vijaya Dashami, which falls on October 21, 2026.

• Day: Sunday
• Date: 25th October 2026
• Tithi: Purnima (Kojagari Purnima / Sharad Purnima), Ashwin month
• Region: West Bengal, Odisha, Assam

⏰ Lakshmi Puja 2026 Shubh Time (Muhurat)

The Purnima Tithi that governs Kojagari Lakshmi Puja spans across two days on the Gregorian calendar. Here is the exact tithi window for 2026:

• Purnima Tithi Begins: 11:55 AM, October 25, 2026 (IST)
• Purnima Tithi Ends: 9:41 AM, October 26, 2026 (IST)
• Evening Puja (Pradosh Kaal): After sunset on October 25 — most households begin their Lakshmi Puja here, once the home is cleaned and the alpona drawn
• Nishita Kaal (most auspicious): Around midnight, between October 25 and October 26 — this is the hour Goddess Lakshmi is believed to descend and visit homes

Because the Purnima Tithi comfortably covers the midnight of October 25–26, this is why the puja is observed on Sunday, October 25 rather than the following morning — the night itself falls fully within Purnima.

Tithi timings are calculated for Kolkata/IST and may shift by a few minutes depending on the exact panchang followed; cross-check with your family’s Panjika closer to the date for minute-precision.

In the Bengali Panjika, this night is called Kojagari Purnima, and elsewhere in India, the same full moon is known as Sharad Purnima.

Unlike Durga Puja, which spans several days of ceremony, Lakshmi Puja is a single, intimate night of worship performed inside the home — no pandal hopping, no processions, just diyas, alpona, and the hush of a family gathered around the thakur ghar.

Why Bengal’s Lakshmi Puja Falls on a Different Day

Most of India worships Goddess Lakshmi during Diwali, on Amavasya (the new moon) in the month of Kartik. Bengal, along with Odisha and Assam, follows an older tradition and worships her instead on the full moon night of Ashwin, roughly two weeks before the rest of the country’s Diwali celebrations.

The name Kojagari comes from the Sanskrit phrase “Ko Jagarti,” meaning “Who is awake?” According to belief, Goddess Lakshmi descends to earth on this night and visits every home, asking this very question — and blesses those still awake with prosperity for the year ahead. This is why many families in Bengal stay up late, sing Lakshmi Panchali, and keep their doors and windows open through the night.

Rituals of Lokkhi Pujo

Kojagari Lakshmi Puja is built around a few enduring customs passed down through generations:

Alpona at the entrance. Rice-paste patterns, often paired with a trail of painted Lakshmi footprints, are drawn from the main door leading into the house — a visual invitation for the goddess to step inside.

The Lakshmi Ghot. A kalash topped with a coconut and mango leaves, placed on a bed of rice, forms the ritual centrepiece, symbolising abundance and the goddess’s presence.

Bhog and prasad. Khichuri, labra (mixed vegetables), payesh, and narkel naru (coconut sweets) are the traditional offerings, later shared among family and neighbours.

Lakshmi Panchali paath. The evening includes a reading of the Lakshmi Panchali, a devotional text recounting her stories and blessings, usually read aloud by the eldest woman of the household.

Staying awake. In keeping with the festival’s name, many families make a point of staying up well past midnight, treating the vigil itself as an act of devotion.

Lakshmi Puja and the End of the Durga Puja Season

For Bengal, Kojagari Lakshmi Puja quietly closes the arc that Mahalaya opens. Where Durga Puja is public, communal, and thunderous with dhaak and crowds, Lakshmi Puja turns inward — a night reserved for family, gratitude, and the home itself. It is, in many ways, the festival that reminds Bengalis that abundance follows strength, and that the goddess of wealth arrives only once the goddess of power has been properly bid farewell.