Why is the arghya offered to the setting Sun first?

It is the distinctive feature of the festival. Most Sun worship addresses the rising Sun; Chhath deliberately honours the Sun at both ends, and the evening arghya comes first.

Chhath Puja

Also called Chhathi Maiya, Surya Shashthi, Dala Chhath

When

Sunday, 15 November 2026 in 80 days

New Delhi · change location

Sunrise6:47 AM

Sunset5:23 PM

Shashthi until 2:01 AM, Nov 16
at sunrise. This observance is governed by sunset / sunrise, not by the sunrise tithi — which is why the tithi named here is often not the one the festival is named for.

Uttara Ashadha until 11:29 PM

4:04 PM – 5:23 PM

See the complete panchang for that day →

Governed by sunset / sunrise

Why this date?

Four days from the Chaturthi to the Saptami of the Shukla Paksha of Kartika. The two arghyas are set by SUNSET on Shashthi and SUNRISE on Saptami, so both are strictly local times — this is one festival where a generic national timing is useless.

Computed by the panchanga engine for your location
Follows a written selection rule, not a copied list
The governing period is stated, and the rule is applied to it
The written guide has not yet been reviewed by a named scholar

Dates come from the calculation engine and are independent of the written guide. How we calculate →

Dates in the coming years

Published to 2030. Later years appear as the dataset is extended and validated.

What In short

A four-day observance of the Sun and Chhathi Maiya: Nahay-Khay, Kharna, the evening arghya standing in water on Shashthi, and the morning arghya at sunrise on Saptami.

Deity: Surya; Chhathi Maiya (Ushas)

Why The reason behind it

It is one of the very few living observances addressed to the setting Sun as well as the rising one — the evening arghya is offered to the Sun going down, which is unusual and deliberate. It is also, notably, a festival kept without priests: the vratin performs it directly.

Traditional basis

Rigvedic Surya suktas — The Sun-worship the observance continues; the connection is one of practice rather than a prescriptive text for this vrata.

Regional Maithili and Bhojpuri tradition — The living transmission; the observance's rules come from household lineage rather than a nibandha.

How At home, step by step

Day 1, Nahay-Khay: bathe in a river, and eat one simple sattvic meal — traditionally kaddu-bhat.
Day 2, Kharna: fast all day and eat only after sunset — rasiao-kheer and roti — after which the nirjala fast begins.
Day 3 evening: carry the daura to the ghat and offer arghya to the setting Sun, standing in water.
Day 3 night: keep the vigil and hear the Chhath songs.
Day 4 sunrise: return to the water and offer arghya to the rising Sun; the fast is broken there.
Throughout: cook in new earthen vessels, keep strict cleanliness, and do not taste the offerings while preparing them.

What you'll need

A bamboo daura and soop (winnowing basket)
Thekua, seasonal fruit, sugarcane
Coconut, banana, singhara
New earthen stove and vessels
A brass vessel for arghya

Fasting and breaking the fast

Among the most demanding household fasts in practice: roughly thirty-six hours nirjala from Kharna's evening meal to the morning arghya. It is kept voluntarily and often for many years running. Health conditions are a real consideration; consult a doctor rather than a calendar.

Fasting guidance here describes traditional practice. It is not medical advice — if you are pregnant, diabetic, on medication or unwell, ask a doctor about your own circumstances.

Personal In your region

North India yours
Bihar and eastern Uttar Pradesh are the heartland; the ghats are the centre of the observance.
Nepal (Nepali)
Kept across the Terai with the same four-day structure.
Bengal (Bengali)
Observed by Bihari and Purvanchali communities; less common among Bengali households.

For children

For four days people thank the Sun — once when it goes down, and again when it comes up. Everyone stands in the river together, and there is thekua to eat at the end.

Common questions

Why is the arghya offered to the setting Sun first?: It is the distinctive feature of the festival. Most Sun worship addresses the rising Sun; Chhath deliberately honours the Sun at both ends, and the evening arghya comes first.

This guide has not yet been reviewed by a named scholar or practising priest. The dates and times on this page come from the calculation engine and are independent of it; the explanatory text is editorial and may not reflect your family's practice. Tell us if something is wrong.