Dussehra
Lord Rama, Goddess Durga
When it falls
The date shifts because it tracks the moon, not the Gregorian calendar.
Calculated for India (IST) using precise Panchang astronomy. Dates can shift by a day at locations far to the east or west.
Sharad Navratri & Dussehra
Significance & story
Dussehra carries two great victories on the same day, and most of India holds one or the other. In the north and west it is Vijaya Dashami — the day Rama killed the ten-headed king Ravana and freed Sita, after the long war that the nine days of Navratri recall. The name itself is read two ways: the tenth day (dashami), and the end of the ten-headed one (dasha-hara).
In the east it closes Durga Puja: the day the goddess, after nine nights of battle, finally struck down the shape-shifting buffalo-demon Mahishasura. The thread running through both stories is the same — a long, hard fight against something that could not be beaten by ordinary means, ending in a clear victory on the tenth day.
That is why the day matters beyond the legends. Vijaya means victory, and the tenth tithi of bright Ashwin is treated as one of the most auspicious moments in the year to start something — a new venture, a child's first lessons, a craftsman's tools, a journey. The idea is plain: a thing begun on the day that stands for victory is felt to be begun well.
Rituals & observance
How Dussehra is kept:
- In the north, large effigies of Ravana, his brother Kumbhakarna and son Meghnad are stuffed with fireworks and burned at dusk in open grounds, often closing a ten-day Ramlila enactment of the Ramayana.
- Shastra Puja (Ayudha Puja) — tools, weapons, vehicles and instruments of one's trade are cleaned and worshipped, honouring the means of one's work.
- Many families do Saraswati Puja, worshipping books and learning, and children are often started on their first lessons (Vidyarambha) on this day.
- In the east, Durga Puja closes with Vijaya Dashami — the clay idols are taken in procession and immersed in a river or pond (visarjan), and elders are greeted with sweets.
- Leaves of the shami tree (and, in the Deccan, apta leaves shared as symbolic gold) are exchanged as tokens of good fortune and goodwill.
Regional variations
How this date is determined
Observed on the Dashami tithi of Ashwin (Shukla paksha), reckoned by the afternoon (aparahna).
Dates are computed to astronomical precision (NASA/JPL ephemeris), in line with traditional panchang.
