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Akshaya Tritiya 2026

The undiminishing third — an all-day auspicious muhurta for beginnings and gold.

Akshaya Tritiya 2025Akshaya Tritiya 2027
Akshaya Tritiya 2026 date
Sunday, 19 April 2026
Tithi: Vaishakha Shukla Tritiya
Tithi window: 10:55 AM, Sunday, 19 April 2026 → 07:33 AM, Monday, 20 April 2026
See the full panchang for Sunday, 19 April 2026

Today's Panchang

Kashi reference · computed live
Tithi
Saptami
till 20:47
Nakshatra
Ashwini
till 21:21
Yoga
Shula
Karana
Vishti
Sunrise
05:26
Sunset
18:41
Moon sign
Aries
Sun sign
Cancer

Muhurat & timings

Kashi/IST · astronomically computed
  • Sankalp (sunrise)05:32
  • Madhyahna puja muhurat10:40 – 13:14
  • Fasting window (tithi)10:55 → 2026-04-20 · 07:33
  • Parana (tithi ends)07:332026-04-20

The significance of Akshaya Tritiya

Akshaya Tritiya falls on the Tritiya of Shukla Paksha in Vaishakha and is held to be one of the most auspicious days of the year — an abujh muhurta, a day so wholesome that it needs no further reckoning of time for anything one begins on it. The word akshaya means 'that which does not diminish'; the belief is that what is begun, given or acquired on this day endures and grows rather than wears away.

The day is heavy with beginnings in tradition. The Treta Yuga is said to have begun on it; the Ganga is said to have descended to earth; Vyasa is said to have begun dictating the Mahabharata to Ganesha; and it is kept as the birthday of Parashurama, the sixth avatar of Vishnu. Each memory is of something that started on this day and did not end.

It is a day for charity above all — the giving of water, food, sesame and cloth to those in need — and for the worship of Vishnu and Lakshmi. The buying of gold is a later and popular custom, drawn from the same idea that what is gained today will not diminish.

Akshaya Tritiya puja vidhi

  1. 1Bathe early and take the sankalpa to observe the day; wear clean clothes.
  2. 2Worship Vishnu and Lakshmi together, offering tulsi, flowers, akshat and incense.
  3. 3Offer a bhog of satvik food, and where kept, cooling foods such as sattu, fruit and panakam.
  4. 4Recite the Vishnu or Lakshmi mantra, or read a passage of the Vishnu Sahasranama.
  5. 5Give in charity: a filled water-pot, food, sesame, cloth, or a fan or slippers for the summer, to those in need.
  6. 6Perform the aarti and distribute prasad.
  7. 7Begin any new venture or purchase with the day's blessing, the muhurta being complete in itself.

Vrat rules

  • Many keep a fast or take only satvik food, and worship Vishnu and Lakshmi through the day.
  • Charity is the day's foremost act — giving water, food, sesame, cloth and other necessities to those in need.
  • The giving of a water-pot (jal daan) and cooling foods is especially valued, the day falling in the heat of summer.
  • New ventures, purchases and auspicious beginnings are undertaken, needing no separate muhurta.
  • The buying of gold is a common custom, held to bring lasting prosperity.

Common mistakes to avoid

  • Thinking the day is only about buying gold — its heart is beginnings, worship and daan (charity), not a purchase.
  • Waiting for a muhurat; Akshaya Tritiya is abujh, auspicious in full, one of the saadhe-teen muhurats of the year.
  • Skipping the daan — giving water, sattu, fans and food in the summer heat is the day's defining act of merit.
  • Treating it as a minor day; tradition marks it as one of the year's most auspicious for anything lasting.

The vrat katha of Akshaya Tritiya

One well-loved story of the day is of Sudama, the poor brahmin and childhood friend of Krishna. Pressed by need, Sudama went to Dwaraka to see the king who had once been his companion, carrying the only gift he could afford — a small handful of beaten rice, tied in a cloth, and so ashamed of it that he tried to hide it. Krishna received him with love, found the rice, and ate it with delight as though it were the finest offering.

Sudama asked for nothing and went home. There he found his hut transformed into a mansion and his family in plenty — Krishna had given without being asked, and what was given did not diminish. The day is said to have been Akshaya Tritiya, and the story holds its meaning: that a small thing given in love, on this day, becomes something that does not run out.

Akshaya Tritiya timeline

  1. Dawn — the auspicious day begins

    Being an abujh muhurat, the whole day is auspicious; no separate time need be checked for beginnings.

  2. Worship & daan

    Vishnu and Lakshmi are worshipped; water, sattu, fruit, fans and gold or grain are given in charity — the merit is held 'akshaya', never diminishing.

  3. Beginnings & buying

    New ventures, purchases and investments are made; buying gold is a modern custom read as everlasting prosperity.

  4. Temple events

    Badrinath opens, Banke Bihari shows his feet, and Puri begins the Rath Yatra chariots — the day's great darshans.

Famous places & temples

Badrinath, Uttarakhand

The temple's doors (kapat) open for the season on Akshaya Tritiya after the winter, one of the day's most sacred events.

Banke Bihari, Vrindavan

The only day of the year the deity's lotus feet (charan darshan) are shown, otherwise always kept covered.

Puri, Odisha

The construction of the chariots for the Jagannath Rath Yatra begins on this day, as does the 21-day Chandan Yatra.

Simhachalam, Andhra

The Chandana Yatra — the one day the deity is seen without its year-round sandalwood covering.

Interesting facts

  • ◆'Akshaya' means never-diminishing — whatever is begun, given or bought today is held to grow and never wane.
  • ◆It is an abujh muhurat: the entire day is auspicious, needing no astrologer's timing — one of only three-and-a-half such days.
  • ◆Tradition places many beginnings here — the Treta Yuga began, Ganga descended, Vyasa began dictating the Mahabharata, and Sudama met Krishna.
  • ◆For Jains it is Akshaya Tritiya (Varshi Tap parana), when Rishabhadeva ended a year-long fast with sugarcane juice.

Common questions

When is Akshaya Tritiya celebrated?

On the Tritiya of the Shukla Paksha of Vaishakha, in summer — the third day of the bright fortnight. For this year's date, see the date shown above.

Why is Akshaya Tritiya considered so auspicious?

Akshaya means 'that which does not diminish'. The day is an abujh muhurta, held so wholesome that anything begun, given or acquired on it endures and grows. Several great beginnings — the Treta Yuga, the Ganga's descent, the writing of the Mahabharata — are placed on it.

Is buying gold necessary on Akshaya Tritiya?

No. The day's traditional heart is charity and the worship of Vishnu and Lakshmi. Buying gold is a later, popular custom drawn from the idea that what is gained today will not diminish, but it is not a requirement.

What charity is recommended on Akshaya Tritiya?

Giving to those in need is the day's foremost act. As it falls in summer, the gift of a filled water-pot, cooling foods, a fan or slippers, along with food, sesame and cloth, is especially valued.

Festival days follow the classical attribution rules — udaya (sunrise), pradosha (evening), nishita (midnight), madhyahna or aparahna vyapini as each festival prescribes — computed for Kashi/Varanasi (IST). Regional observance can differ by a day in some years.

Other major festivals in 2026