Gudi Padwa / Ugadi 2018
New-year day of the Deccan — the gudhi is hoisted and neem-jaggery shared.
Muhurat & timings
Kashi/IST · astronomically computed- Sankalp (sunrise)06:04
- Sunset18:07
- Fasting window (tithi)2018-03-17 · 18:46 → 18:35
- Parana (tithi ends)18:35
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.
Read the Gudi Padwa / Ugadi puja vidhi, vrat rules and kathaGudi Padwa / Ugadi — Frequently Asked Questions
When is Gudi Padwa?
On the Shukla Pratipada of Chaitra, the first day of the Hindu lunar year, usually in late March or early April. It also opens Chaitra Navratri. This year's date is shown above.
What does the gudi represent?
The gudi — a bright cloth on a bamboo topped with an upturned pot, neem and mango leaves — is a flag of victory and welcome, raised for the new year and, in tradition, for Rama's return to Ayodhya. It is worshipped and lowered by sunset.
Why is neem eaten with jaggery on Gudi Padwa?
Taking the bitter neem with sweet jaggery at the year's first meal is an acceptance of both the bitter and the sweet the year will bring, and has a seasonal logic — neem cools and purifies the blood as the summer heat begins.
Is Gudi Padwa the same as Ugadi?
They are the same day — the Chaitra Shukla Pratipada new year — kept as Gudi Padwa in Maharashtra and the Konkan and as Ugadi in Karnataka, Andhra and Telangana, with regional customs.
Other major festivals in 2018
- Makar Sankranti — 14 January 2018
- Vasant Panchami — 22 January 2018
- Maha Shivaratri — 14 February 2018
- Holika Dahan — 1 March 2018
- Holi — 2 March 2018
- Chaitra Navratri begins — 18 March 2018
- Ram Navami — 25 March 2018
- Akshaya Tritiya — 18 April 2018
- Jagannath Rath Yatra — 14 July 2018
- Guru Purnima — 27 July 2018
- Nag Panchami — 15 August 2018
- Raksha Bandhan — 26 August 2018
- Krishna Janmashtami — 2 September 2018
- Hartalika Teej — 12 September 2018
- Ganesh Chaturthi — 13 September 2018
- Anant Chaturdashi — 24 September 2018
- Pitru Paksha begins — 26 September 2018
- Sharad Navratri begins — 10 October 2018
- Durga Ashtami — 17 October 2018
- Maha Navami — 18 October 2018
- Dussehra / Vijayadashami — 19 October 2018
- Karwa Chauth — 27 October 2018
- Dhanteras — 5 November 2018
- Naraka Chaturdashi (Choti Diwali) — 6 November 2018
- Diwali (Lakshmi Puja) — 7 November 2018
- Govardhan Puja — 8 November 2018
- Bhai Dooj — 9 November 2018
- Chhath Puja — 13 November 2018
- Kartik Purnima (Dev Deepawali) — 23 November 2018
- Guru Nanak Jayanti — 23 November 2018
- Hindu Festivals 2018 →