Krishna Janmashtami 1981
Krishna's birth at midnight — Bhadrapada Krishna Ashtami prevailing at nishita.
Muhurat & timings
Kashi/IST · astronomically computed- Sankalp (sunrise)05:34
- Nishita puja (midnight)23:37 – 00:25
- Fasting window (tithi)08:57 → 1981-08-23 · 06:43
- Parana (tithi ends)06:431981-08-23
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 Krishna Janmashtami puja vidhi, vrat rules and kathaKrishna Janmashtami — Frequently Asked Questions
Why is Janmashtami puja performed at midnight?
Krishna is held to have been born at midnight under Rohini nakshatra, so the puja is kept for nishita kaal rather than the morning. The fast is broken after it.
Why do Janmashtami dates sometimes differ by a day?
Smarta tradition follows the Ashtami tithi at midnight; Vaishnava tradition may additionally require Rohini nakshatra, and observes udaya-tithi rules differently. When the two do not coincide, the observances separate by a day.
What can be eaten during the Janmashtami fast?
Fruit, milk, curd, water and vrat flours such as kuttu and singhara. Grains, onion and garlic are avoided until the fast is completed the next morning.
Other major festivals in 1981
- Makar Sankranti — 14 January 1981
- Vasant Panchami — 9 February 1981
- Maha Shivaratri — 4 March 1981
- Holika Dahan — 20 March 1981
- Holi — 21 March 1981
- Chaitra Navratri begins — 5 April 1981
- Ram Navami — 12 April 1981
- Akshaya Tritiya — 6 May 1981
- Jagannath Rath Yatra — 3 July 1981
- Guru Purnima — 17 July 1981
- Nag Panchami — 5 August 1981
- Raksha Bandhan — 15 August 1981
- Hartalika Teej — 1 September 1981
- Ganesh Chaturthi — 2 September 1981
- Anant Chaturdashi — 13 September 1981
- Pitru Paksha begins — 15 September 1981
- Sharad Navratri begins — 29 September 1981
- Durga Ashtami — 6 October 1981
- Maha Navami — 7 October 1981
- Dussehra / Vijayadashami — 8 October 1981
- Karwa Chauth — 16 October 1981
- Dhanteras — 25 October 1981
- Naraka Chaturdashi (Choti Diwali) — 26 October 1981
- Diwali (Lakshmi Puja) — 27 October 1981
- Govardhan Puja — 28 October 1981
- Bhai Dooj — 29 October 1981
- Chhath Puja — 3 November 1981
- Kartik Purnima (Dev Deepawali) — 11 November 1981
- Guru Nanak Jayanti — 11 November 1981
- Hindu Festivals 1981 →