Krishna Janmashtami 2017
Krishna's birth at midnight — Bhadrapada Krishna Ashtami prevailing at nishita.
Muhurat & timings
Kashi/IST · astronomically computed- Sankalp (sunrise)05:31
- Nishita puja (midnight)23:39 – 00:27
- Fasting window (tithi)19:51 → 2017-08-15 · 17:46
- Parana (tithi ends)17:462017-08-15
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 2017
- Makar Sankranti — 14 January 2017
- Vasant Panchami — 1 February 2017
- Maha Shivaratri — 24 February 2017
- Holika Dahan — 12 March 2017
- Holi — 13 March 2017
- Chaitra Navratri begins — 28 March 2017
- Ram Navami — 4 April 2017
- Akshaya Tritiya — 28 April 2017
- Jagannath Rath Yatra — 25 June 2017
- Guru Purnima — 9 July 2017
- Nag Panchami — 28 July 2017
- Raksha Bandhan — 7 August 2017
- Hartalika Teej — 24 August 2017
- Ganesh Chaturthi — 25 August 2017
- Anant Chaturdashi — 5 September 2017
- Pitru Paksha begins — 7 September 2017
- Sharad Navratri begins — 21 September 2017
- Durga Ashtami — 28 September 2017
- Maha Navami — 29 September 2017
- Dussehra / Vijayadashami — 30 September 2017
- Karwa Chauth — 8 October 2017
- Dhanteras — 17 October 2017
- Naraka Chaturdashi (Choti Diwali) — 18 October 2017
- Diwali (Lakshmi Puja) — 19 October 2017
- Govardhan Puja — 20 October 2017
- Bhai Dooj — 21 October 2017
- Chhath Puja — 26 October 2017
- Kartik Purnima (Dev Deepawali) — 4 November 2017
- Guru Nanak Jayanti — 4 November 2017
- Hindu Festivals 2017 →