Krishna Janmashtami 2019
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)08:11 → 2019-08-24 · 08:34
- Parana (tithi ends)08:342019-08-24
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 2019
- Makar Sankranti — 14 January 2019
- Vasant Panchami — 10 February 2019
- Maha Shivaratri — 4 March 2019
- Holika Dahan — 20 March 2019
- Holi — 21 March 2019
- Chaitra Navratri begins — 6 April 2019
- Ram Navami — 13 April 2019
- Akshaya Tritiya — 7 May 2019
- Jagannath Rath Yatra — 4 July 2019
- Guru Purnima — 16 July 2019
- Nag Panchami — 5 August 2019
- Raksha Bandhan — 15 August 2019
- Hartalika Teej — 1 September 2019
- Ganesh Chaturthi — 2 September 2019
- Anant Chaturdashi — 12 September 2019
- Pitru Paksha begins — 15 September 2019
- Sharad Navratri begins — 29 September 2019
- Durga Ashtami — 6 October 2019
- Maha Navami — 7 October 2019
- Dussehra / Vijayadashami — 7 October 2019
- Karwa Chauth — 17 October 2019
- Dhanteras — 25 October 2019
- Naraka Chaturdashi (Choti Diwali) — 27 October 2019
- Diwali (Lakshmi Puja) — 27 October 2019
- Govardhan Puja — 29 October 2019
- Bhai Dooj — 29 October 2019
- Chhath Puja — 2 November 2019
- Kartik Purnima (Dev Deepawali) — 12 November 2019
- Guru Nanak Jayanti — 12 November 2019
- Hindu Festivals 2019 →