Radha Ashtami 2016
Appearance day of Radha, a fortnight after Janmashtami.
Muhurat & timings
Kashi/IST · astronomically computed- Sankalp (sunrise)05:41
- Sunset18:09
- Fasting window (tithi)04:23 → 2016-09-10 · 06:12
- Parana (tithi ends)06:122016-09-10
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 Radha Ashtami puja vidhi, vrat rules and kathaRadha Ashtami — Frequently Asked Questions
When is Radha Ashtami?
On the Shukla Ashtami of Bhadrapada, fifteen days after Krishna Janmashtami. Radha's birth is honoured at noon. This year's date is shown above.
How is Radha Ashtami different from Janmashtami?
Janmashtami is the birth of Krishna, kept at midnight; Radha Ashtami is the birth of Radha, kept at noon, fifteen days later. Together they frame the two persons of one divine love, always named as Radha-Krishna.
Why is Radha worshipped before Krishna?
In the Braj and Gaudiya traditions Radha is Krishna's hladini shakti — the power of his own love and joy — and the surest path to him. So her name is spoken first: Radha-Krishna, never the reverse.
Where is Radha Ashtami celebrated most grandly?
In Barsana, Radha's village in Braj, at the Radha Rani temple, and across Vrindavan and Mathura, with days of worship, kirtan and jhulan; it is also a major festival for Gaudiya and ISKCON devotees.
Other major festivals in 2016
- Makar Sankranti — 15 January 2016
- Vasant Panchami — 13 February 2016
- Maha Shivaratri — 7 March 2016
- Holika Dahan — 22 March 2016
- Holi — 24 March 2016
- Chaitra Navratri begins — 8 April 2016
- Ram Navami — 15 April 2016
- Akshaya Tritiya — 9 May 2016
- Jagannath Rath Yatra — 6 July 2016
- Guru Purnima — 19 July 2016
- Nag Panchami — 7 August 2016
- Raksha Bandhan — 18 August 2016
- Krishna Janmashtami — 24 August 2016
- Hartalika Teej — 4 September 2016
- Ganesh Chaturthi — 5 September 2016
- Anant Chaturdashi — 15 September 2016
- Pitru Paksha begins — 17 September 2016
- Sharad Navratri begins — 1 October 2016
- Durga Ashtami — 9 October 2016
- Maha Navami — 10 October 2016
- Dussehra / Vijayadashami — 11 October 2016
- Karwa Chauth — 19 October 2016
- Dhanteras — 28 October 2016
- Naraka Chaturdashi (Choti Diwali) — 29 October 2016
- Diwali (Lakshmi Puja) — 30 October 2016
- Govardhan Puja — 31 October 2016
- Bhai Dooj — 1 November 2016
- Chhath Puja — 6 November 2016
- Kartik Purnima (Dev Deepawali) — 14 November 2016
- Guru Nanak Jayanti — 14 November 2016
- Hindu Festivals 2016 →