Festival · Jyeshtha Purnima
Vat Purnima 2026
On Jyeshtha Purnima married women worship the banyan and wind thread round it, for a husband's long life. It's the day of Savitri, who won her husband back from Yama himself!
Date, tithi and timing
Times are for Thane. The app gives times for your city.
Date by city
The date is the same in every city listed.
Next year, 2027
Quick facts
- Also known asVat Savitri, Vata Purnima
- WhereMaharashtra, Goa and Gujarat; in Bihar, Jharkhand and Odisha the same vrat falls on Jyeshtha Amavasya
- Puja forThe banyan tree, Savitri and Satyavan
- In one lineSavitri's love and grit: a vrat for a husband's health and long life.
Vat Purnima, in a little more detail
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About the festival
Vat Purnima is a married woman's vrat. Savitri argued with Yama himself for her husband, and in her memory the banyan is worshipped today.
The vrat is really three days long, from Trayodashi to Purnima. Those who can't keep three days fast on Purnima alone.
Savitri's lesson: don't give up. Speak calmly, cleverly and keep at it, and even the impossible can come round.
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Savitri and Satyavan
Savitri, daughter of King Ashvapati, chose Satyavan for her husband: the son of Dyumatsena, a blind king who had lost his kingdom and lived in the forest. Narada warned that Satyavan would die within a year. Savitri married him anyway.
Three days before the day, she began a fast and a vigil. On the day itself she went with Satyavan into the forest to cut wood. Tired, he laid his head in her lap, and Yama came for his life. Savitri followed Yama.
Moved by her devotion, Yama granted boons: sight and his kingdom for her father-in-law, a hundred sons for her father. Last she asked for a hundred sons for herself, by Satyavan. Caught by his own promise, Yama had to give Satyavan's life back.
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In Maharashtra and beyond
In the morning, dressed in their best, married women gather at a banyan. They water it, offer five fruits and a coconut, and walk round it seven times winding white thread.
Without a banyan nearby, women draw the tree, Savitri, Satyavan and Yama at home in sandalwood and rice paste and worship there. In the evening Savitri's story is told.
Meeting each other, women give the blessing "Janma Savitri ho!": may you be a Savitri.
In Bihar, Jharkhand and Odisha the same Savitri vrat falls on Jyeshtha Amavasya. There too the banyan is watered and thread wound round it.
How to do the puja
In short: A banyan, white thread, five fruits and a coconut: the puja at the tree, the story in the evening.
- 1Bathe in the morning and take the sankalp of the vrat.If three days are too much, fast on Purnima alone. If you're unwell or pregnant, health comes first: the puja is enough.
- 2Get the puja plate ready.Haldi-kunku, akshata, flowers, a lamp, incense, a pot of water, a spool of thread, the fruit and a coconut.
- 3Go to a banyan nearby, ideally with the other women of your area.A banyan in a temple yard or a public garden is fine. In many places women go together.
- 4Water the roots, and offer haldi-kunku, akshata and flowers at its foot.Some draw a small rangoli by the roots too.
- 5Walk round the tree seven times, winding white thread as you go.Seven rounds is the usual count. Wind the thread loosely: don't bind a young tree tight.
- 6Offer five fruits and a coconut, and copper coins if your family does.In some homes the fruit is set on banyan leaves.
- 7Light the lamp, bow, and pray for your husband's health and long life.Many also pray for the same husband through seven lives.
- 8In the evening, hear Savitri's story with other women, and give each other vaan.Meeting, women bless each other "Janma Savitri ho". Break the fast after the evening story or the next morning, as your family does.
What you needTick as you go
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Frequently asked questions
There's no banyan near me. What do I do?
Draw the banyan at home and worship there, or join other women at the nearest temple tree. Please don't buy a cut branch from the market: living trees are hacked for the day, and the puja is to the whole tree. If you can, plant a banyan sapling instead.
How many times do I wind the thread, and what does it mean?
Usually seven rounds. The thread binds your wish to your husband's life, and reminds you of the bond. Some families go round more times: follow yours.
What can I eat on the fast?
Many take only fruit and milk through the day; some don't even take water. Do what you can manage. If you're unwell, pregnant or older, ask your doctor first.
What do I give as vaan?
As your family does: a fruit, bangles, haldi-kunku or a small gift. What matters is the blessing you give each other.
Set a reminder in the app
The app sends a notice the day before and on the day, even offline.