Festival Guide · Diwali 2026
Lakshmi Pooja on Diwali is done in the evening, in the pradosh kaal muhurat after sunset — in 2026, that is Sunday, 8 November, between 5:54 PM and 7:50 PM in Delhi. Clean the home, set up a small altar in the northeast with Lakshmi and Ganesh idols, worship Ganesh first, then Lakshmi, then Kuber, sing the aarti, and light diyas in every room. The whole pooja takes about 30 to 45 minutes, and you do not need a pandit to do it well.
Diwali is the darkest night of the month — Amavasya, when there is no moon at all. That is the whole point of the lamps. The story every Indian child grows up hearing is that Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth and good fortune, walks the earth on this one night, looking for a home to bless — and she enters only clean, bright, welcoming homes. Yahi toh asli baat hai — saaf ghar, roshan ghar, aur dil se ki gayi pooja.
Diwali 2026 falls on Sunday, 8 November 2026, on Kartik Amavasya. Lakshmi Pooja is done in pradosh kaal, the first part of the night after sunset, while Amavasya is running. Drik Panchang gives the muhurat for New Delhi as 5:54 PM to 7:50 PM, inside Pradosh Kaal (5:31 PM to 8:09 PM), when the fixed lagna Vrishabha (Taurus) is rising. Amavasya runs from 11:27 AM on 8 November to 12:31 PM on 9 November.
| Event | Date and time (2026) |
|---|---|
| Diwali / Lakshmi Pooja | Sunday, 8 November 2026 |
| Lakshmi Puja muhurat (New Delhi) | 5:54 PM to 7:50 PM |
| Pradosh Kaal (New Delhi) | 5:31 PM to 8:09 PM |
| Amavasya tithi | 11:27 AM on 8 Nov to 12:31 PM on 9 Nov |
| Muhurat in other cities | Jaipur 6:03–7:59 PM · Chennai 6:07–8:09 PM · Pune 6:24–8:24 PM |
The muhurat differs by city, because it depends on your local sunset — check a panchang for your own city. Agar exact muhurat nahi pata, toh suraj doobne ke baad ke pehle do ghante mein pooja kar lena — yahi pradosh kaal hai, aur yahi ghar ki pooja ka sabse shubh samay mana jata hai.
Samagri pehle se ikattha kar lena — beech mein uthkar dhoondhna pooja ka flow tod deta hai. Keep everything on one thali before sunset.
| Group | Items |
|---|---|
| Altar | Lakshmi and Ganesh idols or pictures (Kuber too, if your family keeps one); wooden chowki; red or yellow cloth; kalash with water, mango leaves and a coconut |
| Offerings | Roli or kumkum, haldi, akshat (unbroken rice), chandan, mauli, flowers — lotus if possible, marigold and red roses — and a garland; betel leaves and supari |
| Light | Clay or brass diyas, ghee or oil, cotton wicks, incense sticks, camphor |
| Panchamrit | Milk, curd, ghee, honey and sugar, mixed together |
| Prasad | Kheer, sweets (laddoo), kheel and batashe, fresh fruit |
| Wealth | Coins, a little gold or silver, and your account books or cash box |
Har cheez khareedna zaroori nahi hai — a simple home pooja needs only the idols, a diya, flowers, rice, water and something sweet.
Place the chowki in the northeast (ishan kona) of the home or puja room and spread the red cloth over it. Seat the idols — Ganesh on your left and Lakshmi on your right as you face the altar — with the kalash in front, mango leaves and coconut on top, and the coins, notes and account books in front. Sit facing east or north; never face south, and never place the altar under a staircase or against a bathroom wall. Before the muhurat, sweep and wash the doorway, draw a rangoli at the entrance, and hang a toran of mango leaves and marigolds at the main door.
Yeh pooja 30 se 45 minute mein ho jati hai. The order never changes — pehle Ganesh, phir Lakshmi, phir Kuber.
1. Ghar taiyaar karein. Clean the whole house by afternoon — Lakshmi is said to enter only clean, lit homes — then bathe, wear fresh clothes, and draw the rangoli at the entrance, footprints pointing inward.
2. Aasan lagayein aur diya jalayein. Set the chowki in the northeast, spread the red cloth, seat Ganesh on the left and Lakshmi on the right, and set the kalash nearby. Light the main ghee diya — yeh diya poori raat jalna chahiye, isliye bada diya lein aur ghee bhar ke jalayein — then sprinkle Gangajal, or clean water, on the altar and yourself.
3. Sankalp lein. Hold water, akshat and a flower in your right hand. In your own words, say who you are, that you are doing Lakshmi Pooja on Diwali, and what you are praying for, then let the water fall into a plate. Apne shabdon mein bolna bhi theek hai; sankalp dil se hona chahiye, kitaabi bhasha se nahi.
4. Ganesh ji ki pooja karein. Offer roli, rice, durva grass, flowers and a laddoo to Ganesh, and chant “Om Gan Ganapataye Namah” 11 times.
5. Lakshmi ji ko bulayein aur chadhava dein. Invite Lakshmi into your home and offer her a flower. Then, one by one, offer water, roli, haldi, akshat, flowers and the garland. Bathe the idol — or sprinkle it — with panchamrit, then water. Offer kheer, sweets, kheel and batashe, and fruit, and place the coins and any gold or silver before her, chanting the Lakshmi mantra as you offer.
6. Kuber ki pooja karein. Offer roli, rice and flowers to Kuber and to your account books or cash box. Draw a swastik with roli and write “Shubh Labh”, then chant “Om Kuberaya Namah”.
7. Aarti karein. Light camphor or the aarti lamp and sing “Om Jai Lakshmi Mata”, waving the lamp gently in circles before the deities. Ring the bell if you have one, then offer the bhog to the family.
8. Prasad baantein aur diye jalayein. Share the kheel, batashe and sweets with everyone in the home. Then carry diyas to every room, the kitchen, the windows and the main door — and keep one diya burning at the entrance all night. Pooja ke baad ghar mein jhaadu mat lagayein, aur main darwaza thoda khula rakhein, taaki Lakshmi ji andar aa sakein.
Mantras are given here in Roman transliteration, with a short meaning. Mantra galat bolne ki chinta mat karein; saaf dil se, dheere-dheere bolna hi kaafi hai.
For Ganesha, first: “Om Gan Ganapataye Namah” — salutations to Ganesh, the remover of obstacles — 11 times. Or: “Vakratunda Mahakaya, Suryakoti Samaprabha, Nirvighnam Kuru Me Deva, Sarva Kaaryeshu Sarvada” — O Lord with the curved trunk, radiant as ten million suns, keep all my work free of obstacles, always.
For Lakshmi: “Om Shreem Mahalakshmyai Namah” — salutations to Mahalakshmi, the great goddess of fortune — 108 times, or as many as you can. “Shreem” is her seed sound; ginti se zyada shraddha matter karti hai. If you know it, you can also recite the Shri Sukta.
For Kuber: “Om Kuberaya Namah” — salutations to Kuber, the treasurer of the gods. For the aarti: “Om Jai Lakshmi Mata”, sung at the end with camphor and the aarti lamp.
Sweeping after the pooja. Do not sweep after the puja — the belief is that sweeping sends Lakshmi out with the dust. Clean everything before the muhurat, not after.
Worshipping Lakshmi before Ganesh. Every puja begins with Ganesha — skipping him is the one mistake every guide agrees on. Pehle Ganesh, phir Lakshmi.
Facing the wrong way. Sit facing east or north. Never face south, and do not place the altar under a staircase or against a bathroom wall.
Hunting for samagri mid-pooja. A puja paused to open drawers with the lamp already lit loses its rhythm — lay everything out on the thali before sunset.
Rushing through it. The simple home vidhi takes 30 to 45 minutes — a hurried pooja is worse than a short, sincere one.
Forgetting the diyas. The pooja does not end at the aarti — light diyas in every room, the kitchen and at the entrance, and keep one burning all night. The lamps are what guide Lakshmi into the home.
Yes. The simple home vidhi in this guide takes about 30 to 45 minutes and needs no priest — clean the home, set a chowki with red cloth in the northeast and seat new Lakshmi and Ganesh idols, take a sankalp, worship Ganesh first, then Lakshmi with flowers, kheer and the Mahalakshmi mantra, then Kuber and your account books, and end with aarti and diyas across the house. Families who follow a longer formal puja, or who invite a priest, do more — and that is lovely too.
In the evening, during pradosh kaal — the period just after sunset on Kartik Amavasya. In 2026, Diwali falls on Sunday, 8 November, and Drik Panchang gives the Lakshmi Puja muhurat for New Delhi as 5:54 PM to 7:50 PM, inside Pradosh Kaal (5:31 PM to 8:09 PM). The exact window differs by city, so check your local panchang.
Ganesha is the remover of obstacles and the lord of auspicious beginnings, so he is always invoked first in any Hindu puja; Lakshmi grants prosperity and stays only where obstacles are cleared. Together they bless the home with wealth free of obstacles — which is why they are worshipped side by side on Diwali.
The essentials are Lakshmi and Ganesha idols or pictures, a wooden chowki with a red or yellow cloth, a kalash with water, mango leaves and a coconut, roli, kumkum, haldi, akshat, chandan, flowers, diyas with ghee or oil, incense and camphor, panchamrit, sweets and fruit, and coins or account books. A simple home puja needs only the idols, a diya, flowers, rice, water and something sweet.
As you face the altar, Ganesh sits on your left and Lakshmi on your right. Place the altar in the northeast (ishan kona) of the home or puja room, with the idols facing into the room, so you face east or north while praying — never south, and never under a staircase or against a bathroom wall.
Begin with Ganesha — “Om Gan Ganapataye Namah” 11 times — then chant the Lakshmi mantra “Om Shreem Mahalakshmyai Namah” 108 times, or as many times as you can. For Kuber, chant “Om Kuberaya Namah”. End with the aarti “Om Jai Lakshmi Mata”.
One night, a million lamps — and a different Diwali in every city.
Diwali night in Varanasi →