Choti Diwali 2026 · News Corner

Choti Diwali 2026 Is Tonight: Goa Burns Its Demon Before Dawn and Ayodhya Lights the Saryu

By Beauty of Bharat · Published 7 November 2026

By Beauty of Bharat — India travel guide, every place, every flavour.

Guides covering all 36 States and UTs, researched from official sources and checked at publish time. Corrections welcome — see About Beauty of Bharat.

As he lay dying, the demon asked for one thing: that his death be celebrated, not mourned. Tonight, India grants the wish. Goa will build him forty feet tall and burn him before dawn; Ayodhya will answer with lakhs of lamps along the Saryu; and in homes across the country, a single diya will be lit for Yama, the god of death, and set outside the door. This is Choti Diwali — Naraka Chaturdashi — the second day of the Diwali festival, tonight, Saturday 7 November 2026. Here are the timings, the story behind the burning, and what travellers in Goa, Ayodhya and Delhi should know.

The short answer

Choti Diwali is the fourteenth day — Chaturdashi — of the dark fortnight in Kartik, marking Lord Krishna’s victory over the demon Narakasura. It is also called Naraka Chaturdashi, Kali Chaudas and Roop Chaudas.

From Drik Panchang: the Chaturdashi tithi begins at 10:47 AM today, Saturday 7 November, and ends at 11:27 AM on Sunday 8 November. Tonight’s evening puja falls in Pradosh Kaal, about 5:30–7:00 PM in Delhi, and the midnight Kali puja muhurat is about 11:57 PM to 12:48 AM. The pre-dawn oil bath, Abhyang Snan, falls on Sunday morning, 5:41 AM to 6:38 AM in New Delhi. Timings vary by city, so check your local panchang.

That split is why some calendars list Choti Diwali on 8 November and others on 7 November: the evening belongs to 7 November, the dawn bath to the morning of 8 November. The five days run Dhanteras on Friday 6 November, Choti Diwali tonight, Diwali on Sunday 8 November, Govardhan Puja on Tuesday 10 November and Bhai Dooj on Wednesday 11 November.

The demon who asked to be celebrated

The story is told in the Bhagavata Purana. Narakasura, king of Pragjyotishapura, had grown so powerful that he troubled the gods and imprisoned thousands of women. Krishna rode against him with Satyabhama at his side and defeated him at dawn. As he lay dying, Narakasura asked that his death be celebrated every year, not mourned. That day became Naraka Chaturdashi — and the celebration he asked for is still going, in every town that lights a lamp tonight.

Krishna himself is said to have taken a ritual oil bath after the victory. That bath is the origin of Abhyang Snan, the pre-dawn oil bath of Choti Diwali morning, when devotees rub sesame oil and an ubtan of gram flour, turmeric, sandalwood and rosewater into the skin. Because the bath is also taken for radiance, the day is called Roop Chaudas.

There is a second thread to the night. While the demon’s defeat is celebrated, families also light a lamp for Yama, the god of death — the same Yama who, in the Dhanteras legend, was kept out of a prince’s chamber by gold and lamplight. Both stories share one idea: light at the doorway, and a prayer for a long life.

Goa tonight: Narkasur night

Nowhere celebrates Choti Diwali the way Goa does. Here the festival is called Narkasur, the state’s own Diwali eve. For weeks, youth clubs and neighbourhoods have built giant effigies of the demon from bamboo, paper and cloth — some up to forty feet tall and stuffed with fireworks. Tonight they parade through Panjim, Margao, Vasco, Mapusa and Ponda, as crowds gather behind barriers. A performer dressed as Krishna symbolically strikes the demon down, and before dawn, roughly 3 AM to 6 AM, every Narkasur burns in the ward that built it, so Diwali morning can begin clean.

Afterwards, Goans crush the bitter wild fruit called kareet under the left foot — a gesture for the demon’s defeat — then head home for the dawn oil bath.

If you are in Goa tonight, head out from about 8 PM; crowds peak near midnight and the burning comes before sunrise. Expect roads around Panjim and Margao to be closed or crawling late in the evening, and check locally for venues and burning times — they vary by locality. See our Diwali in Goa: Narakasura guide and our Panaji guide.

Ayodhya tonight: Deepotsav’s main evening

Tonight is also the main evening of Ayodhya’s Deepotsav, the tenth edition of the state-organised festival that turns the Saryu riverfront into a river of light. The lamp-lighting peaks at Ram Ki Paidi from around sunset, about 5:30 PM. Reports put the target at roughly 28 to 33 lakh earthen diyas across 56 ghats — the exact figure varies by report — lit by tens of thousands of volunteers, followed by the Saryu Maha Aarti, a drone show and 3D projections. Deepotsav marks Ram’s return to Ayodhya after fourteen years of exile, as told in the Ramayana.

For travellers: no private vehicles are allowed inside Ayodhya from 6 AM today, and the central amphitheatre area needs a digital e-pass from the UP Tourism portal. The state tourism department is running a two-night, three-day Deepotsav package at ₹16,999 per person plus GST, according to Moneycontrol. Expect extreme crowds, and heavy footfall at Ram Mandir darshan on Diwali day. See our Diwali in Ayodhya guide, our Deepotsav travel guide and our Ayodhya guide.

The evening ritual: a lamp for the god of death

After sunset, during Pradosh Kaal, families light Yama Deepam: a four-wick mustard-oil diya placed outside the main door, facing south — the direction of Yama — praying for protection from untimely death and long life. In some households thirteen wheat-flour diyas are lit as well, and lamps burn through the night.

The same night wears different names in different states. In Gujarat it is Kali Chaudas, focused on Maa Kali and Hanuman, with the midnight puja about 11:57 PM to 12:48 AM. In West Bengal the night coincides with Kali Puja. In Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu, the emphasis falls on the dawn oil bath that follows. And in some traditions, 7 November is also observed as Hanuman Jayanti.

Delhi tonight: GRAP-III is now in force

For travellers in the capital, there is a second story. The Commission for Air Quality Management invoked Stage III of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) across Delhi-NCR on Friday 6 November, with immediate effect, as a precaution before Diwali. Delhi’s average air quality index stood at 382 on Thursday 5 November — ‘very poor’ — with at least 26 monitoring stations above 400, and the forecast expects ‘severe’ air between 7 and 9 November. The city has moved from GRAP Stage I on 21 October to Stage III in sixteen days.

On the ground, Stage III bans non-essential construction and demolition across Delhi-NCR; bars BS-III petrol and BS-IV diesel four-wheelers from Delhi and the NCR districts of Gurugram, Faridabad, Ghaziabad, Gautam Buddha Nagar (Noida) and Sonipat; raises parking fees; restricts diesel generator sets; and lets schools shift classes up to Class 5 online. The vehicle-entry rule from our Delhi weather post — non-Delhi, non-BS-VI vehicles barred from 1 November 2026 to 31 January 2027 — still applies. Travel Metro-first this weekend, keep outdoor spells short, check the CPCB reading each morning, and check local firecracker rules before buying or bursting any. Our Delhi weather and AQI post has the full picture.

Travelling this weekend? Read this first

First, the calendar trap from yesterday’s Dhanteras post still holds: most Old Delhi wholesale markets are shut on Sundays, and Diwali is a Sunday this year, 8 November. Do the big shopping today, not tomorrow. In Goa, plan around the late-night road closures near the parade towns. In Ayodhya, arrive early and expect pass checks.

Second, the week does not end with Diwali. Govardhan Puja falls on Tuesday 10 November and Bhai Dooj on Wednesday 11 November, then Chhath Puja runs 13–16 November — Delhi is preparing more than 1,400 ghats for it; see our Delhi Chhath ghats news post and our Chhath Puja 2026 guide. Plan each festival separately.

Planning a Diwali-week trip?

Start with our Diwali in Goa: Narakasura guide and Deepotsav travel guide, then our Delhi guide and Diwali in Delhi markets and lights guide — and re-check our Delhi weather post each morning. Yesterday’s Dhanteras post has the market timings.