Dev Diwali 2026: Date, Deep Daan Time and Significance

By Dr. R.P. Sharma · Ph.D., Acharya (Phalit Jyotish) · practising since 1979

Dev Diwali 2026 is Tuesday 24 November. Purnima 11:42 PM 23 Nov to 8:23 PM 24 Nov IST; deep daan after sunset, about 5:09 PM in Varanasi. As we look toward November 2026, it is helpful to understand the traditional significance of this day through the lens of Vedic astrology and ancient observances.

How this date is fixed

Hindu observances are set by the panchang, not the Gregorian calendar — which is why the date moves each year and can fall a day either side of India for families abroad.

What is Dev Diwali and when does it fall?

Dev Diwali — the Diwali of the gods — is observed on Kartik Purnima, the full moon of the month of Kartik, fifteen tithis after Diwali itself. In 2026 that is Tuesday 24 November. It is most closely associated with Varanasi, where the ghats along the Ganga are lit with lamps.

Is Dev Diwali the same as Kartik Purnima?

They fall on the same day. Kartik Purnima is the calendar name for the full moon; Dev Diwali is the observance held on it, particularly the lighting of the ghats. The same date also carries Tripuri Purnima and, in 2026, Guru Nanak Jayanti.

Dev Diwali 2026 timing

The Kartik Purnima tithi begins at about 11:42 PM IST on Monday 23 November and ends at about 8:23 PM IST on Tuesday 24 November 2026. It therefore holds the dawn of the 24th, for the Kartik snan in the Ganga, and the evening of the 24th, for the deep daan — the lamps are lit in the pradosh after sunset, while the Purnima still runs.

In Varanasi sunset on 24 November is about 5:07 PM; published panchangs give the Dev Deepawali muhurat from about 5:09 PM to between 7:48 and 7:54 PM IST. In New Delhi sunset is about 5:24 PM. The Purnima ends at 8:23 PM, so the lamps should be lit well before then.

Why the ghats are lit

Dev Deepawali, the Diwali of the gods, marks Shiva's victory over the demon Tripurasura, which is why the day is also called Tripurari Purnima. Tradition holds that the gods descend to bathe in the Ganga at Kashi on this night; the ghats of Varanasi, from Assi to Raj Ghat, are lit with lakhs of earthen lamps, and the Ganga aarti is performed at dusk. The same day is Kartik Purnima, the close of the month of Kartik snan, and in 2026 also Guru Nanak Jayanti.

Deep daan at home

Those who cannot be at the ghats light lamps at home, at a temple, or at a river or pond near them, in the same evening window. The morning snan, a lamp offered at a tulsi or peepal, and daan of lamps, food or warm clothes are the traditional acts of the day.

See also: Surya Grahan 2027 In India Date And Time.