Maharashtra & Goa
Naraka Chaturdashi, not Diwali, is the main ritual day. The pre-dawn abhyanga snan with the lohi-heated water, new clothes, and a faral breakfast are all observed here more strictly than anywhere else.
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नरक चतुर्दशी
Choti Diwali — the day of the pre-dawn oil bath and the defeat of Narakasura.
Counting down to Naraka Chaturdashi 2026
Your local time · Saturday 7 November 2026
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Chaturdashi (14th tithi) of Krishna Paksha in Kartik, the day before Diwali
Naraka Chaturdashi, commonly called Choti Diwali, falls on the day before Diwali. In 2026 it is Saturday 7 November. In many parts of India — particularly Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu — this is treated as the more important ritual day of the two, because the ritual bath happens on this morning rather than on Diwali itself.
The story is Krishna's killing of Narakasura, a demon king who had terrorised the three worlds and held sixteen thousand women captive. Krishna killed him before dawn, and the sixteen thousand women were freed. Because the battle ended in the early hours, the ritual bath is taken before sunrise, ideally in the Brahma Muhurta window.
The pre-dawn abhyanga snan — a full oil massage followed by a hot water bath — is the central ritual. In Maharashtra and Goa it is followed by a breakfast of faral, the same savoury snacks made for Diwali. In Tamil Nadu the bath uses sesame oil and a herbal powder called sikkakai, and the day is Deepavali for many households rather than the next day.
In West Bengal and Assam, the same night is Kali Chaudas, associated with Kali Puja and with Bhoot Chaturdashi — the night when fourteen diyas are lit to guide ancestors. The Shakta rituals here are entirely distinct from the Krishna story told in the west and south.
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May this Naraka Chaturdashi wash away every sorrow and prepare your home for a bright Diwali. Happy Choti Diwali!
Wishing you a joyful Choti Diwali — may the light ahead be brighter than ever.
Happy Choti Diwali! May health, wealth and happiness stay with your family.
May Krishna's victory over Narakasura remind us that no darkness lasts. Happy Choti Diwali!
Wishing you and your family a blessed Naraka Chaturdashi. Choti Diwali ki shubhkamnaayein.
In the order a household actually does them.
Massage the body with sesame oil before sunrise, then bathe in warm water with a herbal ubtan. In Maharashtra and Goa the water is often heated with a red-hot iron ladle (lohi) dipped into it. The bath must finish before sunrise to keep the ritual correct.
Wear new clothes after the bath and seek the blessings of elders in the family, touching their feet.
Light fourteen oil lamps — five in the tulsi area, and the rest at the gate, in the bathroom and along the boundary — to guide ancestors home. Offer rice, banana and a little salt.
Kali is worshipped at night, often at community pandals, with red hibiscus flowers, sweets and, at some pandals, animal sacrifice — a practice that is now restricted to a small number of sites.
Light diyas at the main door and along the compound, half of the full Diwali lighting. Many households light the entire house one day early.
This is where most festival sites give one national answer to a question that has several.
Naraka Chaturdashi, not Diwali, is the main ritual day. The pre-dawn abhyanga snan with the lohi-heated water, new clothes, and a faral breakfast are all observed here more strictly than anywhere else.
This is Deepavali for many households in Tamil Nadu and Karnataka — the oil bath with sikkakai powder before sunrise, new clothes, and sweets. The formal Naraka Chaturdashi puja is done with the leftover oil and a small image of Krishna.
Observed as Bhoot Chaturdashi and Kali Chaudas. Fourteen diyas are lit to guide ancestors, and Kali Puja happens through the night.
Called Choti Diwali. Largely a preparation day — last-minute cleaning, rangoli, sweets, and partial lighting of the house in the evening.
Gift categories, honestly described — not a list of sponsored products.
Directly tied to the day's central ritual — a sesame oil, ubtan and sikkakai set is the one gift that matches what people are actually doing that morning.
Suits: parents, grandparents, wife, mother
Naraka Chaturdashi is the day new clothes are worn in Maharashtra and Karnataka, so clothing bought for this day gets used immediately.
Suits: child, wife, family, parents
Chivda, chakli, shankarpali and poha mix in one box — the Diwali snack box that Maharashtra and Karnataka households actually exchange.
Suits: parents, neighbours, family friend
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With honest budget ranges and a difficulty rating for each.
Draw small footprints in red and white powder leading from the gate to the puja room. The inward-facing direction is the whole symbolism — draw them facing into the house, never out.
Budget: ₹100–₹300
In Bengal and eastern households, lay out fourteen clay diyas on a steel tray in two groups and place them at the tulsi, the gate, the courtyard and the bathroom. Keep them away from doorways people will walk through in the dark.
Budget: ₹150–₹400
Light a short row of diyas at sunrise — the Naraka Chaturdashi lighting happens at the start of the day rather than the end, which is the visual difference between this day and Diwali itself.
Budget: ₹100–₹250
Including a note on why each dish belongs to this festival.
The post-bath Choti Diwali breakfast in Maharashtra and Goa. Hot, quick, and eaten by the whole family the moment everyone is out of the bath.
About 15 minutes
Ingredients
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Naraka Chaturdashi or Choti Diwali falls on Saturday 7 November 2026, the day before Diwali on 8 November.
Choti Diwali is Naraka Chaturdashi, the day before the main Diwali. It commemorates Krishna's defeat of Narakasura and is centred on a pre-dawn ritual bath, while Diwali itself is centred on evening Lakshmi Puja and lighting the house.
The bath is taken before sunrise because Krishna is said to have returned from killing Narakasura in the early hours. In the belief, sesame oil applied that morning removes the year's accumulated impurities.
Bhoot Chaturdashi is the Bengali observance on the same night as Naraka Chaturdashi, when fourteen diyas are lit to welcome ancestors. In some accounts it is to keep away wandering spirits, in others to guide ancestors home — the two readings coexist.
Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu all treat the Naraka Chaturdashi morning as the central ritual of the festival, with the main family celebration happening on that day rather than the following evening.
Last reviewed 6 October 2026. This page covers a nationally observed festival — where practices differ, they are described separately rather than averaged. If you spot an error, tell us and we will correct it.