Tihar 2027, the five-day festival of lights, runs from Kag Tihar on Wednesday 27 October to Bhai Tika on Sunday 31 October. Gai Tihar and Lakshmi Puja, which is Diwali for India and the wider diaspora, fall on Friday 29 October 2027 in Nepal and Australia and Thursday 28 October in the United States. Mha Puja on Saturday 30 October opens Nepal Sambat 1148. Chhath, the offering to the sun, has its evening arghya on Thursday 4 November and its dawn arghya on Friday 5 November.
Tihar and Chhath 2027 day by day
| Day | Tithi | Nepal (Kathmandu) | Australia and New Zealand | United States |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kag Tihar (crow) · Dhanteras | Ashvina Krishna Trayodashi | Wed 27 Oct | Wed 27 Oct (Auckland: Thu 28 Oct) | Wed 27 Oct |
| Kukur Tihar (dog) · Naraka Chaturdashi | Ashvina Krishna Chaturdashi | Thu 28 Oct | Thu 28 Oct | Thu 28 Oct |
| Gai Tihar (cow) · Lakshmi Puja · Diwali | Ashvina Amavasya | Fri 29 Oct | Fri 29 Oct | Thu 28 Oct |
| Goru Tihar · Mha Puja · Govardhan Puja · Nepal Sambat 1148 | Kartika Shukla Pratipada | Sat 30 Oct | Sat 30 Oct | Sat 30 Oct (Central and West: Fri 29 Oct) |
| Bhai Tika · Bhai Dooj | Kartika Shukla Dwitiya | Sun 31 Oct | Sun 31 Oct | Sun 31 Oct (Central and West: Sat 30 Oct) |
| Chhath, evening arghya (Sandhya Arghya) | Kartika Shukla Shashthi | Thu 4 Nov | Thu 4 Nov | Thu 4 Nov (West Coast: Wed 3 Nov) |
| Chhath, dawn arghya (Usha Arghya) | Kartika Shukla Saptami, at sunrise | Fri 5 Nov | Fri 5 Nov | Fri 5 Nov (West Coast: Thu 4 Nov) |
| Kartika Purnima · Dev Deepawali · Guru Nanak Jayanti | Kartika Purnima | Sun 14 Nov | Sun 14 Nov | Sat 13 Nov |
In the USA the new moon tithi reaches sunrise a day earlier than in Kathmandu, so American households keep Lakshmi Puja on the Thursday evening while Nepal keeps it on the Friday. Chhath's four days begin with Nahay Khay two days before the evening arghya and Kharna the day before, so in 2027 that is Tuesday 2 and Wednesday 3 November in Nepal and Australia.
Why the date can differ between Kathmandu, Sydney and New York
A festival is kept on the civil day whose sunrise falls inside the governing tithi (lunar day), and sunrise comes at a different moment in each city. When a tithi ends in the small hours, Nepal and Australia can be on one date and the Americas on the one before. Every date below is computed for the city's own sunrise, with the Lahiri ayanamsa, by the same engine that runs our city festival calendars; temple and community dates occasionally differ by a day where a tradition follows a different rule, and the local temple's announcement should win.
What each day holds
Kag Tihar. Crows, the messengers of Yama, are fed first; rice and sweets are set out on roofs and walls at dawn. The same day is Dhanteras for Indian households, when something metal is bought for the home.
Kukur Tihar. Dogs receive a tika and a garland and are fed well, as guardians of the house and of Yama's gates. Photographs of this day travel further than any other in Tihar.
Gai Tihar and Lakshmi Puja. The cow is honoured in the morning. In the evening every doorway is lit and a path of lamps and painted footprints leads Lakshmi into the house; girls go from house to house singing bhailo. For Indian families it is Diwali, the main night of the year.
Mha Puja and Goru Tihar. The ox is honoured, and Newar families keep Mha Puja, the worship of one's own body and life, seated before a mandala of their own; it is also the first day of Nepal Sambat, the national lunar calendar, which turns 1148. Boys sing deusi. Indian households keep Govardhan Puja.
Bhai Tika. Sisters draw a ring of oil around their brothers, place the seven-coloured tika and give walnuts, sweets and a garland of makhamali; brothers give gifts in return. Families separated by oceans post the tika and the sagun ahead of the day.
Chhath. Four days of fasting and purity for Surya and Chhathi Maiya, kept most strongly in the Terai, Bihar and eastern Uttar Pradesh: Nahay Khay, Kharna, the evening arghya standing in water as the sun sets, and the dawn arghya as it rises, after which the fast is broken. In Sydney and New York the arghya is given at a river, a beach or a park pond at the published sunset and sunrise times.
Tihar 2026, for comparison
Tihar 2026 runs from Saturday 7 November to Wednesday 11 November, with Lakshmi Puja on Sunday 8 November in every city and Chhath on Sunday 15 November. See Tihar 2026 in Australia and Tihar and Diwali 2026 in the USA. For the rest of 2027, see Hindu and Nepali festival dates 2027 and Dashain 2027 dates.
City calendars
For every observance, every Ekadashi and every full and new moon, month by month: Kathmandu, Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide, Canberra, Auckland, New York, Washington DC, Boston, Chicago, Atlanta, Dallas–Fort Worth, Houston, San Francisco Bay Area, Los Angeles and Seattle.