Autumn festival · Krishna and Yama
The day of the pre-dawn oil bath, remembering Krishna's victory over Narakasura and lighting lamps the evening before Diwali.
Narak Chaturdashi, also called Choti Diwali, falls on Kartika Krishna Chaturdashi, the fourteenth day of the waning moon, the day before the Diwali new moon. It remembers Krishna's victory over the demon Narakasura and also honours Yama (god of death and dharma). Its central ritual is the Abhyang Snan, a bath with oil and herbal paste taken before sunrise.
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Narak Chaturdashi
Times for New Delhi. Change the city below.
When to do the puja
Timings for New Delhi, Delhi
Date
Sun, 8 Nov, 2026
Tithi at sunrise
Chaturdashi (Krishna)
Sunrise
06:38 AM
Sunset
05:31 PM
Best time for Narak Chaturdashi
05:38 AM – 06:38 AM
Duration 1 h 0 min · Oil bath before sunrise, from moonrise (or Arunodaya) until sunrise.
Chaturdashi tithi
10:48 AM, 7 Nov – 11:28 AM
Moonrise (Chaturdashi)
05:38 AM
Abhijit Muhurat
11:42 AM – 12:26 PM
Amrit Kaal
10:02 PM – 11:44 PM
Varjyam
11:50 AM – 01:32 PM
Yamaganda
12:04 PM – 01:26 PM
Gulika Kaal
02:48 PM – 04:09 PM
Rahu Kaal
04:09 PM – 05:31 PM
Day
Night
Calculated for New Delhi, Delhi, India (sidereal Lahiri, local sunrise). Regional and family traditions can differ by a day or in the exact window; follow your family priest where they differ.
Meaning
Naraka means the hellish state of suffering. The day is understood as cleansing away whatever keeps a person in that state: laziness, impurity, anger and ill will. The early oil bath is a physical expression of this, and in much of South India it is the most important moment of the whole Deepavali festival.
The day also has a quiet side. Many families offer water to Yama after the bath and light lamps in the evening for the protection of the household and in memory of ancestors. In eastern India the evening is especially devoted to ancestors.
Culturally, Narak Chaturdashi is the day when the Diwali mood truly begins: new clothes are worn, sweets are shared, the first rows of lamps are lit and children enjoy the first firecrackers.
Narakasura, a powerful demon king of Pragjyotisha, gained great strength and used it to oppress the three worlds. He seized the earrings of Aditi (mother of the gods) and held thousands of women captive. Krishna, accompanied by his wife Satyabhama, went to battle against him. After a fierce fight, Narakasura was defeated, and in many tellings it is Satyabhama who strikes the final blow.
As he was dying, Narakasura asked that the day of his death be remembered with lights and celebration rather than mourning. Krishna returned at dawn and took an oil bath to cleanse himself after the battle, which is why people bathe with oil before sunrise on this day. The freed women were given honour and shelter, and the day became a celebration of release from oppression.
One festival, many traditions
Known as Choti Diwali
Families bathe early with a paste of gram flour and turmeric (ubtan), and in the evening light a smaller number of lamps than on Diwali, often placing a lamp for Yama facing south at the entrance. Homes are given their final cleaning and decoration for the next day's Lakshmi Puja.
Why it matters there: The day is the eve of Diwali, a time to finish preparations and to pray for the protection of the family.
Known as Roop Chaudas (Roop Chaturdashi)
Women and men bathe early with ubtan made of gram flour, turmeric and oil, dress carefully and adorn themselves. Lamps are lit in the evening and homes are decorated for Diwali.
Why it matters there: The name means the fourteenth of beauty; caring for the body and appearance is seen as a way of welcoming Lakshmi with grace.
Known as Kali Chaudas
The day is dedicated to protection. Many families worship Mahakali (the fierce form of the goddess) and Hanuman, and some offer prayers to the family deity (kuldevi) to keep away negativity.
Why it matters there: The night before the new year's eve is seen as a time to drive away everything harmful before the year turns.
Known as Narak Chaturdashi
Before dawn, family members are massaged with oil and fragrant paste (utane) before bathing, and many crush a small bitter fruit (karit) underfoot as a symbol of crushing Narakasura. In Goa, neighbourhoods build large effigies of Narakasura in the days before and burn them before dawn, after which families take the oil bath and share a festive breakfast.
Why it matters there: Crushing the bitter fruit and burning the effigy act out Krishna's victory, starting Diwali with the triumph of good over evil.
Known as Bhoot Chaturdashi
In the evening, families light fourteen lamps (choddo prodeep) around the home, in dark corners and at the doorways. At lunch, a dish of fourteen kinds of leafy greens (choddo shaak) is traditionally eaten.
Why it matters there: The fourteen lamps are lit for fourteen generations of ancestors, guiding them and keeping the home safe on the night before Kali Puja.
Known as Deepavali
This is the main day of Deepavali in Tamil Nadu. Before dawn, elders apply warm sesame oil to each family member's head, and everyone bathes, an act called Ganga snanam because the water is felt to be as sacred as the Ganga that morning. New clothes are worn, sweets and savouries are shared, and many families prepare a traditional home-made herbal paste (Deepavali marundhu or lehiyam) eaten after the festive meal.
Why it matters there: Greeting each other with 'Have you had your Ganga snanam?' marks a shared morning of cleansing and joy after Krishna's victory over Narakasura.
Known as Naraka Chaturdashi
Families wake before dawn for the oil bath using water from vessels filled and decorated the evening before. After the bath, new clothes are worn, the home is lit with lamps and sweets are shared. In Andhra Pradesh and Telangana the story of Satyabhama's role in the battle is especially popular.
Why it matters there: The day opens Deepavali in these states and celebrates the defeat of Narakasura, with Satyabhama honoured as a heroine.
Step by step
The evening before, fill a bucket or vessel with water for the morning bath and keep sesame oil (til ka tel) and ubtan (gram flour, turmeric and a little milk or curd) ready.
Wake before dawn. Check the Abhyang Snan (pre-dawn bath) window shown above; the bath is traditionally completed before sunrise.
Apply oil to the head and body, ideally with an elder applying it to the younger members of the family. Then rub the ubtan gently on the skin.
Bathe within the Abhyang Snan window. In some North Indian and Maharashtrian homes, a twig of the apamarga plant (chirchita) is passed around the head three times during the bath as a traditional purifying gesture.
In Maharashtrian and Goan homes, crush a bitter fruit (karit) underfoot after the bath to symbolise Narakasura's defeat.
Wear clean or new clothes, apply a tilak, and offer a prayer to Krishna, thanking him for the victory of good over evil.
Optionally, offer water to Yama (Yama tarpan): face south, take water with a few sesame seeds in cupped hands and pour it out three times while saying 'Om Yamaya Namah'.
During the day, finish cleaning and decorating the home for Diwali and prepare sweets to share.
In the evening, light lamps at the entrance, in dark corners, the kitchen and near the water source. Many families place one lamp facing south for Yama. In Bengali homes, light fourteen lamps for the ancestors.
Share sweets with family and neighbours and spend the evening preparing together for the next day's Lakshmi Puja.
Om Namo Bhagavate Vasudevaya
Salutations to the Lord Vasudeva (Krishna). A prayer of gratitude to Krishna for the victory of good over evil.
Om Yamaya Namah
Salutations to Yama, lord of dharma. Said while offering water or a lamp to Yama for the family's well-being.
What you need
Do's and don'ts
Common questions
Tradition holds that Krishna bathed with oil at dawn after defeating Narakasura, so the bath before sunrise remembers that moment of cleansing after victory. The Abhyang Snan window shown above is calculated for your city. If you wake late, a simple bath with a prayer is still a sincere observance.
Yes, in most of North India the day is popularly called Choti Diwali, meaning the smaller Diwali before the main night. In Tamil Nadu and parts of South India, the morning of this day is itself the main Deepavali celebration.
Yama is the lord of dharma and the guardian of the departed. Offering water and a lamp to him is a prayer for the long life of family members and for the peace of ancestors. It is an act of respect, not something to fear.
On Bhoot Chaturdashi, Bengali families light fourteen lamps for fourteen generations of ancestors. The lamps are placed in dark corners and at doorways to guide the ancestors and protect the home on the night before Kali Puja.
There is no widely followed fast on this day. The main observances are the pre-dawn bath, the morning prayer and the evening lamps.
It is a traditional home preparation made in many South Indian families during Deepavali, usually from ginger, spices and jaggery, and eaten after the festive meal. It is a cultural custom; anyone with a health condition should follow their own doctor's advice about what to eat.
