Roop Chaudas 2026 at a glance
Kartik Krishna Chaturdashi runs from 10:47 am on Saturday, 7 November to 11:27 am on Sunday, 8 November. So in 2026 the observances of this tithi fall on two days:
- Kali Chaudas and Hanuman Puja — Saturday, 7 November, at night, when Chaturdashi holds at midnight. Many families also light the evening lamps that day and call it Choti Diwali.
- Narak Chaturdashi / Roop Chaudas — Sunday, 8 November, with the Abhyang Snan from 5:41 am to 6:38 am (New Delhi): the oil-and-ubtan bath before sunrise, while Chaturdashi still prevails. This year that is the same day as Diwali.
Why it is called Roop Chaudas and Narak Chaturdashi
Narak Chaturdashi remembers Krishna’s victory over the demon Narakasura, who held sixteen thousand women captive; the bath at dawn is said to wash away the impurity of narak — of hell. Roop Chaudas, its name across North and West India, puts the weight on the body and beauty (roop): the ubtan bath is the one day in the year the whole family is bathed with oil and paste before sunrise.
How the Abhyang Snan is taken
- Wake before sunrise, in the muhurat.
- Massage the body with sesame or mustard oil.
- Apply an ubtan — gram flour, turmeric, a little oil and milk or rose water.
- Bathe; traditionally a little apamarg (chirchita) is circled over the head during the bath.
- Wear clean or new clothes, and offer water to the Sun.
The night of Kali Chaudas
On the evening of 7 November many homes light fourteen lamps, and some place a lamp for Yama at the door again, facing south. The night is Kali Chaudas, kept above all in Gujarat and parts of Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh — given to Kali and to Hanuman for protection from fear and negative forces. It is also Masik Shivratri, the monthly night of Shiva.
Protection for the family
Because the day is given to Yama, families who are worried about a member’s health — or who simply want the household protected — often have the Maha Mrityunjaya Jaap performed around it. It is a prayer for protection from untimely death and illness; it promises no outcome. For the Diwali puja itself, see Diwali 2026 and the Lakshmi Puja.