Shardiya Navratri 2026 begins on Sunday, October 11 with Ghatasthapana (Kalash Sthapana), and runs through Tuesday, October 20, which is Vijayadashami (Dussehra). Over these nine nights, households across India set up a Kalash, light a diya, and perform daily aarti to the nine forms of Goddess Durga. If you're planning your puja calendar and shopping list, here's what you need to know — the exact dates, how Ghatasthapana is done, and a practical samagri checklist.
Navratri 2026: Key Dates at a Glance
- Pratipada / Ghatasthapana: Sunday, October 11, 2026 — the Kalash is installed and the nine-day worship begins
- Durga Ashtami: Sunday, October 18, 2026 — one of the most significant days, often marked with Kanya Pujan
- Maha Navami: Monday, October 19, 2026 — the final day of worship, followed by havan in many homes
- Vijayadashami / Dussehra: Tuesday, October 20, 2026 — the concluding day, marking the victory of good over evil
Note that tithi timings can shift slightly by region and panchang, so it's worth double-checking the Ghatasthapana muhurat against a local calendar if your family follows a specific tradition. Some panchangs list an extended observance this year because of how the Saptami tithi falls, so a few households may begin Kanya Pujan a day later than others — check with your family priest or local temple if you're unsure.
How Ghatasthapana (Kalash Sthapana) Is Performed
Ghatasthapana marks the invocation of Shakti at the very start of Navratri, and it's usually done in the morning during the Pratipada tithi. The general sequence followed in most households is:
- A small bed of soil is prepared in a wide plate or urli, and barley or wheat seeds are sown in it (these are watered daily through the nine days and grow into "Navratri jwara").
- A copper or brass kalash is filled with water, sometimes with a coin, supari, and a few grains of rice, then placed on the soil.
- Mango leaves are arranged around the rim of the kalash, and a coconut — often wrapped in a red cloth — is placed on top.
- An akhand diya (a lamp that's meant to stay lit through the nine days) is placed beside the kalash, along with a photo or idol of Durga Devi.
- Dhoop or incense is lit, and the first aarti of the festival is performed, followed by a short prayer for a smooth Navratri.
Because the diya and dhoop are meant to burn through the day, many households prefer a slow, clean-burning dhoop that won't leave heavy soot near the kalash — our Kesar Chandan Dhoop Sticks are a traditional choice for exactly this kind of extended daily puja, since the saffron-sandalwood blend is associated with formal worship without being overpowering in a closed puja room.
Puja Samagri Checklist for Navratri
Requirements vary by family and region, but this covers what most households gather before Ghatasthapana:
- Kalash (copper/brass), mango leaves, and a coconut
- A wide plate or urli, soil, and barley/wheat seeds for jwara
- An idol or photo of Durga Devi (and the other eight forms worshipped across the nine days, if your family follows that tradition)
- Red chunri/cloth, bangles, and a coconut for the final Kanya Pujan or Devi visarjan
- Diya, cotton wicks, and pure ghee or oil for the akhand jyot
- Dhoop sticks or dhoop cones for the daily aarti
- Camphor (kapoor) for the aarti flame
- Roli, kumkum, akshat (rice), and a few fresh flowers
- Naivedya/prasad ingredients — fruits, sweets, or the specific bhog your family offers
- Resin or loban for a short purification smoke before the puja begins, if that's part of your family's practice
For the aarti flame, most households reach for 100% natural Bhimseni Camphor rather than synthetic camphor tablets, since it's the traditional choice for temple and home aarti and burns cleanly without a strong chemical smell. If your family also does a short purification round with dhoop smoke before the main puja — common on Ghatasthapana morning and again on Ashtami — Pure Singapore Loban (Benzoin Resin) on a charcoal disc or heat plate is a traditional resin used for exactly this.
Choosing Dhoop for the Nine Nights
Since the diya and dhoop typically stay lit for hours through Navratri, the fragrance and smoke matter more than they would for a five-minute daily puja. A few practical points if you're stocking up:
- Charcoal-free matters more here, not less. Because dhoop burns for longer stretches near a closed puja corner during Navratri, a charcoal-free stick that relies on natural binding resins tends to produce a lighter, less acrid smoke than a charcoal-core stick burning for the same length of time.
- Sandalwood and saffron blends are the most common choice for the main nine-day worship, since they're associated with formal, sattvic puja rather than everyday ambient fragrance.
- Rose-based dhoop is often kept aside specifically for the days devoted to the gentler forms of Devi, or for the final Kanya Pujan, since floral notes are traditionally offered alongside fresh flowers.
- Keep dhoop cones or cups for the akhand diya area if you want a controlled, contained burn rather than sticks that need a holder — useful if the kalash setup is in a small alcove.
If you haven't settled on a fragrance yet, it's worth reading our guide on choosing charcoal-free incense before Navratri week gets busy, since it covers how charcoal-free dhoop is made and why the burn quality differs from mass-market charcoal-core sticks.
A Few Practical Notes
A handful of things that make the nine days easier to manage:
- Buy dhoop, camphor, and diya wicks a few days ahead — local markets near temples get crowded and prices tend to rise closer to Ghatasthapana.
- If you're keeping an akhand jyot, place it somewhere with steady airflow but away from curtains or anything flammable, and never leave it completely unattended overnight.
- Fasting practices during Navratri vary widely by family and region — if you're observing a fast, it's worth checking specific dietary guidance from your own family tradition rather than a generic list, since practices differ across communities.
- On Ashtami and Navami, many households do a short havan using gugal or a similar resin; if that's part of your practice, resin purity matters more than fragrance intensity, since it's often inhaled at close range during the ritual.
Navratri is as much about the daily rhythm — lighting the diya, refreshing the dhoop, watering the jwara — as it is about the two big days at either end. However your household observes it this year, getting the puja corner set up cleanly before October 11 makes the nine days that follow a lot calmer to manage.