Mahalaya 2026 is on Saturday 10 October. What it means: the end of Pitri Paksha, tarpan at the Ganga ghats, the pre-dawn Mahishasuramardini and chokkhu daan.
Tarpan on Mahalaya: offering water, til and kusha grass to the ancestors at the Ganga. Photo: Goutam1962, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons.
Hindu tradition holds that during Pitri Paksha the ancestors (pitri) are close to the world of the living, and that offerings made then reach them.
A worship plate with a conch, lamp and offerings. Photo: Vish79, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons.
For generations of Bengalis, Mahalaya begins in the dark, in front of a radio.
Tarpan on Mahalaya: offering water, til and kusha grass to the ancestors at the Ganga. Photo: Goutam1962, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons.
From Mahalaya, the bright fortnight of the goddess runs through the puja days to Kojagari Lakshmi Puja.
Offerings laid out for Kojagari Lakshmi Puja in a Bengali home. Photo: Biswarup Ganguly, CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons.
Mahalaya is not a day of grand public ritual in most homes.
Tarpan on Mahalaya: offering water, til and kusha grass to the ancestors at the Ganga. Photo: Goutam1962, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons.
Mahalaya 2026 is on Saturday 10 October. What it means: the end of Pitri Paksha, tarpan at the Ganga ghats, the pre-dawn Mahishasuramardini and chokkhu daan.
Mahalaya → Next story: Maha Navami: homa, bhog and the last night of the puja All photo storiesMusic: Rhythm of Dhak a huge membranophone instrument from Bengal and Assam, used in Hindu religious festivals, especially Durga Puja, Sumita Roy Dutta, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons.