Karwa Chauth 2020: date, moonrise time and puja muhurat

Karwa Chauth is observed mainly in North India on Krishna Chaturthi of the purnimanta month Kartika (Ashwin in the amanta calendar). Married women fast from sunrise until they see the moon, and pray for their husbands' long life.

The fast is kept from sunrise and ends after moonrise, with the arghya (water offering) to the Moon. The evening puja is done in the Pradosh period after sunset, while Chaturthi tithi prevails. Moonrise differs by city by up to an hour across India, so the table on this page gives the moonrise and fast duration for each city.

Krishna Chaturthi runs from 3:18 am, 4 Nov to 5:10 am, 5 Nov (Indian Standard Time).

Moonrise is calculated for each city's coordinates and checked against a high-precision ephemeris to within about a minute. It is the moment the Moon's upper edge crosses a clear, level horizon; buildings, hills or haze can delay the first sighting by several minutes, so wait until you can see the Moon. Panchangs and websites often differ by a few minutes because they define moonrise slightly differently. Cities outside India show their local date and time. The puja window shown is the full Pradosh period after sunset while Chaturthi prevails; some panchangs publish a shorter puja muhurat at the start of it. Windows follow the traditional rule for this festival and the tithi timing for each city. Tithi times are approximate, usually within about 30 minutes, so for a vrata or homam confirm the exact muhurat with your purohit.

Many families, especially in Gujarat and Rajasthan, choose the puja or shopping time on Karwa Chauth from the Choghadiya. Amrit, Shubh and Labh are the good periods; Char also suits travel.