Ganesh Chaturthi 2026: Ganpati Sthapana Prep for 14 September — Murti, Samagri List and Home Setup

2026-08-24

Ganesh Chaturthi is Monday, 14 September 2026. The prep that comes before the muhurat: the 1.5/3/5/7/10-day decision, a clay murti of the right size and direction, the mandap, the full samagri list, what to buy now and what on the morning itself.

Ganesh Chaturthi falls on Monday, 14 September 2026, Bhadrapada Shukla Chaturthi. The muhurat, the puja sequence and the moon rule are already in our Ganesh Chaturthi 14 September article. This one works backwards from that day: what has to be decided and bought before the murti crosses the threshold — how long Bappa stays, which murti and which way it faces, the mandap, the samagri list, and what can wait until the last morning.

Decide the term first: 1.5, 3, 5, 7 or 10 days

Everything else follows — how much samagri, who takes leave, which day is visarjan. The number of days is spoken aloud in the sankalp, so settle it before the 14th, not during the puja. No text makes one term compulsory; every option from a day and a half to Anant Chaturdashi is customary. The right term is the one you can keep without strain: two aartis a day, fresh naivedya, someone at home.

"Ten days" is a name, not a count. The full term ends on Anant Chaturdashi whatever the count, and in 2026 the tithis in between run long, so the stay is twelve calendar days; plan leave and the visarjan vehicle accordingly. The vidhi for the 25th is in the Anant Chaturdashi article.

The murti: clay, size, trunk

Clay, not plaster. A shadu-mati or plain clay murti dissolves in water; plaster of Paris does not, and several cities restrict its immersion. Unpainted or naturally coloured clay is best; after visarjan it can go into a flowerpot. The Puranic form is the parthiva Ganesha, made of earth — the rule predates the environmental argument.

A size two people can carry. For a home, one to one and a half feet is ample; a small clay murti can even be immersed at home in a tub — decide that when buying, because it fixes the size.

The trunk. Tradition prefers a left-turning trunk (vamamukhi) for homes and holds that a right-turning murti demands stricter observance. The texts give no clear reason; it is custom, and the family's own practice is the guide. Seated, with the mouse, and uncracked — a cracked murti is not installed.

The mandap: place, direction, safety

Use the Ishan corner (north-east) or a clean spot along the east wall. Set the chowki so that the person doing puja faces east or north; the murti is commonly placed facing west or east, never south. Vastu gives these directions without a stated reason and practice varies by region; follow your family's way, and avoid the bathroom wall.

A chowki at a height where aarti is comfortable seated; red or yellow cloth over it, a few grains of rice beneath the seat. Decorate with fresh flowers, mango-leaf torans, banana stems and lamps; skip thermocol and plastic, the rubbish of visarjan day. Keep fairy lights away from cloth and give the lamp a fixed, fireproof spot — a flame will burn here for as many days as the term.

The full samagri list

Write it out once; half is already in the kitchen.

Seat and kalash

• Chowki or mandap, red/yellow cloth, akshat (whole rice)
• Kalash with water, mango leaves, coconut, mauli; Gangajal

Puja

• Roli (also for the swastika), kumkum, haldi, sindoor, chandan, attar
• Janeu, kalava, a new cloth for Ganesha
• Durva — at least 21 blades — red flowers, especially hibiscus, a garland
• Milk, curd, ghee, honey and sugar for panchamrit
• Dhoop, agarbatti, camphor, a ghee lamp with wicks, matches
• Aarti thali, bell, conch if the house has one
• Paan, supari, cloves, cardamom, coins for dakshina

Naivedya

• Modak — 21 by custom; steamed ukadiche modak made at home if you can
• Laddoo, bananas and seasonal fruit, coconut
• A plan for plain sattvik naivedya each day of the stay

What to buy now, and what on the day

Split the shopping into three rounds; the last morning stays calm.

Now — one to three weeks ahead

• Order or choose the murti; good clay murtis go first
• Chowki/mandap, cloth, decoration, lamps, lights
• Dry stores: akshat, roli, haldi, supari, cloves, cardamom, kalava, janeu, camphor, agarbatti, dhoop, ghee, wicks
• An aarti book, the Atharvashirsha or Ganesh Chalisa; a large tub if visarjan will be at home

The day before — Sunday, 13 September

• Flowers, garlands, durva — wrapped in damp cloth it keeps till the next afternoon
• Mango and banana leaves, coconuts, fruit, paan; dress the mandap; a murti already home stays covered

The morning itself — Monday, 14 September

• Modak and sweets, fresh; milk and curd for panchamrit
• If the murti is fetched that morning: Rahu Kaal in Delhi this Monday runs 07:39 to 09:11. The texts do not forbid bringing the murti home then, but many avoid it for setting out; if that is your practice, leave before 07:39 or after 09:11. The sthapana is at midday, well clear of it.
• Hartalika Teej is the same day this year; if the women of the house keep the nirjala vrat, divide the cooking in advance — modak on the 13th, or another member on naivedya duty.

Sthapana is at midday, not sunrise

Ganesh Chaturthi is madhyahna-vyapini: the installation and pranapratishtha belong to the middle division of the day. In Delhi on 14 September that window is about 11:02 to 13:30. Chaturthi begins a little after seven that morning and runs to about 07:45 on the 15th, so the 14th's whole midday lies inside it. The reasoning is in the main article; for preparation it means one thing — by 11:00 bath, mandap, samagri and naivedya are done, and a murti that came earlier waits covered. Sunrise, and therefore madhyahna, shifts a little by city; check your own city on the panchang.

While Bappa is home: dos and don'ts

• Once pranapratishtha is done the murti is not shifted; settle its place beforehand.
• Aarti morning and evening, fresh naivedya daily; do not leave naivedya sitting — distribute it as prasad.
• Custom holds that the murti is not left alone: someone stays, a lamp stays lit; an akhand deep needs its oil and its fire safety planned.
• Sattvik food; onion, garlic, meat and alcohol stay out in most homes — a rule of conduct, not a health claim.
• Do not look at the moon on the evening of sthapana; in Delhi it sets at 20:08 on the 14th, after which there is nothing to avoid. On the 15th Chaturthi ends before moonrise, so the question does not recur.
• Spent flowers and leaves go to a pot or a nirmalya kalash, not a drain or river.
• Uttar puja before visarjan — the steps are in the Anant Chaturdashi article.

In short

Monday, 14 September 2026; sthapana at midday, about 11:02–13:30 in Delhi. Decide the term first — the full term runs to 25 September, twelve calendar days this year. A seated clay murti you can carry; worshipper facing east or north. Dry stores and the murti now; flowers and durva on the 13th; modak on the 14th. Rahu Kaal 07:39–09:11; moonset 20:08.

Times are for Delhi (IST); sunrise differs by city, so check borderline cases on your own panchang. Practice varies by regional tradition.