Ganeshotsav 2026 Visarjan Dates: 1.5, 3, 5, 7 and 10 Day — Anant Chaturdashi 25 September

2026-08-24

The Ganeshotsav 2026 visarjan calendar: sthapana 14 September, 1.5-day 15, 3-day 16, 5-day 18, 7-day 20 and Anant Chaturdashi 25 September — with each day's tithi and Rahu Kaal, the uttar-puja order, home and ghat visarjan, and what to do with the nirmalya.

Ganpati arrives on Monday, 14 September 2026, when Bhadrapada Shukla Chaturthi begins at 07:08 and holds through midday. When he leaves, the shastra does not say: families keep him a day and a half, three days, five, seven, or the full ten to Anant Chaturdashi. This article covers only those five departure dates — each day's tithi, the hour to avoid, the uttar-puja before the idol is moved, and what to do with the nirmalya. Sthapana muhurat and the Anant vrat are in separate articles.

The 2026 visarjan calendar

Times are for Delhi (IST). A tithi changes at the same clock time across India; sunrise, sunset and Rahu Kaal shift by a few minutes from city to city.

Sunrise differs by city; for any borderline case, check your own city's panchang rather than this table, and your local Rahu Kaal.

How the days are counted — and why "ten days" is twelve this year

The count starts on the sthapana day: 14 September is day one, so day three is the 16th, day five the 18th, day seven the 20th. "One and a half days" means the day after sthapana, after the afternoon puja. Printed panchangs list these dates; a family that counts by tithi follows its own rule.

The name "ten days" comes from the distance between Chaturthi and Chaturdashi. On the 2026 calendar, though, the festival runs 14 to 25 September — twelve dates. The reason sits on the first day: at sunrise on 14 September the tithi was still Tritiya; Chaturthi began at 07:08. Sthapana follows the Chaturthi that covers midday, so it fell on the 14th, while Chaturdashi on the 25th holds from sunrise. The case for the 14th over the 15th is in the sthapana muhurat article.

One thing should be said plainly: the odd numbers — one and a half, three, five, seven — come from no scriptural text. They are family custom and convenience; the ten-day public format is itself a tradition of the 1890s. There is no shastric answer to "which day is more auspicious" — the day your household has always kept is the right one.

15 September (1.5-day) and 16 September (3-day)

Tuesday, 15 September: Chaturthi is still running at sunrise (06:07) and ends at 07:45; Panchami follows — this is also Rishi Panchami. The karana of Chaturthi's second half is Vishti, the Bhadra; it ends with the tithi at 07:45, so the day's puja and departure are clear of it. Rahu Kaal 15:20 to 16:53; sunset 18:25, so daylight remains after it.

Wednesday, 16 September: Panchami until 09:00, then Shashthi. Rahu Kaal 12:15 to 13:48, across lunch — finish before it or start after.

18 September (5-day) — and the Gauri complication

Friday, 18 September: Saptami until 13:01, then Ashtami. Rahu Kaal 10:43 to 12:15 — the morning window closes at 10:43, the afternoon opens at 12:15.

Maharashtrian households run a second calendar alongside. Jyeshtha Gauri is invited under Anuradha nakshatra, worshipped under Jyeshtha and immersed under Mula. In 2026 the nakshatra at sunrise is Anuradha on Thursday 17 September, Jyeshtha on Friday the 18th and Mula on Saturday the 19th. Families who send Ganpati off with Gauri therefore immerse on 19 September, not the 18th. Confirm the nakshatra times on your own panchang.

20 September (7-day) and 25 September (Anant Chaturdashi)

Sunday, 20 September: Navami until 17:51, then Dashami. Rahu Kaal is 16:48 to 18:19 — and sunset is 18:19. Rahu Kaal runs straight into dusk, so a daytime visarjan must be done before 16:48; otherwise it is a night visarjan.

Friday, 25 September: Chaturdashi from sunrise until 23:06 — the whole day is available. Rahu Kaal 10:42 to 12:12. Nakshatra Shatabhisha, Moon in Kumbha. This is also the day of the fourteen-knot Anant sutra; the vrat and the katha are in the Anant Chaturdashi article.

Does visarjan need a muhurat? Not as sthapana does — the texts prescribe no binding hour. Practice: daylight, outside Rahu Kaal, and for those who use choghadiya, a Shubh, Labh, Amrit or Char window.

Uttar-puja: the last puja before the idol moves

The final puja on the day of departure is the uttar-puja. The order:

1. Bathe, then the daily puja — shodashopachara or the shorter panchopachara — with naivedya, modak where possible.
2. Aarti, then kshama-prarthana with akshata in hand, asking pardon for whatever was left incomplete.
3. The visarjan prayer: yantu devaganah sarve pujam adaya mamakim, ishta-kama-samriddhyartham punaragamanaya cha — may all the devas depart having accepted my worship, and come again.
4. Release the akshata onto the idol and shift it slightly from its seat. This "chalan" marks the departure; the shastra gives no reason for it — it is custom.
5. In many homes a small packet of curd-poha or laddoo goes beside the idol as shidori, food for the road — regional practice, not rule.

The visarjan itself — at the ghat or at home

At a ghat or an artificial pond: carry the idol with care; at the water, one more aarti, three pradakshinas, then a slow release. Bring the thali, lamp and cloth home. The cry of the day — pudhchya varshi lavkar ya, come early next year — is the point: not a farewell but an invitation.

At home: if the idol is shadu or natural clay, immerse it in a clean tub or bucket. Clay dissolves in a few hours; the water and silt go into plant pots or the garden, never down the drain. Failing even that, tradition accepts immersing the supari or small symbolic idol kept beside the main one.

What to do with the nirmalya

Everything offered over the days — flowers, durva, bel leaves, garlands, incense ash — is nirmalya; it should not go into a river or lake.

• Leave it in the nirmalya kalash at the ghat; most municipal bodies now compost it.
• Bury it in garden soil or a large pot at home, or add it to compost.
• Plastic garland thread, thermocol and glitter foil are not nirmalya — separate them into dry waste.
• Cloth, crown and ornaments are kept for next year or given away, never set afloat.

The eco rules that now apply

• The Central Pollution Control Board's revised guidelines of 2020 keep Plaster of Paris idols and chemical paints out of immersion; states and cities enforce them in their own ways.
• Choose an idol of clay, shadu or paper pulp, coloured with natural pigments, and prefer the municipal artificial pond over river or sea.
• Procession hours and loudspeaker limits are set locally — check them before the day.

In short

Sthapana Monday 14 September. Visarjan: 1.5-day 15 September, 3-day the 16th, 5-day the 18th (19th with Gauri), 7-day the 20th, and 10-day on Anant Chaturdashi, 25 September, when Chaturdashi runs until 23:06. Watch 20 September, where Rahu Kaal runs until sunset. A clay idol, a tub or artificial pond, and the nirmalya into compost — that is the right departure this year.

Disclaimer: dates and times follow the Delhi panchang; the day and manner of visarjan vary with regional tradition and family custom.