Pradoṣam 2026
Loading 2026 date for Lucknow…
Lucknow
Trayodaśī evening
Significance of the day
Pradoṣam is Śiva's twilight worship day, kept on Trayodaśī in both lunar fortnights, so it comes round roughly twice a month. Its central legend is the Samudra Manthan. When devas and asuras churned the ocean for amṛta, the poison Halāhala rose first, and Śiva drank it to save creation while Pārvatī held his throat so that it went no further, turning his neck blue and earning him the name Nīlakaṇṭha. The devas worshipped him at dusk in gratitude once the danger had passed, and that is why Pradoṣa worship is kept at sunset rather than at any other hour.
Pañcāṅga rule and reckoning
- How the day is fixed: Trayodaśī, the thirteenth tithi, comes once in the Śukla pakṣa and once in the Kṛṣṇa pakṣa. The day is the one on which Trayodaśī prevails in the Pradoṣa Kāla around local sunset, in either fortnight.
- Keep in mind: Pradoṣa Kāla is roughly the hour and a half straddling sunset, the last nāḻikai of day and the first of night. Worship follows this window rather than a fixed clock time, so it shifts with place and season.
- Weekday and fortnight: Each Pradoṣam takes a name from the weekday it lands on, such as Soma Pradoṣam on Monday or Śani Pradoṣam on Saturday. Some traditions hold the Kṛṣṇa-pakṣa Pradoṣam slightly more significant, though both are kept in the same way.
- This year: The 2026 date shown here is worked out from sunrise at the place you chose, so in another city the same day can fall a day earlier or later.
Worship and observances
- Dusk abhiṣeka: The core rite is abhiṣeka of the Śiva liṅga with milk, water and other traditional offerings during the twilight window, followed by darśana and ārati. Many temples bathe Nandi as well, and seeing Śiva between Nandi's horns is held especially meritorious, since Purāṇic accounts describe Śiva dancing before the devas at this hour.
- Fast: Those who fast go without food through the day, or take only light phalāhāra such as fruit and milk. They break the fast the same evening after the Pradoṣa Kāla pūjā, often after reciting the Liṅgāṣṭakam at home by the lamp.
- Worth remembering: Unlike Ekādaśī or Saṅkaṣṭī, the Pradoṣam fast ends the same evening, not the next morning. Soma Pradoṣam, Śani Pradoṣam and the other weekday Pradoṣams each carry their own emphasis, while the dusk abhiṣeka and darśana stay the same for all of them.
Family custom and ācāra
How Pradoṣam is kept depends on region and family. Tamil temples begin with Nandi's abhiṣekam and often take the Pradoṣa Nāyakar round the prākāram on the Ṛṣabha vāhana, Kerala temples mark the hour with dīpārādhana, and in Bengal the dusk pūjā belongs to Śiva temples and Śaiva households rather than to every home, as Śivarātri does. Some keep a full fast, others only attend the evening worship. Beyond the general rule, the fullest fruit comes from following the elders of one's own house.
Frequently asked questions
- What is the exact date of Pradosham 2026 in Lucknow?
Pradosham 2026 date for Lucknow is computed from local sunrise.
- What is Pradoṣam and when does it fall?
Pradoṣam falls on Trayodaśī in both lunar fortnights, roughly twice a month, and is Śiva's twilight worship day, tied to the Samudra Manthan legend. The pañcāṅga takes the day on which Trayodaśī prevails at local sunset, matching the dusk worship.
- What is the Samudra Manthan legend behind Pradoṣam?
When devas and asuras churned the cosmic ocean for amṛta, the poison Halāhala emerged first, potent enough to destroy creation. Śiva drank it to save the universe, and the devas worshipped him at dusk in gratitude once the danger passed. That is the origin of dusk-time Pradoṣa worship.
- What is Pradoṣa Kāla and how is it timed?
Pradoṣa Kāla is roughly the hour and a half straddling sunset, the last nāḻikai of day and the first of night. Temple worship, with liṅga abhiṣeka and darśana, is timed to this window rather than to a fixed clock time, which shifts by location and season.
- What is the fasting rule for Pradoṣam?
Devotees who fast do so through the day, taking only light phalāhāra if at all, and break it after the dusk Pradoṣa Kāla pūjā. Unlike most Ekādaśī or Saṅkaṣṭī vratas, the fast ends the same evening rather than the following morning.
- Do the seven weekdays' Pradoṣams carry different significance?
Yes. When Trayodaśī lands on a particular weekday, that weekday's ruling graha is popularly held to add its own emphasis, for example debt relief on Bhauma (Tuesday) or relief from Śani doṣa on Śani (Saturday). Each is kept under its own name, and the core dusk worship described here applies to all of them.
Pradoṣa pūjā
Śiva stotram
Vedic mantras and full pūjā
Sanskrit texts in Devanagari and IAST on vaidhikadharma.org, our sister site.
Skanda Purāṇa
Skanda Purāṇa directly defines Pradoṣa as Trayodaśī evening and prescribes Mahādeva's worship then. Saura Purāṇa supplies the broader Pradoṣa-vyāpinī rule for night vratas.
Source
Skanda Purāṇa, Brahma-khaṇḍa, Brahmottara-khaṇḍa 6.5.
IAST
Trayodaśyāṃ tithau sāyaṃ pradoṣaḥ parikīrtitaḥ | Tatra pūjyo mahādevo nānyo devaḥ phalārthibhiḥ ||
The evening of Trayodaśī is called Pradoṣa. Those seeking its fruit should worship Mahādeva then, and no other god.
Source
Skanda Purāṇa, Brahma-khaṇḍa, Brahmottara-khaṇḍa 7.160.
IAST
Evam anye samārādhya pradoṣe girijāpatim | Labhante'bhīpsitān kāmān dehānte tu parāṃ gatim ||
Others too, worshipping the Lord of Girijā at Pradoṣa, obtain the aims they seek and, at life's end, the highest state.
Source
Saura Purāṇa 51.17.
IAST
Pāraṇe maraṇe nṝṇāṃ tithis tātkālikī smṛtā | Niśāvrateṣu ca grāhyā pradoṣavyāpinī sadā ||
For pāraṇa and for death rites, the tithi present at that time is taken. For night vratas, the tithi prevailing at Pradoṣa is always accepted.
Note: Dates depend on your place, timezone and vrata settings. Temple custom may differ.