Dussehra (Vijayadashami)

Dussehra, also called Vijayadashami, is the festival of victory. It falls on the tenth day (Dashami) of the bright half of the month of Ashwin, the day after the nine nights of Navratri, and it remembers two victories: Shri Ram's over Ravana and Maa Durga's over the buffalo demon Mahishasura. Across India it is a day to honour what protects dharma, to start new work, and to leave behind what holds us back.

Why Dussehra is celebrated

The two names explain the day. Dasha-hara is usually explained as "the removal of the ten", meaning Ravana's ten heads. Vijaya-dashami means "the tenth day of victory".

Which victory comes first depends on where you are. In North and Central India it is Shri Ram's day: tradition holds that he killed Ravana on Ashwin Shukla Dashami, and the Ramlila staged over the nights before ends with Ravana's effigy in flames. In Bengal, Odisha, Assam and the rest of the east it is the Devi's day: Durga Puja ends on Bijoya Dashami with a tearful farewell to the goddess who defeated Mahishasura. In much of South India the day closes Navaratri with the worship of tools and the start of learning.

Under every version is the same idea. Adharma, however strong it looks, does not last, and the strength to defeat it comes from devotion, discipline and right action.

Dussehra dates in 2026 and 2027

Dates below are for New Delhi, from Drik Panchang. Ravan Dahan takes place in the evening of this date; the Shami and Aparajita puja and Shastra puja are done in the afternoon (aparahna). Check the Panchang for your city.

Stories associated with Dussehra

Shri Ram and Ravana

Ravana, the learned and powerful king of Lanka, abducted Sita, and Shri Ram fought a long war to bring her back. In Valmiki's Yuddha Kanda, every head Ram cut off grew back, until he released the Brahma weapon the sage Agastya had given him. In Tulsidas's Ramcharitmanas, Vibhishana reveals that Ravana lives on the nectar held in his navel, and Ram's thirty-one arrows end the fight. Ram's last act is often forgotten: he told Vibhishana to give Ravana full funeral rites, because enmity ends with death. The Ramayana itself does not name the date; linking the victory to Dashami is the tradition behind the festival. We tell the full story of Ram's last battle with Ravana separately, with the verses.

Maa Durga and Mahishasura

The Devi Mahatmya, part of the Markandeya Purana and read in homes as the Durga Saptashati, tells how the buffalo demon Mahishasura drove the gods out of heaven. Their combined anger became a blaze of light that took the form of the Devi. Each god gave her a weapon, and she destroyed Mahishasura in battle. Tradition counts nine nights of fighting and victory on the tenth, which is why Navratri and Dussehra form one festival. The hymn Mahishasura Mardini Stotram (Aigiri Nandini) sings of this battle.

Ram's worship of Durga before the war

The Bengali Ramayana of Krittivas (15th century) adds a story not found in Valmiki. Before the final battle, Ram invoked Durga in autumn, outside her usual spring worship, which is why Bengal's Durga Puja is called akal bodhan, "the untimely awakening". He offered 108 blue lotuses; when one was missing, he prepared to offer one of his own lotus-like eyes, and the Devi appeared and blessed him. This story ties Durga Puja and Dussehra together in eastern India.

The Pandavas and the Shami tree

In the Virata Parva of the Mahabharata, the Pandavas hid their weapons in a Shami tree during their year in disguise, and Arjuna took them down to win his first battle on their return. This is the root of the Shami and Aparajita puja done on Dussehra.

Raghu, Kautsa and the rain of gold

Kalidasa's Raghuvamsha tells of the young scholar Kautsa, who needed fourteen crore gold coins as his teacher's fee. King Raghu had already given everything away in a great yajna, so he prepared to take the gold from Kubera, and that night gold rained into his treasury. In Maharashtra this story is remembered by exchanging Apta leaves as "sona" (gold) on Dussehra.

Dussehra puja vidhi at home

There is no single fixed ritual. Families combine the closing of Navratri, the worship of Durga and Shri Ram, and the afternoon rites of Dashami in their own way. The order below is what most households follow; keep to your family's custom where it differs.

Puja items (samagri)

• Roli or kumkum, haldi, akshat (unbroken rice), chandan
• Marigold and other fresh flowers; blue Aparajita flowers if you can find them
• Ghee lamp, incense, camphor for aarti
• Ganga jal or clean water in a kalash, mango leaves for the toran
• Mauli (sacred thread), a few Shami leaves, sweets and fruit for bhog
• Your tools, books, instruments or vehicle keys for shastra puja

Step by step

1. Morning preparation. Bathe, clean the house and hang a toran of mango leaves and marigold on the main door.
2. Close Navratri. If you kept Navratri, worship the kalash and the jau (jawara) sprouts sown on the first day, then give them a respectful farewell. Many families keep a few jau shoots in the puja place or the tijori as a blessing. Our Navratri kalash sthapana and puja guide covers the full nine days.
3. Worship Maa Durga. Offer roli, akshat, flowers and bhog. Read the Durga Chalisa, sing the aarti Jai Ambe Gauri, and close with the Devi Aparadha Kshamapana Stotram, asking forgiveness for any lapse during the puja. If you installed an idol, this is when visarjan is done.
4. Aparajita puja in the afternoon. In the aparahna (the afternoon portion of Dashami), worship Devi Aparajita, the goddess who is never defeated, on an eight-petalled lotus drawn in the north-east of the home. See the step-by-step Aparajita and Shami puja vidhi.
5. Shami puja. Worship a Shami tree with water, roli, akshat and a lamp, walk around it, and bring a few leaves home. The same guide gives the prayer and the method.
6. Shastra puja. Clean and worship the things your work depends on: tools, weapons, vehicles, books, instruments. The Vijayadashami shastra puja vidhi explains the Vijay muhurat and regional customs.
7. Worship Shri Ram. Offer flowers and bhog to the Ram Darbar, recite the Ram Raksha Stotra or Ram Chalisa, and sing the Ramayan ji ki aarti. Our Shri Ram puja vidhi has the full method.
8. Evening. Watch the Ravana dahan with family, then touch the feet of elders, exchange Shami or Apta leaves and sweets, and share good wishes. Seeing a Neelkanth bird on this day is considered lucky in many regions.

About the timing: the main rites belong to the afternoon of Dashami. When Dashami spans two days, the day on which it covers the afternoon is generally taken as Vijayadashami, so check your local panchang for the exact date and muhurat each year.

Regional celebrations and traditions

• North India: Ramlila through Navratri, ending with the burning of Ravana, Kumbhakarna and Meghnad. Varanasi's Ramnagar Ramlila runs for about a month.
• West Bengal and the east: Bijoya Dashami ends Durga Puja. Married women play sindoor khela, the idols are taken in procession for bisarjan, and people visit each other with sweets and Bijoya greetings.
• Mysuru, Karnataka: Mysuru Dasara ends with the Jamboo Savari, a procession in which the idol of Goddess Chamundeshwari rides on a golden howdah on an elephant.
• Kullu, Himachal Pradesh: Kullu Dussehra begins on Vijayadashami itself and lasts a week, with Raghunath ji's chariot and local deities carried in from the valleys.
• Bastar, Chhattisgarh: one of the longest Dussehras, spread over more than two months, centred on Goddess Danteshwari rather than Ravana dahan.
• Maharashtra:seemollanghan (crossing the village boundary) and the exchange of Apta leaves as gold.
• Telangana and Andhra Pradesh: Shami puja, and looking for the Palapitta (Indian roller) bird.
• Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Kerala: the Golu doll display ends, Ayudha Puja is done on Navami, and children begin their first letters on Vijayadashami (Vidyarambham).
• Gujarat: the last nights of garba end, and many families mark the day with fafda and jalebi.

Spiritual significance and teachings

Teachers often read Ravana's ten heads as ten inner faults, such as desire, anger, greed and pride. The Ramayana does not list them this way, but the lesson is old: Ravana was learned and devoted, and still lost everything to faults anyone can recognise. We explain what Ravana's ten heads symbolise head by head.

Navratri and Dussehra also fit together as a practice. Nine nights of fasting, prayer and restraint come first, and victory comes on the tenth day. The festival suggests that outer victory follows inner discipline.

Vijayadashami is counted among the sade teen muhurat, the three and a half days auspicious for any good beginning. That is why people start a business, buy tools or a vehicle, or begin a child's education on this day. Ram's insistence on honouring Ravana's funeral is a quieter teaching: defeat the wrong, but do not hate the person.

Before you plan the day, it also helps to read what is traditionally avoided and what is auspicious on Dussehra.

Related reading on Bhakti Arohan

• The story of Dussehra: Ram, Durga, the Shami tree and Raghu's gold
• Shami and Aparajita puja vidhi for Dussehra
• Vijayadashami shastra puja vidhi
• Navratri kalash sthapana, fasting and puja guide
• Maa Durga and the nine forms of Navdurga
• Shri Ram: mantras, chalisa and aarti
• Read the Sundarkand of the Ramcharitmanas

Sources and editorial note

This page draws on the Devi Mahatmya (Markandeya Purana), Valmiki's Ramayana (Yuddha Kanda), Tulsidas's Ramcharitmanas (Lanka Kand), the Krittivasi Ramayana, the Mahabharata (Virata Parva) and Kalidasa's Raghuvamsha. Where a popular telling differs from the source text, we say so. Regional customs are described as commonly practised and vary from family to family. Prepared and reviewed by the Bhakti Arohan editorial team.

Frequently asked questions

When is Dussehra celebrated?

On Ashwin Shukla Dashami, the tenth day of the bright half of Ashwin, right after Navratri. It usually falls in late September or October. The exact date changes every year with the lunar calendar, so check the panchang.

Are Dussehra and Vijayadashami the same festival?

Yes. Dussehra is the common North Indian name and Vijayadashami the Sanskrit one. In Bengal the same day is Bijoya Dashami, and in Karnataka it is Dasara.

Why is Ravana's effigy burned?

It re-enacts Shri Ram's victory at the end of the Ramlila and stands for burning away arrogance and adharma. Effigies of Kumbhakarna and Meghnad are usually burned with it.

What is the best time for puja on Dussehra?

The main rites, Aparajita puja, Shami puja and shastra puja, are done in the afternoon (aparahna) of Dashami, ideally in the Vijay muhurat. Durga and Ram puja can be done in the morning. Timings shift by city, so use a local panchang.

Can new work be started on Dussehra?

Yes. Vijayadashami is one of the sade teen muhurat, so beginning a business, buying a vehicle or property, or starting a child's education is considered auspicious without looking for a separate muhurat.

Why are Shami or Apta leaves exchanged?

Shami recalls the tree that guarded the Pandavas' weapons. In Maharashtra, Apta leaves stand for the gold that rained on King Raghu. People give them to each other as "sona" with wishes for prosperity.

Is Durga visarjan done on Dussehra?

Yes, in Bengal and eastern India Durga Puja ends with visarjan on Bijoya Dashami. Households that kept a Navratri kalash also give it a respectful farewell on this day.

Do people fast on Dussehra?

Dussehra itself is not a fasting day. Those who kept the Navratri fast break it on Navami or Dashami, according to family custom, after the final puja.