Weekly vrats — observances and vrat guides
Weekly vows connect a weekday with particular devotional practices, but some are limited to a named lunar month or regional festival season. A Shravan Monday observance is not automatically equivalent to every Monday throughout the year. Deity, household custom and the regional month convention influence its purpose. These pages retain the named month or vow instead of replacing it with a generic weekday reminder. The linked guides help readers identify the relevant deity and food discipline, and compare the recorded dates with the community calendar they follow.
The catalog currently includes 6 distinct entries in this collection. Examples are Bada Mangal (Budhwa Mangal); Sawan Somvar (Shravan Monday Vrat); Mangala Gauri Vrat; Shravana Somavara; Karthika Somavara. Their recorded devotional focus includes Lord Hanuman; Lord Shiva (Neelkanth); Goddess Mangala Gauri (form of Parvati); Lord Shiva (Ishtalinga); Lord Shiva — worshipped on every Monday of the holy month of Karthika. Follow the individual links below for the full description, calendar dates, mantra and allowed or avoided foods; each link leads to a dedicated observance page rather than a search result.
Calendar dates are references, not a substitute for the observance rules of your chosen city and community. Lunar days can cross civil-date boundaries, and regional practice can change which day is kept. Meal suggestions are optional ideas for an allowed meal, not instructions to eat during a complete fast. Children, pregnant people and anyone with a medical condition should seek appropriate advice before fasting. Compare the linked guides with your family or temple's practice and choose a discipline suited to your health.
All 6 observances in this collection
- Bada Mangal (Budhwa Mangal) — May 5, 2026
Tuesdays of Jyeshtha month dedicated to Lord Hanuman — observed with fasting, Hanuman puja, and community bhandara (food distribution). Especially prominent in Lucknow and the Awadh region of Uttar Pradesh.
- Sawan Somvar (Shravan Monday Vrat) — August 3, 2026
Sawan Somvar — the Monday fast of Shravan month, dedicated to Lord Shiva. One of the most widely observed vrats in the Hindu calendar: every Monday of Sawan, devotees fast, perform Rudrabhishek with milk and panchamrut, offer bel patra, and break the fast after evening aarti. 2026 has four Sawan Somvars (3, 10, 17, 24 Aug); 2027 has five (19, 26 Jul; 2, 9, 16 Aug).
- Mangala Gauri Vrat — August 18, 2026
Observed every Tuesday in Shravana month by newly married women — a fast dedicated to Goddess Mangala Gauri for marital bliss, the health of the husband, and a happy married life
- Shravana Somavara — July 20, 2026
Somavara (Monday) is sacred to Lord Shiva, and the Mondays of Shravana (Shraavana) month are considered the holiest of all. Lingayat devotees observe a fruit fast on these days, performing elaborate Ishtalinga puja and reciting Basavanna's Vacanas. The Shravana Somavara fast is observed with particular devotion across Karnataka
- Karthika Somavara — November 2, 2026
Karthika Somavara — every Monday of the holy month of Karthika — the most sacred Shiva-fasting day of the year alongside Maha Shivaratri. Observed at every Lingayat home and matha across Karnataka with deepa-lighting, Ishtalinga worship, and the Panchakshara mantra. The month-long Karthika Deepotsava illuminates the entire region.
- Manabasa Gurubara (Thursdays of Margashira — for Mahalakshmi) — November 26, 2026
Manabasa Gurubara — every Thursday of the Odia Margashira month. The most important Mahalakshmi vrat for Odia women, observed at home with Lakshmi-jhoti, fresh harvest rice in a mana basket, and reading of Balarama Dasa's Lakshmi Purana.