Shakta — observances and vrat guides
Shakta calendars honour Devi in her many forms, with festivals dedicated to Durga, Kali and other manifestations of the divine feminine. Navratri, Durga Puja and Kali Puja do not have identical observance patterns, even when they occur in the same festival season. Regional traditions influence offerings, worship and the role of fasting. Bengal's ceremonial and household practices should not be silently replaced by a generic north Indian menu. The collection keeps individual goddess festivals tied to their descriptions and deity names. Readers can compare their dates while recognising that temple instructions and family customs determine the details.
The catalog currently includes 15 distinct entries in this collection. Examples are Amavasya · Adya Kali Puja (Shakta); Sharadiya Navaratri (Bengali Durga Puja); Maha Ashtami (Sandhi Puja); Lakshmi Puja (Kojagari Purnima); Kali Puja (Shyama Puja). Their recorded devotional focus includes Maa Kali (Adya Shakti) — the formless, fierce, liberating Mother; Maa Durga (Mahishasuramardini); Maa Durga as Chamunda and Mahishasuramardini; Maa Lakshmi (Kojagari Lakshmi); Maa Kali (Dakshina Kali / Shyama). 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 15 observances in this collection
- Amavasya · Adya Kali Puja (Shakta) — May 16, 2026
Amavasya — the monthly new moon — is the most sacred recurring observance in the Shakta sampradaya. Every dark-moon night belongs to Maa Kali (Adya Shakti); the 12 (or 13 in an Adhik year) Amavasyas of the year form the spiritual heartbeat of every Bengali Shakta home, every Tantric akhada, and every Shakti peeth. Special Amavasyas — Mauni (Magha), Phalaharini (Jyeshtha), Mahalaya (Bhadrapada), Diwali (Asvina) — have their own dedicated entries.
- Sharadiya Navaratri (Bengali Durga Puja) — October 11, 2026
Sharadiya Navaratri — the autumn nine nights of Devi, peaking with Bengali Durga Puja from Maha Shashti through Vijayadashami. Asvina Shukla Pratipada to Navami. The Devi Mahatmyam is recited continuously across pandals from Bengal to Mumbai. Days 1-3 invoke Durga (warrior shakti), Days 4-6 invoke Lakshmi (prosperity shakti), Days 7-9 invoke Saraswati (wisdom shakti).
- Maha Ashtami (Sandhi Puja) — October 19, 2026
Maha Ashtami — Day 8 of Sharadiya Navaratri. The most powerful day of Devi worship. The Sandhi Puja, performed in the 48-minute window straddling Ashtami-Navami junction, commemorates Devi's slaying of Chanda and Munda as Chamunda. At every Bengali pandal and Devi mandir, 108 ghee-diyas are lit and 108 lotuses are offered. Kumari Puja (worship of a young girl as living Devi) is performed in many homes.
- Lakshmi Puja (Kojagari Purnima) — October 25, 2026
Lakshmi Puja on Sharad Purnima — known in Bengali Shakta tradition as Kojagari Lakshmi Puja. Falls on Asvina Shukla Purnima, exactly five days after Vijayadashami. Bengal's main Lakshmi worship of the year (the Diwali Lakshmi Puja is comparatively smaller). Kheer is offered to Lakshmi at moonrise and kept under the moon through the night, then consumed as amrit-prasad.
- Kali Puja (Shyama Puja) — November 8, 2026
Kali Puja — the Bengali Shakta worship of Maa Kali on Karthik Amavasya (the same night as Diwali Lakshmi Puja in the rest of India). At Dakshineshwar, Kalighat, Tarapith (Tantric Kali peeth in Birbhum), and every neighbourhood pandal in Bengal, midnight worship of Kali continues until Brahma-muhurta. Sri Ramakrishna's Kali sadhana is held as the model.
- Chaitra Navaratri (Vasanta Navaratri) — April 7, 2027
Chaitra Navaratri — the spring nine nights of Devi worship. Chaitra Shukla Pratipada to Navami. Begins on the Hindu lunar new year (Gudi Padwa in Maharashtra, Ugadi in Andhra/Karnataka). Held in equal reverence to Sharadiya Navaratri in the Shakta tradition. Concludes on Ram Navami (Day 9).
- Phalaharini Kali Puja — July 14, 2026
Phalaharini Kali Puja — the Jyeshtha Amavasya worship of Maa Kali as Phalaharini (consumer of karmic fruits). Observed at Dakshineshwar, Belur Math, every Ramakrishna Mission centre, and across Bengali Shakta homes. Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa worshipped Sri Sarada Devi as Shodashi-Tripura-Sundari on this night in 1872 — the founding moment of the Holy Mother's recognition as living Devi.
- Mahalaya Amavasya — October 10, 2026
Mahalaya — the most spiritually charged Amavasya in the Bengali Shakta calendar. Marks the closing of 15-day Pitru Paksha (ancestor worship) and the opening of Devi Paksha (the 15 days leading to Sharadiya Navaratri / Bengali Durga Puja). At dawn, every Bengali home tunes in to Birendra Krishna Bhadra's iconic Mahishasura Mardini stotra recital — broadcast unchanged on All India Radio since 1931.
- Shakambhari Purnima — January 22, 2027
Shakambhari Purnima — Pausha Purnima — the climax of the 8-day Shakambhari Navaratri. Devi as Shakambhari (literally 'she who is borne by greens') is worshipped with every vegetable, fruit, and grain piled on the altar. The Shakambhari Devi Shaktipeeth at Sambhar in Rajasthan, and the Banashankari peeth in Karnataka, see massive yatras on this night.
- Magha Gupta Navaratri — February 6, 2027
Magha Gupta Navaratri — the hidden nine nights of Devi observed in Magha (mid-Jan to mid-Feb). Less-known publicly than Sharadiya / Chaitra Navaratri, but held in the Tantric Shakta tradition (Kashmir Shaivism cross-current, Bengal Tantric akhadas, Vindhyachal, Tarapith, Kamakhya) as the most powerful Navaratri for inner Devi sadhana. The 10 Mahavidyas are worshipped instead of the 9 Durgas.
- Saraswati Puja (Vasant Panchami) — February 11, 2027
Saraswati Puja — the Bengali Shakta worship of Maa Saraswati on Magha Shukla Panchami (Vasant Panchami). The second-largest festival in Bengal after Durga Puja. Every neighbourhood, school, university, college, and home erects a Saraswati pandal or altar; children dress in yellow saris and dhotis; the day is filled with music, recitation, and pushpanjali. Belur Math, Dakshineshwar, and every Saraswati mandir see massive crowds.
- Lalita Jayanti — February 20, 2027
Lalita Jayanti — the Magha Purnima appearance day of Maa Lalita Tripura Sundari, the supreme Devi of the Sri Vidya tradition. Worshipped through the Sri Yantra (the geometric form of Maa) at every Sri Vidya kuladharma centre — Kanchi Kamakoti, Sringeri, Devipuram in Andhra (the largest open Sri Yantra temple in the world), and the Bhandasura yantras of Tantric Bengal.
- Ashadha Gupta Navaratri — July 15, 2026
Ashadha Gupta Navaratri — the second hidden nine nights of Devi, observed in Ashadha (the monsoon month, mid-June to mid-July). The companion to Magha Gupta Navaratri. Reserved for Tantric Shakta sadhakas at Kamakhya (Assam), Tarapith (Bengal), Vindhyachal (UP), and the Shakti peethas of Kashmir. Worshipping the 10 Mahavidyas during the monsoon retreat is held to be especially transformative.
- Jagaddhatri Puja — November 17, 2026
Jagaddhatri Puja — Karthik Shukla Navami worship of Devi as Jagaddhatri, sustainer of the universe. The biggest Devi festival in Bengal AFTER Durga Puja. Krishnanagar (Nadia district) and Chandannagar (Hooghly) host massive three-day pandals; Chandannagar's Jagaddhatri visarjan procession lights the Hooghly riverbank with thousands of torches and is broadcast live across Bengal.
- Annapurna Jayanti — December 23, 2026
Annapurna Jayanti — Margashirsha Purnima — the appearance day of Devi Annapurna, the grain-giving Mother of Kashi. The Annapurna mandir at Kashi (built next to Kashi Vishwanath) is the central peeth. Sri Adi Shankaracharya's Annapurna Stotram is recited in every Shakta home. Anna-dana (food distribution to the poor) is the central vrat — even one bowl of food given today is held to feed the entire family for a year.