Karthigai Deepam 2026: Date (Tuesday 24 November), Krittika Nakshatra Timings, Tiruvannamalai Maha Deepam and Dates Abroad

Quick answer: Karthigai Deepam 2026 is on Tuesday 24 November 2026 in India (Drik Panchang). The Krittika nakshatra runs from 2:02 AM to 11:25 PM IST on the 24th, so the evening lamps are lit that Tuesday, which is also Kartika Purnima. In the USA and Canada the festival falls on Monday 23 November; in Singapore, Malaysia, the UK, Australia and the UAE it is Tuesday 24 November.

Last updated: 18 October 2026. This guide has been rewritten with Drik Panchang's nakshatra and tithi timings, a country table and practical home guidance.

Karthigai Deepam is one of the oldest Tamil festivals of light, mentioned in classical Tamil literature, and it is the high point of the Tamil month of Karthigai. Homes are lined with rows of clay lamps (agal vilakku) at dusk, temples light great flames, and at Tiruvannamalai the Maha Deepam is lit on the Arunachala hill. Kerala keeps the same day as Thrikarthika; see our Thrikarthika 2026 guide.

Karthigai Deepam 2026 date and timings

Sources: Drik Panchang day panchang for Hyderabad, as compiled in HinduTone's October to December 2026 calendar; the Tamil month dates are from HinduTone's calculation (Vrischika Sankranti on 16 November after sunset, so Karthigai 1 is 17 November). Lamps are lit at sunset, which differs by city; see the table below. Our Karthika Pournami Purnima time by city lists full-moon times for Indian cities, and the panchangam for 24 November 2026 has the full day.

Because Krittika is in force at sunset on Tuesday everywhere in India, there is no two-day question in India this year. The full moon on the same day makes 24 November a double festival: Karthigai Deepam for Tamil families, Karthika Pournami for Telugu families, and Kartik Purnima and Dev Diwali in North India. See our Karthika Pournami 2026 guide and Tripurari Purnima and Dev Diwali.

Karthigai Deepam 2026 abroad: date by country

Abroad dates are HinduTone calculations using the Drik method (Krittika nakshatra at sunset in the solar month of Karthigai) and match our Karthigai Deepam 2026 abroad guide, which covers the USA, Canada, Singapore and Malaysia in detail. Temples sometimes hold the community lamp on the nearest weekend, so confirm with your temple. Never convert India's times to your local clock.

Karthigai Deepam 2026: sunset (lamp-lighting) time by city

Krittika times are Drik Panchang's start and end moments shown in each city's local time; the nakshatra changes at one instant worldwide. Sunset times are calculated with Swiss-style ephemeris (Lahiri); may differ by a minute or two from printed panchangs. In every city listed, Krittika is in force at sunset on the Deepam day and not at sunset on the day before or after. These are home lamp-lighting times; the Maha Deepam at Tiruvannamalai is lit at the time the temple announces.

Why Karthigai Deepam is celebrated: the column of light

The best-known story behind the festival, as told in the Puranas, is that of Lingodbhava. Brahma and Vishnu disputed which of them was greater, and Shiva appeared between them as an endless pillar of fire. Brahma flew upward as a swan and Vishnu dug downward as a boar, but neither found an end to the flame. Both recognised the infinite nature of Shiva, and the lamps of Karthigai Deepam recall that boundless light.

At Tiruvannamalai, the Arunachala hill itself is revered as a form of that fiery linga, which is why the great lamp is lit on its summit. Read more in our story of the Karthika deepam and Arunachala and the Arunachaleswara temple guide.

The festival is also linked with Murugan. In the commonly told account, the six infant forms of Kartikeya were raised by the six Krittika maidens, and Murugan temples celebrate Karthigai with lamps. Murugan's other great festival of the season, Skanda Sashti, falls on Sunday 15 November 2026; see our Skanda Sashti 2026 guide.

Bharani Deepam and Maha Deepam at Tiruvannamalai

The Arunachaleswarar Temple's Karthigai festival runs over several days and ends on Karthigai Deepam. As the tradition is generally described, the Bharani Deepam is lit inside the temple early on the festival day, from a single flame that is then shared to five lamps, symbolising the five elements returning to one source. At dusk the Maha Deepam, a great flame in a large vessel fed with ghee, is lit on the top of the Arunachala hill and can be seen from far around the town.

• Large crowds gather in Tiruvannamalai for the festival, and many devotees walk Girivalam, the path around the hill, on the full-moon night.
• Lighting times, festival-day schedules, entry arrangements and Girivalam guidance are announced by the temple and the district administration each year. Check the temple's official website and official notices before you travel; we do not list timings.
• If you cannot travel, many families watch broadcasts or temple livestreams and light their own lamps at the same hour of dusk.

How to celebrate Karthigai Deepam at home

The home celebration is simple and centres on light at sunset:

• Clean the house and the entrance in the afternoon, and draw a kolam at the doorstep.
• Arrange agal vilakku (small clay lamps) with sesame oil or ghee and cotton wicks at the shrine, the threshold, windows and steps. Many families light them in even numbers in neat rows.
• At dusk, light the lamp at the shrine first, then carry the flame to the others.
• Offer a simple naivedyam. Pori urundai (puffed-rice balls with jaggery), appam and adai are traditional Karthigai sweets in many Tamil homes.
• Pray to Shiva, and to Murugan if he is your family deity, and chant a short mantra.
• Many families keep lamps at the door for three evenings, starting the day before, as Bharani, Karthigai and the day after; follow your family's custom.

A short, well-known mantra for Shiva:

ॐ नमः शिवाय॥

oṃ namaḥ śivāya||

Chanting is an act of devotion and does not promise any particular result. For other verses used in this month, see our Karthika Masam guides.

Telugu families who keep Karthika Masam light the akasha deepam and daily lamps through the month; see our Karthika Snanam and Deepa Daanam guide and the Akasha Deepam guide.

Tamil Hindus abroad: Singapore, Malaysia, the UK, Australia, the UAE and North America

Singapore and Malaysia have large Tamil Hindu communities, and Karthigai Deepam is kept with lamps at home and at Shiva and Murugan temples. In the UK, Australia, the UAE, the USA and Canada, temples with Tamil congregations usually hold a lamp ceremony in the evening, sometimes moved to the weekend. Programme details appear only on each temple's own website or notice board.

• Smoke alarms: keep lamps on a metal tray, away from detectors, curtains and children's reach, and never disable an alarm.
• Renters: if your lease or building rules restrict open flames, use sealed glass lamps or LED agal vilakku; the meaning lies in the light, not the fuel.
• Balconies and doorsteps: in high-rise flats in Singapore, Dubai or Kuala Lumpur, follow building rules on corridor lamps; in Canada and the northern USA late November can be wet and windy, so keep lamps sheltered.
• A working Tuesday or Monday: light the lamps after work at sunset; a few lamps lit with care are as meaningful as a hundred.

Country guides: Karthika Masam 2026 in Singapore, Karthika Masam in Malaysia and Skanda Sashti 2026 in Singapore and Malaysia.

Karthigai Deepam checklist

• Agal vilakku (clay lamps) or brass lamps, washed and dried a day ahead; new clay lamps are often soaked in water first so they absorb less oil.
• Sesame oil or ghee, cotton wicks, a match box or lighter, and a metal tray for each group of lamps.
• Rice flour or kolam powder for the doorstep, flowers and a small bell for the shrine.
• Naivedyam such as pori urundai or a simple sweet, plus fruit and betel leaves if your family offers them.
• A bucket of water or a small fire extinguisher within reach, and a plan to put out every flame before bed.

The Tamil month of Karthigai in 2026

By HinduTone's calculation the Tamil month of Karthigai runs from Tuesday 17 November to Tuesday 15 December 2026. Besides Karthigai Deepam, it includes the start of the Sabarimala Mandala season on 17 November and Karthigai Somavarams at Shiva temples. Our Karthigai month 2026 Tamil festivals guide lists them.

Frequently asked questions

When is Karthigai Deepam in 2026?

Tuesday 24 November 2026 in India, per Drik Panchang. The Krittika nakshatra runs from 2:02 AM to 11:25 PM IST that day, and Kartika Purnima falls on the same date. In the USA and Canada it is Monday 23 November; in Singapore, Malaysia, the UK, Australia and the UAE it is Tuesday 24 November.

How is the Karthigai Deepam date decided?

It is kept in the Tamil solar month of Karthigai on the day the moon is in the Krittika (Karthigai) nakshatra, especially at sunset when the lamps are lit. It usually coincides with or falls close to the Karthika full moon.

Why is Karthigai Deepam a day earlier in the USA and Canada?

A nakshatra begins and ends at one instant worldwide. In North America that instant falls so that Krittika already prevails at sunset on Monday 23 November local time, while in India and Asia the Krittika sunset is on Tuesday 24 November. These are HinduTone calculated dates by the Drik method; confirm with your temple.

What is the Maha Deepam at Tiruvannamalai?

At the Arunachaleswarar Temple in Tiruvannamalai, a great lamp is lit at dusk on top of the Arunachala hill on Karthigai Deepam, after the Bharani Deepam is lit inside the temple earlier that day. Check the temple's official website for the current year's schedule.

Is Karthigai Deepam the same as Karthika Pournami?

They are related but not identical. Karthigai Deepam is fixed by the Krittika nakshatra in the Tamil month, while Karthika Pournami is the full moon of the lunar month Karthika. In 2026 both fall on Tuesday 24 November in India.

Can I celebrate Karthigai Deepam in an apartment?

Yes. Light a few agal vilakku on a metal tray at the shrine and doorway, away from curtains and smoke alarms, and never leave flames unattended. Sealed glass lamps or LED lamps are good alternatives where building rules restrict open flames.

Editor's note (18 October 2026)

This post was upgraded in place on 18 October 2026. It replaces a shorter earlier version with Drik Panchang's Krittika and Purnima timings for India, abroad dates from HinduTone's calculation by the Drik method, and safety guidance for homes abroad. Temple schedules, including the Maha Deepam at Tiruvannamalai, are set by the temple each year; please check its official website.

Update (18 October 2026): we added city sunset times. Drik Panchang was refusing our requests, so sunsets are calculated, and the Deepam day is set by Drik's rule: the day on which Krittika nakshatra prevails at local sunset in the solar month of Karthigai. Kartika Purnima does not decide the date; in 2026 it also covers sunset on the Deepam day almost everywhere, except the UK, where Purnima ends at 2:53 PM on Tuesday. Checked against Drik values already on this page (Krittika and Purnima start and end, Hyderabad sunset), the calculator was within two minutes.

Related guides

• Karthigai Deepam 2026 in the USA, Canada, Singapore and Malaysia
• Thrikarthika 2026 in Kerala
• Karthika Pournami 2026
• Karthika Masam 2026
• Arunachaleswara temple guide
• Hindu festivals in November 2026