Dussehra 2026 in France, City by City: Date, Vijay Muhurat and Hindu Temples

Quick answer: Dussehra (Vijayadashami) 2026 in France is on Tuesday 20 October 2026 in every city, from Paris to Réunion and Guadeloupe. The Vijay Muhurat, calculated by the Drik Panchang method, is 3:20 PM – 4:03 PM in Paris, 3:12 PM – 3:55 PM in Lyon and 3:11 PM – 3:54 PM in Marseille (French summer time, CEST, UTC+2). Navratri runs from Sunday 11 to Monday 19 October 2026.

Editor's note (5 October 2026): The local times on this page were calculated for each city from the Drik Panchang tithi (Dashami from 12:50 PM IST on 20 October to 2:11 PM IST on 21 October 2026), using each city's own clock: summer time in mainland France, which is still in force on 20 October, and the year-round local time of Réunion and Guadeloupe. The Vijay Muhurat is the 11th of the 15 daytime muhurtas, calculated by the Drik Panchang method. We do not list 2026 event schedules, because temples and associations announce their own programmes; please check with them directly.

France's Hindu community has several distinct strands. In mainland France the largest is the Sri Lankan Tamil community, which arrived from the 1980s onwards and built most of the country's temples, centred on the La Chapelle area of Paris, often called Little India. There are also families with roots in Pondicherry and the other former French settlements in India, Indo-Mauritians and Indo-Réunionnais who have settled in the mainland, and a growing number of Indian professionals and students, especially around Paris, Lyon and Toulouse. Overseas, Réunion and Guadeloupe have Hindu communities descended from indentured labourers who arrived in the nineteenth century, with their own long-established temple traditions.

Dussehra 2026 in France: dates and Vijay Muhurat by city

Mainland France is on Central European Summer Time (UTC+0200) on 20 October; the clocks go back on Sunday 25 October. Réunion (UTC+0400) and Guadeloupe (UTC-0400) do not change their clocks. The Dashami tithi begins at the same moment everywhere, which is why it shows a different clock time overseas, while the sun-based windows differ from city to city.

The Aparahna (afternoon period) is the traditional window for Aparajita and Shami puja, and sunset marks the time for any evening Ravan Dahan or aarti:

Key Navratri and Dussehra dates 2026

Ashtami and Navami share Monday 19 October in India's calendar this year, so families who do Kanya pujan on either day will hold it then. In every city on this page the Dashami tithi covers the whole Aparahna on 20 October, and the Vijay Muhurat falls well inside Dashami, so there is no doubt about the date.

Hindu temples in France for Navratri & Dussehra

These temples and associations have been confirmed to exist in or near each city. We list name and area only; check their own websites or social pages for opening hours and festival plans. Temples and community groups usually announce Navratri garba, Durga Puja, Ramlila and Ravan Dahan programmes a few weeks ahead — check their websites/social pages.

Île-de-France: Paris

Paris's Vijay Muhurat is 3:20 PM – 4:03 PM, within an Aparahna of 2:38 PM – 4:45 PM; sunset is at 6:52 PM. The Paris region is home to the great majority of France's Hindus, and the streets around La Chapelle and Gare du Nord are lined with Tamil grocers, jewellers and sweet shops that are especially busy in the run-up to Navratri.

• Sri Manicka Vinayakar Alayam — La Chapelle, 18th arrondissement. Founded in 1985 by the Tamil community and often described as the largest Hindu temple in France; it organises the well-known annual Paris Ganesh festival procession, and its shrines include Durga.
• BAPS Swaminarayan Hindu Mandir — Bussy-Saint-Georges, Seine-et-Marne. France's first traditional stone mandir, inaugurated in September 2026.
• ISKCON Paris (Sri Sri Radha Paris-Isvara) — Sarcelles, Val-d'Oise. Home to deities installed by Srila Prabhupada in 1973.
• Sammilani — Paris. A Bengali association that has organised Durga Puja in the city.

At Navaratri, Tamil temples typically hold nightly Devi abhishekam and alankaram, with Saraswati Puja and Ayudha Puja near the end of the nine nights and Vidyarambham on Vijayadashami. Gujarati and wider Indian groups in the Paris region usually hold garba and dandiya nights in rented halls on the Navratri weekends.

Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes: Lyon

Lyon's Vijay Muhurat is 3:12 PM – 3:55 PM, within an Aparahna of 2:29 PM – 4:38 PM; sunset is at 6:46 PM. Lyon has a smaller community of Tamil, Indo-Réunionnais and Indian families, many of them working in research, healthcare and industry.

• Temple Hindou de Shiva de Lyon — Villeurbanne. Listed by the City of Lyon as a Hindu temple dedicated to Shiva.
• Ashram Sivagayatri (Sri Rhôneshwara Siva Lingamalai) — Lyon area.

Occitanie: Toulouse

Toulouse's Vijay Muhurat is 3:26 PM – 4:10 PM, within an Aparahna of 2:43 PM – 4:53 PM; sunset is at 7:03 PM, the latest of the mainland cities. The aerospace industry has drawn many Indian engineers to the city, alongside long-settled Réunionnais and Mauritian families.

• Association Culturelle du Temple Hindou de Toulouse (ACTHT) — Toulouse. An Indo-Réunionnais cultural association that brings together Réunionnais, Mauritian and Indian Hindus and works towards a temple for the city.

Without a large dedicated temple, much of Toulouse's Navratri life happens in homes and in community gatherings organised by associations and student groups, often on weekends.

Provence: Marseille

Marseille's Vijay Muhurat is 3:11 PM – 3:54 PM, within an Aparahna of 2:28 PM – 4:38 PM; sunset is at 6:48 PM. We could not confirm a Hindu temple in Marseille from an official site or reliable listing, so we have not named one; local families usually rely on home puja, community gatherings announced on social media, or a trip to Lyon or Paris.

Réunion: Saint-Denis

Saint-Denis's Vijay Muhurat is 2:09 PM – 3:00 PM (Réunion time, UTC+0400), within an Aparahna of 1:19 PM – 3:50 PM; sunset is at 6:22 PM. On the island the Dashami tithi begins at 11:20 AM on 20 October and ends at 12:41 PM on 21 October. Réunion has one of the largest Hindu populations of any French territory, mostly of Tamil descent, and its kovils are part of the island's everyday landscape.

• Temple Kalikambal — rue du Maréchal-Leclerc, central Saint-Denis. Founded in 1917 and dedicated to the goddess Kali, with a richly painted Dravidian-style gopuram.
• Temple du Colosse — Saint-André, in the east of the island. One of Réunion's most striking Tamil temples, inaugurated in 1995.

Réunion's Tamil temples observe the Goddess's festivals with their own island traditions, and Navaratri is typically marked with daily pujas to Durga, Lakshmi and Saraswati, ending on Vijayadashami.

Guadeloupe: Pointe-à-Pitre

Pointe-à-Pitre's Vijay Muhurat is 1:47 PM – 2:34 PM (Guadeloupe time, UTC-0400), within an Aparahna of 1:01 PM – 3:21 PM; sunset is at 5:42 PM. Here the Dashami tithi begins at 3:20 AM on 20 October and ends at 4:41 AM on 21 October. Guadeloupe's Indian-descended community has hundreds of small temples, many devoted to Maliemin (Mariamman).

• Temple Hindou de Changy — Capesterre-Belle-Eau, Basse-Terre. The largest and most frequented Hindu temple in Guadeloupe, dedicated to the Goddess.
• Temple Saraswati — Bois David, Le Moule, Grande-Terre. A complex of shrines including Ganesh, Saraswati, Lakshmi, Durga, Kali and Hanuman.

How France celebrates Navratri and Dussehra

Because 11–20 October are ordinary working days, much of the community celebration in mainland France moves to the weekends around Navratri. Tamil families, the backbone of French Hinduism, keep Navaratri as a festival of the Goddess: temples hold nightly pujas, and many homes set up a Golu (Bommai Kolu) display of dolls on steps, with neighbours and friends invited to visit. Saraswati Puja and Ayudha Puja come at the end of the nine nights, when books, musical instruments, tools and vehicles are blessed, and Vidyarambham on Vijayadashami marks a young child's first letters.

Gujarati and wider Indian groups host garba and dandiya nights, with chaniya choli and kediyu, a central Mataji image and aarti at the start. Bengali families gather for Durga Puja with pushpanjali, bhog, dhak and cultural evenings, ending with Bijoya greetings, and Telugu families may celebrate Bathukamma with flower stacks and circle songs.

Large open-air Ravan Dahan as seen in India is rare in France. Open fires and fireworks are regulated by the préfecture and the local mairie, so where groups mark Ravan Dahan it is usually with a small, permitted effigy, a symbolic burning or a dramatic performance indoors.

Dussehra puja at home

If you cannot reach a temple on a Tuesday, a short puja at home in the afternoon is entirely traditional. Ideally do it during your city's Vijay Muhurat, or at least within the Aparahna:

• Aparajita puja: draw an eight-petalled lotus with kumkum or rice flour, place a lamp, and worship Devi Aparajita, the goddess of victory, with flowers, akshat and a simple prayer for success over obstacles.
• Shami puja: if you have Shami leaves (or a substitute such as apta leaves from an Indian grocer), offer them to the Devi and exchange them with family as "gold", a Maharashtrian and Karnataka custom.
• Ayudha Puja / Shastra puja: clean and decorate tools, books, laptops, bikes and the car, apply kumkum and offer flowers, thanking them for their service.
• Vidyarambham: Vijayadashami is the traditional day for small children to begin learning, writing "Om" or the first letters of the alphabet in a plate of rice.
• Seemollanghan and new beginnings: a short walk beyond your street, starting a course or beginning a new venture are traditional symbols of victory on this day.

A simple order: bathe, light a lamp, pray to Ganesha, do the Aparajita and Shami puja, then Ayudha puja, offer naivedya (sweets, fruit), do aarti and share prasad. For full step-by-step vidhi and the stories behind the festival, see our Dussehra / Vijayadashami 2026 pillar guide.

Practical tips for Dussehra in France

• Working day: Tuesday 20 October is a normal working and school day. The Vijay Muhurat falls in mid-afternoon in the mainland, so consider a short break, working from home, or doing the puja later within the Aparahna if you can.
• Fire and fireworks: rules on open fires, effigy burning and fireworks are set by the préfecture and your mairie and differ by city. Do not burn effigies in parks, courtyards or gardens without permission.
• Getting to temples: parking around La Chapelle and other temple areas is very limited on festival days. The Métro, RER and local trams or buses are usually easier; check your transport operator's app for evening services.
• Weather: mainland evenings in late October are cool and often damp, with sunset between 6:46 PM and 7:03 PM depending on the city, so bring warm layers for any outdoor events. In Réunion and Guadeloupe, expect warm, humid weather and possible showers.
• Puja items: Indian and Tamil grocers in Paris and larger cities stock flowers, kumkum and sweets, but buy a few days early as stock runs short before Navratri weekends.
• Muhurat: use your own city's times from the table above; never convert India's times into French time.

Frequently asked questions

When is Dussehra 2026 in France?

Tuesday 20 October 2026 in every city covered here, including Réunion and Guadeloupe. In mainland France the Dashami tithi begins at 9:20 AM (CEST) on 20 October and ends at 10:41 AM on Wednesday 21 October, so it covers the whole afternoon of the 20th.

What is the Vijay Muhurat in Paris on Dussehra 2026?

3:20 PM – 4:03 PM in Paris on Tuesday 20 October 2026, calculated by the Drik Panchang method. Lyon's window is 3:12 PM – 3:55 PM, Toulouse's 3:26 PM – 4:10 PM and Marseille's 3:11 PM – 3:54 PM, all in French summer time.

Can I convert India's Dussehra muhurat into French time?

No. The Vijay Muhurat depends on local sunrise and sunset, so it has to be calculated for your own city. Use the French times on this page or your temple's calendar, not India's times shifted by the time difference.

When is Bijoya Dashami and Sindoor Khela for Bengali families in France?

In India, Bengal-tradition Bijoya Dashami and Sindoor Khela fall on Wednesday 21 October 2026 (Drik Panchang, Kolkata). Durga Pujas in France, such as the one organised by the Bengali association Sammilani in Paris, follow their own committee's schedule, so check their announcements.

Where will Ravan Dahan and garba take place in France?

Temples and community groups usually announce Navratri garba, Durga Puja, Ramlila and Ravan Dahan programmes a few weeks ahead, so check their websites and social pages. Open fires and fireworks need permission from the local authorities, so many groups mark Ravan Dahan symbolically or on a weekend.

Is Dussehra a holiday in France?

No. Tuesday 20 and Wednesday 21 October 2026 are normal working days in France and its overseas departments, so many families do the afternoon puja at home and join temple or community celebrations in the evening or on the following weekend.

Related guides

• Dussehra / Vijayadashami 2026: complete guide
• Dussehra 2026 in Europe, country by country
• Navratri 2026: complete guide for NRI families
• Dussehra 2026 in Belgium, city by city
• Dussehra 2026 in Switzerland, city by city
• Dussehra 2026 in Germany, city by city
• Dussehra 2026 in Mauritius
• Dussehra 2026 UK, region by region
• October 2026 Hindu festival calendar