Vasant Panchami
| Vasant Panchami/Saraswati Puja | |
|---|---|
Saraswati by Raja Ravi Varma (print) | |
| Observed by | Hindus in India, Nepal, Bangladesh, Java and Bali (Indonesia and many other countries) |
| Type | Cultural, religious |
| Significance | Spring, harvest, Goddess Saraswati |
| Celebrations | Worship of Goddess Saraswati |
| Date | Magha Shukla Panchami |
| 2025 date | 2 February (Sunday) |
| 2026 date | 23 January (Friday) |
| 2027 date | 11 February (Thursday) |
| Explanatory note on Hindu festival dates | |
|---|---|
The Hindu calendar is lunisolar but most festival dates are specified using the lunar portion of the calendar. A lunar day is uniquely identified by three calendar elements: māsa (lunar month), pakṣa (lunar fortnight) and tithi (lunar day).
Furthermore, when specifying the masa, one of two traditions are applicable, viz. amānta / pūrṇimānta. If a festival falls in the waning phase of the moon, these two traditions identify the same lunar day as falling in two different (but successive) masa. A lunar year is shorter than a solar year by about eleven days. As a result, most Hindu festivals occur on different days in successive years on the Gregorian calendar. | |
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Vasant Panchami, also rendered Basant Panchami and Saraswati Puja in honour of the Hindu goddess Saraswati, is a Hindu festival that marks the preparation for the arrival of spring. It is celebrated during the fifth day (Panchami) in the bright fortnight (Shukla Paksha) of the month of Magha between January and February every year of the Hindu lunar year.
Vasant Panchami also marks the start of preparation for Holika and Holi, which take place forty days later. The Vasant Utsava (festival) on Panchami is celebrated forty days before spring, because any season's transition period is 40 days, and after that, the season comes into full bloom.