Dussehra / Vijayadashami in Agra

Dussehra / Vijayadashami in Agra

Dussehra, also called Vijayadashami, falls on Ashwin Shukla Dashami. It is observed in honour of Rama and Durga, and marks the victory of good. The observance is pan-India, and Agra (आगरा) keeps it on the same tithi, read against the city's own sunrise and the Asia/Kolkata time zone.

Date and timing in this city

For Agra, the date of Vijayadashami is:

• 2026: Tuesday 20 October 2026
• 2027: Saturday 9 October 2027

The tithi is Ashwin Shukla Dashami. Because the tithi is reckoned from the local sunrise, the day on which Dashami is running at sunrise in Agra is the day observed there. Readers who follow a panchang for another city may see the same tithi listed against a neighbouring date; that is a matter of location, not of disagreement about the tithi itself.

Why the date can differ from India

India spans more than one longitude while keeping a single time zone, and tithis are not uniform in length. A tithi can begin and end at different clock times in different places, and in some years it may not touch sunrise at all in a given city. When the tithi's position at sunrise shifts, the observance date shifts with it. This is why a national calendar listing and a city-specific calculation can differ by a day. Where traditions differ — North and South, Smarta and Vaishnava, amanta and purnimanta reckonings — the same festival may be counted from a different lunar month, so it is best to follow the panchang used in your own household or lineage rather than assume one reading applies everywhere.

Where and how the community celebrates

In Agra, as across India, Vijayadashami is kept as a day of the victory of good. Households and neighbourhoods observe it in the ways familiar to their region and family: recitation and listening to the story of Rama, worship of Durga, and the closing of the nine nights of Navaratri that precede it. Some mark the day with quiet prayer and fasting, others with community readings and gatherings. Customs vary by community, and no single form of observance is required.

Practical tips

• Confirm the tithi against a panchang computed for Agra's sunrise, not a general national listing.
• Note that the date differs in 2026 and 2027, so check the year you are observing.
• Follow the amanta or purnimanta reckoning used in your own tradition.
• For personal charts and muhurta, consult a qualified jyotishi.

This page states the tithi and the Agra dates only; it makes no claim about individual outcomes.