- Reference city
- Delhi (other cities in the table)
- Moon's nakshatra then
- Jyeshtha (at about 1:10 pm on 11 November)
What Bhai Dooj is
Bhai Dooj is kept on Dwitiya, the second tithi, of the bright fortnight of Kartika, two tithis after the Diwali new moon. Sisters apply a tilak to their brothers' foreheads and pray for them, and brothers give gifts.
It is also called Bhau Beej in Maharashtra, Bhai Phota in Bengal and Yama Dwitiya in the tradition that links it to Yama and his sister Yamuna.
The tilak is applied in the afternoon (aparahna), so the date follows the afternoon. When Dwitiya begins in the middle of one day and runs into the next, the afternoon rule decides which day gets the observance.
How Bhai Dooj is commonly observed
- The sister prepares a plate with a lamp, roli, rice and sweets.
- She applies a tilak to her brother and offers him sweets.
- In some families an aarti is performed.
- The brother gives a gift, and a meal is eaten together.
- In Bengal the Bhai Phota tilak is applied with sandal paste and a chant.
These are common practices. Families and regions differ, and none of them is needed to read the date on this page.
The date for 2026, worked out
A tithi is the time in which the Moon gains 12 degrees on the Sun. Dwitiya is tithi number 2 of the bright fortnight, when the Moon is 12 to 24 degrees ahead of the Sun. By the chart engine it begins 10 November at about 2:00 pm and ends 11 November at about 3:55 pm, Indian time.
The rite belongs to the afternoon (aparahna, the fourth fifth of the daylight, roughly 1 pm to 3:30 pm), so the day is the one on which the tithi covers more of it. Delhi's sunrise, sunset and the rule's moment are below.
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Afternoon window, Delhi | Dwitiya covers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tuesday, 10 November 2026 | 6:39 am | 5:30 pm | 1:10 pm to 3:20 pm | 61 percent of it |
| Wednesday, 11 November 2026 | 6:40 am | 5:29 pm | 1:09 pm to 3:19 pm | all of it |
Dwitiya reaches the afternoon (aparahna) in Delhi on both 10 November and 11 November. It covers more of it on 11 November (the whole window against 61 percent), so by this rule the day is Wednesday, 11 November 2026.
Calendars that weigh the two days differently can show the other date. Mumbai gives the same day.
Why calendars can differ on Bhai Dooj
This tithi is in the bright fortnight after the new moon that closes Ashwin, so it belongs to Kartika in both the purnimanta and the amanta calendars.
The same rule at other cities, for the day or days the tithi touches:
| City | Date | Window begins | Dwitiya covers |
|---|---|---|---|
| Delhi | 10 November | 1:09 pm | 61 percent of it |
| Delhi | 11 November | 1:09 pm | all of it |
| Mumbai | 10 November | 1:30 pm | 78 percent of it |
| Mumbai | 11 November | 1:30 pm | all of it |
Some panchangs keep the observance on the first day when Dwitiya touches the afternoon on both days, and Bengal's Bhai Phota follows its own local panchang. Check with your family's calendar if brother and sister live in different cities.
Method and limits
Positions come from the same engine that draws the free kundli, with the Lahiri ayanamsa. The tithi comes from the angle between the Sun and the Moon, so it does not depend on the ayanamsa.
Sunrise, sunset and moonrise are for the upper edge of the body with standard refraction, in Indian Standard Time. Tithi times are shown to the nearest five minutes because other panchangs can differ by a minute or so, and a different city moves sunrise and moonrise by minutes to an hour or more.
Regional traditions differ, and for the day and hour you keep the observance, follow your local panchang or temple. The full list of settings is on the method page.
Your own chart on this day
Dates on this page describe the sky only. The nakshatra finder and the current dasha tool show the facts of your own chart for any birth, and the festival calendar for 2026 lists the other festivals of the season with their dates.
Calculated with the Lahiri ayanamsa and whole sign houses; every setting is on the method page. Last checked 15 October 2026.