Chitragupta Puja 2026

Puja Vidhi

Who Should Perform This Puja?

• Kayastha Families: Kayastha families keep this puja at home, worshipping the pen and inkpot that are their livelihood and presenting the year's income and expenses before Chitragupta.
• Writers, Students and Professionals: Those who live by the pen also worship it on this day, seeking the gift of speech and learning (Vani aur Vidya).
• Bihar Families: The Chitransh Kayastha families of Bihar keep the same home rite, with the same paper and mantra.

When Should This Be Performed?

• Resting the Pen: From the night of the Diwali puja, the pen and inkpot are left at the place of worship and are not used. The reason told is that at Shri Ram's coronation (rajtilak) Chitragupta, who had been forgotten in the invitations, laid his pen aside, and he took it up again only after Shri Ram came to his temple in Ayodhya and asked his pardon.
• Puja Muhurat: The Chitragupta Puja is done during Aparahna (the afternoon). Check the puja muhurat for your city on this page.
• After the Puja: The pen is taken up again and writing resumes once the puja is complete.

About the Festival

Chitragupta Puja, also called Kalam Dawat Puja (the worship of the pen and inkpot), is a much-loved North Indian observance in which Kayastha families worship Chitragupta, the keeper of the record of every being's good and bad deeds. It takes place on the Dwitiya (second day) of the Shukla Paksha in the month of Kartik, the same day as Bhai Dooj.

The Katha (Story of King Saudas)

Once upon a time, in the land of Saurashtra, there lived a king named Saudas. He was a great sinner who took the wealth of others, and in his whole life he had done not a single act of dharma. One day, while hunting in a forest, he saw a Brahmin keeping a vrat and worshipping Chitragupta and Yamraj. It was the day of Yama Dwitiya.

The king asked the Brahmin what he was doing, and the Brahmin told him about the Yama Dwitiya vrat. Right there, the king worshipped Dharmaraj together with Chitragupta with incense and lamps. For a while he forgot the vrat, but when he remembered it, he kept it again.

When the king died, the messengers of Yama bound him and dragged him before Yamraj, who asked Chitragupta what this king had done in his life. Chitragupta replied: "He has done many evil deeds, but once he kept the vrat of Yama Dwitiya. He worshipped us with sandal paste and flowers, ate only once that day, and kept awake through the night. Because of this, he cannot be sent to Naraka."

Hearing this, Dharmaraj set the king free, and by the power of that vrat he reached the highest state. Since that day, it is believed that worship of Chitragupta on this day frees a person from Naraka and from untimely death.

Samagri List (Items Needed)

Gather these items before starting the afternoon puja:

• Picture & Seat: Picture or idol of Chitragupta (together with Yamraj), a Chowki with a red cloth, and a Kalash
• Pen, Inkpot & Papers: Kalam (pen), Dawat (inkpot), plain paper, Bahi-khata (account books), a sword, and Mauli (red sacred thread, also called Kalava)
• Tilak & Offerings: Chandan (sandalwood paste), Haldi, Roli, Akshat (unbroken rice grains), red flowers, and Doob grass
• Lamps & Fragrance: A Diya with Ghee, Dhoop, Kapur (camphor), and Gangajal
• Food Offerings (Naivedya): Dahi (curd), Gur (jaggery), five fruits, five sweets, five Meva (dry fruits), Lai, Chura, Dhan ka Lava (puffed paddy), Panchamrit, Paan and Supari
• Havan Items: Havan samagri and havan wood

Puja Vidhi (Step-by-Step Guide)

Follow these step-by-step instructions carefully to perform the ritual correctly:

Step 1: Preparing the Altar (Morning)

1. Bathe in the morning and spread a red cloth on a Chowki.
2. Place the picture of Chitragupta on the Chowki and set up the Kalash (Kalash Sthapana).
3. Set out the Dawat, Kalam, papers, Bahi-khata and the sword before the picture.

Step 2: Invoking and Worshipping Chitragupta (Aparahna)

1. Invocation: Sprinkle water and invoke Chitragupta with the Dhyana and Avahana mantras, saying "Om Bhagvantam Shri Chitragupta Avahayami Sthapayami."
2. Bathing the Image: Bathe the image first with water and Panchamrit.
3. Offering Tilak & Flowers: Offer Chandan, Haldi, Roli, Akshat, flowers and Dhoop to the deity.
4. Offering Bhog: Offer fruit, Panchamrit, Paan-supari, Khir and sweets.

Step 3: Worshipping the Pen and Inkpot

1. Tie Mauli around the Kalam and the Dawat.
2. Offer Roli and Akshat to the Kalam and the Dawat.
3. Take a sheet of paper. Each member of the family draws a Swastik on it with Dahi and Roli.
4. Below the Swastik, write the five names: "Shri Ganeshaya Namah, Shri Chitraguptaya Namah, Shri Shivaya Namah, Shri Saraswatyai Namah, Shreem Mahalakshmyai Namah" (some families instead write "Shri Ganeshaya Namah" and "Om Chitraguptaya Namah" eleven times).

Step 4: The Year's Account and the Mantra

1. On one side of the paper, write your name, address and the date.
2. On the other side, write the year's income and expenses, a request for wealth in the coming year, and sign it.
3. Offer Dahi, Haldi, Roli, Akshat and sweets to the paper and the Kalam, and recite at least eleven times: "मसीभाजनसंयुक्तश्चरसि त्वं महीतले। लेखनीकटिनीहस्त चित्रगुप्त नमोऽस्तु ते॥"
4. Fold the paper and place it before Chitragupta.

Step 5: Reciting the Katha and Havan

1. Hold a flower in your hand and sit respectfully before the altar.
2. Recite or listen to the Chitragupta Vrat Katha with deep focus and devotion, and offer the flower at the end.
3. Perform the Havan, offering the oblations with "Om Shri Chitraguptaya Namah Svaha."

Step 6: Aarti, Prasad and Resuming Work

1. Perform the Chitragupta Aarti with the lit Ghee lamp, singing "Om Jai Chitragupta Hare, Swami Jai Chitragupta Hare" (the aarti "Shri Viranchi Kulbhushan" and the stuti "Jai Chitragupta Yamesh Tav" are also sung).
2. Share the prasad among your family members.
3. Take up the pen again and resume your writing. Traders open the new Bahi-khata by writing a Swastik or "Shri" and "Shri Ganeshaya Namah" on its first page.
4. After the puja, many families in Bihar give daan (charity).