Jagaddhatri Puja 2026

Puja Vidhi: Bengal (One Day Puja)

Who Should Perform This Puja?

• Bengali Families: Families who keep the one-day form of the puja, as in Krishnanagar and in the family pujas of Chandannagar, worship Goddess Jagaddhatri and pray to be freed from ego.
• Devotees at the Rajbari and Belur Math: Devotees join the puja at the Krishnanagar Rajbari and at the Saradapitha of Belur Math, where the pujas of Saptami, Ashtami and Navami are all done on Navami.

When Should This Be Performed?

• The Three Pujas: The Saptami, Ashtami and Navami pujas are all done on Navami, one after another, from before dawn into the afternoon. Check the puja muhurat for your city on this page.
• Evening Aarti (Sandhya Aarti): The closing aarti of the day is done in the evening, in Pradosh Kaal (the period after sunset). Check the sunset time for your city on this page.
• Dashami: The Dashami puja and the immersion are done in the morning of the next day, Dashami. Check the morning muhurat for your city on this page.

About the Festival

Jagaddhatri Puja is a much-loved Bengali festival in which Goddess Jagaddhatri, the bearer of the world, is worshipped. In Krishnanagar, in the family pujas of Chandannagar and at Belur Math, the pujas of Saptami, Ashtami and Navami are all done on a single day. It takes place on the Navami (ninth day) of the Shukla Paksha in the month of Kartik.

The Katha (Story of Jagaddhatri and the Pride of the Gods)

Once upon a time the gods won a war against the asuras, but the victory was won by the power of Brahman. The gods forgot this and boasted, "This victory is ours." Brahman appeared before them as a wondrous being (Yaksha). Agni went to it and said that he could burn anything on earth. The being set a blade of grass before him, and Agni could not burn it. Vayu said that he could carry off anything, and he could not move the blade of grass.

Then Indra went. In that very place in the sky he found a radiant woman, Uma Haimavati, the daughter of Himavat. She told him: "That is Brahman, the one who won the victory you praise yourselves for." The gods understood that their strength was not their own.

The Katyayani Tantra tells how she appeared to them. She stood before the proud gods with the light of a crore suns and a crore moons, and none of them could burn or move the blade of grass she set before them. Then she dimmed her light and took the form worshipped as Jagaddhatri: three-eyed, four-armed, dressed in red, with a serpent as her sacred thread, seated on a lion. The gods sang her praise. The elephant beneath the lion is the pride of the gods, which she overcame.

In Bengal it is told that Raja Krishnachandra of Nadia, held by the Nawab and freed only after Vijaya Dashami, could not keep Durga Puja that year. That night the Devi came to him in a dream and told him to worship her on the coming Shukla Navami. Since that day, Jagaddhatri Puja has been celebrated in Krishnanagar, and from there in many other places.

Samagri List (Items Needed)

Gather these items before starting the puja, which begins before dawn:

• Image of the Goddess: An image of Goddess Jagaddhatri
• Mangal Ghat: A ghat (pot) to be filled with water, and at the Krishnanagar Rajbari water from the Jalangi river
• Flowers: Flowers for the three Pushpanjalis
• Homa Materials: The materials for the homa, as your family priest arranges
• Bhog: Annabhog (the cooked rice offering), Luchi (fried flatbread), Malpoa (sweet fritters) and sweets, as each house prepares them

Puja Vidhi (Step-by-Step Guide)

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

Step 1: The Mangal Ghat (Before Dawn)

1. Before dawn, fill the Mangal Ghat with water.
2. At the Krishnanagar Rajbari the ghat is filled with water of the Jalangi and brought in a palanquin.
3. Once the ghat is filled, the puja begins.

Step 2: The Saptami and Ashtami Pujas

1. Begin with the Saptami Puja, the first of the three pujas of the day, and offer Pushpanjali (flowers offered with folded hands) when it ends.
2. Perform the Ashtami Puja and offer Pushpanjali again.
3. Where Kumari Puja is kept (the worship of a young girl as the Goddess), it is held after the first or second puja.

Step 3: The Navami Puja and Bali

1. Perform the Navami Puja, the third of the day, and offer Pushpanjali at its end.
2. Bali (an animal offering) is made in Shakta families and is not made in Vaishnava families.

Step 4: Homa, Aarti and Bhog

1. Perform the Homa.
2. Offer the Bhog to the Goddess.
3. Perform the Aarti. The closing Sandhya Aarti is done in the evening.
4. Share the prasad with the devotees gathered for the puja.

Step 5: Dashami Puja and Immersion

1. On the morning of Dashami, perform the Dashami puja and then the immersion of the ghat (Ghat Visarjan), known as Bijaya Kritya as in Durga Puja.
2. At Krishnanagar the images are carried on the shoulders past the Rajbari to the Jalangi and immersed there, the image of the Rajbari going first.

Puja Vidhi: Chandannagar (Four Day Puja)

Who Should Perform This Puja?

• Neighbourhood Committees: In Chandannagar and Bhadreswar (Hooghly), neighbourhood committees set up pandals and hold the puja over four days, as in Durga Puja, and devotees come to worship Goddess Jagaddhatri and seek freedom from ego.
• The Chaudhuri Family: The first (Adi) puja at Lakshmiganj Chaulpatti, begun by Indranarayan Chaudhuri, is still kept, and its Sankalp (solemn vow) is made in the names of his descendants.
• Old Family Pujas: The family pujas of Chandannagar keep the one-day form, with the Saptami, Ashtami and Navami pujas all done on Navami (see the one-day Bengal page).

When Should This Be Performed?

• Shashthi (Pandals Open): The pandals open on Shashthi, the day before the puja begins.
• Saptami and Ashtami: The Saptami puja is done on Saptami and the Ashtami puja on Ashtami, each with its Pushpanjali. Check the puja muhurat for your city on this page.
• Navami (Chief Day): The Navami puja is the main puja of the festival, and the day of the greatest splendour. Check the puja muhurat for your city on this page.
• Dashami and Ekadashi: The Boron (farewell rite) is done on Dashami. The light procession runs from Dashami night to the next dawn, and the immersion at the Ganga ghats goes on over Dashami and Ekadashi. Check the timings for your city on this page.

About the Festival

The four-day Jagaddhatri Puja is a much-loved Bengali festival of Chandannagar and Bhadreswar, in which neighbourhood committees worship Goddess Jagaddhatri, the Mother who sustains the world, in pandals, and end with a procession of lights and immersion in the Ganga. It takes place from the Saptami (seventh day) to the Dashami (tenth day) of the Shukla Paksha in the month of Kartik, with Navami the chief day. The Chandannagar puja was begun by Indranarayan Chaudhuri, the Dewan of the French at Chandannagar, who had seen the puja at the Krishnanagar Rajbari.

The Katha (Story of the Gods' Pride)

Once upon a time the gods won a war against the asuras. But the victory had been won by the power of Brahman, and the gods forgot this and boasted that the victory was their own. Brahman appeared before them as a wondrous being (Yaksha), and the gods did not know who it was.

Agni went to it first and said that he could burn anything on earth. The being set a blade of grass before him, and he could not burn it. Vayu said that he could carry off anything, but he could not move the grass. Then Indra went himself.

In that very place in the sky Indra found a radiant woman, Uma Haimavati, the daughter of Himavat. She told him: "That is Brahman; that is the one who won the victory you praise yourselves for." Then the Devi dimmed her blazing light and appeared in the form in which she is worshipped as Jagaddhatri, three-eyed and four-armed, dressed in red, with a serpent as her sacred thread, seated on a lion, and the gods sang her praise.

The gods remembered that their power was never their own. Under the lion she shows an elephant, which stands for the pride of the gods that she overcame. Since that day, the Mother has been worshipped as Jagaddhatri, the bearer of the world, and her worship is held to free the devotee from ego.

Samagri List (Items Needed)

Gather these items before the puja begins:

• The Image: An image of Jagaddhatri, four-armed on a lion that stands over an elephant, in red garments
• Flowers: Flowers for the Pushpanjali
• Bhog: Annabhog (cooked rice), Luchi bhog (puris) and Malpoa (sweet fritters), which vary from house to house
• For the Dhuno Porano: Dhuno (burning resin) and clay bowls
• For the Boron: Boron Dala (the Boron tray), Sindoor and Kanakanjali

Puja Vidhi (Step-by-Step Guide)

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

Step 1: Pandals Open on Shashthi

1. The pandals open on Shashthi, as in Durga Puja, and in places they are inaugurated that evening.
2. The puja itself begins the next day, on Saptami.

Step 2: Saptami and Ashtami Pujas

1. On Saptami the Saptami puja is done, and on Ashtami the Ashtami puja.
2. Each day's puja is followed by the Pushpanjali (the offering of flowers to the Devi), as it is offered in the neighbourhood pandals.

Step 3: Navami, the Chief Day

1. The Navami puja is done on its own day, and this is the day of the greatest splendour.
2. In some pujas a Kumari puja (worship of a young girl as the Devi) is also done.
3. In some pujas a vowed woman performs the Dhuno Porano: she sits before the image with burning dhuno in clay bowls on her head and in her hands.
4. In the Chandannagar pujas the bhog includes Annabhog, Luchi bhog and Malpoa, which vary from house to house.

Step 4: The Boron on Dashami

1. On Dashami the Devi is given the Boron (the farewell rite) with the Boron Dala, Sindoor and Kanakanjali.
2. At Tentultala in Bhadreswar, the Boron is done by men dressed as married women, with their heads covered by a veil.

Step 5: Light Procession and Immersion (Dashami Night)

1. From Dashami night to the next dawn, selected committees take their images in the light procession (Shobhajatra) on lorries.
2. The images are immersed at the Ganga ghats of Chandannagar and Bhadreswar, with Rani Ghat the chief ghat.
3. The immersion goes on for two days, over Dashami and Ekadashi, so the festival does not end within a single day.

Puja Vidhi: Jayrambati (Sarada Devi)

Who Should Perform This Puja?

• Devotees of Sarada Devi: Devotees hold that Sarada Devi (the Holy Mother) was Jagaddhatri herself, and so they worship her together with the Devi, seeking freedom from ego.
• Devotees at Jayrambati: Devotees keep the puja at Jayrambati, the birthplace of Sarada Devi, where her mother Shyamasundari Devi first worshipped the Devi as Jagaddhatri.
• Monks, Students and Devotees: They gather for the puja at the Ramakrishna centres of Belur, Agartala and Ranchi, and at Agartala the crowds come from Saptami onwards and are largest on Navami.

When Should This Be Performed?

• The Evening Before: The Amantran (invitation) and the Adhivas of the Devi are done in the evening before Navami.
• Navami, the Three Pujas: The Saptami, Ashtami and Navami pujas are done one after another on Navami, in the forenoon, at Madhyahna (midday) and at Aparahna (afternoon). Check the puja muhurat for your city on this page.
• At Jayrambati: The worship goes on for three days, the first with all the ceremonies.
• The Next Day: The Darpan Visarjan is done on the day after Navami.

About the Festival

Jagaddhatri Puja in the Ramakrishna tradition is a much-loved Bengali observance in which devotees worship Goddess Jagaddhatri, the Mother who sustains the world. It began at Jayrambati, the birthplace of Sarada Devi, and is kept today at the Ramakrishna centres of Belur, Agartala and Ranchi. It takes place on the Navami (ninth day) of the Shukla Paksha in the month of Kartik.

The Katha (Story of Shyamasundari Devi and Jagaddhatri)

Once upon a time in the village of Jayrambati, every household gave rice for the village Kali Puja. Shyamasundari Devi, the widowed mother of Sarada Devi, had gathered her rice with great effort. But Nava Mukherji, over a feud in the village, would not accept it.

She could not sleep that night, and kept saying that the rice was Kali's and that no one else could eat it. Then a Devi of a red hue, seated by the door with one leg over the other, woke her and said: "Why do you weep? I shall eat Kali's rice. I shall accept your worship as Jagaddhatri." In the morning Shyamasundari Devi asked her daughter Sarada who that Devi was, and Sarada said: "She is Jagaddhatri, to be sure."

Paddy was got from the Vishwas family. Though the rain fell without a break, the sun shone on her mat so that she could dry and husk it. Sri Ramakrishna, when invited, said that he was as good as already there, and the rice fed everyone who came. Later, when Sarada Devi thought of stopping the worship, Jagaddhatri appeared in her dream with her two attendants, Jaya and Vijaya, and asked: "Shall we go then?" Sarada Devi held the Devi's feet and promised to worship her every year, and she gave land to keep the puja going.

Since that day, Jagaddhatri Puja has been kept at Jayrambati every year, with the images of Jaya and Vijaya beside the Devi, and the puja is made in the name of Sarada Devi.

Samagri List (Items Needed)

Gather these items before starting the puja:

• Images: An image of Jagaddhatri, with images of Jaya and Vijaya, one on each side of her
• Flowers: Flowers for the Pushpanjali
• Bhog: Rice, the offering of the katha, and the bhog that is shared as prasad

Puja Vidhi (Step-by-Step Guide)

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

Step 1: Amantran, Adhivas and the Images (The Evening Before)

1. In the evening before Navami, perform the Amantran (invitation) of the Devi.
2. Then perform the Adhivas of the Devi.
3. Keep the images of Jaya and Vijaya, one on each side of Jagaddhatri.

Step 2: Sankalpa in the Name of Sarada Devi

1. Make the Sankalpa (solemn vow) of the puja in the name of Sarada Devi, as is the custom of this tradition.

Step 3: The Three Pujas of Navami

1. On Navami, perform the Saptami, Ashtami and Navami pujas one after another, in the forenoon, at Madhyahna and at Aparahna.
2. After each puja, offer the Pushpanjali (an offering of flowers).

Step 4: Homa, Aarti, Bhog and Prasad

1. Perform the Homa.
2. Perform the Aarti of the Devi.
3. Offer the bhog, and share it as prasad with all who come.

Step 5: Three Days of Worship at Jayrambati

1. If you are at Jayrambati, keep the worship for three successive days, the first with all the ceremonies.
2. After the main puja on Navami, the image is kept for two more days, with a special puja.

Step 6: Darpan Visarjan (The Next Day)

1. At Belur, perform the Darpan Visarjan on the day after Navami.