Festival · A full moon for teachers
Guru Purnima 2027: date, tithi and muhurat
Guru Purnima 2027 falls on Sunday, 18 July, on Purnima of Ashadha. The times here are for Chandigarh; choose your city to see yours.
What Guru Purnima is
Guru Purnima is the full moon of Ashadha, the day set aside to honour teachers: the spiritual guide, the school teacher, the parent who taught you to read. It is also called Vyasa Purnima, after Vyasa, the sage who is said to have arranged the Vedas and composed the Mahabharata. The day opens Chaturmasya, the four-month period of study and retreat that the monastic traditions keep through the rains.
How the date is fixed
The festival is on Ashadha Purnima. The day is the one whose sunrise falls in the Purnima tithi, so the full moon only needs to be present at dawn.
Dates for 2026 to 2028
Guru Purnima is on Wednesday, 29 July in 2026, Sunday, 18 July in 2027 and Thursday, 6 July in 2028. These dates are calculated from the sky for Chandigarh, not copied from a printed calendar. It falls on Purnima of Ashadha.
| Year | Date | Tithi and month |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Wednesday, 29 July | Purnima · Ashadha |
| 2027 | Sunday, 18 July | Purnima · Ashadha |
| 2028 | Thursday, 6 July | Purnima · Ashadha |
Timing
Guru Purnima is counted from sunrise, so it has no timed window: the day itself, from sunrise, is the occasion. In Chandigarh the Sun rises at 5:31 am on Sunday, 18 July. Choose your city below and the tables follow.
Students offer flowers, fruit and a word of thanks to their teachers, and many sit in silence or study. Temples hold special puja for Vyasa, and some households pay respect to elders and to the teachers of their ancestors as well.
Buddhist communities observe the same full moon as Asalha Puja, the day of the first sermon, and Jain communities as the start of their own rainy-season retreat.
A share card for the Guru Purnima muhurat is coming. Today the app has one for Diwali only.
Questions people ask
Why is it called Vyasa Purnima?
Tradition credits Vyasa with arranging the Vedas and composing the Mahabharata, and holds that he was born on this full moon. Honouring the teacher begins with honouring him.
Do I need a guru to observe it?
No. The day is for anyone who has learned from someone, a teacher, a mentor or a parent. A simple thank-you, in person or in writing, is a fully good observance.
How is the day decided?
It is the day on which the Ashadha Purnima is present at sunrise. If the tithi spans two sunrises the first is taken, following the same rule as most calendars.
When is Guru Purnima in 2026, 2027 and 2028?
Guru Purnima is on Wednesday, 29 July 2026; Sunday, 18 July 2027; Thursday, 6 July 2028, calculated for Chandigarh. In another city the day can differ by one when the tithi starts or ends close to the time of day the rule uses.
How does JYOTISH.info calculate Guru Purnima?
From the sky, with the astronomy-engine library on the Lahiri sidereal zodiac: the lunar month from the Sun’s sign at the new moon, the tithi from the Moon–Sun angle, and the day part that the festival’s own rule asks for, at the city’s sunrise and sunset. Nothing is copied from a table. The rule is stated above and the full method is on the method page.
Every position on this page is calculated sidereal with the Lahiri ayanamsa from the astronomy-engine library (MIT licence). The classical texts describe tendencies; this page is for guidance and reflection, not a verdict, and no outcome is promised. How we calculate. This is the English page and the legal reference. The same page is available in Hindi. Checked October 2026.