Festival · The great night of Shiva
Maha Shivratri 2027: date, tithi and muhurat
Maha Shivratri 2027 falls on Saturday, 6 March, on Krishna Chaturdashi of Magha. The times here are for Chandigarh; choose your city to see yours.
What Maha Shivratri is
Maha Shivratri, the ‘great night of Shiva’, is kept on the fourteenth tithi of the dark fortnight in the month of Magha, which North Indian calendars call Phalguna. Devotees stay awake through the night in prayer, fast through the day and offer water, milk and bel leaves to the Shivalinga. In the Shaiva tradition it is the night of Shiva’s marriage to Parvati and of the cosmic dance; in Kashmir it is Herath.
How the date is fixed
The tithi is Krishna Chaturdashi of Magha (amanta), which is Phalguna Krishna 14 in the purnimanta naming; the sky is the same. The night that counts is the one on which Chaturdashi holds the middle of the night, the Nishita Kaal, taken here as 48 minutes around local midnight.
Dates for 2026 to 2028
Maha Shivratri is on Sunday, 15 February in 2026, Saturday, 6 March in 2027 and Wednesday, 23 February in 2028. These dates are calculated from the sky for Chandigarh, not copied from a printed calendar. It falls on Krishna Chaturdashi of Magha by the amanta count, which the purnimanta calendars of the north name Phalguna; the sky is the same.
| Year | Date | Tithi and month |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Sunday, 15 February | Krishna Chaturdashi · Magha (amanta) / Phalguna (purnimanta) |
| 2027 | Saturday, 6 March | Krishna Chaturdashi · Magha (amanta) / Phalguna (purnimanta) |
| 2028 | Wednesday, 23 February | Krishna Chaturdashi · Magha (amanta) / Phalguna (purnimanta) |
Muhurat for Maha Shivratri
For Chandigarh in 2027, the main time is the Nishita Kaal puja (midnight): 12:09 am (7 Mar) – 12:58 am (7 Mar) on Saturday, 6 March. Sunrise, sunset and the parts of the day move with the city, so the window, and sometimes the day itself, can change elsewhere. Choose your city below and the tables follow.
| Muhurat | 2026 | 2027 | 2028 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nishita Kaal puja (midnight) | 12:11 am (16 Feb) – 1:02 am (16 Feb) | 12:09 am (7 Mar) – 12:58 am (7 Mar) | 12:11 am (24 Feb) – 1:01 am (24 Feb) |
| Pradosh (evening) | 6:10 pm – 8:45 pm | 6:25 pm – 8:52 pm | 6:16 pm – 8:48 pm |
Temples hold four prahar pujas through the night, and the Nishita window, around midnight, is the one most families keep. Those who fast usually break the fast the next morning, after Chaturdashi ends or after sunrise.
When Chaturdashi holds midnight on two nights, or on none, calendars can differ by a day; the muhurat table shows both the Nishita and the evening Pradosh windows for your city.
A share card for the Maha Shivratri muhurat is coming. Today the app has one for Diwali only.
Questions people ask
Is Maha Shivratri in Magha or Phalguna?
Both names are used for the same night. Calendars that end the month at the new moon (amanta, common in the south and west) call it Magha Krishna Chaturdashi; those that end it at the full moon (purnimanta, common in the north) call it Phalguna Krishna Chaturdashi.
Why is the midnight window important?
The Shaiva texts describe the Nishita Kaal, the middle of the night, as the time of the Lingodbhava, the appearance of Shiva as a pillar of light. That is why the main puja is timed to midnight rather than to the evening.
Do I have to fast?
Fasting is a personal choice. Many people fast fully, some take fruit and milk, and many simply keep the vigil. This page gives timings only; nothing here asks you to do more than you are comfortable with.
When is Maha Shivratri in 2026, 2027 and 2028?
Maha Shivratri is on Sunday, 15 February 2026; Saturday, 6 March 2027; Wednesday, 23 February 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 Maha Shivratri?
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.