Vivah Panchami as it was kept in 2023.
Next date: 14 December 2026Vivah Panchami 2023
Sunday, 17 December 2023, in Ahmedabad
FestivalIndian · Hindu
Panchang on the day
17
Sunday
Waxing Fifth
until 17:33
Capricorn
- ખKha
- જJa
- Sunrise
- 07:12
- Sunset
- 17:58
- Moonrise
- 11:12
- Nakshatra
- Dhanishta
- until 02:54 next day
- Yoga
- Harshana
- until 00:35 next day
- Karana
- Balava
- until 17:33
- Rahu Kalam 16:37 to 17:58
- Yamaganda 12:35 to 13:56
- Abhijit muhurat 12:14 to 12:57
Why this date
Margshirsh Waxing Fifth, taken at sunrise
Runs from 16 Dec 20:00 IST to 17 Dec 17:33 IST.
In short
Vivah Panchami is a festival observed according to the Hindu calendar. Its date and customary practices can vary by region and local Panchang.
The story
Vivah Panchami commemorates the marriage of Rama and Sita in the Ramayana tradition. King Janaka of Mithila has a mighty bow of Shiva and declares that the prince able to lift and string it may marry Sita. Rama arrives with Sage Vishvamitra and his brother Lakshmana, lifts the bow and breaks it. Janaka sends word to King Dasharatha of Ayodhya, who travels to Mithila with his family and priests. The marriage ceremonies join two royal houses and celebrate Rama and Sita's union.
Ramayana retellings also describe the marriages of Rama's brothers: Lakshmana with Urmila, Bharata with Mandavi and Shatrughna with Shrutakirti. Rituals include welcomes, blessings, the giving of the bride's hand and sacred wedding rites, though details vary across textual and regional traditions. These are events of the revered epic, not independently documented court records.
Janakpur in Nepal observes the anniversary as a major festival, with a symbolic marriage procession, songs and rites at Janaki Mandir and the Vivah Mandap. Nepal Tourism Board describes a week-long celebration involving pilgrims from Nepal and India. The database's Margashirsha Shukla Panchami marks the central marriage day, not the entire festival; the procession and preliminary ceremonies require separate local scheduling.
Why it matters
Vivah Panchami is valued for devotion, family tradition and the spiritual or seasonal meaning attached to the day.
What people do
Rama-Sita marriage reenactment, processions, Ramayana recitation, wedding songs and temple prayers.
Told differently elsewhere
Some families in Mithila do not fix their daughters' weddings on this tithi, holding that Sita's married life was hard.
Questions people ask
- When is Vivah Panchami in 2023?
- On Sunday, 17 December 2023 in India. Runs from 16 Dec 20:00 IST to 17 Dec 17:33 IST.
- Why does the date change every year?
- It is kept by the lunar calendar, so its day on the civil calendar moves from year to year.
- Is the date the same everywhere?
- Yes. It is kept everywhere on the day it falls on in Ayodhya.
