Vinayaka Chaturthi 2026 விநாயகர் சதுர்த்தி

The day in the Tamil calendar

Timings for Chennai. The date follows the Tamil Nadu calendar.

About the festival

Vinayaka Chaturthi, also called Pillayar Chaturthi in Tamil Nadu, celebrates the birth of Ganesha, who is revered as the remover of obstacles and a god of wisdom and new beginnings.^1,2,3

Clay images of Ganesha are installed and worshipped in homes and in public pandals, and kozhukattai, rice-flour dumplings filled with jaggery and coconut, are prepared as the characteristic offering.^1,2,3

Special celebrations are held at Ganesha temples such as the Ucchi Pillaiyar temple on the Rockfort in Tiruchirappalli and the Karpaga Vinayagar temple at Pillayarpatti in Sivaganga district.¹

After several days of worship the images are taken in procession and immersed in water.^1,2,3

When it falls: Vinayaka Chaturthi falls on Chaturthi, the fourth day of the bright fortnight (Shukla Chaturthi) of the lunar month Bhadrapada, which in the Tamil calendar is the fourth day after the new moon in the month of Aavani (August or September).^1,2,3

Sources

1. tamilnadutourism.tn.gov.in
2. britannica.com
3. Wikipedia: Ganesh Chaturthi

Vinayaka Chaturthi in other years