Chandra Darshanచంద్ర దర్శనం
The first sighting of the new moon's crescent, the evening after amavasya.
- Deity
- Chandra
- Frequency
- Once a lunar month
What Chandra Darshan is
Chandra Darshan is the first sighting of the crescent after the new moon, kept on the shukla padyami evening. The moon is visible for only a short while after sunset and low on the western horizon, so the sighting itself is the observance. It marks the beginning of the waxing fortnight, and the tradition treats the sight of the new crescent as auspicious in itself — a small, quiet vrat with none of the weight of the larger ones.
Who observes it
Kept widely across Gujarat, Maharashtra and the north, and observed informally almost everywhere as a moment worth stepping outside for.
Fasting rules
A fast from sunrise until the moon has been seen and arghya offered. It is short — the crescent sets within an hour or two of the sun.
Pooja vidhanam
Face west after sunset and look for the crescent. Offer arghya — water poured from cupped hands — with rice and flowers, and recite the Chandra mantra or the Chandra Gayatri. The fast is broken immediately after.
A note on timing
The window is narrow and depends entirely on your longitude, since the crescent sets shortly after the sun. Use the sunset time on your city's panchangam page.
2028 dates
Computed from the tithi at sunrise for your selected city. Tap any date for that day's full panchangam.