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Sheetala Ashtami 2029 (popular practice)

Sheetala Ashtami, Basoda, in 2029: the dark Aṣṭamī after Holī, by our stated rule for your city, with the Saptamī and Rajasthan days.

Phalguna (amanta) / Chaitra (purnimanta), Krishna Ashtami

Sheetala Ashtami in Delhi

Wednesday, 7 March

Sheetala Ashtami is in 871 days. In Delhi the Aṣṭamī runs from Wed 7 Mar, 01:52 to Thu 8 Mar, 01:00, so it holds only Wednesday’s sunrise, and Sheetala Ashtami is kept on Wednesday.

AṣṭamīWed 7 Mar, 01:52 to Thu 8 Mar, 01:00

Delhi time. Popular practice; no text read gives the day.

How the day is chosen

Sheetala Ashtami, popularly Basoda, is the worship of the goddess Śītalā on the dark Aṣṭamī after Holī. Popular practice; no text read gives the day.

Our rule: Sheetala Ashtami is the day whose sunrise falls in the dark Aṣṭamī after Holī. When no sunrise falls in it, it is the day on which the Aṣṭamī falls; when two sunrises do, it is the first of them.

In Delhi the Aṣṭamī runs from Wed 7 Mar, 01:52 to Thu 8 Mar, 01:00, so it holds only Wednesday’s sunrise, and Sheetala Ashtami is kept on Wednesday.

The Saptamī runs from Tue 6 Mar, 03:26 to Wed 7 Mar, 01:52.

Also shown: Tuesday, 6 March, the Saptamī’s day, kept in some regions and families; popular practice.

In Rajasthan the worship moves only off a Sunday, Tuesday or Saturday, so in 2029 it stays on Wednesday, 7 March; popular practice.

What the texts and old descriptions say

A census report of the Jaipur State (1903) lists Sitla Ashtami among Jaipur’s festivals of March. Census Report, Jaipur State p. 356

The texts read keep their Śītalā vow on a different day: the Śītalā-saptamī of the dark fortnight of Śrāvaṇa, Bhādrapada in pūrṇimānta reckoning. The Vratarāja keeps it at midday and gives the goddess’s image from the Skanda-purāṇa: Śītalā on an ass, with a broom, a pot and a winnow. The Nirṇaya-sindhu, after Hemādri, takes the earlier day. Vratarāja f. 110; Nirṇaya-sindhu p. 183; An Indian Ephemeris p. 61

Popular practice: the food cooked the day before (Randha Pua) and eaten cold, the worship at dawn, and the fair at Seel ki Doongri near Chaksu.

Sheetala Ashtami 2029 around the world

Each city’s own sunrise
Wednesday, 7 March
  • DelhiWed 7 Mar, 01:52 to Thu 8 Mar, 01:00
  • JodhpurWed 7 Mar, 01:52 to Thu 8 Mar, 01:00
  • IndoreWed 7 Mar, 01:52 to Thu 8 Mar, 01:00
  • MumbaiWed 7 Mar, 01:52 to Thu 8 Mar, 01:00
  • KolkataWed 7 Mar, 01:52 to Thu 8 Mar, 01:00
  • ChennaiWed 7 Mar, 01:52 to Thu 8 Mar, 01:00
  • BengaluruWed 7 Mar, 01:52 to Thu 8 Mar, 01:00
  • HyderabadWed 7 Mar, 01:52 to Thu 8 Mar, 01:00
  • AhmedabadWed 7 Mar, 01:52 to Thu 8 Mar, 01:00
  • PuneWed 7 Mar, 01:52 to Thu 8 Mar, 01:00
  • JaipurWed 7 Mar, 01:52 to Thu 8 Mar, 01:00
  • LucknowWed 7 Mar, 01:52 to Thu 8 Mar, 01:00
  • LondonTue 6 Mar, 20:22 to Wed 7 Mar, 19:30
  • New York CityTue 6 Mar, 15:22 to Wed 7 Mar, 14:30
  • TorontoTue 6 Mar, 15:22 to Wed 7 Mar, 14:30
  • SydneyWed 7 Mar, 07:22 to Thu 8 Mar, 06:30
  • DubaiWed 7 Mar, 00:22 to 23:30
  • SingaporeWed 7 Mar, 04:22 to Thu 8 Mar, 03:30

Other years: Sheetala Ashtami 2027, Sheetala Ashtami 2028; all Sheetala Ashtami dates.

Questions

By our stated rule; popular practice throughout, with the texts cited only for their own Śītalā vow.

When is Sheetala Ashtami 2029?

In Delhi, Sheetala Ashtami 2029 falls on Wednesday, 7 March 2029: the dark Aṣṭamī runs from Wed 7 Mar, 01:52 to Thu 8 Mar, 01:00, so it holds only Wednesday’s sunrise, and Sheetala Ashtami is kept on Wednesday.

Is Basoda the same day?

Yes. Basoda is a popular name for Sheetala Ashtami, and this page gives the same day under both names.

Why do some keep it on the Saptami?

Some regions and families keep the worship on the dark Saptamī, by the same sunrise rule. In 2029 in Delhi the Saptamī runs from Tue 6 Mar, 03:26 to Wed 7 Mar, 01:52, so the Saptamī day is Tuesday, 6 March. It is popular practice, and no text read gives either day.

Why does Rajasthan move the day?

In Rajasthan the worship moves off a Sunday, Tuesday or Saturday to the nearest earlier day that is none of these; popular practice. In 2029 the Aṣṭamī day in Jaipur is a Wednesday, so the day does not move.

Do the texts give this day?

No. The Nirṇaya-sindhu, the Dharmasindhu and the Vratarāja give no Śītalā day in the dark fortnight after Holī. Their Śītalā vow is the Śītalā-saptamī of Śrāvaṇa’s dark fortnight, a different day. Vratarāja f. 110

Why can the date differ by city?

The Aṣṭamī begins and ends at the same moment everywhere, but sunrise comes at a different hour in each city, so the sunrise that falls in it can change with the place. Delhi, Jaipur, Jodhpur, Lucknow and Indore keep the same day in every year from 2005 to 2035.

How the day is found

Read the methodology
Basis
Popular practice; no text read gives the day. The rule is ours, stated in full.
The day
The dark Aṣṭamī after Holī: Phālguna kṛṣṇa in amānta reckoning, Caitra kṛṣṇa in pūrṇimānta. The day whose sunrise falls in it; when none does, the day on which it falls; when two do, the first.
The Saptamī
The day whose sunrise falls in the Saptamī, shown as the day kept in some regions and families.
Rajasthan
When the Aṣṭamī day is a Sunday, Tuesday or Saturday, the nearest earlier day that is none of these, shown as Rajasthan’s day.
One ghaṭikā
When moving either end of the Aṣṭamī by one ghaṭikā (24 minutes) would change the day, the other day is shown too. No year from 2027 to 2035 has such a case.
Sunrise
At the centre of the Sun’s disc, with refraction, for the chosen city. Every date is that city’s own.

Sunrise and sunset at the centre of the Sun’s disc, with refraction · Lahiri ayanamsa for month names · each city’s own time · Swiss Ephemeris · Method