Mauni Amavasya is the new Moon day in the middle of winter that is held to be among the holiest bathing days of the year. Mauna means silence, and many devotees keep silence until they have bathed and prayed. The most famous place to observe it is Prayagraj, where the Ganga, the Yamuna and the unseen Sarasvati are said to meet, during the month-long Magh Mela. In a Kumbh or Ardh Kumbh year, the day is the principal bathing day of the whole fair.
Month and tithi
The festival is the Amavasya at the end of the dark fortnight that north India counts as Magha. In the amanta calendar the same new Moon closes the month of Pausha. It is the same day under two names, as the amanta and purnimanta guide explains. The tithi is the thirtieth, described on the Amavasya page.
What the day is for
The tradition holds that a bath in a holy river on this day, especially at the sangam at Prayagraj, gives merit, and that silence before the bath is a discipline of speech that quietens the mind. The word muni, sage, is related to mauna, and the day is also tied to Manu, the first man, in a few accounts, though sources differ. On an Amavasya it is also customary to remember ancestors with water, sesame and food offerings; the Pitru Paksha page describes the practice in its full form.
How it is kept
Devotees rise before dawn, bathe in a river, a pond or at home with a prayer to the Ganga, and keep silence until they have worshipped. After the bath they give food, clothes, sesame, blankets or money to those in need, and may offer water and sesame to their ancestors. Many fast, taking only fruit and milk. In the Magh Mela lakhs of people camp on the riverbank for the whole month and bathe on this day in the early hours. For people who cannot travel, a bath at home with a few drops of Ganga water, if they have it, or a prayer to a nearby river, is accepted by the tradition.
How the day is fixed
The rule used here follows Drik Panchang: the festival is on the civil day on which Amavasya is in force at sunrise; if it is so at two sunrises, the first is taken. The table gives each city’s date with the times at which Amavasya begins and ends. Because the bath is taken at dawn, it is the tithi at sunrise that matters.
Why cities differ
The new Moon is one instant for the whole world, but sunrise is at a different clock time in each city. An Amavasya that begins just before sunrise in one city may not yet have begun in another, so the day moves. The table shows each city, and for a place not listed the any-city tool works out the same. The monthly dates are on the Amavasya page.
A calm note
In winter, take care in cold water and at crowded ghats; stay with a group, avoid deep water, and keep children and the elderly warm. A silence of a few hours is a personal discipline, and it should not stop you from asking for help if you need it. Follow your own family and community for the day.