Shashthi Tithi: The Sixth Day, Skanda Shashthi and Chhath

Shashthi is the sixth tithi, when the Moon is between sixty and seventy-two degrees from the Sun. It lies close to the end of the first third of the fortnight, and in the bright half the Moon is a crescent growing towards the quarter, setting some hours after sunset.

The tithi has a double character in popular practice. In the south and in parts of the north it is the day of Kartikeya, the god of war, called Murugan, Skanda or Subrahmanya in different regions. In the east and the Gangetic plain it is also the day of Shashthi Devi, a goddess who is worshipped for the well-being of children, and of the Sun in the Chhath festival.

The tithi at a glance

Group and deity

Shashthi is the second member of the Nanda group, along with Pratipada and Ekadashi. Nanda means delight, and the group is associated in muhurat texts with joyful, festive undertakings. The group name is a classification of the almanac and does not mean that every Nanda day is good for every purpose.

A common list names Kartikeya, the son of Shiva and Parvati, as the deity of Shashthi. Shashthi Devi, who is a separate goddess of children, is also tied to the sixth day: in several regions the sixth day after a child’s birth is when she is worshipped.

Festivals on Shukla Shashthi

Skanda Shashthi, also called Kanda Shashthi, falls on Shukla Shashthi of the month the Tamil calendar knows as Aippasi, and it is the climax of a six-day observance for Murugan that ends with the story of his victory over the demon Surapadman, enacted most famously at Tiruchendur. Many devotees keep a monthly Shukla Shashthi fast for Murugan in the rest of the year.

Chhath Puja falls on Kartika Shukla Shashthi, the sixth day after Diwali, when the setting Sun is offered water at the river or a pond, and the rising Sun the next morning. Its steps are in Chhath Puja Vidhi. In Bengal, the sixth day of Durga Puja, in Ashvin, is when the goddess is welcomed with the ritual called Bodhon.

Chaitra Shukla Shashthi is observed in parts of Bihar and Uttar Pradesh as the smaller Chaiti Chhath, using the same rituals as Kartika Chhath on a smaller scale.

Festivals on Krishna Shashthi

Hal Shashthi, also called Halchhath, Balarama Jayanti or Lalahi Chhath in different regions, falls on Bhadrapada Krishna Shashthi in the amanta reckoning and on Shravana Krishna Shashthi in the purnimanta, two days before Janmashtami in most years. It is kept by mothers for their sons, in memory of Balarama, whose weapon was the plough (hala), and in many families the food of the day avoids anything produced by ploughing.

Some families observe the monthly Krishna Shashthi quietly, but it has no large festival of its own. As with other dark-half days, the month name depends on the calendar, as explained under amanta and purnimanta.

What muhurat practice says

Shashthi is not a Rikta tithi, but it is also not among those most often recommended. Many almanacs omit it from their lists of preferred days for marriage and for a housewarming, and it is usually described as better for religious observance than for family ceremonies. This is a common almanac practice and not a rule that every tradition shares.

For worship of Kartikeya, Shashthi is the natural tithi, and the south Indian custom of beginning a new religious discipline, such as a six-day fast, on Skanda Shashthi shows how it is used. For undertakings that involve children, such as a naming or a first feeding, almanacs usually choose other tithis, and the samskaras guide points to the pages on those ceremonies.

The weekday, nakshatra and birth charts always matter, so a family astrologer should confirm any date. The muhurat section shows how the choice is put together.

A simple way to observe the day

A simple Shashthi worship of Kartikeya is a lamp, a red or yellow flower, a little fruit, and a short prayer to him; his devotees add the chanting of a stotra in their own language. For Chhath, the observance is a four-day discipline with a long fast, and it deserves its own preparation.

If you are thinking of keeping a fast on any Shashthi, remember that it is a personal choice. Speak to your doctor if you have a health condition, are pregnant, nursing, elderly or on regular medicine, and keep to a lighter observance if you need to.

Reading the tithi in the calendar

The Shashthi that decides Chhath is the one in force at the evening of the first offering, so the festival date follows the tithi at dusk and not at sunrise. For Skanda Shashthi the calendar generally uses the tithi in force at midday, though regions differ.

Shashthi, like every tithi, can be shortened to nothing or run across two sunrises. A kshaya Shashthi is one that begins and ends between two sunrises, and the rule for that year’s observance is then taken from the festival’s own calendar, not from a general principle.

To see whether Shashthi is the tithi running today in your own city, open the daily panchang. Shashthi follows Panchami in the cycle and is followed by Saptami; the whole set is described in the guide to the thirty tithis.

Related pages

• Chhath Puja and Chhath Puja Vidhi: the Kartika Shukla Shashthi festival.
• Janmashtami: the festival two days after Hal Shashthi.
• Sharad Navratri: the nine nights in which the Shashthi welcomes the goddess in Bengal.
• Muhurat: how favourable tithis are used.
• The sixteen samskaras: ceremonies for which families look for a good tithi.
• Amanta and purnimanta: why the month name of a Krishna Shashthi differs.

Frequently asked questions