Ratha Saptami 2027

About Ratha Saptami

Ratha Saptami is the seventh day of the bright half of Magha, kept as Surya Jayanti, the birthday of the Sun god. In 2027 it falls on Saturday, 13 February 2027. It is observed most visibly in Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra and at Konark in Odisha, with a dawn bath, an offering of water to the rising sun and a kolam of the Sun's chariot.

Ratha means chariot and Saptami the seventh lunar day. On this morning, Hindu tradition says, Surya turns his chariot of seven horses towards the north, and many families mark it as his birthday. It comes about three weeks after Makar Sankranti and two days after Vasant Panchami, when the mornings in most of India are turning warm.

Why it is the Sun's day

The Puranic story makes Surya the son of the sage Kashyapa and Aditi, and Ratha Saptami is kept as his birth anniversary, which is why it is also called Surya Jayanti. The chariot most families describe has twelve wheels for the twelve signs of the zodiac, seven horses for the seven days of the week, and Aruna as the charioteer.

The day has other names too: Magha Saptami, after the month, and Achala Saptami. Arogya Saptami, the Saptami of health, comes from the belief that the bath before sunrise keeps illness away for the year. Many treat it as the real start of spring and of the field work that follows the winter harvest.

The bath with arka leaves

The morning starts early. The bath is meant to be taken at arunodaya, the hour and a half or so before sunrise, ideally in a river, tank or the sea, though most people now bathe at home.

1. Gather arka leavesSeven leaves of arka, the milkweed shrub, called ekka in Kannada, jilledu in Telugu and erukkam in Tamil. Families pick them the day before.
2. Place them and batheOne common pattern puts one leaf on the head, two on the shoulders, two on the knees and two on the feet. Others hold all seven on the head. A short Sanskrit verse asking for release from the sins of seven births is recited while the water is poured.
3. Offer arghyaFacing the rising sun, pour water from a small kalash or from cupped palms. Some add milk, sesame or red flowers.
4. Draw the chariotIn the south, women draw a kolam or rangoli of the Sun's chariot and seven horses in rice powder at the doorstep.
5. Boil milk in the sunA cow-dung cake is lit at the centre of the kolam and milk is boiled on it, then offered to Surya. Many homes also make a payasam from the new harvest's rice for the offering.
6. PrayThe Aditya Hridayam, the Gayatri or the Surya Ashtakam, ideally within an hour of sunrise. Some add Surya Namaskar.

Arka is also a Sanskrit name for the sun, which is the usual explanation for the choice of leaf. Handle the leaves with care: the milky sap irritates the eyes, so keep it off children's faces.

Tirumala's one-day Brahmotsavam

At Tirumala, the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) runs the day as a compressed Brahmotsavam. Malayappa Swamy, the processional form of Venkateswara, goes round the four mada streets with Sridevi and Bhudevi seven times on seven different vahanams between dawn and night. Records cited in press reports show the festival being held there since 1564.

1. Dawn
   Surya Prabha vahanam

   Timed so that the first rays reach the deity, the most watched procession of the day

2. Morning
   Chinna Sesha and Garuda vahanams

   The small serpent mount, then Garuda

3. Midday
   Hanumantha vahanam

   Hanuman as the mount

4. Afternoon
   Chakra Snanam

   The Sudarshana Chakra is bathed in the Srivari Pushkarini, the temple tank

5. Evening
   Kalpavriksha and Sarvabhupala vahanams

   The wish-granting tree, then the "lord of all kings"

6. Night
   Chandra Prabha vahanam

   The moon vahanam closes the day, answering the sun at dawn

The TTD has cancelled paid arjitha sevas on the day in past years, and crowds on the mada streets run into lakhs. Timings shift with sunrise; the TTD publishes the year's schedule a few weeks ahead.

Elsewhere, Mysuru and Melkote carry an icon of the Sun's disc in procession, Mangaluru's Sri Venkatramana Temple holds its car festival, the Kodial Teru, and the Sri Suryanarayana Swamy temple at Arasavalli, near Srikakulam, is the focus in Andhra Pradesh. The Andhra Pradesh government declared Ratha Saptami a state festival in December 2024, with three days of events centred on Arasavalli.

Magha Saptami at Konark

In Odisha the day is Magha Saptami, and the place to be is Chandrabhaga beach near the Konark Sun Temple. The river that gave it its name has dried up, so each year a pond is dug in the old bed for the pre-dawn dip. Pilgrims wait on the sand for sunrise, bathe, then pray at the Navagraha shrine within the Sun Temple premises.

Local tradition ties the dip to Samba, a son of Krishna, who was cured of leprosy after bathing here and worshipping the Sun, and many still come hoping for relief from skin disease. At midnight the deities Tribeniswar, Ishaneswar and Dakhineswar are carried in palanquins from their village temples to the shore for their own bath. Some pilgrims cook rice and dried fish dalma on the beach as an offering to Arkasura, after whom the area is called Arka Kshetra, then break their clay pots and throw the pieces into the pond.

What to write

Arunodaya

The hour and a half or so before sunrise, the time set for the Ratha Saptami bath.

Arghya

Water offered to a deity, here poured towards the rising sun.

Arka

Calotropis, the milkweed shrub whose leaves are used in the bath; also a Sanskrit name for the sun.

Vahanam

The mount or vehicle on which a temple deity is carried in procession.

Shubhakankshalu

Telugu for good wishes; in Kannada the word is shubhashayagalu.

How to wish someone on Ratha Saptami

A good Ratha Saptami wish is short and devotional, and it is about the sun: health, light and a good start to the warmer half of the year. Arogya Saptami, one of its names, means the Saptami of good health, so wishing someone well-being fits better than wishing them a party. Mention the dawn bath, the chariot kolam or a darshan at Tirumala or Konark if they go. In Telugu, \"Ratha Saptami shubhakankshalu\" is the standard greeting.

Write a few lines in your own words, pick a design and share it as one link on WhatsApp, Instagram or anywhere else. They open an animated card made just for them, with no app and no sign-up.

Language tip: English, Telugu + Kannada, Tamil and Hindi.

When is Ratha Saptami in each year?

Ratha Saptami is set by the Hindu lunisolar calendar, so it falls on a different date each year. In 2027 it falls 19 days later than in 2026.

Frequently asked questions