Varalakshmi Vratam 2027

About Varalakshmi Vratam

Varalakshmi Vratam is a home puja to Varalakshmi, the boon-giving form of Lakshmi, kept mostly by married women in Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Tamil Nadu on the Friday before Shravana Purnima. In 2027 it falls on Friday, 13 August 2027. A kalasham is dressed as the goddess, women tie a yellow thread on the right wrist, and married women are given tamboolam.

Vara means a boon, so Varalakshmi is Lakshmi as the giver of boons. Puja guides say worshipping her on this day equals worshipping all eight forms of Lakshmi, the Ashtalakshmi. Unlike the Diwali Lakshmi puja, which most of India knows, this is a South Indian household vow, kept at home on a Friday in Shravana. Karnataka calls it Varamahalakshmi Habba, Telugu homes Varalakshmi Vratam, and Tamil homes Varalakshmi Nombu.

The vow is mostly kept by married women, who pray for the health of their husband and family and for a home that never runs short. Girls and other family members often join in, and Drik Panchang notes that the vrat is open to men too.

The story behind the vow

The vrata katha read at the end of the puja is set in the Skanda Purana, as the Telugu tradition tells it. Parvati asks Shiva which vow brings a woman lasting good fortune. Shiva tells her about Charumati, a devoted wife in the town of Kundina in Magadha. The goddess appears to Charumati in a dream and asks her to worship Varalakshmi on the Friday before the Shravana full moon. Charumati keeps the vow with the other women of the town, and their homes prosper. Some versions name a different woman, Padmavati of Kosala, and in some it is Vishnu who brings the message.

Kannada tellings also recall Lakshmi rising from the ocean of milk when the gods and asuras churned it, which is why she is called Ksheerabdhi Kanyake, daughter of the milk ocean, among the names chanted that day.

How the date is set

The rule is the last Friday of the bright fortnight of Shravana, before the full moon. That usually puts it in August, a few days before Raksha Bandhan.

Calendars split when the full moon itself lands on a Friday. Some take that Friday; others take the Friday a week earlier. In 2026, for example, the Andhra Pradesh and Telangana governments listed the vratam on Friday 21 August while Drik Panchang gave Friday 28 August, the day of the full moon. Families follow their own panchangam or their temple.

Drik Panchang gives four fixed-lagna windows for the puja, in the morning, afternoon, evening and around midnight, and treats the evening one as best when it overlaps pradosh. The exact times change every year and by city, so check your own almanac.

Dressing the kalasham

The centre of the puja is a kalasham, a brass or silver pot, turned into the goddess.

1. Fill the potRice, betel leaves, a turmeric root, coins and sometimes dry fruit go inside; mango leaves are set around the mouth.
2. Make the faceA coconut is smeared with turmeric and placed on top. Some families paint eyes, nose and mouth on it; many fix a silver or brass Lakshmi face, called a mukham, to the coconut.
3. Dress herThe pot is draped in a small sari or blouse cloth, then decked with flowers, kumkum, sandal paste and the family's gold jewellery.
4. Welcome her inAt the chosen hour the tray waits outside the threshold. Women sing a welcome song and carry the goddess into the puja room over a fresh kolam or rangoli.
5. Puja and kathaA turmeric Ganesha is worshipped first, then the goddess with lamps, flowers, the 108 names and food offerings, ending with the vrata katha.
6. Tie the threadThe yellow thread placed before the goddess is tied on the right wrist, and the tamboolam is given to married women.

The thread is the part people remember. Telugu homes use a tora of nine strands with nine knots and flowers tied between them. The Kannada practice described in puja books uses twelve threads with twelve knots, soaked and rubbed with turmeric. Tamil women call it the nombu saradu or nombu kayiru. In each case it goes on the right wrist, and in Kannada homes an elder ties it, after which the younger women bow to her.

Tamboolam and the food

After the puja, married women from the neighbourhood are invited in. Each one is treated as Lakshmi herself and given tamboolam, called vayanam in Telugu: betel leaves and nut, turmeric, kumkum, fruit, often a blouse piece and a small sweet. The guest gives her blessing in return.

The food offered differs by state. Tamil households make kozhukattai, often four kinds, with payasam, vadai and sundal. Telugu homes aim for nine dishes, with panakam and vadapappu in many families. Kannada puja guides name sajjappa among the offerings. Many women fast until the puja is over, so the prasadam is often their first meal of the day.

In Tamil homes the goddess is not sent away at once. A common custom is to turn the kalasham's face west the next day and rest the pot in a rice container, so that she stays in the house.

In Bengaluru, flower and fruit prices at KR Market rise sharply in the days before. In years when Onam falls close by, the two festivals compete for the same jasmine and chrysanthemum.

Wishing across communities

How to wish someone on Varalakshmi Vratam

A good Varalakshmi Vratam wish names the goddess and what the household asks of her: health, a steady home, enough to share. Mention the kalasham, the thread, the tamboolam or the kozhukattai if you know the family. The woman keeping it is often fasting till the puja ends, so keep morning messages short. Use the local name: Varamahalakshmi Habba in Kannada, Varalakshmi Vratam in Telugu, Varalakshmi Nombu in Tamil.

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, Kannada + Telugu and Tamil.

When is Varalakshmi Vratam in each year?

Varalakshmi Vratam is set by the Hindu lunisolar calendar, so it falls on a different date each year. In 2027 it falls 8 days earlier than in 2026.

Frequently asked questions