Ram Navami is the ninth day of the bright fortnight of Chaitra, the day Rama was born to Kaushalya in Ayodhya, and the last day of Chaitra Navratri. At noon, the hour of the birth, temples open their doors to conches and bells, an image of the infant is rocked in a cradle, and the Ramcharitmanas is read aloud. In Awadh it is the day of the year.
The story
King Dasharatha of Ayodhya had no heir. After a sacrifice, his three queens bore four sons, and Vishnu himself came as the eldest, Rama, to end the tyranny of Ravana. Tulsidas, who began writing his Ramcharitmanas in Ayodhya on a Ram Navami in 1574, has the whole city come running at the news.
For the north, Rama is Maryada Purushottam, the man who keeps to what is right whatever it costs him: the son who goes into exile to keep his father's word.
भए प्रगट कृपाला दीनदयाला कौसल्या हितकारी । हरषित महतारी मुनि मन हारी अद्भुत रूप बिचारी ॥
The merciful one appeared, compassionate to the humble, bringing joy to Kaushalya. The mother rejoiced, gazing on a form so wondrous that it steals the hearts of sages
Tulsidas, Ramcharitmanas, Bal Kand
How it is kept
- Madhyahna pujaThe birth is marked at midday. The image is bathed, dressed and laid in a cradle.
- Ramcharitmanas pathAn unbroken reading, the Akhand Ramayan, is begun the day before and timed to finish at noon.
- The fastMany who have fasted through Navratri end it today, after Kanya Pujan.
- Shobha yatraProcessions with tableaux of Rama, Sita, Lakshman and Hanuman pass through the town.
- Panjiri and panchamritThe prasad of the day: roasted flour with sugar and dry fruit, and the five-nectar mixture.
Why this date
Ram Navami is the Navami of the bright fortnight of Chaitra. As Rama was born at noon, the day chosen is the one on which Navami covers midday.
Ram Navami in other years
| Year | Date | Day |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Thursday | |
| 2027 | Thursday | |
| 2028 | Monday | |
| 2029 | Sunday | |
| 2030 | Friday | |
| 2031 | Tuesday |
More North Indian festivals
7 AprilChaitra Navratriचैत्र नवरात्रि
20 AprilHanuman Jayantiहनुमान जयंती
23 MarchHoliहोली
8 MayAkshaya Tritiyaअक्षय तृतीया
6 MarchMaha Shivaratriमहाशिवरात्रि
14 JulyDevshayani Ekadashiदेवशयनी एकादशी
Where to see Ram Navami
In North India
- Ram Mandir, AyodhyaUttar PradeshThe birthplace. At noon a beam of sunlight is brought on to the forehead of Ram Lalla, and lakhs bathe in the Sarayu.
- ChitrakootMadhya Pradesh and Uttar PradeshThe forest where Rama spent most of his exile; lamps are floated on the Mandakini at Ramghat.
- Ram Raja Temple, OrchhaMadhya PradeshThe only temple where Rama is worshipped as a reigning king, with a guard of honour.
Across India
- BhadrachalamTelanganaThe south keeps the day as the wedding of Rama and Sita, on the bank of the Godavari.
- RameswaramTamil NaduWhere Rama worshipped Shiva before the crossing to Lanka.
- Kalaram Temple, NashikMaharashtraIn Panchavati, the place of the exile and of Sita's abduction.