Vat Savitri Vrat 2027

Vat Savitri Vrat 2027 falls on Friday, 4 June. On this day married women fast and worship the banyan tree (vat or bargad), winding raw cotton thread around its trunk, in memory of Savitri, who followed Yama, the god of death, and won back the life of her husband Satyavan. In north India the vrat is kept on Jyeshtha Amavasya; in Maharashtra, Gujarat and much of the south it is kept as Vat Purnima about two weeks later.

Vat Savitri Vrat 2027 date

Vat Savitri Vrat (Amavasya) is on Friday, 4 June 2027, the same day as Shani Jayanti. In 2026 it fell on Saturday, 16 May. Women who follow the Purnima tradition keep Vat Purnima on the Jyeshtha full moon; check your family custom and a local panchang.

The story of Savitri and Satyavan

The story is told in the Vana Parva of the Mahabharata, where the sage Markandeya narrates it to Yudhishthira. Savitri, the daughter of King Ashvapati, chose as her husband Satyavan, a woodcutter-prince living in exile, even after the sage Narada warned that Satyavan would die within a year. On the fated day she went with him into the forest. When he collapsed beneath a tree, Yama came to take his life.

Savitri followed Yama, speaking with such wisdom about dharma that he granted her boons, provided she did not ask for Satyavan’s life. She asked for her father-in-law’s sight and kingdom, for sons for her father, and finally for a hundred sons of her own with Satyavan. Bound by his word, Yama had to return her husband’s life. Tradition holds that Satyavan lay beneath a banyan tree, which is why the vat is worshipped.

How the vrat is kept

• Fast: women fast from sunrise, many without water, and dress as for a wedding.
• Banyan puja: water, roli, rice, flowers, soaked gram and fruit are offered at the roots.
• Thread: raw cotton thread is wound around the trunk while walking around it seven, 21 or 108 times.
• Katha: the story of Savitri and Satyavan is read or heard.
• Breaking the fast: after puja, with soaked gram and blessings from elders.

The meaning of the vrat

Savitri wins not by force but by steadiness, intelligence and devotion, and the long-lived banyan stands for a strong, lasting bond. Its benefits are described as tradition holds them. See every festival on the Hindu festival calendar.

Frequently asked questions