Dhanteras 2028
धनतेरस
Dhanteras falls on Sunday, 15 October 2028 in New Delhi, on Krishna Trayodashi.
Dhanteras opens the Diwali days, usually two days before Lakshmi Puja, and it's best known today as the day people buy metal, from a new steel pot to gold. It's also linked with Dhanvantari, physician of the gods, and with a lamp lit for Yama.
Why this date
CalculatedIt falls on Trayodashi, the thirteenth lunar day of the dark fortnight, in the month called Kartika in the north and Ashvin in the west and south. The Trayodashi has to be in force at Pradosh, the evening window just after sunset. That's where the name comes from: dhan, wealth, and teras, thirteenth.
That’s 12 days earlier than 27 October 2027 last year.
- Trayodashi begins
- 15 Oct, 7:17 PM
- It ends
- 16 Oct, 3:46 PM
2028 date by city
| New Delhi | Sun, 15 Oct |
|---|---|
| Mumbai | Sun, 15 Oct |
| Kolkata | Sun, 15 Oct |
| Chennai | Sun, 15 Oct |
| Bengaluru | Sun, 15 Oct |
| Hyderabad | Sun, 15 Oct |
| Ahmedabad | Sun, 15 Oct |
| Pune | Sun, 15 Oct |
| Jaipur | Sun, 15 Oct |
| Lucknow | Sun, 15 Oct |
| Patna | Sun, 15 Oct |
| Varanasi | Sun, 15 Oct |
| London | Sun, 15 Oct |
| New York | Sun, 15 Oct |
| San Francisco | Sun, 15 Oct |
| Toronto | Sun, 15 Oct |
| Sydney | Mon, 16 Oct |
| Singapore | Sun, 15 Oct |
| Dubai | Sun, 15 Oct |
| Port Louis | Sun, 15 Oct |
Dates in bold differ from New Delhi’s. Calculated by rule; local practice can differ.
One festival, many stories
Pan-IndianDhanvantari rises with the nectar
When the gods and demons churn the ocean, Dhanvantari emerges carrying the pot of amrita. The churning is told in the Bhagavata Purana (8.8), and Lochtefeld describes Dhanvantari as the physician of the gods and credited founder of Ayurveda. The story itself doesn't name this date; tradition supplies it. India's government once tied National Ayurveda Day to this tithi, then in 2025 moved it to a fixed date, 23 September, because the lunar date moved so much.
North IndiaThe lamps that stopped Yama
A king's son, the story goes, is fated to die of snakebite on the fourth night of his marriage. His young wife piles up gold and silver at the door, lights lamps and sings, and when Yama arrives as a snake, he's so dazzled that he leaves. It's the popular explanation for both the metal and the lamp left burning outside for Yama. We haven't found this in an early named text.
Across IndiaWhy you buy something metal
Buying utensils, coins or jewellery is what most people now do on this day. The custom is very much alive, and markets plan around it. How old it is we can't say, and we've seen no early text requiring it.
Common questions
What people do
- Buying a new metal utensil, coins or jewellery
- Cleaning the house and drawing rangoli in preparation for Diwali
- Lighting a lamp outside the door, in the evening, for Yama
- Worshipping Lakshmi and Dhanvantari
Why do people buy gold and utensils on Dhanteras?
It's a custom tied to the day's name and to the popular story of the bride who piled up metal to stop Yama. We found no early text that requires buying anything.
What's the difference between Dhanteras and Diwali?
Dhanteras is the thirteenth lunar day, usually two days before Diwali's new moon night. It's the start of the Diwali days in many households, and the main Lakshmi Puja comes on Amavasya.
Is Dhanteras connected with Ayurveda?
Yes, through Dhanvantari, the mythic founder of Ayurveda. The government observed Ayurveda Day on this tithi for some years before fixing it to 23 September.
Ask your elders
“Ask your family which pot or spoon in the kitchen was bought on some long-ago Dhanteras, and who bought it. Ask if anyone still puts out a lamp for Yama, and which way it faces.”
Sources
- Bhagavata Purana 8.8
- James G. Lochtefeld, The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Hinduism (Rosen, 2002), entry “Dhanvantari”
- Press reports of the Ayurveda Day notification, including Deccan Herald and The Statesman (2025)
- Drik Panchang, Dhanteras timing rules
- P. V. Kane, History of Dharmaśāstra, Vol. V, Part I (Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute), on vratas and utsavas