Diwali 2026: Which Lakshmi Mantras to Chant — Lakshmi Puja Date & Method
Diwali 2026 falls on Sunday, 8 November, with Lakshmi Puja that evening and Dhanteras on Friday, 6 November. The mantra most commonly chanted for Lakshmi Puja is Om Shreem Mahalakshmyai Namah — 108 times on Diwali evening — with the Lakshmi Gayatri for meditation and the Shri Suktam (Rigveda Khilani) as the most traditional full recitation. Here are this year's dates, the mantras tradition prescribes, and a simple method for the five days.
Chant through Diwali with the Mantras App
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Diwali 2026 dates — Dhanteras to Bhai Dooj
| Observance | Date (2026) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Dhanteras | Friday, 6 November | Kubera, Lakshmi and Dhanvantari honoured; new purchases by tradition |
| Naraka Chaturdashi / Chhoti Diwali | Saturday, 7 November | Early-morning abhyanga snan by tradition |
| Diwali / Lakshmi Puja | Sunday, 8 November | Kartik Amavasya; Lakshmi Puja in the evening Pradosh kaal |
| Govardhan Puja | Monday, 9 November | Annakut offerings |
| Bhai Dooj | Tuesday, 10 November | The festival's closing day |
Tithi and muhurat timings vary by city and panchang — when in doubt, follow your local panchang for the exact Lakshmi Puja muhurat.
Diwali, Deepavali and Kali Puja — the same festival nights
Diwali and Deepavali are two spellings of one word (दीपावली, dipa-avali, "a row of lamps") — neither is more correct. The nights are kept differently by region: much of north and west India observes Lakshmi Puja on the Kartik Amavasya evening, 8 November 2026; Tamil Nadu and much of the south keep Deepavali on Naraka Chaturdashi at dawn, 7 November; and Bengal, Odisha and Assam keep the same Amavasya night as Kali Puja. In the amanta (new-moon-ending) calendars of the south and west this Amavasya is reckoned as Ashwin rather than Kartik — the same night under a different month name. The Lakshmi mantras below are chanted at all of them.
Which mantra to chant on Diwali
Om Shreem Mahalakshmyai Namah — the Lakshmi Puja mantra
ॐ श्रीं महालक्ष्म्यै नमः — Om Shreem Mahalakshmyai Namah — is built on shreem (श्रीं), the beej syllable of Lakshmi carried by the devotional tradition, and salutes Mahalakshmi, goddess of wealth and auspiciousness. It is short enough to keep as japa: 108 repetitions on Diwali evening after the puja, and daily through the five days if you can.
Lakshmi Gayatri — for meditation
From tradition: Om Mahalakshmyai Cha Vidmahe, Vishnu Patnyai Cha Dhimahi, Tanno Lakshmih Prachodayat — a meditative invocation of Lakshmi, consort of Vishnu, in the classical Gayatri metre — usually chanted after the main japa rather than in place of it.
Shri Suktam — the Vedic hymn to Lakshmi
The oldest hymn to Shri-Lakshmi is the Shri Suktam — Om Hiranyavarnam Harinim… — preserved in the Khilani, the appendix hymns of the Rigveda, and recited in Lakshmi worship for millennia. It is a full recitation rather than a counted japa, and many families play or recite it during the Lakshmi Puja itself.
Kuber mantra — for Dhanteras
Dhanteras honours Kubera, treasurer of the gods, alongside Lakshmi and Dhanvantari. The Kuber mantra — Om Yakshaya Kuberaya Vaishravanaya Dhanadhanyadhipataye Dhanadhanyasamriddhim Me Dehi Dapaya Svaha — is chanted on Dhanteras and through the Diwali days. Full text, meaning and method on our Kuber mantra guide.
One mantra kept daily beats four attempted occasionally. If you are new, choose Om Shreem Mahalakshmyai Namah alone for this Diwali.
How to chant on Diwali (and the days around it)
- Bathe or wash, and sit facing east or north in a quiet spot, spine upright.
- Take three slow breaths and, if you like, state your sankalpa for the festival.
- Listen first — play the mantra audio once and absorb the rhythm and pronunciation.
- Chant 108 times — count on a mala or the app's 108 japa counter; on Diwali evening, after the Lakshmi Puja and aarti.
- Sit in silence for a minute among the lamps before rejoining the celebration.
New to japa? Start with the complete chanting method and the traditional rules.
Lakshmi Puja sankalpam — the Diwali evening intention
The sankalpam (सङ्कल्प, also sankalpa or sankalp) is the spoken intention made before the puja begins. For Diwali it is made on the evening of Sunday, 8 November 2026, in the Pradosh kaal, holding water, rice and a flower in the right palm; the water is released at the end. Searched for as Diwali sankalpam, Lakshmi puja sankalp and Lakshmi puja sankalpa mantra, it is one formula, not three.
The traditional Lakshmi Puja sankalpa
The Lakshmi Puja sankalpa follows the standard Vedic shape — invocation, calendrical position, gotra and name, intention — with one wrinkle peculiar to Diwali: this night sits at a calendar seam. Purnimanta panchangs call the month Kartik, amanta panchangs call the same night Ashwin, and the sankalpa names whichever your panchang uses. That, and your own gotra and place, are why no single written text is universal.
ॐ विष्णुर्विष्णुर्विष्णुः ॥
Om Vishnur Vishnur Vishnuh — the opening invocation.
… कार्तिक मासे कृष्ण पक्षे अमावास्यायां तिथौ … गोत्रः … नामाहम् ।
मम सकुटुम्बस्य क्षेम-स्थैर्य-आयुर्-आरोग्य-ऐश्वर्याभिवृद्ध्यर्थं
श्री महालक्ष्मी प्रीत्यर्थं श्री महालक्ष्मी पूजनं करिष्ये ॥
… Kartika mase, krishna pakshe, amavasyayam tithau … gotrah … namaham; mama sakutumbasya kshema-sthairya-ayur-arogya-aishvarya-abhivriddhyartham Shri Mahalakshmi prityartham Shri Mahalakshmi pujanam karishye — "in the month of Kartik, in the dark fortnight, on the Amavasya tithi … of such-and-such gotra, I, named so … for the wellbeing, steadiness, long life, health and prosperity of myself and my family, and for the pleasure of Shri Mahalakshmi, undertake the worship of Shri Mahalakshmi." In amanta panchangs the month is named Ashwina rather than Kartika for this same night — use whichever your local panchang gives. Fill the remaining gaps from your family's gotra; if you do not know it, tradition allows Kashyapa gotra in its place.
A simple sankalpa if you do not recite Sanskrit
An intention spoken in your own language is still an intention. With water in your right palm: "This Diwali evening, I undertake the worship of Shri Mahalakshmi and will chant Om Shreem Mahalakshmyai Namah one hundred and eight times, for the wellbeing of my family." Release the water, and begin.
Japa needs none of this. If you are not doing a formal puja, you can simply keep the 108 on Diwali evening — the count is the practice.
Why Lakshmi is worshipped on Diwali night
Diwali falls on the Amavasya of Kartik — the darkest night of the half-year — and tradition holds that Lakshmi walks the earth that night, entering homes that are lit, cleaned and welcoming. The rows of lamps (deepavali) that give the festival its name are that welcome. In the tradition's telling the night also carries Rama's return to Ayodhya, greeted with lamps — light received with gratitude, and prosperity honoured as something held in trust, not merely owned. The evening Lakshmi Puja, the japa that follows it, and the open doors and lamps are all one gesture.
A simple five-day practice plan
- From Dhanteras (6 November): Om Shreem Mahalakshmyai Namah × 108 daily, morning or evening.
- Dhanteras evening: add the Kuber mantra × 108 if you keep the observance.
- Diwali evening (8 November): Lakshmi Puja and aarti first, then the 108 japa; play or recite the Shri Suktam during the puja.
- Through the days: let the mantra run silently — manasik japa counts.
Benefits in the tradition's own framing: gratitude, generosity, and prosperity honoured well — fruits of consistent practice, not promised outcomes.