Chhath Puja 2026 runs November 13-16: Nahay Khay, Kharna, Sandhya Arghya (evening offering to the setting sun), and Usha Arghya (morning offering to the rising sun). For Bihari and Purvanchali families in the US, the dates match India’s, but the arghya times are tied to your own local sunrise and sunset, and those can be dramatically different.

Why this is entirely about your local sun times

Arghya is offered at the moment of sunset (Sandhya Arghya, November 15) and sunrise (Usha Arghya, November 16). These are, by definition, local astronomical events. An India-published clock time for Patna or Delhi has no direct bearing on when the sun sets or rises in your US city.

Consider the difference: on November 15, sunset in Patna is around 5:10 PM IST. In New York, it’s around 4:35 PM EST. In Houston, it’s 5:27 PM CST. In San Jose, it’s 4:57 PM PST. These aren’t just different time zones, they’re different longitudes and latitudes producing genuinely different sun positions. A family standing at the water’s edge in Edison, New Jersey, needs Edison’s sunset, not Patna’s.

Sunrise the next morning shows even bigger gaps. November 16 sunrise in Patna is around 6:00 AM. In Chicago, it’s roughly 6:33 AM CST. In Seattle, it’s about 7:05 AM PST. That’s over an hour of difference that directly affects when you offer Usha Arghya.

The four-day sequence in detail

Here’s how the four days play out:

  • November 13 (Nahay Khay): The vratin bathes in a river or water body and prepares the first prasad meal, typically lauki (bottle gourd) with chana dal and rice, cooked in a mitti ka chulha. In the US, many families adapt by using a terrace or backyard setup.
  • November 14 (Kharna): The vratin fasts through the day and breaks it in the evening with kheer and roti, after which the nirjala fast begins. This evening meal is the last food and water for the next 36 hours.
  • November 15 (Sandhya Arghya): The evening offering to the setting sun, standing in water. Thekua, fruits, and sugarcane are arranged on the soop (winnowing basket). The vratin faces the setting sun and offers arghya. This is the moment that requires your local sunset time.
  • November 16 (Usha Arghya): The morning offering to the rising sun. The vratin again stands in water, this time facing east. After this arghya, the fast is broken with the prasad.

The 36-hour fast in between

Vratins observe a roughly 36-hour nirjala fast from Kharna’s evening through Usha Arghya the next morning. Knowing your local sunset on the 15th and sunrise on the 16th in advance helps plan the fast’s timing precisely. For families in northern US cities like Minneapolis or Detroit, mid-November sunrise is late, sometimes past 7 AM, which means the nirjala stretch is longer than it would be in Patna.

Finding a water body

In India, Chhath happens at a river ghat. In the US, families find ponds, lakes, or even community pools. Cities with large Bihari and Purvanchali populations, like Edison (NJ), Schaumburg (IL), and Sugar Land (TX), sometimes organize community Chhath at local lakes with proper setup. Check your local Indian community groups for organized gatherings.

Getting your city’s exact times

Use the panchang page with your US city selected to see the exact sunset for November 15 and sunrise for November 16, calculated for your longitude and latitude.