Magh Mela 2027 · Bathing day
Makar Sankranti Snan at Magh Mela 2027: Friday 15 January
The Makar Sankranti snan, the first main bath of Magh Mela 2027 at the Sangam in Prayagraj, is expected on Friday 15 January 2027. You will also see 14 January: Haridwar's mela administration lists that day for its own Makar Sankranti bath.
The difference comes from the calendar. The Sun enters Makara (Capricorn) on the night of Thursday 14 January, after sunset, and many panchangs then keep the festival and its bath on the 15th. For the bath at the Sangam, follow the date the Prayagraj Mela Authority lists.
The day at a glance
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Date | Friday 15 January 2027 (expected) |
| Weekday | Friday |
| Tithi at sunrise | Pausha Shukla Saptami. The day follows the Sun’s entry into Makara, not the tithi. |
| Place | The Sangam, Prayagraj, where the Ganga and the Yamuna meet |
| Which bath | The first of six main bathing days of Magh Mela 2027 |
| Status | Provisional: from the Hindu calendar, not yet listed by the Prayagraj Mela Authority |
| What the day means | The Sun enters Makara (Capricorn). At the mela, by tradition, the day charitable giving (daan) begins. |
14 or 15 January: why calendars differ
Most bathing days follow a tithi, a lunar day. Makar Sankranti follows the Sun: it is the moment the Sun enters Makara. In 2027 that moment falls a little after 9 pm on Thursday 14 January, by the Tirth calendar for New Delhi and by Drik Panchang for Prayagraj.
A panchang then has to decide which day carries the festival. Drik Panchang states the rule it follows: when the Sun enters Makara after sunset, the punya kaal, the auspicious window for the bath and for daan, moves to sunrise the next day. For Prayagraj it puts the punya kaal on Friday 15 January, from sunrise, and keeps Makar Sankranti on that day. The Tirth calendar also keeps it on 15 January and notes that dates can differ by a day from place to place.
The Sun’s entry itself falls on 14 January, and some lists use that day. Haridwar’s official Kumbh website gives Thursday 14 January 2027 for its Makar Sankranti bath. At Prayagraj, the report of the mela administration’s first planning meeting gave the day as 14 or 15 January.
Neither date is a mistake; they come from different ways of reckoning the same event. Go by the list the Prayagraj Mela Authority publishes for the Sangam, not by a calendar app. For Haridwar, see the Haridwar Makar Sankranti page.
- Kumbh 2019 at Prayagraj: the first bath, Makar Sankranti, was on 15 January 2019, according to PIB.
- Maha Kumbh 2025 at Prayagraj: the mela authority listed Makar Sankranti on 14 January 2025 as the first Shahi Snan.
- Magh Mela 2027: Friday 15 January 2027 by the calendar; not yet listed by the mela authority.
What the day means, and what pilgrims do at the Sangam
By tradition, Makar Sankranti marks the Sun’s move into Makara and the start of Uttarayan, its northward journey. Across India the same days are kept under other names; greeting the country in January 2026, the Vice-President named Makar Sankranti, Pongal, Lohri, Magh Bihu and other harvest festivals together, and said they herald the change of seasons and the Sun’s northward journey.
The Prayagraj Mela Authority describes Makar Sankranti as the day charitable giving (daan) begins at the mela, with pilgrims giving as much as they wish. In a Kumbh year it can also be an Amrit Snan, led by the akharas: at the 2025 Maha Kumbh it was the first of three. 2027 is the yearly Magh Mela, not a Kumbh.
Pilgrims bathe at the Sangam, where the Ganga and the Yamuna meet. Some walk across the riverbank to the bathing ghats laid out for the mela; others take a boat from the ghat near the fort out to the meeting point, where, the district says, priests sit on small platforms in the river and help pilgrims with puja and the ritual bath. Read the Sangam guide for the ghats, the boats and the shrines nearby.
Kalpvas has not begun on this day. By tradition it starts a week later, on Paush Purnima, Friday 22 January 2027. Read kalpvas at the Magh Mela.
Makar Sankranti in the Magh Mela season
Makar Sankranti opens a season of six main bathing days at the Sangam. All are expected dates from the Hindu calendar.
- Friday 15 January: Makar Sankranti, the first bath; by tradition, the day daan begins at the mela (this page).
- Friday 22 January: Paush Purnima, the full moon on which kalpvas begins, by tradition.
- Saturday 6 February: Mauni Amavasya, the new moon of Magha and, by tradition, the main bath of the mela.
- Thursday 11 February: Basant Panchami, Saraswati and the turn towards spring.
- Saturday 20 February: Maghi Purnima, the full moon on which kalpvas ends, by tradition.
- Saturday 6 March: Mahashivratri, the night of Shiva and the last bath of the mela.
| Date and tithi | Bathing day | Status | Add to calendar |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fri 15 Jan 2027Pausha Shukla Saptami | Makar SankrantiSangam | Expected | |
| Fri 22 Jan 2027Pausha Purnima | Paush PurnimaSangam | Expected | |
| Sat 6 Feb 2027Magha Amavasya | Mauni AmavasyaSangam | Expected | |
| Thu 11 Feb 2027Magha Shukla Panchami | Basant PanchamiSangam | Expected | |
| Sat 20 Feb 2027Magha Shukla Chaturdashi at sunrise | Maghi PurnimaSangam | Expected | |
| Sat 6 Mar 2027Phalguna Krishna Trayodashi at sunrise | MahashivratriSangam | Expected |
For all six days side by side, see the Magh Mela 2027 bathing days, and for the start and end of the season, Magh Mela 2027 start and end date.
Plan the visit
- Main bathing days usually draw large numbers of pilgrims; follow police and mela instructions on the day.
- Expect to walk. At the 2025 Maha Kumbh, the mela authority kept vehicles out of the mela area from the day before to the day after each main bathing day, and put parking 1 to 2 km from the ghats. The traffic rules for 2027 have not been announced.
- If you plan to bathe on 14 January, check the mela authority’s list first: in 2027 the calendar puts the Prayagraj bath on the 15th.
- Mornings in mid-January are cold at the river. Carry warm layers and a dry change of clothes; our packing list helps.
- For trains, buses and flights, read how to reach Prayagraj; for a tent on the mela ground or a hotel in the city, read where to stay for Magh Mela 2027.
- Book only what you can cancel until the Prayagraj Mela Authority publishes its list, and check who runs a camp before you pay: how to check a Kumbh booking.
The day by the panchang
Sunrise, the tithi and when it changes, and sunset at the bathing place, calculated by the Tirth panchang.
- Sunrise6:50 am
- Tithi at sunriseSaptami until 2:13 pm
- From 2:13 pmAshtami until 1:42 pm the next day
- Paksha and monthShukla paksha, Pausha
- Observed asMakara Sankranti
- Sunset5:34 pm
The panchang gives the day's timings by tradition; it does not set bathing times. The mela administration decides when each ghat opens and the order of the akhara processions. Follow its plan, the police and mela instructions on the day.
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Questions people ask
When is the Makar Sankranti snan at Magh Mela 2027?
On Friday 15 January 2027, by the Hindu calendar. It is the first of the six main bathing days at the Sangam, and it stays expected until the Prayagraj Mela Authority publishes its list.
Why do some lists say 14 January 2027?
The Sun enters Makara a little after 9 pm on 14 January 2027, after sunset. Panchangs such as Drik Panchang then move the punya kaal to sunrise on the 15th, while some lists use the day of the Sun’s entry. Haridwar’s official list gives 14 January. For the Sangam, follow the Prayagraj Mela Authority’s list.
Does kalpvas begin on Makar Sankranti?
No. By tradition, as the mela authority and PIB describe it, kalpvas begins on Paush Purnima, which in 2027 is expected on Friday 22 January. Some families follow other customs; ask your family priest.
Where is the Makar Sankranti bath in Prayagraj?
At the Sangam, where the Ganga and the Yamuna meet. The ghats are laid out again for each mela, and the layout for 2027 has not been published.