Magh Mela 2027 · Bathing day
Paush Purnima Snan at Magh Mela 2027: Friday 22 January
The Paush Purnima snan of Magh Mela 2027 at the Sangam is expected on Friday 22 January 2027, the full moon of Paush. It is the second of the six main bathing days, a week after Makar Sankranti.
By tradition, kalpvas begins on this day. Kalpvasis bathe, take their vow and stay by the Sangam for a month, until Maghi Purnima on Saturday 20 February 2027.
The day at a glance
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Date | Friday 22 January 2027 (expected) |
| Weekday | Friday |
| Tithi at sunrise | Pausha Purnima |
| Place | The Sangam, Prayagraj, where the Ganga and the Yamuna meet |
| Which bath | The second 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 full moon of Paush. By tradition, the day kalpvas begins. |
What Paush Purnima means by tradition
The Prayagraj Mela Authority describes Paush Purnima as the full moon on the fifteenth day of the bright half of Paush, and calls it the unofficial opening of the mela and the start of kalpvas. A Government of India release on the 2019 Kumbh described kalpvasis the same way, as devotees who spend one month, from Paush Purnima to Maghi Purnima by the Hindu calendar.
Sources count the month in more than one way. The mela authority’s page on rituals, citing the Brahma Purana and Padma Purana, counts kalpvas from an Ekadashi in Paush to the Ekadashi of Magh, so families follow their own custom.
Whether Paush Purnima opens the mela depends on the year. In 2026 the Magh Mela began with the Paush Purnima bath on 3 January, All India Radio reported. In 2027, as at the 2019 Kumbh, Makar Sankranti comes first: the 2019 Paush Purnima bath was the second of the season, on 21 January 2019.
At the Sangam on Paush Purnima
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.
For kalpvasis the bath is the start of the month. At the opening of the 2026 mela, the president of the Prayag Dham Sangh told PTI that kalpvasis take the vow of kalpvas from their priests after the bath and then stay at the mela. During the month, the same PTI report said, they bathe in the Ganga twice a day and eat one meal a day.
One custom ties the first day to the last. When kalpvas ended on Maghi Purnima in 2025, PIB described kalpvasis immersing in the Ganga the barley sown at the start of kalpvas. Read kalpvas at the Magh Mela for how the month works, and kalpvas explained for its rules.
Paush Purnima in the Magh Mela season
Paush Purnima is the second of six main bathing days. Three of the four that follow fall inside the month of kalpvas.
- Friday 15 January: Makar Sankranti, the first bath; by tradition, the day daan begins at the mela.
- Friday 22 January: Paush Purnima, the full moon on which kalpvas begins, by tradition (this page).
- 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 your family plans to keep kalpvas, the land and camp arrangements for 2027 have not been announced. Start with your family’s tirth purohit; our kalpvas guide explains who arranges the camps.
- 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.
- Sunrise6:49 am
- Tithi at sunrisePurnima until 5:46 pm
- From 5:46 pmPratipada until 2:12 pm the next day
- Paksha and monthShukla paksha, Pausha
- Observed asPausha Purnima
- Sunset5:39 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 Paush Purnima snan at Magh Mela 2027?
On Friday 22 January 2027, by the Hindu calendar (Pausha Purnima). It stays expected until the Prayagraj Mela Authority publishes its list.
Does Magh Mela 2027 start on Paush Purnima?
No. The first main bath is Makar Sankranti on Friday 15 January 2027. The mela authority calls Paush Purnima the unofficial opening of the mela and the start of kalpvas, which is why some people date the mela from 22 January.
When does kalpvas begin and end in 2027?
By tradition, from Paush Purnima to Maghi Purnima: Friday 22 January to Saturday 20 February 2027, by the calendar. Some families count it from an Ekadashi instead.