Pradosh Vrat is a fast in honour of Shiva, kept on Trayodashi, the thirteenth tithi. Because Trayodashi occurs in both the Shukla and Krishna fortnights, the vrat comes twice a month. Its worship is centred on the twilight after sunset, a time that tradition regards as especially dear to Shiva.
What is Pradosh Kaal?
Pradosh Kaal begins at sunset and lasts for one fifth of the night, where the night is measured from sunset to the next sunrise. In the classical reckoning of a 30-ghati night, this is about 6 ghatis. Its actual length therefore changes through the year: longer on winter evenings, shorter in summer, and different from city to city.
How the vrat day is decided
The vrat is kept on the day when Trayodashi prevails during Pradosh Kaal. In most months only one evening qualifies. Sometimes, however, Trayodashi touches the Pradosh window on two consecutive evenings. In that case the day on which Trayodashi covers the larger part of Pradosh Kaal is chosen.
Because the rule looks at the evening rather than at sunrise, the Pradosh date can differ from the day on which Trayodashi is printed as the sunrise tithi. This is normal and is one reason calendars occasionally seem to disagree. For background on tithis, see Tithi.
Names by weekday
A Pradosh takes a special name from the weekday on which it falls. The most widely observed are:
- Soma Pradosh: when it falls on Monday
- Bhauma Pradosh: when it falls on Tuesday
- Shani Pradosh: when it falls on Saturday
These combinations are traditionally considered especially auspicious, and many devotees make a point of observing them. Names for the other weekdays are also used in some regions.
How it is observed
Common practice is to fast through the day and perform Shiva puja at dusk: abhisheka of the Shivalinga, offering bilva leaves, lighting lamps and reading or listening to the Pradosh katha. Some keep a complete fast, while others take a simple meal after the evening puja. Traditions may vary by region and family custom.
On this platform
Pradosh Kaal is calculated from the local sunset and next sunrise for your chosen city, and the vrat day follows the larger-overlap rule described above. See upcoming dates and timings on the Pradosh Vrat page.