Hariyali Teej 2026 falls on Saturday, August 15, on Shravana Shukla Tritiya.
This is the first of the three Teej festivals, arriving right as monsoon season hits its peak. The timing in mid-August means lush green everywhere in North India, which is exactly why the festival carries the name “Hariyali” (greenery). It’s also one of the most joyful fasting days in the Hindu calendar, with singing, swings, and mehndi taking center stage alongside the religious observance.
What the vrat marks
Married women keep this fast, waterless or with light fruit only, for their husband’s long life and a happy marriage. It commemorates Goddess Parvati’s penance and devotion to win Lord Shiva as her husband. The story goes that Parvati observed severe austerities over many lifetimes before Shiva accepted her, and the vrat honors that dedication.
Green is the theme of the day: green bangles, green sarees, and swings decorated with flowers for the occasion, tying into Shravan’s monsoon greenery. In Rajasthan and parts of UP, women gather in groups, sing traditional Teej songs, and take turns on decorated jhulas (swings). Mehndi is applied the night before or on the morning of the festival, and it’s considered auspicious for the mehndi to come out dark.
How to observe the vrat
The fast begins at sunrise. Strict observers go nirjala (without water), while others take fruit, milk, or light snacks through the day. The fast is broken after the evening puja, typically after sighting the moon or at a convenient time during Tritiya tithi.
A day before the fast, married women receive a sindhara from their in-laws or maternal home. This traditionally includes ghewar (the classic Rajasthani sweet for Teej season), fruits, mehndi, bangles, and sometimes new clothes. If you’re living abroad and missing the sindhara tradition, many Indian sweet shops in diaspora cities stock ghewar specifically around Shravan.
When the puja is done
The puja is usually done in the evening before a joint idol or picture of Shiva and Parvati. There is no single fixed muhurat window; any convenient time during Tritiya tithi works. Place the idol or picture on a clean chowki, offer green bangles, seasonal fruits, and flowers. Married women apply sindoor during the puja and pray for saubhagya.
Some families also observe the fast on the following Teej, Kajari Teej, which falls 15 days later on Krishna Tritiya. That one has a more agricultural flavor, with women praying for good harvests alongside marital blessings.
How the three Teej festivals differ
The three Teej festivals get mixed up often enough to be worth separating clearly. Hariyali Teej, in Shravan, is generally the most festive, with swings, singing, and lighter fasting for many observers. Hartalika Teej comes three to four weeks later, just before Ganesh Chaturthi, and is the strictest of the three: a mandatory nirjala fast observed by married and unmarried women alike. The month settles which is meant: Shravan means Hariyali, just before Ganesh Chaturthi means Hartalika.
Common questions about the fast itself
First-time observers, especially newly married women joining their husband’s family traditions, ask practical questions the texts don’t cover. Can you take medication during a nirjala fast? Most pandits say yes, though it’s a family decision. What if you’re pregnant or unwell? Tradition allows modified observance, fruit and milk instead of a waterless fast. Can the fast be kept a day late while traveling? Generally no, since it’s tied to the Tritiya tithi, though puja timing within that day is flexible.
Check the timing for your city
For the exact sunset and Rahu Kaal to plan the evening puja and when to break the fast, check the muhurat page with your city selected. Since 2026’s Hariyali Teej falls on a Saturday, working women won’t need to juggle office schedules around the vrat, which makes planning a bit easier.