Dashain

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Dashain
Goddess Durga (pictured) slayed the demon Mahishasura on this day[1]
Official name	बडादसैँ
Also called	Bijaya Dashami, Nauratha
Observed by	Nepalese and Indian Gorkha Hindus and Buddhists
Type	Religious, Cultural
Significance	A festival commemorating the victory of good over evil
Celebrations	Marks the end of Durga Puja
Observances	Worshipping nine forms of Durga, visiting Shakti Pithas and pandals, organizing plays, visiting relatives, feasts, community gathering, recitation of scriptures, immersion of the idol Durga or burning of Ravana.
Date	Ashvin or Kartika (September to November)
2024 date	3 October 2024, Thursday to 16 October 2024, Wednesday
Related to	Vijaya Dashami

Dashain or Bada'dashain, also referred as Vijaya Dashami in Sanskrit, is a major Hindu religious festival in Nepal and the Indian states of Sikkim, West Bengal, Assam, South India, and Sri Lanka.^[2] It is also celebrated by other religions of Nepal and elsewhere in the world,^[3] including the Lhotshampa of Bhutan^[4] and the Burmese Gurkhas of Myanmar. The festival is also referred as Nauratha, derived from the Sanskrit word for the festival Navaratri which translates to Nine Nights.^[5]

It is the longest and the most auspicious festival in the Bikram Sambat and Nepal Sambat annual calendars, celebrated by Nepali Hindus, along with their diaspora throughout the globe. In Nepal, it is also known as the biggest festival in the country and is the longest national/public holiday, lasting 15 days. It is the most anticipated festival in Nepal. People return from all parts of the world and different parts of the country to celebrate together.^[3] The festival falls in September or October, starting from the shukla paksha (bright lunar night) of the month of Ashvin and ending on Purnima, the full moon. Among the fifteen days on which it is celebrated, the most celebrated days are the first, seventh, eighth, ninth, tenth, eleventh, and fifteenth.^[6] Dashain is the main Hindu festival in Nepal.