Bengali Ashara Month 2025 – Ashada Mash in Bangla Calendar - Ashar Month in 2025

Ashar month, or Ashad, is the third month in a traditional Bengali calendar. In 2025, Aashar Month in Bangla Calendar begins on June 16 and ends on July 17, 2025. The current year as per Bengali calendar is 1432. Some of the auspicious days in the month include Manasa Devi Puja and Kamakhya Devi Puja (June 22 to June 26).

Important Festivals and Auspicious Days in Ashara Month

Puri Ratha Yatra - June 27
Bipadtarini Puja is on June 28 and July 1

Return Journey of Puri Rath Yatra - July 5

Guru Purnima - July 11

Manasa puja - Ashtanga puja - 

Purnima day in Ashada month in 2025 is on July 10

Amavasya in Ashara Mash is on June 25

The two Ekadashis in the month are on June 21 and July 14

The next month in Bengali Calendar is the Shravan month.

Ashar: The Monsoon Month of Bengali Hindu Tradition

Meaning and Origin
Ashar (also known as Ashada) is the third month in the traditional Bengali Hindu calendar, marking the formal arrival of the monsoon season in Bengal. Falling roughly between mid-June and mid-July of the Gregorian calendar, Ashar ushers in a sense of renewal, relief, and anticipation for agrarian communities. Its very name evokes images of verdant paddy fields, rhythmic drops of rain on tin roofs, and the vibrant cultural tapestry woven around this life-sustaining season.

Cultural and Agrarian Importance
In Bengal’s largely agrarian society, Ashar is synonymous with new beginnings. As the torrential rains replenish the rivers and fields, farmers commence planting paddy saplings, a ritual entwined with hopes for a bountiful harvest. The month’s abundant rainfall also revitalizes flora and fauna, inspiring poets and artists to celebrate nature’s fecundity. Folk songs known as Ashar Gaan capture the playful banter between rain clouds and parched earth, reflecting a deep cultural reverence for the monsoon.

Festivals and Puja Observances
Ashar is dotted with numerous religious festivals and pujas that celebrate divine feminine energies, agricultural prosperity, and community solidarity.

• Manasa Devi Puja
  On the Panchami tithi on the month, devotees worship Manasa, the serpent goddess, to seek protection from snakebites and other calamities. Elaborate clay images of the goddess are installed in courtyards, accompanied by recitation of Manasar Bhasan—a series of verses narrating her trials and triumphs. Offerings include sweets made of coconut and jaggery, flowers, and incense.

• Kamakhya Devi Puja
  Coinciding with Manasa’s celebration, Kamakhya Devi Puja is performed in households and community shrines. Kamakhya, revered as a powerful manifestation of the divine mother, is venerated for her blessings in fertility and abundance. Devotees observe fasts and make offerings of turmeric, vermilion, and red hibiscus flowers.

• Puri Ratha Yatra
  Although centered in Odisha, the grand chariot festival of Lord Jagannath resonates deeply in Bengal’s devotional culture. Processions of exquisitely decorated wooden chariots, carrying images of Jagannath, Balabhadra, and Subhadra, travel through temple streets to the Gundicha Temple. Bengal’s temples and households mark the occasion with small-scale chariot processions, devotional songs, and feasting.

• Bipadtarini Puja
  Observed to invoke the protective power of Goddess Bipadtarini, this puja is believed to shield devotees from dangers and misfortunes. Women, in particular, participate by offering rice cakes and lighting lamps at dusk, accompanied by recitation of protective mantras.

• Ashtanga Puja
  A composite form of worship encompassing eight (ashta) forms of the divine mother, Ashtanga Puja blends Vedic rites with local customs. It typically involves complex rituals, including fire offerings (homa), invocations (avahan), and ceremonial sprinkling of sanctified water.

• Guru Purnima (Occasionally in Ashar)
  In years when the full moon (Purnima) falls in Ashar, the sacred festival of Guru Purnima is celebrated. Disciples honor their spiritual teachers with floral tributes, heartfelt obeisance, and the chanting of guru-shlokas. This underscores the Bengali tradition’s deep respect for the teacher-disciple bond.

Fasting and Ritual Practices
Fasting during Ashar is both an act of devotion and a means of communal solidarity. Many observe partial fasts—consuming only fruits, milk, and specially prepared dishes—while abstaining from grains and onions. For Manasa Devi Puja, devotees may fast for five consecutive days, breaking the fast only after the final worship. During Ashtanga Puja, participants often maintain a strict one-meal-a-day regime, offering their food to the deity before eating.

Beyond the prescribed pujas, Ashar rituals encompass daily offerings of dhupa (incense) and deepa (oil lamps) at household shrines, accompanied by the melodic recitation of hymns. Women traditionally rise before dawn to draw alpana—intricate rice-paste designs—on thresholds and puja areas, symbolizing auspicious beginnings.

Special Days and Local Variations
While the pan-Bengal observances form the backbone of Ashar’s cultural landscape, numerous local customs add color and diversity. In villages along the Ganges, boat processions with miniature deity images traverse swollen rivers, seeking blessings for safe travel and fishing bounty. In rural districts, community feasts (bhandara) following Ashtanga Puja unite neighbors in shared meals of khichuri (rice and lentil porridge) and payesh (rice pudding).

Several significant days are noted:

• Ashar Sankranti: Marks the midpoint of the month, observed with special prayers for uninterrupted rains.

• Ashar Shashthi: Dedicated to protective goddesses, with offerings of modak (sweet dumplings) and bamboo leaves.

• Ashar Purnima (when Guru Purnima coincides): A culmination of Ashar’s spiritual journey, blending reverence for the divine and the guru.

Beyond Rituals: Literary and Artistic Resonance
Ashar’s influence permeates Bengali literature and arts. Poets like Rabindranath Tagore and Jibanananda Das evoke the monsoon’s moods in evocative verses, while painters capture the lush green landscapes and rain-dappled skies. In folk theater (jatra) and puppet shows (putul naach), tales of Manasa Devi’s perseverance and eventual acceptance by Shiva are performed to enthralled audiences.

Final Thoughts
Ashar transcends mere calendrical notation; it embodies the symbiotic relationship between nature, agrarian life, and devotional spirituality in Bengali Hindu culture. As rain clouds gather and paddy fields turn emerald, the month unfolds through colorful pujas, disciplined fasts, and communal celebrations—each ritual a thread in the rich tapestry of Bengal’s timeless traditions. Whether invoking the guardian serpent goddess or honoring the guru’s guidance, devotees emerge renewed in faith, sustained by the promise of abundance that Ashar so graciously bestows.