Most of us think Diwali ends with Bhai Dooj and the leftover mithai boxes. But in Varanasi, the real show is still coming. About a fortnight after Diwali \u2014 on Tuesday, 24 November 2026<\/strong> \u2014 the ghats of Kashi will be lit with lakhs of diyas for a festival most people outside UP have never heard of: Dev Diwali<\/strong>, the Diwali of the Gods.<\/p>\n The full moon of Kartik (Kartik Purnima) is when, tradition says, the gods themselves descend to earth to bathe in the Ganga. The lamps on the ghats \u2014 from Ravidas Ghat in the south all the way to Rajghat \u2014 are lit to welcome them. Diwali is our festival of lights. This one is theirs.<\/p>\n The story behind Dev Diwali is one of the oldest. The demon Tripurasura had received a powerful boon from Brahma and, with his three flying cities, had made himself nearly invincible. The three worlds were terrified, and the gods couldn’t defeat him. So they went to Shiva. On Kartik Purnima, Shiva took the form of Tripurari<\/strong> \u2014 destroyer of the three cities \u2014 and brought them down with a single arrow.<\/p>\n The gods, overwhelmed with relief, lit lamps across Kashi to celebrate. That’s why the day is also called Tripuri or Tripurari Purnima<\/strong>. Honestly, I find this story hits harder than most: it’s about a darkness so total that even the gods needed help, and one precise, decisive strike of clarity ending it. That’s the kind of victory a diya is supposed to symbolise.<\/p>\n The Kartik full moon is sacred far beyond Varanasi. Devotees begin the day with Kartik snan<\/strong> \u2014 a holy dip in the Ganga or any river at dawn \u2014 and many keep a day-long fast honouring both Shiva and Vishnu. It marks the end of the entire month of Kartik, when countless households have been lighting lamps daily at dawn and dusk.<\/p>\n It also closes the great Diwali arc of the year. Look at how the season stacks up: Diwali and Lakshmi Puja fall on Sunday, 8 November (see the five-day Diwali calendar and Lakshmi Puja muhurat<\/a>), then comes Tulsi Vivah on Saturday, 21 November \u2014 the ritual wedding that reopens the wedding season \u2014 and then this, the grand finale on the full moon of the 24th. If you’d like to plan ahead for the next one, the site’s full moon date guide<\/a> lists every Purnima of the year.<\/p>\n You don’t need to be in Varanasi to keep the spirit of this night. Here’s a simple way:<\/p>\nShiva’s victory: why the lamps are lit<\/h2>\n
Kartik Purnima: the holy dip and the month of lamps<\/h2>\n
How to honour Dev Diwali at home<\/h2>\n
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