Aavani Avittam · Upakarma Festival The day the sacred thread is changed and the year's study of the Veda is formally begun again.
The name
The same day, written in each of the six scripts this app keeps
- English
- Aavani Avittam · Upakarma
- தமிழ்
- ஆவணி அவிட்டம்
- తెలుగు
- శ్రావణ పౌర్ణమి
- ಕನ್ನಡ
- ಉಪಾಕರ್ಮ
- हिन्दी
- उपाकर्म
Only the names actually in use are listed. A blank script is not an omission: the day may simply not be kept there, or be kept under a different festival's name.
UTC+5:30
The date of a festival depends on the place: a tithi that ends at dusk in Chennai can still be running at dusk a thousand kilometres west, which moves the day. Sunrise and sunset here are computed for the place above.
When it falls next
Looking for the calendar this day belongs to
This day does not fall again in the next three years at this place. A few days are tied to the solar month rather than to the civil year, so a year can hold two of them or none.
What the day is
The day the sacred thread is changed and the year's study of the Veda is formally begun again. The Kamokarsheet japam, a rite of expiation, is done first, the old poonal is given up and a new one worn, and the Gayatri japam follows the next day. Yajur, Rig and Sama branches keep it on different days.
- Deity
- Brahma, Varuna, Gayatri
- Kind
- Festival Days of celebration: the house is decorated, a feast is cooked and the temple is visited.
The hour
The rule in words
The morning of Shravana Pournami, before midday; the Gayatri japam is on the day after.
The fast
The men who change the thread fast until the rite is finished, usually to midday, and then eat a plain meal. No fish or meat on the day.
Where the regions differ
Yajurvedins keep it on Shravana Pournami, Rigvedins on Shravana nakshatra in Aavani and Samavedins in Purattasi, so one household can keep three dates. Telugu and Kannada families call the same day Jandhyala Pournami or Upakarma, and the north ties the rakhi on it.
Every date here is computed from the Sun and Moon for the place entered, by the rule printed beside it. A printed panchangam can differ by a day where an almanac reads a tithi at a different instant, and a family's own custom always comes first. Where the practice genuinely varies, the text says so rather than choosing for you.