Chitragupta Puja 2026
11 November 2026

Chitragupta Puja is kept on Kartik Shukla Dwitiya, the same day as Bhai Dooj. Chitragupta is the keeper of the record of every person’s deeds in Yama’s court; the Garuda Purana describes him there beside Yama, holding the account of each soul’s deeds. Kayastha families of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Madhya Pradesh hold him as their ancestor and worship him on this day.

Because Chitragupta is the divine record keeper, the puja centres on the tools of writing: the kalam-dawat (pen and inkpot), account books and paper. Many Kayastha families set their pens aside after Diwali and take them up again only after this puja. A letter is written to Chitragupta with the family’s name, the year’s income and expenses and a prayer, and offered at the puja as an account of the year.

• Picture of Chitragupta
• A chowki and clean cloth
• Kalam (pen) and dawat (inkpot)
• Account books and blank paper
• Roli, akshat and haldi
• Flowers
• Diya and incense
• Kalash of water
• Sweets and fruits for prasad

Source: Tradition of Kayastha families, told at the puja

When Brahma had made the world and all its creatures, Yama found it hard to keep account of the deeds of every living being, and went to Brahma for help. Brahma sat in meditation for a long time, and from his body rose a man holding a pen and an inkpot.

Because he had been hidden (gupta) in Brahma’s mind (chitta), he was named Chitragupta; and because he came from Brahma’s body (kaya), his descendants came to be called Kayastha. Brahma set him beside Yama to keep the record of every soul’s good and bad deeds.

From then on, tradition holds, Chitragupta writes down each person’s deeds, and Yama judges by his account. He is shown seated with a pen in his hand and a ledger before him. That is why families who live by the pen worship him with their pens and books on this day, and give him an account of their own year.

What to do

• Clean the pens, the inkpot and the books before the puja, since they are worshipped as Chitragupta’s own tools.
• Write the letter to Chitragupta honestly, with the year’s real income and expenses; the custom is an account given to the record keeper.
• Read the katha aloud with the family, so the younger ones learn why the day is kept.

What to avoid

• Many Kayastha families avoid writing with the pen between Diwali and this puja, taking it up again only after it.
• Avoid placing the account books or the pen on the floor; on this day they are worshipped.

The puja falls in the bright half of Kartik, so the month name is the same in the Purnimanta and Amanta calendars. It is kept above all by Kayastha families of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand and Madhya Pradesh, and by them wherever they now live. It is also called Kalam-Dawat Puja, or Dawat Puja.

It is kept on the same day as Bhai Dooj, the day the Dwitiya holds at sunrise, read at each place’s own sunrise, so cities far apart can differ by a day.