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Raksha Bandhan is celebrated on Shravana Purnima — the full moon day of the month of Shravana — which falls this year in late August 2026. Check the panchang for your city for the exact day and the aparahna muhurat, because the rakhi is traditionally tied while the Purnima tithi prevails and outside the inauspicious Bhadra period.
The word itself tells the story: raksha, protection, and bandhan, the bond. When a sister ties the rakhi, she is not merely decorating her brother’s wrist — she is performing a small, complete ritual: a prayer for his long life, a tilak for his honour, and a sacred thread that carries her sankalp of love. His gift in return is not payment; it is a renewed vow of protection.
Indrani and Indra. The oldest reference comes from the Bhavishya Purana: when Indra faced defeat against the asuras, his consort Indrani tied a consecrated thread on his wrist on Shravana Purnima, and he prevailed. The first rakhi, notably, was tied by a wife — the thread is fundamentally about protection through prayer, and every loving bond can claim it.
Draupadi and Krishna. When Shri Krishna cut his finger, Draupadi tore a strip from her sari and bound the wound without a moment’s thought. The Lord counted that strip as a rakhi and repaid it at her darkest hour, when her honour was protected in the Kaurava court. One small act of spontaneous love, the tradition teaches, is never forgotten by the divine.
Yama and the Yamuna. It is said that when Yamuna tied a rakhi to her brother Yama, the lord of death granted that any brother who is tied a rakhi with true feeling receives blessings of long life. This is why the ritual is done with a diya, a prayer, and full attention — not in passing.
1. Prepare a small thali: rakhi, roli or kumkum for tilak, akshat (unbroken rice), a diya, and something sweet.
2. Choose the muhurat — tie the rakhi during the Purnima tithi, avoiding the Bhadra period; your local panchang lists both.
3. The sister applies the tilak, ties the rakhi on the right wrist, performs a short aarti, and offers the sweet with a silent prayer for her brother’s wellbeing.
4. The brother touches the feet of an elder sister, or blesses a younger one, and makes his vow — the gift is only its symbol.
5. Distance need not break the ritual: send the rakhi ahead, and tie the moment together on a video call at the muhurat, each with a diya lit.
Shravana Purnima is also Shravani Upakarma, the day the sacred thread itself is renewed — a reminder that bonds, like vows, must be consciously retied, not assumed. If you would like to mark this festival of protection with a ritual for your whole family’s wellbeing, explore our online pujas — each performed in your name, at the right muhurat, with live darshan.
