← Vrat Calendar

Govardhan Puja / Annakut (Bishnoi)

Krishna lifting Govardhan; Guru Jambheshwar — gau-seva and cattle protection

Bishnoi

Get a reminder before the next Govardhan Puja / Annakut (Bishnoi)

At 7pm the evening before, each time it comes around. Turn it off anytime.

Remind me

Dates shown for India (default). Enable JavaScript to set a reminder for your location.

Govardhan Puja / Annakut — Karthika Shukla Pratipada, the day after Diwali. For Bishnois, the festival's centerpiece is gau-puja (cow worship) — a direct enactment of niyam #19 (cattle protection) of Guru Jambheshwar's 29 niyams. Cows are bathed, decorated, and offered fresh grass and jaggery; a cow-dung Govardhan mound is worshipped at the threshold; and Annakut bhog is prepared and offered to Krishna and Jambhoji before community sharing.

Dates 2026–2027

November 9, 2026October 30, 2027

Mantra

विष्णो विष्णो तू भजे रे प्राणी

Vishno Vishno tu bhaje re prani

O living being, chant Vishnu, chant Vishnu — Jambhoji's mool mantra, recited at the dawn gau-puja and Annakut offering.

How to recite

Govardhan Puja (Karthika Shukla Pratipada) is the day after Diwali. For Bishnois, the day centers on gau-puja (cow worship) and Annakut. At dawn: bathe the family or village cows, decorate their horns with turmeric and vermilion, garland them with marigold, and offer fresh grass, bajra, and jaggery. Build a small Govardhan-shaped mound from cow-dung at the threshold and worship it with flowers and lamps. In the temple or home, prepare Annakut — a mountain of bhog featuring as many varieties of vegetarian dishes as the family can afford — and offer it to Krishna and Guru Jambheshwar before sharing with the village.

Benefits

Cattle protection is niyam #19 of Guru Jambheshwar's 29 niyams — Bishnois are forbidden from castrating bulls or selling cattle to butchers, and every Bishnoi household keeps cows as sacred members of the family. Govardhan Puja is therefore not just a Vaishnava festival for Bishnois but a direct enactment of niyam #19 — the day the entire community publicly affirms its commitment to gau-seva. The Annakut bhog also showcases Marwari cuisine at its richest, prepared exclusively from grains and vegetables (no meat, no eggs, no onion-garlic) per the niyams.

✦ Special Note

Per Drik Panchang. Govardhan Puja 2026: November 9 (Karthika Shukla Pratipada). Govardhan Puja 2027: October 30. The Bishnoi gau-seva on Govardhan Puja is more elaborate than in many other Hindu communities because of niyam #19. Dates per Drik Panchang (drikpanchang.com, Rajasthan/Marwar Purnimanta reckoning); community observance details per the Akhil Bharatiya Bishnoi Mahasabha and Mukam (Muktidham Mukam) Mandir Sansthan calendars.

Foods Allowed

Annakut — 56 (or many) varieties of bhog: bajra roti, jowar roti, ker-sangri sabzi, gatte ki sabzi, kadhi, dal-bati, churma, gud-papdi, malpua, kheer, halwaPure cow's milk, kheer, ghee, chaasFresh seasonal vegetables — radish, carrot, methi, palakJaggery, til, gond ke ladduFruits — banana, orange, custard apple (sitaphal)

Foods to Avoid

Meat, fish, eggs, alcohol, tobacco — lifelong niyamOnion and garlic in the Annakut bhogAny harm to cows or cattle on this day — gau-puja is the heart of the festival

Meal Idea

Annakut bhog featuring bajra roti, ker-sangri sabzi, dal-bati-churma, kheer, and gud-papdi — offered first to the cows and then to Krishna and Jambhoji before the family shares the prasad.

🪔 Aarti

Aarti Kunj Bihari Ki

आरती कुंज बिहारी की, श्री गिरिधर कृष्ण मुरारी की ॥ गले में बैजंती माला, बजावे मुरली मधुर बाला । श्रवण में कुण्डल झलकाला, नंद के आनंद नंदलाला ॥ गगन सम अंग कांति काली, राधिका चमक रही आली । लतन में ठाढ़े बनमाली, भ्रमर सी अलक, कस्तूरी तिलक, चंद्र सी झलक, ललित छवि श्यामा प्यारी की ॥ कनकमय मोर मुकुट बिलसे, देवता दरसन को तरसे । गगन सों सुमन राशि बरसे, बाजे मुरचंग, मधुर मृदंग, ग्वालिन संग, अतुल रति गोप कुमारी की ॥ जहां ते प्रगट भई गंगा, कलुष कली हारिणि श्री गंगा । स्मरण ते होत मोह भंगा, बसी शिव सीस, जटा के बीच, हरे अघ कीच, चरण छवि श्री बनवारी की ॥ चमकती उज्ज्वल तट रेणु, बज रही वृंदावन बेणु । चहुं दिसि गोपी ग्वाल धेनु, हंसत मृदु मंद, चांदनी चंद, कटत भव फंद, टेर सुन दीन भिखारी की ॥

Related vrats

Prioritising the same tradition and category, with related tradition or family entries when fewer than six exist.

Browse all Bishnoi observances →

Get a reminder before the next Govardhan Puja / Annakut (Bishnoi)

At 7pm the evening before, each time it comes around. Turn it off anytime.

Remind me

Dates shown for India (default). Enable JavaScript to set a reminder for your location.

Track this vrat in the app

Personalised timings, reminders, and fasting guides for your tradition.

Open VRAT App →