Heritage news
HeritageThailand showcases Chud Thai craftsmanship in Paris ahead of UNESCO reviewFestivalsItalian Festival at the Mount celebrates heritage, community and a taste of the old country (79 photos)ArtsFamily Folk DanceHeritageWhy is Kolkata’s Durga Puja recognised as a UNESCO intangible cultural heritage?HeritageWhy is Kolkata’s Durga Puja recognised as a UNESCO intangible cultural heritage?WeddingsCalifornia city hall goes jurassic with dino wedding ceremonyCarnival28th Latino Heritage Parade and Festival Set for Today, Recognizing City’s ‘Unsung Heroes’WeddingsInternet sensation Mr Faisu gets married in traditional 'Nikah' ceremony, calls it a "blessing beyond words"Holy daysWhen is Diwali 2026? Key dates, significance, how to celebrateWeddingsArt of Betashar: Issatay Issabayev’s Lifelong Dialogue with Kazakh TraditionHeritageThailand showcases Chud Thai craftsmanship in Paris ahead of UNESCO reviewFestivalsItalian Festival at the Mount celebrates heritage, community and a taste of the old country (79 photos)ArtsFamily Folk DanceHeritageWhy is Kolkata’s Durga Puja recognised as a UNESCO intangible cultural heritage?HeritageWhy is Kolkata’s Durga Puja recognised as a UNESCO intangible cultural heritage?WeddingsCalifornia city hall goes jurassic with dino wedding ceremonyCarnival28th Latino Heritage Parade and Festival Set for Today, Recognizing City’s ‘Unsung Heroes’WeddingsInternet sensation Mr Faisu gets married in traditional 'Nikah' ceremony, calls it a "blessing beyond words"Holy daysWhen is Diwali 2026? Key dates, significance, how to celebrateWeddingsArt of Betashar: Issatay Issabayev’s Lifelong Dialogue with Kazakh Tradition
EveryParampara

Hindu traditions

Hindu traditions fill the calendar of South Asia and the many places where Hindus have settled, from Bali and Mauritius to Fiji, Trinidad and Britain.

Hindu traditions fill the calendar of South Asia and the many places where Hindus have settled, from Bali and Mauritius to Fiji, Trinidad and Britain. They include daily puja, the festivals of Diwali, Holi, Navratri and Pongal, pilgrimages to the Ganges and Tirupati, the sixteen samskaras that mark life from birth to death and a great many regional and village customs. Hinduism has no single founder or text, and practice varies by family, region and community. These pages describe the traditions as those who keep them do.

Home and temple

Worship begins at home, with a shrine, a lamp and a morning prayer, and continues at the temple, where a priest offers the deity water, flowers, food and light on behalf of devotees. Visitors take darshan, receive prasad and walk around the shrine. Festivals bring the whole street into the temple or the pandal, with processions, music and communal meals, and the cycle of the year is marked by fasts and feasts.

Rites of life

The samskaras include the naming, the first rice, the sacred thread, marriage and the funeral. The wedding, with its seven steps round the fire, is the best known, while funerals involve cremation and offerings to the ancestors. Every region adds its own customs, such as the kolam in Tamil Nadu, the rakhi in the north and the Durga Puja of Bengal. The diversity is part of the tradition.

About this page

Written by the EveryParampara desk with AI assistance. Background on Hindu (faith). Customs differ from place to place and family to family. If this is your tradition and we have it wrong, tell us.

RegionSouth AsiaSoutheast AsiaEast AsiaCentral Asia and the CaucasusMiddle EastNorth AfricaSub-Saharan AfricaEuropeNorth AmericaLatin America and the CaribbeanOceania
KindSpiritualFestivalRite of passageTable customSeasonalDressPerformanceEtiquetteCraftGameFolkloreHomeCeremony
MealBreakfastLunchDinnerSupperTea-time and snacking customsTea, coffee and drinking ceremoniesSweets given and sharedFeasts and festival mealsFasting and breaking the fast
🇮🇳 Barsana, IndiaLathmar Holi A playful spring festival in two Uttar Pradesh towns where women strike men with sticks to reenact a divine legend.Festival 🇮🇳 IndiaGanga Dussehra A ten-day Hindu river festival celebrating the descent of the Ganges to earthSpiritual 🇮🇳 Kochi, IndiaVallam Kalivaḷḷaṃ kaḷi A traditional canoe racing festival held across the waters of Kerala during OnamGame 🇮🇳 Kanchipuram, IndiaPanguni UthiramPaṅkuṉi Uttiram A Tamil Hindu festival celebrating divine weddings and the virtues of married lifeSpiritual 🇮🇳 Puri, IndiaNabakalebaraନବ କଳେବର (Navakalevara) A rare ritual in Puri where the wooden idols of four Hindu deities are replaced with new carvings every twelve to nineteSpiritual 🇮🇳 Ahobilam, IndiaNarasimha Jayantiनरसिंहजयंती A one-day Hindu festival marking Vishnu's man-lion avatar and the rescue of PrahladaSpiritual 🇮🇳 IndiaAhoi Ashtami A day of fasting by Hindu mothers before Diwali, for their children's wellbeingFestival · Fasting and breaking the fast 🇮🇳 Mumbai, India and 1 moreDhoti A long unstitched cloth men wrap like trousers, for worship and formal daysDress 🇮🇳 Tiruvannamalai, IndiaGirivalam A barefoot walk of about 14 km around Arunachala hill, most of all on full moon nightsSpiritual 🇮🇳 India and 2 morePandal Temporary decorated pavilions and arches built for festivals and gatheringsFestival 🇱🇰 Anuradhapura, Sri LankaSinhala New Yearඅලුත් අවුරුද්ද The April solar New Year and harvest festival celebrated across Sri LankaSeasonal 🇮🇳 Pushkar, IndiaPushkar FairKartik Mela An annual camel and livestock fair with lake pilgrimage rites in Rajasthan, IndiaFestival 🇮🇳 IndiaPushkaram A river worship festival rotating across twelve sacred Indian rivers over twelve yearsSpiritual 🇮🇳 IndiaVat PurnimaVaṭapūrṇimā An annual Hindu festival where married women fast and pray around a banyan treeSpiritual · Fasting and breaking the fast 🇮🇳 Hyderabad, India and 3 moreBonalu An annual festival of thanksgiving to Goddess Mahakali across Telangana, IndiaFestival · Feasts and festival meals 🇮🇳 Madurai, IndiaMeenakshi TirukalyanamChithirai Thiruvizha A two-week festival in Madurai celebrating the divine wedding of Meenakshi and Shiva.Festival 🇳🇵 NepalMha Pujaम्हपुजा A Newar New Year ritual of self-worship, mandalas and renewal in NepalSpiritual · Feasts and festival meals 🇮🇳 IndiaBharatanatyam A South Indian temple dance of set poses, hand gestures and rhythm, now danced on stagePerformance 🇮🇳 Ayodhya, IndiaTilakaतिलक A forehead mark worn by Hindus and Jains, at home, at temple and on special daysDress 🇮🇳 Varanasi, India and 5 moreRamlilaरामलीला Open-air community plays staged across autumn nights, recounting the journey of Rama.Performance 🇮🇳 India and 4 moreSindoorसिंदूर A red powder worn in the hair parting by many married Hindu womenDress 🇮🇳 Imphal, India and 1 moreManipuri danceJagoi Raas, Raas Jagoi A classical dance from Manipur, danced as an offering to Radha and KrishnaPerformance 🇮🇳 IndiaSattriya A classical dance from Assam, kept in monasteries and performed on stages worldwidePerformance 🇮🇳 IndiaAhimsaअहिंसा A daily Indian discipline of doing no harm, in deed, word and thoughtSpiritual 🇮🇳 Varanasi, IndiaHanuman Chalisaहनुमान चालीसा A forty-stanza Awadhi hymn praising Hanuman, said by Hindus each daySpiritual 🇮🇳 India and 2 morePujaपूजा (pūjā) Hindu worship: light, flowers and food offered to a deity or a guestSpiritual 🇮🇳 Palani, IndiaPanchamritaपञ्चामृत (Sanskrit); பஞ்சாமிர்தம் (Tamil) Five sacred foods mixed and poured over temple images in Hindu and Jain worshipSpiritual · Sweets given and shared 🇮🇳 India and 2 moreKoothu Tamil street theatre with dance, music and epic stories, staged at temple festivals.Performance 🇮🇳 Udupi, IndiaYakshaganaಯಕ್ಷಗಾನ (Kannada) A night-long dance-drama from coastal Karnataka, with sung dialogue and drummingPerformance 🇮🇳 Palani, India and 5 moreKavadi Aattamகாவடி ஆட்டம் Tamil devotees of Murugan carry burdens as a vow during ThaipusamSpiritual 🇮🇳 India and 5 moreBindi A dot worn between the eyebrows, red for marriage and devotion, worn daily by many womenDress 🇮🇳 Trivandrum, IndiaKathakaliകഥകളി A classical dance-drama from Kerala featuring elaborate makeup and costumes to tell epic stories.Performance 🇮🇳 Puri, IndiaOdissiଓଡ଼ିଶୀ A classical dance of Odisha, told through bends, gestures and sung poetryPerformance 🇮🇳 India and 5 moreKolamகோலம் A rice-flour floor drawing made at South Indian doorsteps before sunriseCraft 🇮🇳 Lucknow, India and 1 moreKathak A north Indian classical dance of stories, footwork and spins, from temples and courtsPerformance 🇮🇳 Nadia, IndiaDhunachi A Bengali incense burner, swung in worship and danced with at Durga PujaSpiritual 🇮🇳 Delhi, IndiaLingamliṅga The pillar-shaped image of Shiva, kept in temples and home shrinesSpiritual 🇮🇳 Kuchipudi, IndiaKuchipudi A classical dance-drama from Andhra Pradesh, with roots in temple and bhakti performance.Performance 🇮🇳 India and 2 moreRudrakshaरुद्राक्ष Seeds of the Elaeocarpus tree, worn as prayer beads by devotees of ShivaSpiritual 🇮🇳 India and 1 moreRangoliरंगोली Floor patterns of rice flour, sand or petals, drawn at the doorstep for festivalsCraft 🇮🇳 India and 3 moreBhajanभजनम् (bhajanam) Devotional songs of South Asia, sung alone or together with drums and cymbalsPerformance 🇮🇳 IndiaMohiniyattam A gentle solo dance from Kerala, once a temple art and now taught in dance schoolsPerformance 🇮🇳 India and 1 moreYajnaयज्ञ A Hindu ritual of offering items into a sacred fire to honor deities and ancestors.Spiritual 🇮🇳 IndiaSvayamvaraस्वयंवर An ancient Indian noble assembly where a bride chose her husband among suitorsRite of passage 🇮🇳 Madurai, India and 4 morePuthanduபுத்தாண்டு (Puttāṇṭu) The first day of the Tamil solar calendar, celebrated by Tamils with family feasts and auspicious trays.Festival · Feasts and festival meals 🇮🇳 Varanasi, IndiaHead shaving in Hinduism Ritual tonsure for spiritual renewal, life transitions, and devotion in HinduismSpiritual 🇮🇳 IndiaGuru-shishya traditionपरम्परा The lineage system passing spiritual and artistic knowledge from master to discipleSpiritual 🇮🇳 IndiaPumsavanaपुंसवन (Puṁsavana) A Hindu rite of passage held in the third or fourth month of pregnancy to celebrate fetal development.Rite of passage
PreviousMore traditions

Photo credits on this page

The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.

The weekly EveryParampara

Every week: one tradition from somewhere new, what is being celebrated around the world this week, and one idea explained.