Fairs and Festivals of Ayodhya

Ayodhya’s festival calendar is shaped almost entirely by the life of Lord Rama. Each major event commemorates an episode from the Ramayana or honours a deity in the Rama-Sita household, and most have been observed without break for centuries.

Deepotsav: the festival of a million lamps

The grandest celebration in modern Ayodhya is Deepotsav: the city’s spectacular observance of Diwali, held on the eve of Kartika Amavasya every autumn (October–November). Diwali at Ayodhya is not merely a festival; it is the return of Rama. The Ramayana itself recounts that when Lord Rama returned to Ayodhya after fourteen years of exile and the slaying of Ravana, the citizens of the city welcomed him by lighting rows of earthen lamps (deepa-mala) along every street, every doorway, and every ghat of the Sarayu. That single homecoming, three yugas ago, became the origin of the festival the entire Hindu world celebrates today.

Modern Deepotsav has been organised on a vast scale by the Government of Uttar Pradesh since 2017. Each year the celebrations have grown more elaborate:

• The ghats of the Sarayu: especially Ram Ki Paidi: are lit with lakhs of diyas, hand-placed in concentric arcs descending into the river.
• The 2025 Deepotsav (the 9th edition, held 19 October 2025) set two Guinness World Records: 26,17,215 oil lamps (over 2.6 million diyas) lit simultaneously, and 2,128 priests performing the Maa Sarayu Aarti at the same time.
• A grand laser and light show projects scenes from the Ramayana onto the façades of the riverfront temples and palaces, set to live music.
• Tableaux (jhankis) depicting episodes from the Ramayana are paraded through the city, beginning at Saket College and ending at Ram Katha Park.
• A symbolic arrival of Rama, Sita, and Lakshmana by helicopter: re-enacting the pushpaka vimana return: is the emotional centrepiece, attended by senior dignitaries and tens of thousands of devotees.

Since the consecration of the Ram Janmabhoomi Mandir in January 2024, Deepotsav has taken on an even deeper significance: it is the first Diwali in five centuries that Lord Rama has been present at his own birthplace temple. Visiting Ayodhya during Deepotsav has become one of the most sought-after pilgrimages in India.

When: One day before Diwali night (the 13th day of Krishna Paksha in the month of Kartika). Where: Ram Ki Paidi, Naya Ghat, and the entire 6 km riverfront of the Sarayu. Tip for visitors: Accommodation books out months in advance. Trains and flights see surge pricing. Plan two to three months ahead.

Ram Lila: the enactment of the Ramayana

Ram Lila, the dramatic enactment of the story of Lord Rama, is believed to have been started by Goswami Tulsidas. His Ramcharitmanas forms the textual basis of every Ram Lila performance to this day. In most parts of north India, Ram Lila is associated with the Vijayadashami celebrations in late September and early October, and again with Ram Navami in spring.

The performance is presented as a cycle-play, lasting anywhere from 7 to 31 days depending on the tradition. It carries the festive atmosphere of a large public ritual and is rich in supporting crafts: costume jewellery, masks, headgear, make-up, and decoration.

There are four main styles of Ram Lila:

• the pantomimic style with a predominance of jhankis (tableau pageants),
• the dialogue-based style with multi-local staging,
• the operative style drawing from the folk operas of the region, and
• the stage performance style, presented by professional troupes called mandalis.

Ayodhya is famous for its mandali Ram Lila: dialogue-based, performed on a platform stage, complemented by songs and Kathak dances and notable for the high quality of its décor.

Ram Navmi Mela

Ayodhya hosts the Ram Navmi Festival in the month of April, on the navmi (ninth day) of Shukla Paksha in Chaitra: the birthday of Lord Rama. Tens of thousands of devotees gather to venerate the Lord, with the principal celebrations centred at Kanak Bhawan.

Sravan Jhula Mela

This mela celebrates the playful spirit of the deities. On the third day of the second half of Shravan (the monsoon month, July–August), images of Rama, Lakshmana, and Sita are placed in swings within the temples. The deities are then carried out to Mani Parvat, where the idols are set to swing from the branches of the trees themselves. Afterwards they are brought back to the temples. The mela lasts until the end of the month of Shravan.

Parikramas: the sacred circumambulations

Ayodhya is perhaps the most prominent place in north India where parikramas (circumambulations) are undertaken by Hindu pilgrims. These are circuits around the holy precincts and vary considerably in length and duration:

• Antargrahi Parikrama: the shortest, completed within a single day. After bathing in the Sarayu, the pilgrim begins from Nageshwarnath temple, passes through Rama Ghat, Sita Kund, Mani Parbat, and Brahma Kund, and finally terminates at Kanak Bhawan.

• Panchkoshi Parikrama: a circuit of 10 miles, touching Chakratirtha, Nayaghat, Ramghat, Saryubagh, Holkar-ka-pura, Dashrath Kund, Jogiana, Ranopali, Jalpa Nala, and Mahtabagh. Pilgrims pay homage to deities at each shrine on the route.

• Chaturdashkoshi Parikrama: the great annual circuit of 28 miles, performed once a year on the occasion of Akshaya Navami and completed within 24 hours.

Each parikrama, in the words of the local tradition, is “a single living act of bhakti in which the body and the city become one.”