--- title: "Skanda Sashti Fasting: A Gentle Six-Day Guide" description: "Skanda Sashti fasting, gently: how the six-day Murugan vratham works, what people eat, how to adapt it to work and health, and what to do each of the six days." author: "Archana" published: 2026-10-05 updated: 2026-10-05 canonical: https://www.pariharaonline.com/blog/skanda-sashti-fasting-guide tags: ["Skanda Sashti", "Murugan", "Fasting", "Practice"] --- # Skanda Sashti Fasting: A Gentle Six-Day Guide ## In short - Skanda Sashti is a six-day fast for Murugan beginning the day after the new moon following Deepavali and ending on Sashti with Soorasamharam. - You can keep it as a full fast, one meal a day, or fruit and milk; consistency across six days matters more than severity. Six days, one meal, one chant, one small shift in how you use your hunger. That is the whole Skanda Sashti fast, and it is enough. Skanda Sashti fasting runs for six days, starting the day after the Deepavali new moon and ending on Sashti, the sixth lunar day, when temples re-enact Murugan's victory over the demon Surapadman. You choose how strict to be, from a full fast to one simple meal a day, and you keep a steady daily rhythm of chanting and attention until the sixth evening. ## How does the Skanda Sashti fast work? The fast follows the moon. It begins on Pratipada, the first lunar day after the Amavasya, or new moon, that falls around Deepavali in the Tamil month of Aippasi, usually October or November. Check the current year's panchangam for your city, since the tithi can fall on a different calendar day in the United States than in India. Each day builds towards the sixth. On that evening, Murugan temples stage Soorasamharam, the destruction of Surapadman, with processions and a symbolic battle; the story behind it, which ends in a surprising way, is told in the meaning of Soorasamharam. Most people break their fast after the Soorasamharam, or the next morning, when many temples celebrate Murugan's wedding to Deivanai. In Tamil this is called Kanda Sashti viratham, viratham meaning a vow kept through the body. ## Skanda Sashti fasting options Pick one level and keep it for all six days. Consistency does more than intensity. - **Full fast:** water, and perhaps tender coconut or buttermilk, until the evening; one small meal after the evening prayer. Only for people who are healthy and already used to fasting. - **One meal a day:** a single sattvic meal, meaning simple vegetarian food without onion or garlic, usually at midday. This is what many families do. - **Fruit and milk:** fruit, milk, nuts and perhaps a little curd rice through the day. - **Give up one thing:** a food you lean on, such as coffee, sugar or snacks after dinner, for six days, while eating normally otherwise. Drink enough water whichever you choose. If you are pregnant, diabetic, on regular medication or unwell, talk to your doctor first and choose the gentlest option. The tradition has always allowed for the body. The principles are much the same as for other fasts; Ekadashi fasting rules covers grains, water and breaking a fast well. ## A daily rhythm for the six days The fast is only half the practice. The other half is what you do with the attention the fast frees up. Try this rhythm: 1. **Morning:** after your bath, light a lamp and recite the Kanda Sashti Kavacham, the Tamil hymn of protection addressed to Murugan, traditionally credited to Devaraya Swamigal. It takes about fifteen minutes. If that is too long on a workday, listen to it on the commute. 2. **Midday:** eat your meal, if you are taking one, slowly and without a screen. Notice the first mouthful. 3. **Evening:** light the lamp again and recite or listen to the Kavacham a second time, or simply chant "Om Saravanabhava", Murugan's six-syllable mantra, for a few minutes. 4. **Walk:** twenty minutes outside, any time of day. Fasting makes the body restless; walking gives the restlessness somewhere to go. 5. **Less screen:** stop scrolling an hour before bed. Hunger and screens together make for bad sleep. Many people notice the pattern shifts around day three. The first two days are mostly about food. By the third or fourth, the chant starts to feel less like a task and more like a place you go. If this practice speaks to you, Murugan's other great festival, Thaipusam, extends the idea from hunger to carrying; see the meaning of Thaipusam and the kavadi. And a few weeks later, the Tiruvannamalai Deepam on Arunachala hill brings the lamps back. ## Write it down, then keep it Before the first morning, choose the level you can keep on your busiest day, not your easiest. Write it on a card: the fast, the time of your morning chant, the time of your walk. Put the card where you will see it. Recite the Kavacham once a day, even on the day you only manage it in the car. On the seventh morning, eat something warm and simple, and notice what the six days changed. ## Questions people ask ### What are the rules of Kanda Sashti viratham? The Kanda Sashti viratham runs for six days in the Tamil month of Aippasi, from the day after the new moon to Sashti. Devotees eat once a day or only fruit and milk, avoid onion, garlic and meat, recite the Kanda Sashti Kavacham, and visit a Murugan temple if they can. The fast ends after Soorasamharam, usually the next morning. ### What can I eat during the Skanda Sashti fast? Common choices are fruits, milk, buttermilk, tender coconut water and one simple vegetarian meal a day without onion or garlic. Some devotees take only water until evening. There is no single rule. Anyone who is pregnant, diabetic, on medication or doing physical work should keep a lighter version and speak to a doctor before fasting. ### Why is Skanda Sashti celebrated for six days? Six is Murugan's number. He has six faces as Shanmukha, was nurtured by the six Karthigai maidens, and has six sacred abodes, the Arupadai Veedu. The Skanda Purana describes his battle with the asura Surapadman, which ends on the sixth day, Sashti. The six-day fast mirrors that battle, ending with Soorasamharam. ## Related reading - [Navratri Fasting Rules, Reasons and Kindness](https://www.pariharaonline.com/blog/navratri-fasting-rules) - [The Five Days of Diwali, From Dhanteras to Bhai Dooj](https://www.pariharaonline.com/blog/five-days-of-diwali) - [Explaining Diwali to Kids: Stories That Stick](https://www.pariharaonline.com/blog/explaining-diwali-to-kids) Source: https://www.pariharaonline.com/blog/skanda-sashti-fasting-guide