गुजराती कैलेंडर (विक्रम संवत्)

The Vikram Samvat (VS) is one of the oldest calendar eras in continuous use, traditionally dated to 57 BCE and attributed to the legendary King Vikramaditya of Ujjain. The era runs 57 years ahead of the Common Era (CE): to calculate the current Vikram Samvat year in the Gujarati system, add 57 to the current CE year (after Diwali) or 56 (before Diwali, since the Gujarati VS year begins in Kartik). Thus, from Bestu Varas in November 2026, the Gujarati Vikram Samvat year is 2083, and it runs until Diwali 2027. The Gujarati variant of the Vikram Samvat is distinctive in two key ways. First, it uses the Amanta (Amant) month-ending system where each month concludes on Amavasya (New Moon), in contrast to the Purnimanta system used in North India (UP, Bihar, Rajasthan) where months end on Purnima (Full Moon). Second, and most importantly, the Gujarati Vikram Samvat year begins in Kartik — the day after Diwali — rather than in Chaitra (March/April) as in the North Indian Vikram Samvat. This means that for about six months (Kartik to Chaitra), the Gujarati VS year number is one ahead of the North Indian VS year. The Vikram Samvat is used not only in Gujarat but also by Jains throughout India (who follow the same Kartik-start convention), and by Hindu communities in Nepal (which uses a Chaitra-start variant as its official calendar). The era's longevity — over 2,080 years of unbroken use — makes it one of the most enduring calendar systems in human history.

The Gujarati calendar's roots extend over two millennia to the founding of the Vikram Samvat era in 57 BCE. Gujarat's adoption of the Kartik-start variant reflects a deeply pragmatic cultural choice: the post-Diwali new year aligns with the beginning of the agricultural resting period after the Kharif harvest and the start of the winter trading season. For Gujarat's historically powerful merchant communities — the Vaishya Vanias, Lohanas, Patels, and Jains — this timing was commercially significant. The new financial year opening with Chopda Pujan and Bestu Varas meant that account reconciliation, debt settlement, and new credit arrangements all happened during the festive period, binding commerce and celebration together in a way unique to Gujarati culture.

The Gujarati Panchang (almanac) has been an indispensable part of household and business life for centuries. Published annually by traditional jyotish scholars and panchang houses, these almanacs contain far more than festival dates — they include daily tithi, nakshatra, yoga, and karana calculations; planetary positions and transits; agricultural planting guides keyed to lunar phases; commodity price forecasts (a tradition particularly cherished by Gujarat's trading communities); auspicious muhurtas for weddings, house-warming (griha pravesh), vehicle purchases, and new business ventures; and detailed interpretations of the Samvatsara (year) name and its predicted effects. The Gujarati diaspora — one of the largest Indian communities abroad, with significant populations in East Africa, the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, and Australia — continues to follow the Vikram Samvat calendar for all religious and cultural observances, maintaining an unbroken connection to their ancestral timekeeping tradition.

The Jain community, which has deep historical ties to Gujarat, follows the same Kartik-start Vikram Samvat system. Mahavir Jayanti, Paryushana, and Diwali (marking Mahavira's Nirvana) are all determined by this shared calendar, making the Gujarati Vikram Samvat a truly interfaith institution. The calendar's intercalary month (Adhika Masa, also called Purushottam Mas) — added approximately every 33 months — is considered inauspicious for major ceremonies like weddings but is prized for extra spiritual practices, fasting, and charitable acts.