Chhath Puja 2026 in Kent: Events, Puja & Where to Celebrate

TL;DR

• 🌅 Chhath Puja 2026 falls mid-November, with Sandhya Arghya (evening offering to the setting sun) on November 16 and Usha Arghya (sunrise offering) on November 17
• Kent's South King County Indian American community has Sanatan Dharm Mandir as a local Hindu gathering point for major festivals
• 🙏 Chhath connects the Bihari and Purvanchali diaspora in the Pacific Northwest to a centuries-old ritual tied to the sun, rivers, and the harvest season

Chhath Puja in 2026: The Four-Day Schedule

Chhath Puja 2026 follows its four-day structure beginning with Nahay Khay on Saturday, November 14. This first day involves ritual bathing and eating a simple meal of freshly cooked food, often boar gourd with rice and dal, as a form of physical and spiritual purification before the main fast begins.

Kharna on Sunday, November 15 is the full fast day. Devotees observe a daylong fast without water and break it after sunset with kheer and roti prepared on a wood or clay stove — this prasad is shared with family and distributed to neighbors. From this point, the fast continues without water until after the Usha Arghya on the final morning.

Sandhya Arghya on Monday, November 16 is the most visually striking day of the festival. Devotees gather at a water body before sunset, standing in the water holding bamboo soop baskets filled with seasonal fruits, sugarcane, and lit earthen lamps. The offering to the setting sun is the core ritual of Chhath. For Kent, sunset in mid-November falls around 4:30 to 4:45 PM Pacific Time.

Usha Arghya on Tuesday, November 17 brings the festival to a close with an early-morning offering to the rising sun. The fast breaks after the sunrise arghya, and families gather to share prasad and celebrate the completion of the vrat.

The Indian American Community in Kent and Nearby Temples

Kent sits in South King County, about 25 miles south of Seattle. The city's Indian American community has grown alongside the broader tech-driven migration into the Puget Sound region, though South King County's demographic profile differs from the more heavily South Asian concentrations in Bellevue and Redmond.

Sanatan Dharm Mandir at 27123 104th Avenue SE in Kent is the primary Hindu worship space in South King County. The mandir holds pujas for major festivals and serves the Hindu community across the area. For Chhath Puja, which does not require a temple setting, the mandir functions more as a coordination point and community anchor than as the site of the arghya itself. Contacting the temple directly in October to ask about any organized Chhath gathering is the most reliable approach for getting current 2026 plans.

For the broader regional network, two larger institutions north of Kent serve the Puget Sound Indian American community.

Hindu Temple and Cultural Center, Bothell is frequently referenced as the largest Hindu temple serving the Greater Seattle area and the Pacific Northwest. Established in 2000 and significantly expanded in 2018, it draws Indian American families from across the region for major festivals and religious education. Bothell is roughly 35 to 40 minutes from Kent via I-405, and the temple's size and programming make it worth checking for any Chhath coordination happening at the regional level.

Bellevue Hindu Temple and Cultural Center in Bellevue is another major institution in the area, serving the large Indian American population concentrated in the Eastside cities of Bellevue, Redmond, and Kirkland. For Kent residents, Bellevue is approximately 20 to 25 minutes without traffic.

The Ritual: Why Chhath Is Different

Chhath Puja is distinct among Hindu festivals for being almost entirely water-centered and sunrise/sunset-focused. It honors Surya, the sun god, and Chhathi Maiya, a folk deity of Bihari tradition, through offerings made standing in water at dusk and again at dawn. Devotees stand knee- or waist-deep in a river, lake, or pond holding the soop baskets filled with seasonal fruits — primarily sugarcane, citrus, coconuts, and tubers — along with lit earthen lamps.

The festival has no temple or priest requirement. Families organize the rituals themselves, often with community members gathering at a waterfront location together. That communal, outdoor character is central to how Chhath works in diaspora settings — it requires a water body, coordination to access it, and enough people to make the collective gathering feel meaningful.

In the Pacific Northwest, local organizers have used lake access points and waterfront parks for the arghya. King County has numerous lakes and riverside areas suitable for the ritual. The specific location each year depends on what individual community organizers arrange, so staying connected with South Asian community groups on local social networks is the most practical way to find out where the gathering will happen in 2026.

Preparing for Chhath: Food and Materials

The prasad prepared for Chhath is notably distinct from other Hindu festival food. Thekua — a fried wheat flour and jaggery biscuit flavored with fennel and cardamom — is the central offering and is made at home in large batches. Rice kheer, coconut, and fresh sugarcane are also essential. Everything prepared during Chhath must be made without salt, onion, or garlic, as the fast during this period is strict on these points.

For families in Kent, Indian grocery stores in the area stock jaggery, fresh coconut, and wheat flour year-round. Sugarcane and the specific tuber varieties used in Chhath offerings sometimes require a trip to stores in Bellevue or Redmond with a broader South Asian inventory. Bamboo soop baskets, traditional clay lamps, and soop dividers are more reliably found at specialty South Asian stores or ordered online in the weeks before the festival. Planning ahead by mid-October avoids the last-minute situation where key items are out of stock.

Insider Tip

Connect with South Asian community groups active in King County on local platforms such as Facebook groups, WhatsApp circles, or Nextdoor threads. The Bihari and Purvanchali social networks in the Puget Sound area tend to organize the actual arghya location, carpooling arrangements to water bodies, and collective prasad sharing much more directly than any formal institution. Temple announcements often follow community-level organizing rather than leading it for Chhath, since the festival does not require a formal temple setting. Getting plugged into those informal networks by October gives you a much better chance of knowing where and when the gathering happens in 2026.

FAQ

Q: Is Chhath Puja specific to any particular Hindu community? A: Chhath Puja is primarily observed by communities from Bihar, Jharkhand, and eastern Uttar Pradesh in India, as well as by Madhesi communities from Nepal. It is a folk festival with roots predating temple Hinduism and is especially important to those communities' cultural identity. In diaspora settings, it has drawn broader participation from other Indian American families as well.

Q: Where should I go for arghya in the Kent area? A: There is no permanently designated arghya site for Kent's Indian American community. Contacting Sanatan Dharm Mandir or looking for announcements from local Bihari or Purvanchali groups is the most reliable approach. Lake access points and riverside parks in King County are typically used.

Q: What time is the sunset arghya on November 16, 2026 in Kent? A: Sunset in Kent, Washington in mid-November falls around 4:30 to 4:45 PM Pacific Time. The arghya offering is performed as the sun descends, typically starting 30 to 45 minutes before sunset. Check a sunrise/sunset calculator for the exact time closer to the date.

Q: Can non-Bihari Hindus participate in Chhath Puja? A: Chhath is an open festival; participation is not restricted by regional background. Many Indian American communities across the country have embraced the festival's communal outdoor character, and in diaspora settings, community gatherings typically welcome cross-community participation.

Bottom Line

For Kent's Indian American community, Chhath Puja 2026 is a mid-November observance that calls for some planning — finding a water location, preparing traditional prasad, and connecting with others who are observing the festival. Sanatan Dharm Mandir in Kent is the local temple anchor, while Hindu Temple and Cultural Center, Bothell and Bellevue Hindu Temple and Cultural Center serve the broader regional network. The four-day structure, with Sandhya Arghya on November 16 and Usha Arghya on November 17, falls across a weekend-to-Tuesday stretch that makes coordinating the key rituals more manageable than in some other years. Start connecting with local Bihari and Purvanchali community networks by October — that is where the practical details for 2026 will come together.