Kartik · 26 Oct – 23 Nov 2026
Offer a lamp to Damodara
Every evening of Kartik, devotees offer a little lamp to baby Krishna. Offer one here, and light up a row of evenings!
Your Kartik lamps
One lamp for each evening of Kartik, 26 Oct to 23 Nov.
A verse to begin (1 of 8)
I bow to Krishna, so full of joy, His earrings swinging as He runs. He broke the yogurt pot and ran from Mother Yashoda, and she caught Him from behind.
From the Damodarashtaka, the prayer devotees sing while offering their lamps, told in simple words.
Why Kartik, and why a lamp?
Damodara’s month
Kartik is the month dearest to Krishna. It was then that Mother Yashoda tied Him with a rope.
Tell me more
It happened on the day of Diwali. That is why He is called Damodara: dama is a rope, and udara the waist. Kartik falls around October and November.
A little light, with love
A lamp is the simplest gift: a clay cup, a little ghee and a wick. Krishna loves the love that comes with it.
Tell me more
Anyone can offer one, even a small child. Krishna doesn’t need our lamp, just as He let Himself be tied only by His mother’s love.
Offering a lamp at home
Sit in front of a picture of baby Krishna and light a small ghee lamp. Circle it slowly while you sing or chant Hare Krishna.
Little ones hold the lamp with a grown-up’s hand around theirs.
Tell me more
Hold the lamp on a plate, and circle it clockwise in front of Krishna. Devotees sing the Damodarashtaka, or simply chant Hare Krishna. Never leave a flame on its own.
The Damodara song
Devotees sing the Damodarashtaka, eight verses about little Damodara. It asks for one thing only: pure love for Him.
Tell me more
The sage Satyavrata Muni spoke these eight verses. They ask not for liberation or heaven, only for love for Krishna as the little boy of Vrindavan. Srila Prabhupada asked his followers to sing it all through Kartik.
More to celebrate
Kartik also holds Diwali and Govardhan Puja, when devotees build a hill of food. It ends on the full moon.
Tell me more
The Padma Purana says that a lamp offered to Damodara in Kartik, even a small one, is never forgotten by the Lord. In ISKCON temples, everyone, guests too, is invited to offer a lamp each evening. The month ends on Kartik Purnima.