Navratri Day 5 2026: Maa Skandamata Puja Vidhi, Mantra, Yellow Colour, Banana Bhog & Mercury Remedies for Children and Study

Panchami of Navratri is also kept as Upang Lalita Vrat, or Lalita Panchami, dedicated to Goddess Lalita Tripurasundari.

Skandamata means mother of Skanda. Kartikeya was born to Shiva and Parvati to defeat the demon Tarakasura, who had won a boon that only a son of Shiva could kill him. As his mother, Parvati in this form embodies the fierce tenderness of a parent - power used to protect and raise, rather than to conquer.

She has four arms. Two hold lotuses, one holds the infant Skanda in her lap, and one is raised in the gesture of blessing. She is seated on a lotus, which gives her the name Padmasana Devi, and she also rides a lion. It is said that worshipping her brings the blessing of Kartikeya as well, because the child is always worshipped with the mother.

Mercury in Jyotish is the intellect in its practical form - learning, memory, speech, writing, mathematics, commerce, negotiation and the nervous system. A strong Mercury makes a person quick, articulate and adaptable. A weak Mercury shows in poor concentration, stammering or nervousness, difficulty with exams, and errors in business dealings.

On Day 5, from 4:02 AM IST, the Moon moves through Jyeshtha nakshatra, whose ruling planet is Mercury and whose deity is Indra, king of the gods. Jyeshtha means the eldest, and it carries the sense of responsibility and protective authority - the same quality Skandamata shows as a mother. Mercury itself is in Libra during Navratri 2026, crossing from Swati into Vishakha, in the company of a retrograde Venus: a placement that favours diplomacy, careful speech and the arts.

Her worship is especially recommended for Gemini and Virgo Moon signs and ascendants, for those running a Mercury Mahadasha or Antardasha, for students preparing for examinations, for writers, accountants, traders and anyone whose living depends on speech. She is also the goddess traditionally worshipped by couples praying for a child and by parents for the welfare of their children.

In Jyotish the 5th house of the birth chart governs children, along with intelligence, education and mantra itself, and Jupiter is the karaka, the natural significator, of children. Navratri's fifth day falls on Panchami, the fifth tithi, and is ruled by the goddess who is shown holding her child - so tradition treats it as the day of the festival for santan, the blessing of children.

Couples hoping to conceive worship her together, offer bananas with their own hands and chant her mantra aloud 108 times. Parents pray for the health, studies and character of children they already have, and many keep a child's books near the Kalash during the puja. Because Kartikeya is always worshipped with his mother, the day's puja is also said to carry his blessing for the child.

A remedy is a support, not a diagnosis. If conception is delayed, the 5th house, its lord, Jupiter and the running Dasha show where the delay sits and when it lifts - and that differs from chart to chart.

If you have children, include them in the puja today - let them offer the bananas and flowers themselves.

Bananas are Skandamata's own bhog, and tradition links the offering to good health and freedom from disease. Many families also offer kheer and panchamrit - milk, curd, honey, ghee and sugar - and keep everything on the plate yellow or white to match the day.

Set out the following before you begin, so the puja can run without interruption once the lamp is lit.

Because Skandamata governs the throat chakra, her mantras are traditionally chanted aloud rather than silently.

Day 5 is a Thursday, Jupiter's day, and the colour is yellow - knowledge, cheerfulness and warmth. Yellow is also the colour of turmeric, central to the household rituals of motherhood and marriage.

The full 2026 sequence for India: Day 1 Shailaputri (Oct 11), Day 2 Brahmacharini (Oct 12), Day 3 Chandraghanta (Oct 13), Day 4 Kushmanda (Oct 14), Day 5 Skandamata (Oct 15), Day 6 Katyayani (Oct 16), Day 7 Kalaratri (Saptami, Oct 17 and 18), Day 8 Mahagauri (Durga Ashtami, Oct 19), Day 9 Siddhidatri (Maha Navami, Oct 19, with Navami tithi running to 12:51 PM IST on Oct 20), and Vijayadashami on Tuesday, October 20.

Lalita Panchami, also called Upang Lalita Vrat, falls on Thursday, October 15, 2026 - the same Ashwin Shukla Panchami as Navratri Day 5, with the tithi running from 1:14 AM IST on October 15 to 3:26 AM IST on October 16. It is dedicated to Goddess Lalita Tripurasundari, also known as Shodashi, one of the ten Mahavidyas and the presiding goddess of Shri Vidya worship.

The fast is kept most widely in Gujarat and parts of Maharashtra. Devotees bathe early, keep a fast for the day, perform a sixteen-step Shodashopachara puja of the goddess, and recite the Lalita Sahasranama, the thousand names of Lalita, or the Lalita Trishati. In many homes the evening is spent in bhajans and a jagran.

Skandamata and Lalita are worshipped together without conflict: Skandamata is the Navadurga form of the day, and Lalita is the Mahavidya honoured on its tithi. Outside India, keep Lalita Panchami on the same date as your local Day 5 - October 15 in North America, the UK and the Gulf, and October 16 in Sydney, Melbourne and New Zealand.

Panchami begins at 1:14 AM IST on October 15 - which is still the afternoon of October 14 in North America and the morning of October 15 in Australia. Where your local sunrise sits relative to that start decides the date.