Srisailam Karthika Masam — Dates, Mondays & Sparsha Darshan (2026)

Karthika Masam 2026 at Srisailam runs 10 November to 8 December 2026 by the Telugu calendar, with four Somavarams and Pournami on 24 November. The question every Yatri asks is whether Sparsha Darshan is on. Since 2022 it has been suspended every Karthika on Mondays, weekends and Pournami, and the 2026 rule already bars daytime Sparsha then.

📅 The Karthika 2026 calendar for Srisailam

Andhra Pradesh follows the amanta calendar, so Karthika begins the day after the Diwali Amavasya, not in late October as in the North. Diwali is 8 November 2026; the Amavasya tithi holds at sunrise on the 9th, so Karthika Suddha Padyami is the 10th.

In 2025 Karthika ran 22 October to 20 November. The 2026 Adhika Masa pushes everything about three weeks later, so November weekends that were quiet last year will not be this year.

🙏 Sparsha Darshan: what the rules say

Sparsha Darshan is the touch darshan of the Mallikarjuna lingam inside the garbhalaya. Tickets are sold online only, released up to an hour before the slot with no advance booking; the current ticket price should be checked on the Devasthanam site because reports from the past year range widely.

• Standing rule since 3 August 2026: no morning or afternoon Sparsha on Saturdays, Sundays and Mondays; only the night slot. Tuesday to Friday keep the three regular slots.

• Karthika 2025 precedent: Sparsha and arjitha abhishekams suspended on all Karthika Saturdays, Sundays, Mondays, Ekadashi and Pournami. On Pournami itself Sparsha was cancelled on the day for the rush.

• Same pattern every year since 2022. No 2026 Karthika notice had been issued by 9 October.

• After Karthika: in December 2025 Sparsha stayed suspended until 8 December for the deeksha-viramana rush. Expect the week after 8 December 2026 to be tight too.

The regular timetable from the Devasthanam's last published schedule: Suprabhatam 4:30 AM, Alankara Darshan through the day, Alaya Suddhi closure 4:00–5:30 PM, closing around 10 PM. On Karthika peak days in 2025 the temple ran 4:30 AM–4 PM and 5:30–10:30 PM, and opened at 3 AM on Laksha Deepotsavam Mondays.

🪔 What happens on the Mondays and on Pournami

• Every Karthika Somavaram: Laksha Deepotsavam and Pushkarini Harathi in the evening. On the first Monday of 2024 about 1.5 lakh Yatris came; general darshan ran 6–7 hours and Seeghra darshan 4–5 hours.

• Karthika Pournami, 24 November: the Jwala Thoranam, a flaming rope arch pulled before the main temple late in the evening, Laksha Kumkumarchana and Unjal Seva. In 2025 about 1 lakh deepams floated on the Pathalaganga, and general darshan took 7–8 hours.

• Sevas in Karthika 2025: the garbhalaya abhishekams (₹5,000 and ₹1,500 tickets) were cancelled for the month; a weekend Kumkumarchana at ₹1,000 ran at the Ashirvachana Mandapam instead. Expect the same in 2026.

🛣️ The ghat road and the 9 PM gate

Srisailam sits inside the Nallamala forest, and both approaches pass tiger-reserve checkposts: Mannanur on the Hyderabad side and Dornala/Domalapenta on the Andhra side. The gates close at 9 PM and reopen at 6 AM. Miss the gate and you sleep at the checkpost.

On Karthika weekends the ghat is regulated by the Devasthanam and police; in November 2025 traffic on the final Sunday was controlled in both directions. Our Srisailam trip from Hyderabad has the two-day route in detail.

🧭 Which plan suits you?

• With elders: a Tuesday to Thursday in the second or third week, Alankara Darshan after the 4:30 AM Suprabhatam, and the Pathalaganga ropeway instead of the steps.

• You want Sparsha Darshan: Tuesday to Friday, not 20 or 24 November. Book the online slot that morning and reach the queue complex an hour early.

• You want the spectacle: Pournami on 24 November for the Jwala Thoranam, or any Somavaram evening for the Laksha Deepotsavam. Accept a 6–8 hour general queue and no Sparsha.

• On a budget: APSRTC from Hyderabad, Devasthanam rooms booked online, free Annaprasadam. Avoid Mondays, when the choultries overflow.

• Avoid: arriving at Mannanur after dark, Pournami with small children, and the week after 8 December if Sparsha is your aim.

Yatris doing a Karthika circuit can pair this with Tiruchanur's Karthika Brahmotsavam in December.

🛏️ Where to stay in Karthika

Devasthanam rooms at Ganga Sadan, Gowri Sadan and Pathaleswara Sadan are booked online only since January 2025, with original ID at check-in and no rooms for unmarried couples.

Existing choultries and government facilities serve about 15,000 Yatris a day, so Karthika Mondays overflow. Book the moment your dates are fixed, and treat Sunnipenta and the APTDC Haritha as the fallback.

Go on a weekday, book the room before the bus, and let the Somavaram crowds have their Mondays. Har Har Mahadev!