Sant Nivruttinath Yatra at Trimbakeshwar — Date & Darshan (2027)

The Sant Nivruttinath Maharaj Yatra at Trimbakeshwar falls on Paush Vadya Ekadashi, which in 2027 is Tuesday, 2 February, not mid-January as in 2026. The shift comes from the adhik maas in 2026, which pushes every lunar date in early 2027 about three weeks later.

Dindis walk in through the preceding week, over four lakh Warkaris fill the town on the day, and Jyotirlinga darshan that week is a different experience from any other.

Here is the date, how the week runs, and whether an ordinary Jyotirlinga Yatri should go or wait.

📅 The 2027 date, and why it is not in January

The yatra marks the Sanjivan Samadhi of Sant Nivruttinath, elder brother and guru of Sant Dnyaneshwar, who took samadhi at Trimbakeshwar in 1297. It is held on Paush Vadya Ekadashi in the Maharashtra calendar, the dark-fortnight Ekadashi after Paush Purnima.

In 2026 the Ekadashi fell on 14 January. Because 2026 carries an adhik maas, the same tithi in 2027 arrives on 2 February 2027, with the Ekadashi tithi beginning around 8:41 am on 1 February and ending around 11:10 am on 2 February.

The Sansthan's printed programme is the final word, and it usually appears on nivruttinathmaharajsansthan.com a few weeks ahead.

🚶 How the week runs: dindis, Kushavarta, parikrama, palkhi

The yatra is a Warkari event, so it arrives on foot. Dindis from across Maharashtra walk in over the days before the Ekadashi, with taal and mridang, and camp around the town.

• The week before: dindis arrive, kirtan runs through the evenings, and the lanes around the Samadhi Mandir fill from about three days out.

• Ekadashi morning: Warkaris bathe at Kushavarta from before dawn and begin the Brahmagiri parikrama, the circuit around the hill where the Godavari rises. In 2026 roughly 1 to 1.5 lakh completed it, singing abhangs.

• Ekadashi day: the Sansthan's rath and palkhi of Nivruttinath Maharaj move through the town. This is the peak, with the Samadhi Mandir queue at its longest.

• The days after: the crowd thins quickly. Traditionally the programme continues to Amavasya, about four days later.

Our Kushavarta Kund guide explains the snan, and the Brahmagiri trek guide covers the climb the parikrama circles.

🕉️ What Jyotirlinga darshan looks like that week

The Trimbakeshwar Jyotirlinga keeps its normal hours of about 5:30 am to 9 pm, but the queue does not. Warkaris who come for Nivruttinath also take Jyotirlinga darshan, so the general line that week runs several hours for most of the day.

• Sanctum entry is already restricted on ordinary days; expect no relaxation and possibly tighter control in yatra week.

• Paid or VIP darshan has been suspended and restored more than once in 2026. Do not plan around it. See the VIP pass status before you go.

• Best window for the Jyotirlinga in yatra week is the first hour after opening, before the dindis return from the parikrama.

The Nivruttinath Samadhi Mandir itself sits near Kushavarta at the foot of Brahmagiri and is open through the day. On Ekadashi the line for it runs longer than the Jyotirlinga's.

🚌 Getting there in yatra week: buses, barricades and the Kumbh roadworks

Trimbakeshwar is about 30 km from Nashik, normally an hour. In yatra week the state runs extra MSRTC services from Nashik CBS and Nashik CityLink adds buses, because private vehicles are stopped at designated parking on the outskirts and the last stretch is on foot.

Add one more factor for 2027. The Nashik-Trimbak road is being six-laned and concreted for Simhastha Kumbh, with the works due to finish around March 2027. In early February 2027 expect diversions and a slower run than the usual hour.

1. Reach Nashik the evening before and leave for Trimbak by 5 am.

2. Take the bus if you are two or three people; it drops you closer than any car will be allowed.

3. With a car, accept the outskirts parking and carry only what you can walk with.

Kumbh itself begins with the Dhwajarohan on 31 October 2026, and the main snans fall in August and September 2027, so February is before that rush. Our Kumbh 2027 stay guide has the longer picture.

🍲 Rooms and annadan

Rooms in Trimbak sell out for yatra week well ahead, and the Sansthan's and Trust's bhaktniwas go first. Book the moment the date is fixed, or stay in Nashik and commute. The bhaktniwas booking guide explains the Trust process.

Food is not a worry. Dindis and local mandals run annadan and bhandara through the yatra, and the Sansthan serves prasad. A Yatri with a plate and a little patience eats free all week.

🧭 Should you go that week?

• Here for Nivruttinath or the Warkari tradition: yes, and arrive two days before the Ekadashi to see the dindis come in. The parikrama at dawn is the heart of it.

• Here for the Jyotirlinga only: no. Come a week later, when the town has emptied and the queue is back to an hour.

• With elders: the parikrama is about 10 km on hill paths and the town is wall to wall. Darshan at the Samadhi Mandir the day after Ekadashi is the gentler plan.

• Avoid: driving in on Ekadashi morning expecting to park near the temple. You will not.

🛏️ Where to stay

For yatra week, book Trimbak rooms weeks ahead or base in Nashik, 30 km away, and commute by the early bus. Within Trimbak the lanes near Kushavarta put you closest to the parikrama start and the Samadhi Mandir.

Come for Nivruttinath on 2 February, or come for the Jyotirlinga a week later, but know which trip you are making. Har Har Mahadev.