Akash Kandil: Where to Hang the Diwali Lantern as per Vastu

An आकाश कंदील (akash kandil, the sky lantern) is the hanging star-shaped lantern that Maharashtrian homes put up outside a window or balcony for Diwali. Its name says what it is for: a lamp lifted towards the sky, hung high enough for the whole street to see.

In many families it goes up at the start of the festival and is lit every evening through the five days. Some keep it lit until Tulsi Vivah later in the month of Kartik; others take it down after Bhai Dooj. Both are family custom, and neither is wrong. For Vastu, the kandil is one more expression of the festival's central idea: light at the threshold of a home, offered outward.

Hang the akash kandil at the front of the home, on the balcony or window that faces the street or the society compound. A lantern no one can see from outside has lost the point of being a sky lantern.

If your flat has two or three possible spots, prefer the one on the East or North side. पूर्व (Purva, the East) is the direction of Surya and the rising Sun, and the North is linked with Kubera and opportunity; both are directions Vastu likes to see bright. You can check which window is which with a phone compass or our direction finder.

But do not move the kandil to a hidden back window just because it faces East. A lantern on the road-facing balcony that neighbours enjoy is closer to the tradition than a technically correct one nobody notices.

Hang it there, gladly. A festival lamp is not a permanent fixture, and there is no Vastu objection to light on a South or West balcony during Diwali.

Every direction has its strengths. The South and West carry the earth element and stability, and a warm, steady light there reads as welcoming. If you would like to balance it, add a lamp in the North-East of the home as well, which most families do anyway for Lakshmi Puja.

The main door matters more than the kandil in Vastu terms. A clean entrance, a toran, a rangoli at the threshold and a lamp beside the door do more for the home than any lantern.

Hang it from a firm hook inside the line of the balcony or window, so it does not swing out over the street or bang against the glass. Upper floors in Mumbai catch strong evening breezes.

A few practical points keep it intact and safe through the five days.

A paper or cloth kandil on a bamboo frame is the traditional choice, and it is usually the gentler one for the home and the city. It is handmade, often by small local makers, and it does not leave behind the shiny waste that a plastic one does at the end of the season.

The trade-off is weather. Paper dislikes sea air and a surprise shower; cloth kandils keep their shape, fold flat and last many Diwalis.

If you do buy plastic, choose one you will reuse for several years. Whatever the material, keep thin synthetic films away from a hot bulb.

Use a warm LED bulb. A candle inside a paper lantern on a windy balcony is a genuine fire risk, and the tradition does not ask for a flame in the kandil; it asks for light.

A low-wattage warm LED gives the glow people expect, stays cool and will not singe the paper. Run the wire along the wall rather than across the floor, avoid an overloaded socket, and switch it off if the whole family is going out for the night.

Keep real flames for where they belong: the diya at the entrance and the lamp in the pooja corner, both watched by an adult. Our article on Diwali lighting covers where those lamps go.

Yes, and it is one of the nicest Diwali activities a family can do together. A simple star kandil needs thin bamboo sticks or stiff card, coloured paper, glue and thread, and an afternoon.

Let children choose the colours and decorate the tail; warm yellows, saffron and red read as festive from the street. An adult cuts the sticks and fits the LED holder. Hang it together on the first evening, and it becomes a memory of the festival as much as a decoration.

Take it down when your family's custom says the festival has ended, whether that is after Bhai Dooj or after Tulsi Vivah. The Diwali 2026 calendar lists the five days; Bhai Dooj falls on Tuesday 10 or Wednesday 11 November depending on the panchang, so it is worth checking your city's panchang.

Wipe off the dust, fold a cloth kandil flat and store it in a dry box with your other festival things; a loft or storeroom in the South or West suits seasonal storage. A faded lantern left hanging into December starts to look like neglect.

You do not need a consultant to hang a lantern. But Diwali is when many families notice things about their home: an entrance that always feels dark, or a North-East corner that never stays clean.

If those questions stay with you after the festival, Dr. Kimaya Parikh-Ambekar offers Vastu consultations from the Andheri East office, on-site across Mumbai, or as a distant consultation from your floor plan and photographs. Remedies are non-structural, so they suit rented flats as well as owned ones.