Ahoi Ashtami, also known as Ahoi Aathe, is an auspicious observance in northern India where mothers observe a strict day-long fast for the prosperity and protection of their children. The fast is broken only after sighting stars in the evening twilight or after the rise of the moon.
The observance falls on the eighth day (Ashtami) of the waning fortnight (Krishna Paksha) in the lunar month of Kartika in the Purnimanta calendar, approximately eight days before Diwali and four days after Karwa Chauth. The calculation aligns with the presence of Ashtami tithi during the evening twilight (pradosh) or night.
Mothers draw an image of Ahoi Mata (goddess Ahoi) with her eight sons or use sanctified calendar plates to perform evening worship with sweets, water chestnuts, and grains. Women offer prayers for the health and education of their children, accompanied by recitations of the Ahoi Vrat Katha.