Dussehra, also called Vijayadashami, is the tenth day that follows Navratri. In the north it is the day Rama killed the demon king Ravana, and towering effigies of Ravana, Kumbhakarna and Meghnada are burned at the end of the Ram Lila cycle. In the eastern goddess tradition it is the day Durga slew the buffalo demon Mahishasura, and her images are carried in procession for immersion.
The festival falls on the tenth tithi (Dashami) of the waxing fortnight of Ashwina. The auspicious moment is the Vijaya Muhurta in the afternoon, when the Aparahna period overlaps the tithi, so its clock time depends on the city.
Other customs attach to the same day: the Mysore Dasara procession, the Ayudha Puja and Vidyarambha in the south when tools, vehicles and books are blessed, and the crossing of a village boundary to exchange leaves of the shami tree as a token of goodwill.