Vrat & Vishnu devotion
Ekadashi — Dates, Vrat Rules, Paaran Time & Puja Vidhi
Ekadashi dates 2026 & 2027
| Ekadashi | Date | Hindu month |
|---|---|---|
| Pausha Putrada Ekadashi(पौष पुत्रदा एकादशी) | Saturday, 10 January 2026 | पौष |
| Shattila Ekadashi(षटतिला एकादशी) | Sunday, 25 January 2026 | माघ |
| Jaya Ekadashi(जया एकादशी) | Monday, 9 February 2026 | माघ |
| Vijaya Ekadashi(विजया एकादशी) | Tuesday, 24 February 2026 | फाल्गुन |
| Amalaki Ekadashi(आमलकी एकादशी) | Wednesday, 11 March 2026 | फाल्गुन |
| Papmochani Ekadashi(पापमोचनी एकादशी) | Wednesday, 25 March 2026 | चैत्र |
| Kamada Ekadashi(कामदा एकादशी) | Wednesday, 8 April 2026 | चैत्र |
| Varuthini Ekadashi(वरूथिनी एकादशी) | Thursday, 23 April 2026 | वैशाख |
| Mohini Ekadashi(मोहिनी एकादशी) | Friday, 8 May 2026 | वैशाख |
| Apara Ekadashi(अपरा एकादशी) | Saturday, 23 May 2026 | ज्येष्ठ |
| Nirjala Ekadashi(निर्जला एकादशी) | Saturday, 6 June 2026 | ज्येष्ठ |
| Yogini Ekadashi(योगिनी एकादशी)Next | Sunday, 21 June 2026 | आषाढ़ |
| Devshayani Ekadashi(देवशयनी एकादशी) | Tuesday, 7 July 2026 | आषाढ़ |
| Kamika Ekadashi(कामिका एकादशी) | Wednesday, 22 July 2026 | श्रावण |
| Shravana Putrada Ekadashi(श्रावण पुत्रदा एकादशी) | Wednesday, 5 August 2026 | श्रावण |
| Aja Ekadashi(अजा एकादशी) | Friday, 21 August 2026 | भाद्रपद |
| Parsva Ekadashi(पार्श्व एकादशी) | Friday, 4 September 2026 | भाद्रपद |
| Indira Ekadashi(इंदिरा एकादशी) | Friday, 18 September 2026 | आश्विन |
| Papankusha Ekadashi(पापांकुशा एकादशी) | Saturday, 3 October 2026 | आश्विन |
| Rama Ekadashi(रमा एकादशी) | Saturday, 17 October 2026 | कार्तिक |
| Devuthani Ekadashi (Prabodhini)(देवउठनी एकादशी (प्रबोधिनी)) | Sunday, 1 November 2026 | कार्तिक |
| Utpanna Ekadashi(उत्पन्ना एकादशी) | Monday, 16 November 2026 | मार्गशीर्ष |
| Mokshada Ekadashi (Gita Jayanti)(मोक्षदा एकादशी (गीता जयंती)) | Tuesday, 1 December 2026 | मार्गशीर्ष |
| Saphala Ekadashi(सफला एकादशी) | Wednesday, 16 December 2026 | पौष |
| Vaikuntha Ekadashi(वैकुंठ एकादशी) | Thursday, 31 December 2026 | पौष |
All Ekadashi dates are computed from real planetary positions using the Swiss Ephemeris engine with Lahiri Ayanamsa — the tithi boundary, not a fixed calendar.
What is Ekadashi?
Ekadashi (एकादशी) means “the eleventh” — it is the eleventh tithi (lunar day) of each paksha. Because a lunar month has two pakshas, the waxing Shukla Paksha and the waning Krishna Paksha, Ekadashi comes twice a month, giving twenty-four Ekadashis in a normal year and twenty-six when an Adhik Maas (extra month) is added. Each one carries its own name, story and merit, and all of them are dedicated to Lord Vishnu.
The Ekadashi vrat is one of the oldest and most widely kept fasts in the Hindu tradition. The Padma Purana and Skanda Purana describe how observing it dissolves the weight of past karma and steadies the mind. This is why a date can never be hand-picked from the English calendar — Ekadashi is fixed by the exact moment the Moon-Sun separation enters the eleventh tithi, which is why the dates above are computed from real planetary positions using the Swiss Ephemeris engine, never copied from a generic list.
Ekadashi vrat (fasting) rules
The heart of the Ekadashi vrat is giving up grains and beans for the full day. The tradition holds that grains absorb the tamasic quality of the day, so devotees take only fruit, milk, water and permitted vrat foods such as sabudana, potato, singhara (water chestnut) flour and kuttu (buckwheat) flour. Rice in particular is set aside completely.
A complete Ekadashi vrat is more than diet. Devotees wake in the Brahma Muhurat, bathe, and worship Vishnu; they keep speech truthful, avoid anger and gossip, sleep little, and spend the day in japa, the katha of that Ekadashi, and seva. The strictest form is the nirjala vrat — a full day without even water — most famously kept on Nirjala Ekadashi. Those who cannot keep a full fast may take a single phalahar meal, and the elderly, unwell, pregnant women and children are traditionally exempt from the strict form.
Ekadashi paaran (breaking the fast)
Paaran is the act of breaking the fast, and the rule is strict: it is done on Dwadashi (the twelfth tithi), after sunrise, within a prescribed window — and never on Ekadashi itself. The opening part of Dwadashi, the Hari Vasara, is avoided for paaran; so is breaking the fast after the Dwadashi tithi has ended. Because the window is set by local sunrise and the precise tithi boundary, the exact paaran time changes with your city.
The traditional order is to first offer food to a Brahmin or to someone in need, then take your own simple grain-based meal. For the precise sunrise, tithi and avoid-windows on any Ekadashi for your city, use the daily Panchang.
Ekadashi puja vidhi
- Take the sankalp on Dashami evening. On the night before Ekadashi (Dashami), eat a light grain-free meal and resolve to keep the vrat. From this point, grains and beans are set aside.
- Wake before sunrise and bathe. Rise during the Brahma Muhurat, bathe, and wear clean clothes. Cleanliness of body and place is the first offering.
- Set up the Vishnu puja. Place an idol or image of Lord Vishnu (or Lakshmi-Narayan), light a ghee diya, and offer tulsi leaves, yellow flowers, fruit, panchamrit and naivedya. Tulsi is essential — Vishnu puja is incomplete without it.
- Chant and stay in remembrance. Recite the Vishnu Sahasranama or chant 'Om Namo Bhagavate Vasudevaya' through the day. Read or listen to that Ekadashi's katha (story). Keep speech truthful and the mind calm.
- Keep the fast through the day. Take only fruit, milk, water and permitted vrat foods. Many keep a strict nirjala (waterless) fast on Nirjala Ekadashi. Avoid sleeping in the day and stay in satsang or japa.
- Do paaran on Dwadashi. Break the fast on Dwadashi, after sunrise and within the paaran window from your city's panchang — never on Ekadashi. Offer food to a Brahmin or the needy first, then take your own meal.
Upay to deepen the Ekadashi vrat
If the same restlessness, doubt or lack of steadiness keeps returning every fortnight, the vrat is doing its work — but a few upay strengthen it. Light a ghee diya before Vishnu and offer tulsi; chant “Om Namo Bhagavate Vasudevaya” 108 times; donate grains, yellow cloth or an umbrella; and feed someone before your own paaran. Wearing or offering yellow on Ekadashi honours Vishnu's guna.
Which Ekadashi and which upay suit you most depends on your chart — a heavy Moon, a weak ninth house of dharma, or an active Shani period each ask for a different remedy. Generate your free kundali to see your Moon, dasha and the upay that fit your chart.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Ekadashi?
Ekadashi is the eleventh tithi (lunar day) of each half of the lunar month, observed as a vrat (fast) dedicated to Lord Vishnu. It falls twice a month — once in the Shukla Paksha (waxing moon) and once in the Krishna Paksha (waning moon) — giving 24 Ekadashis in a normal year. Each Ekadashi has its own name, story and merit, and is one of the most widely kept vrats in the Hindu tradition.
When is the next Ekadashi?
The next Ekadashi is the upcoming eleventh-tithi vrat in the live table above, highlighted as the Next date. Ekadashi dates are not fixed to the English calendar — they are decided by the exact tithi, so every date here is computed from the real Moon-Sun separation using the Swiss Ephemeris engine, not copied from a generic list.
What are the Ekadashi vrat rules?
The Ekadashi vrat is kept by avoiding grains and beans for the full day, taking only fruit, milk, water and permitted vrat foods. Devotees wake early, bathe, worship Lord Vishnu, chant the Vishnu Sahasranama or 'Om Namo Bhagavate Vasudevaya', stay truthful, avoid anger and sleep little — the fast of the body is meant to be matched by stillness of the mind.
Can I eat rice on Ekadashi?
No — rice and all grains are traditionally avoided on Ekadashi. Rice in particular is set aside because, in the tradition, grains absorb the tamasic energy of the day. Devotees eat sabudana, fruit, potato, milk and singhara or kuttu flour instead, and resume grains only at paaran time on Dwadashi.
What is Ekadashi paaran time?
Paaran is the act of breaking the Ekadashi fast, and it must be done on Dwadashi (the next tithi), after sunrise and within the prescribed window — never on Ekadashi itself. Breaking the fast late, or during the Hari Vasara at the start of Dwadashi, is avoided. Because the window depends on local sunrise and the tithi boundary, the exact paaran time is computed from your city's panchang.
Why does Ekadashi feel like the same struggle returns every month?
Ekadashi is kept every fortnight precisely because the mind and habits reset and the same restlessness returns — the vrat is a recurring discipline, not a one-time cure. In Jyotish, a heavy or afflicted Moon and a weak ninth house of dharma can make this monthly steadiness hard to hold. Worshipping Vishnu on Ekadashi, donating, and the right upay for your chart are the traditional way to strengthen that resolve.
Which Ekadashi is the most important?
Nirjala Ekadashi (the strict waterless fast in Jyeshtha) is said to carry the merit of all 24 Ekadashis, and Devshayani and Devuthani Ekadashi mark Lord Vishnu's cosmic sleep and waking. Vaikuntha Ekadashi is especially revered in South India. Each is listed with its Hindu month in the table above, with the date computed for the year you select.