Vrat & fasts · एकादशी

Ekadashi

Next Thursday, 22 October 2026 · Ekadashi until 09:18 UTC

When	11th tithi of each paksha (24–26 a year)
Deity	Vishnu
How to observe	Fast from grains; parana next morning after sunrise within Dwadashi

Ekadashi dates 2026

Magha Krishna: Wednesday, 14 January 2026Ekadashi until 12:23 UTC
Magha Shukla: Thursday, 29 January 2026Ekadashi until 08:25 UTC
Phalguna Krishna: Friday, 13 February 2026Ekadashi until 08:56 UTC
Phalguna Shukla: Friday, 27 February 2026Ekadashi until 17:03 UTC
Chaitra Krishna: Sunday, 15 March 2026Ekadashi until 03:47 UTC
Chaitra Shukla: Sunday, 29 March 2026Ekadashi until 02:16 UTC
Vaishakha Krishna: Monday, 13 April 2026Ekadashi until 19:39 UTC
Vaishakha Shukla: Monday, 27 April 2026Ekadashi until 12:46 UTC
Jyeshtha Krishna: Wednesday, 13 May 2026Ekadashi until 08:00 UTC
Jyeshtha Shukla: Tuesday, 26 May 2026Ekadashi until 00:52 UTC
Ashadha Krishna: Thursday, 11 June 2026Ekadashi until 17:06 UTC
Jyeshtha Shukla: Thursday, 25 June 2026Ekadashi until 14:39 UTC
Ashadha Krishna: Saturday, 11 July 2026Dwadashi until 20:34 UTC
Ashadha Shukla: Saturday, 25 July 2026Ekadashi until 06:04 UTC
Shravana Krishna: Sunday, 9 August 2026Ekadashi until 05:35 UTC
Shravana Shukla: Sunday, 23 August 2026Ekadashi until 22:49 UTC
Bhadrapada Krishna: Monday, 7 September 2026Ekadashi until 11:34 UTC
Bhadrapada Shukla: Tuesday, 22 September 2026Ekadashi until 16:13 UTC
Ashwin Krishna: Tuesday, 6 October 2026Ekadashi until 19:05 UTC
Ashwin Shukla: Thursday, 22 October 2026Ekadashi until 09:18 UTC
Kartik Krishna: Thursday, 5 November 2026Ekadashi until 05:06 UTC
Kartik Shukla: Saturday, 21 November 2026Dwadashi until 23:27 UTC
Margashirsha Krishna: Friday, 4 December 2026Ekadashi until 18:15 UTC
Margashirsha Shukla: Sunday, 20 December 2026Ekadashi until 14:45 UTC

Computed with Swiss Ephemeris (Lahiri) for New Delhi sunrise. In other cities, and in amanta vs purnimanta calendars, a date can differ by a day.

Ekadashi: A Practical Guide to the Vrat

Ekadashi is the eleventh tithi of each lunar fortnight. Because a lunar month holds two fortnights, Ekadashi recurs roughly twice a month — usually twenty-four to twenty-six times in a year. It is observed in honour of Vishnu, and it is one of the most widely kept vrats in the Hindu year, followed in India and across the diaspora.

This page is for the reader who is planning to observe Ekadashi and wants the practical shape of the day: who keeps it, how the vidhi runs, what to eat, and how parana works. The dates for this year and the next two are computed from the panchang and listed on this page.

Significance

Ekadashi belongs to Vishnu. The tithi falls on the eleventh day of each paksha, and the observance is a fast — specifically, a fast from grains. It is a vrat of restraint rather than a ritual of display, and it is kept by householders as well as by those with a more formal daily practice.

Traditions differ on emphasis. Some communities treat Ekadashi as a day of strict abstinence from all food, others permit specific foods and only avoid grains and beans. Vaishnava and Smarta practice can differ on which Ekadashi is observed and how the tithi is reckoned, and the amanta and purnimanta systems number the lunar months differently. Where traditions differ, this page notes the difference rather than settling it — a family's own custom, or the guidance of a qualified jyotishi for a personal chart, is the right final word.

Vrat Vidhi Step by Step

The vidhi is simple in outline and best followed consistently rather than elaborately.

Begin the fast on the Ekadashi tithi, from grains. Some begin at sunrise, others from the previous night; follow the practice in your household.
Keep the day with Vishnu in mind — japa, stotra or dhyana as suits your practice, and a reading or hearing of the Ekadashi katha.
Break the fast (parana) the next morning, after sunrise, within the Dwadashi tithi.

That is the core: fast from grains, remember Vishnu, and parana the next morning after sunrise within Dwadashi. Anything beyond this — additional puja, charity, vigil — is added according to family custom and capacity, not as a requirement of the vrat itself.

What to Eat and Avoid

The defining rule is simple: fast from grains. What surrounds that rule varies.

Avoid: grains, and in most traditions beans and pulses as well, since they fall under the same category for vrat purposes.
Permitted in many households: fruits, milk and milk preparations, nuts, and certain flours and starches treated as vrat-friendly — sabudana, singhara, rajgira and similar.
Strict observance: some keep a full fast with only water, or with no food at all, for the day.

Salt, onion, garlic and regular masalas are avoided in many homes, though this too is custom rather than a single universal rule. If you are new to the vrat, the honest approach is to start with the grain fast and the parana, and let the finer food rules follow your family's practice. If you have any health condition, or you are pregnant, nursing or on medication, speak to a qualified doctor before undertaking a fast — this page makes no medical claim and gives no medical advice.

Parana Rules

Parana is the breaking of the fast, and the rule given here is the one to hold on to: parana the next morning, after sunrise, within the Dwadashi tithi. The fast is not broken on the Ekadashi night itself in the standard observance; it is broken the following morning.

Because the Dwadashi window is a tithi window and not a fixed clock time, its start and end shift from month to month. That is why the parana time is read from the panchang for the specific date rather than assumed. Where a tradition prescribes a slightly different parana discipline — for instance, a Vaishnava house following a particular acharya's reckoning — that local rule applies. When in doubt about the exact window for a given Ekadashi, check the panchang entry for that date, or consult a qualified jyotishi for guidance tied to your own practice.

Katha in Brief

The Ekadashi katha is told in honour of Vishnu, and it is traditionally read or heard on the day as part of the vrat. Different Ekadashis through the year carry their own names and their own narrated stories, so the katha you hear depends on which Ekadashi it is. The common thread across them is the same: the vrat belongs to Vishnu, it is kept by fasting from grains, and it is closed by parana the next morning after sunrise within Dwadashi.

If you are planning to observe, the practical summary is this — note the Ekadashi date from the panchang, fast from grains, keep the day with Vishnu in mind and the katha, and break the fast the next morning after sunrise within Dwadashi. Dates for this year and the next two are listed on this page.

Ekadashi dates 2027

Pausha Krishna: Sunday, 3 January 2027Ekadashi until 10:38 UTC
Pausha Shukla: Tuesday, 19 January 2027Ekadashi until 02:19 UTC
Magha Krishna: Tuesday, 2 February 2027Ekadashi until 05:40 UTC
Magha Shukla: Wednesday, 17 February 2027Ekadashi until 12:02 UTC
Phalguna Krishna: Wednesday, 3 March 2027Ekadashi until 01:54 UTC
Phalguna Shukla: Thursday, 18 March 2027Ekadashi until 20:21 UTC
Chaitra Krishna: Friday, 2 April 2027Ekadashi until 21:22 UTC
Chaitra Shukla: Saturday, 17 April 2027Ekadashi until 03:58 UTC
Vaishakha Krishna: Sunday, 2 May 2027Ekadashi until 14:22 UTC
Vaishakha Shukla: Sunday, 16 May 2027Ekadashi until 11:43 UTC
Jyeshtha Krishna: Tuesday, 1 June 2027Ekadashi until 04:10 UTC
Jyeshtha Shukla: Monday, 14 June 2027Ekadashi until 20:38 UTC
Ashadha Krishna: Wednesday, 30 June 2027Ekadashi until 15:01 UTC
Ashadha Shukla: Wednesday, 14 July 2027Ekadashi until 07:40 UTC
Shravana Krishna: Friday, 30 July 2027Dwadashi until 20:48 UTC
Shravana Shukla: Thursday, 12 August 2027Ekadashi until 21:30 UTC
Bhadrapada Krishna: Saturday, 28 August 2027Ekadashi until 07:12 UTC
Bhadrapada Shukla: Saturday, 11 September 2027Ekadashi until 14:06 UTC
Ashwin Krishna: Sunday, 26 September 2027Ekadashi until 14:19 UTC
Ashwin Shukla: Monday, 11 October 2027Ekadashi until 08:39 UTC
Kartik Krishna: Monday, 25 October 2027Ekadashi until 21:52 UTC
Kartik Shukla: Wednesday, 10 November 2027Ekadashi until 03:41 UTC
Margashirsha Krishna: Wednesday, 24 November 2027Ekadashi until 06:41 UTC
Margashirsha Shukla: Thursday, 9 December 2027Ekadashi until 21:50 UTC
Pausha Krishna: Thursday, 23 December 2027Ekadashi until 17:42 UTC

Ekadashi dates 2028

Pausha Shukla: Saturday, 8 January 2028Ekadashi until 14:06 UTC
Magha Krishna: Saturday, 22 January 2028Ekadashi until 07:34 UTC
Magha Shukla: Monday, 7 February 2028Ekadashi until 03:55 UTC
Phalguna Krishna: Sunday, 20 February 2028Ekadashi until 00:16 UTC
Phalguna Shukla: Tuesday, 7 March 2028Ekadashi until 15:00 UTC
Chaitra Krishna: Tuesday, 21 March 2028Ekadashi until 18:44 UTC
Chaitra Shukla: Thursday, 6 April 2028Dwadashi until 20:22 UTC
Vaishakha Krishna: Thursday, 20 April 2028Ekadashi until 13:17 UTC
Vaishakha Shukla: Friday, 5 May 2028Ekadashi until 06:03 UTC
Jyeshtha Krishna: Saturday, 20 May 2028Ekadashi until 06:31 UTC
Jyeshtha Shukla: Saturday, 3 June 2028Ekadashi until 11:56 UTC
Ashadha Krishna: Sunday, 18 June 2028Ekadashi until 21:45 UTC
Ashadha Shukla: Sunday, 2 July 2028Ekadashi until 18:34 UTC
Shravana Krishna: Tuesday, 18 July 2028Ekadashi until 10:56 UTC
Shravana Shukla: Tuesday, 1 August 2028Ekadashi until 03:21 UTC
Bhadrapada Krishna: Wednesday, 16 August 2028Ekadashi until 22:19 UTC
Bhadrapada Shukla: Wednesday, 30 August 2028Ekadashi until 15:17 UTC
Ashwin Krishna: Friday, 15 September 2028Ekadashi until 08:12 UTC
Ashwin Shukla: Friday, 29 September 2028Ekadashi until 06:37 UTC
Kartik Krishna: Saturday, 14 October 2028Ekadashi until 16:59 UTC
Kartik Shukla: Saturday, 28 October 2028Ekadashi until 00:51 UTC
Margashirsha Krishna: Monday, 13 November 2028Ekadashi until 01:12 UTC
Margashirsha Shukla: Monday, 27 November 2028Ekadashi until 20:48 UTC
Pausha Krishna: Tuesday, 12 December 2028Ekadashi until 09:43 UTC
Pausha Shukla: Wednesday, 27 December 2028Ekadashi until 16:57 UTC

Questions

When is Ekadashi in 2026?

Ekadashi next falls on Thursday, 22 October 2026 (Ekadashi until 09:18 UTC), computed for New Delhi sunrise.

When is the next Ekadashi?

Dates for this year and the next two are computed from the panchang and listed on this page.

How is Ekadashi observed?

Fast from grains; parana next morning after sunrise within Dwadashi.