Kamika Ekadashi

Significance

Kamika Ekadashi is a Vishnu vrat kept on Shravana Krishna Ekadashi in purnimanta calendars — the same tithi falls in Ashadha Krishna in amanta reckoning. Because the two systems count months differently, the festival lands on the same lunar day but is labelled with a different month name depending on region. Both labels describe one observance, and readers following either tradition will find the tithi listed on this page.

The Ekadashi tithi is traditionally set aside for Vishnu, and Kamika is one of the many Ekadashis across the year that carry that dedication. Observers treat it as a day of restraint: grain is set aside, the mind is turned toward Vishnu, and the fast is closed the following morning at parana. The intent is simple and steady rather than dramatic — a single day of discipline within the lunar cycle.

As with all Ekadashi vrats, practice varies. Smarta and Vaishnava households may differ in the details of parana and in which foods are permitted. This page describes the common structure; where your family or sampradaya follows a different custom, that custom takes precedence.

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

Vrat vidhi step by step

The vidhi below is the general shape of the observance. It does not require a priest, and it can be kept at home.

• Decide the day. Confirm the Ekadashi tithi from the dates on this page, since the tithi may begin on one civil day and end on the next.
• Begin with sankalpa. On the morning of Ekadashi, take a simple resolve that you will fast from grains and close the vrat at parana the next morning.
• Keep the fast. Refrain from grains through the day. Many also keep the fast free of other heavier foods; the essential rule given here is the grain fast.
• Remember Vishnu. Offer prayers, recite his names, or read the Ekadashi katha. The day is dedicated to Vishnu.
• Keep the night. Some observers stay awake or keep a lighter night; the brief for this vrat specifies the grain fast and the next-morning parana, so follow your family's practice for the night itself.
• Break the fast at parana. The next morning, after sunrise, take your first grain meal within Dwadashi.

If you are new to Ekadashi fasting, keep the structure simple and consistent. A single well-kept vrat, done with attention, is the aim.

What to eat and avoid

The defining rule for Kamika Ekadashi is a fast from grains. That is the instruction carried in the brief, and it is the one to hold to.

• Avoid: grains for the duration of the vrat.
• Permitted: the brief does not list specific permitted foods beyond the grain fast, so follow your household's Ekadashi practice for what else you take.
• Parana meal: taken the next morning after sunrise, within Dwadashi.

Traditions differ on whether other items are also avoided. Some families keep a strict Ekadashi menu; others keep only the grain rule. Where your sampradaya has a settled custom, follow it rather than a general description. If you have any health condition, or you are pregnant, nursing, or on medication, speak to a qualified doctor before fasting — this page offers no medical guidance.

Parana rules

Parana is the closing of the fast, and for Kamika Ekadashi the rule given is specific: break the fast the next morning, after sunrise, within Dwadashi.

• Timing: next morning, after sunrise, within the Dwadashi tithi.
• What it means: the grain fast ends at this meal.
• Why the window matters: parana is tied to the tithi, so the closing should fall inside Dwadashi rather than after it.

Because the exact window depends on local sunrise and the tithi timings, check the parana time shown on this page for your location. If your tradition calculates parana differently, follow your tradition. For personal chart questions, consult a qualified jyotishi.

Katha in brief

Ekadashi kathas are told to hold the meaning of the vrat in memory rather than to record history. The Kamika Ekadashi katha belongs to that body of storytelling, and it is associated with Vishnu, the deity of this vrat.

The brief for this observance does not supply the narrative details of the katha, so this page does not retell them. If you wish to hear or read the full katha, your family's practice, a local pandit, or a trusted Vaishnava text are the right sources. What the brief does give is the frame: a Vishnu vrat on Shravana Krishna Ekadashi, kept with a grain fast and closed at parana the next morning within Dwadashi.

Kept in that spirit — quietly, on the right tithi, with the fast closed at the proper time — Kamika Ekadashi takes its place among the Ekadashi vrats of the year.