How many Ekadashis are there in a year?

Every lunar month has two Ekadashis — one in the waning (Krishna) and one in the waxing (Shukla) fortnight — so a normal year has 24. A year with an Adhik Maas (extra month) has 26; in 2026 the extra Jyeshtha month added Padmini and Parama Ekadashi. Each Ekadashi has its own name and its own katha.

Why is rice not eaten on Ekadashi?

Scriptural tradition prohibits all grains on Ekadashi — rice above all — because the day is meant for restraint of the senses and remembrance of God. Popular belief holds rice to be especially unsuitable that day, and even people who are not fasting often avoid it.

When and how should the Ekadashi fast be broken (parana)?

Parana is done the next day, on Dwadashi, after sunrise and within the window given in the panchang — after Hari Vasara ends and before Dwadashi tithi ends. Traditionally one first offers food or charity to a Brahmin or someone in need, then breaks the fast with tulsi water. The exact window varies by city.

Why do calendars sometimes list Ekadashi on two days?

When the tithi spans two sunrises, the Smarta (householder) tradition fasts on the first day and the Vaishnava/ISKCON tradition usually on the next. This page uses the general Ekadashi list from Drik Panchang's New Delhi calendar; it does not enumerate every Smarta, Gauna, Vaishnava or ISKCON option or parana window. Calendars can differ; confirm the fasting date and parana time in a local calendar for your family's or sampradaya's tradition.

Can elderly, unwell or pregnant people keep the Ekadashi fast?

Tradition itself exempts children, the elderly and the sick from strict rules. They can observe Ekadashi with a fruit diet, by simply giving up grains, or through chanting and hearing the katha. Anyone with a health condition should consult a doctor before fasting.

Ekadashi Vrat Katha

The story of Ekadashi's origin, fasting vidhi, parana and 2026–2027 dates

The next stored date for Ekadashi Vrat Katha is Thursday, 22 October 2026. Check the location, tradition and sources below, and confirm local timings.

Editorial overview — updated: 10 October 2026

Year-specific details in this overview reflect that editorial update. Use the answer above and the date table below for the next stored observance.

Ekadashi is a fast dedicated to Lord Vishnu, kept on the eleventh lunar day of both fortnights of every month — about 24 times a year; its origin story tells how the goddess Ekadashi emerged from Vishnu's power and slew the demon Mura.

Vrat Dates

These are stored observance dates. Local timings and traditions can differ; each date includes its calendar references below.

Date	Occasion / Tithi
Thursday, 22 October 2026 Upcoming Location and sources New Delhi, India General Ekadashi list; Smarta and Vaishnava dates may differ Calendar source 1 Calendar source 2 Compared with source: 2026-10-10	Papankusha Ekadashi
Thursday, 5 November 2026 Location and sources New Delhi, India General Ekadashi list; Smarta and Vaishnava dates may differ Calendar source 1 Calendar source 2 Compared with source: 2026-10-10	Rama Ekadashi
Friday, 20 November 2026 Location and sources New Delhi, India General Ekadashi list; Smarta and Vaishnava dates may differ Calendar source 1 Calendar source 2 Compared with source: 2026-10-10	Devuthani Ekadashi
Friday, 4 December 2026 Location and sources New Delhi, India General Ekadashi list; Smarta and Vaishnava dates may differ Calendar source 1 Calendar source 2 Compared with source: 2026-10-10	Utpanna Ekadashi
Sunday, 20 December 2026 Location and sources New Delhi, India General Ekadashi list; Smarta and Vaishnava dates may differ Calendar source 1 Calendar source 2 Compared with source: 2026-10-10	Mokshada Ekadashi
Sunday, 3 January 2027 Location and sources New Delhi, India General Ekadashi list; Smarta and Vaishnava dates may differ Calendar source 1 Calendar source 2 Compared with source: 2026-10-10	Saphala Ekadashi
Monday, 18 January 2027 Location and sources New Delhi, India General Ekadashi list; Smarta and Vaishnava dates may differ Calendar source 1 Calendar source 2 Compared with source: 2026-10-10	Pausha Putrada Ekadashi
Tuesday, 2 February 2027 Location and sources New Delhi, India General Ekadashi list; Smarta and Vaishnava dates may differ Calendar source 1 Calendar source 2 Compared with source: 2026-10-10	Shattila Ekadashi
Wednesday, 17 February 2027 Location and sources New Delhi, India General Ekadashi list; Smarta and Vaishnava dates may differ Calendar source 1 Calendar source 2 Compared with source: 2026-10-10	Jaya Ekadashi
Thursday, 4 March 2027 Location and sources New Delhi, India General Ekadashi list; Smarta and Vaishnava dates may differ Calendar source 1 Calendar source 2 Compared with source: 2026-10-10	Vijaya Ekadashi
Thursday, 18 March 2027 Location and sources New Delhi, India General Ekadashi list; Smarta and Vaishnava dates may differ Calendar source 1 Calendar source 2 Compared with source: 2026-10-10	Amalaki Ekadashi
Friday, 2 April 2027 Location and sources New Delhi, India General Ekadashi list; Smarta and Vaishnava dates may differ Calendar source 1 Calendar source 2 Compared with source: 2026-10-10	Papamochani Ekadashi
Saturday, 17 April 2027 Location and sources New Delhi, India General Ekadashi list; Smarta and Vaishnava dates may differ Calendar source 1 Calendar source 2 Compared with source: 2026-10-10	Kamada Ekadashi
Sunday, 2 May 2027 Location and sources New Delhi, India General Ekadashi list; Smarta and Vaishnava dates may differ Calendar source 1 Calendar source 2 Compared with source: 2026-10-10	Varuthini Ekadashi
Sunday, 16 May 2027 Location and sources New Delhi, India General Ekadashi list; Smarta and Vaishnava dates may differ Calendar source 1 Calendar source 2 Compared with source: 2026-10-10	Mohini Ekadashi
Tuesday, 1 June 2027 Location and sources New Delhi, India General Ekadashi list; Smarta and Vaishnava dates may differ Calendar source 1 Calendar source 2 Compared with source: 2026-10-10	Apara Ekadashi
Monday, 14 June 2027 Location and sources New Delhi, India General Ekadashi list; Smarta and Vaishnava dates may differ Calendar source 1 Calendar source 2 Compared with source: 2026-10-10	Nirjala Ekadashi
Wednesday, 30 June 2027 Location and sources New Delhi, India General Ekadashi list; Smarta and Vaishnava dates may differ Calendar source 1 Calendar source 2 Compared with source: 2026-10-10	Yogini Ekadashi
Wednesday, 14 July 2027 Location and sources New Delhi, India General Ekadashi list; Smarta and Vaishnava dates may differ Calendar source 1 Calendar source 2 Compared with source: 2026-10-10	Devshayani Ekadashi
Thursday, 29 July 2027 Location and sources New Delhi, India General Ekadashi list; Smarta and Vaishnava dates may differ Calendar source 1 Calendar source 2 Compared with source: 2026-10-10	Kamika Ekadashi
Thursday, 12 August 2027 Location and sources New Delhi, India General Ekadashi list; Smarta and Vaishnava dates may differ Calendar source 1 Calendar source 2 Compared with source: 2026-10-10	Shravana Putrada Ekadashi
Saturday, 28 August 2027 Location and sources New Delhi, India General Ekadashi list; Smarta and Vaishnava dates may differ Calendar source 1 Calendar source 2 Compared with source: 2026-10-10	Aja Ekadashi
Saturday, 11 September 2027 Location and sources New Delhi, India General Ekadashi list; Smarta and Vaishnava dates may differ Calendar source 1 Calendar source 2 Compared with source: 2026-10-10	Parivartini Ekadashi
Sunday, 26 September 2027 Location and sources New Delhi, India General Ekadashi list; Smarta and Vaishnava dates may differ Calendar source 1 Calendar source 2 Compared with source: 2026-10-10	Indira Ekadashi
Monday, 11 October 2027 Location and sources New Delhi, India General Ekadashi list; Smarta and Vaishnava dates may differ Calendar source 1 Calendar source 2 Compared with source: 2026-10-10	Papankusha Ekadashi
Monday, 25 October 2027 Location and sources New Delhi, India General Ekadashi list; Smarta and Vaishnava dates may differ Calendar source 1 Calendar source 2 Compared with source: 2026-10-10	Rama Ekadashi
Wednesday, 10 November 2027 Location and sources New Delhi, India General Ekadashi list; Smarta and Vaishnava dates may differ Calendar source 1 Calendar source 2 Compared with source: 2026-10-10	Devuthani Ekadashi
Wednesday, 24 November 2027 Location and sources New Delhi, India General Ekadashi list; Smarta and Vaishnava dates may differ Calendar source 1 Calendar source 2 Compared with source: 2026-10-10	Utpanna Ekadashi
Thursday, 9 December 2027 Location and sources New Delhi, India General Ekadashi list; Smarta and Vaishnava dates may differ Calendar source 1 Calendar source 2 Compared with source: 2026-10-10	Mokshada Ekadashi
Thursday, 23 December 2027 Location and sources New Delhi, India General Ekadashi list; Smarta and Vaishnava dates may differ Calendar source 1 Calendar source 2 Compared with source: 2026-10-10	Saphala Ekadashi
Tuesday, 6 October 2026 Location and sources New Delhi, India General Ekadashi list; Smarta and Vaishnava dates may differ Calendar source 1 Calendar source 2 Compared with source: 2026-10-10	Indira Ekadashi

Ekadashi Vrat Katha

In Puranic tradition (the Bhavishyottara Purana is the source usually cited), this story is said to have been told by Lord Krishna to King Yudhishthira. In the Satya Yuga there lived a fearsome demon named Mura. By sheer might he defeated Indra and all the gods and drove them out of heaven. The distressed gods went to Lord Shiva, who told them to seek refuge in Lord Vishnu, the sustainer of the universe.

Answering their prayer, Vishnu went to Mura's capital, Chandravati. With his Sudarshan discus and mace he destroyed the demon's vast army, but Mura himself could not be defeated. The two then fought hand to hand, a duel that tradition says lasted thousands of divine years.

Weary after the long battle, Vishnu withdrew to a cave called Hemavati at Badrikashram to rest, and sank into yogic sleep. Mura followed him to the cave and prepared to strike the sleeping Lord.

At that very moment a radiant maiden, armed with divine weapons, emerged from Vishnu's body. She challenged Mura and slew him in fierce combat. When Vishnu awoke and saw the fallen demon, he asked in wonder who had done this. The maiden humbly replied that she had been born of his own power and had ended the demon's life.

Delighted, Vishnu offered her a boon. She asked that anyone who fasts on her day be freed from sin and attain dharma, wealth and liberation. Vishnu declared that because she was born on the eleventh lunar day she would be worshipped as Ekadashi; whoever keeps her fast would be dearest to him and would reach his abode at the end of life.

The day the goddess appeared was the Ekadashi of the waning fortnight of Margashirsha, so that date is called Utpanna ("born") Ekadashi, and tradition holds it the best day to begin the Ekadashi vow. Over time every Ekadashi of the year — Devshayani, Devuthani, Nirjala, Mokshada and the rest — came to have its own name and its own katha, but all rest on this root story: that the Ekadashi fast is the observance most dear to Lord Vishnu.

How to Observe the Vrat (Vidhi)

1. On Dashami (the day before), eat a single sattvic meal before sunset. Avoid grains, especially rice, and heavy or tamasic food, and keep restraint and celibacy.

2. On Ekadashi, bathe early, wear clean (traditionally yellow) clothes and take the sankalp before Lord Vishnu, choosing the level of fast you can sustain — nirjala (no water), water only, fruit only, or one fruit meal.

3. Worship Lord Vishnu or Krishna with yellow flowers, sandalwood, akshat, incense, a lamp and fruit. Include tulsi leaves in the offering, but pluck them the day before — tulsi is not picked on Ekadashi.

4. Chant "Om Namo Bhagavate Vasudevaya", recite the Vishnu Sahasranama, and read or listen to the katha of that particular Ekadashi. Close with the aarti "Om Jai Jagdish Hare".

5. No grains are eaten during the day — no rice, wheat or lentils. Those on a fruit fast may take fruit, milk, nuts, sabudana, kuttu or singhara flour and rock salt. If you can, keep a night vigil (jagran) with bhajans.

6. On Dwadashi, after sunrise and within the parana window given in the panchang, break the fast after offering food or charity to a Brahmin or someone in need. Parana is not done during Hari Vasara, and should be completed before Dwadashi tithi ends.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many Ekadashis are there in a year?: Every lunar month has two Ekadashis — one in the waning (Krishna) and one in the waxing (Shukla) fortnight — so a normal year has 24. A year with an Adhik Maas (extra month) has 26; in 2026 the extra Jyeshtha month added Padmini and Parama Ekadashi. Each Ekadashi has its own name and its own katha.
Why is rice not eaten on Ekadashi?: Scriptural tradition prohibits all grains on Ekadashi — rice above all — because the day is meant for restraint of the senses and remembrance of God. Popular belief holds rice to be especially unsuitable that day, and even people who are not fasting often avoid it.
When and how should the Ekadashi fast be broken (parana)?: Parana is done the next day, on Dwadashi, after sunrise and within the window given in the panchang — after Hari Vasara ends and before Dwadashi tithi ends. Traditionally one first offers food or charity to a Brahmin or someone in need, then breaks the fast with tulsi water. The exact window varies by city.
Why do calendars sometimes list Ekadashi on two days?: When the tithi spans two sunrises, the Smarta (householder) tradition fasts on the first day and the Vaishnava/ISKCON tradition usually on the next. This page uses the general Ekadashi list from Drik Panchang's New Delhi calendar; it does not enumerate every Smarta, Gauna, Vaishnava or ISKCON option or parana window. Calendars can differ; confirm the fasting date and parana time in a local calendar for your family's or sampradaya's tradition.
Can elderly, unwell or pregnant people keep the Ekadashi fast?: Tradition itself exempts children, the elderly and the sick from strict rules. They can observe Ekadashi with a fruit diet, by simply giving up grains, or through chanting and hearing the katha. Anyone with a health condition should consult a doctor before fasting.