🌗 Ekadashi Vrat Puja Vidhi — step by step
This is the simple householder's Ekadashi vidhi — from the evening of Dashami to the paran on Dwadashi; the same on any Ekadashi, the special customs of the named Ekadashis are on their own pages.
How to do Ekadashi Vrat — the steps
- The evening of Dashami: a sattvic meal (no rice, masoor, garlic or onion — many homes), nothing after sunset; celibacy; pluck the Tulsi leaves today (plucking Tulsi on Ekadashi is forbidden).
- Ekadashi morning: bathe in the Brahma muhurat/at sunrise, yellow clothes; sankalp — 'the vrat of (name) Ekadashi, waterless/fruit, paran in Dwadashi'; worship of Vishnu/Lakshmi-Narayana/the shaligram — panchamrit, yellow sandalwood, Tulsi leaves (essential), yellow flowers, incense and lamp, naivedya (fruit-panjiri-makhana-kheer), 'Om Namo Bhagavate Vasudevaya' 108 times, the Vishnu Sahasranama/the katha of that Ekadashi.
- During the day: waterless (as strength allows) or fruit — fruit, milk, dry fruits, sabudana, kuttu-singhara, potato, rock salt; no rice-wheat-lentils-brinjal-masoor-oil-spices; no sleeping in the day, no lies, quarrels or anger; Gita/Bhagavata reading, japa of Vishnu's name.
- Evening (Pradosh): Vishnu aarti, a Tulsi lamp, 'Om Jai Jagdish Hare'; the night vigil — bhajan-kirtan/the Vishnu Sahasranama (if possible; otherwise sleep early and rise early).
- Charity: on Ekadashi grain-clothes-water-umbrella (by season), yellow items, cow fodder; feed a Brahmin/the poor on Dwadashi and only then take one's own paran.
- Dwadashi — paran (see the tithi window above): after sunrise, avoiding Hari Vasara, while Dwadashi remains; first Tulsi water/charanamrit, then a sattvic meal with rice (rice-dal-sabzi-kheer); if Dwadashi ends before noon, paran early in the morning — the exact time on the panchang.
- Women's customs: no puja during menstruation, though the fruit form of the vrat may be kept (many traditions); fruit and milk in pregnancy/while breastfeeding; if husband and wife both keep it, paran together.
- Udyapan: after keeping the Ekadashis of a full year/Chaturmas, the udyapan on Devuthani or Utpanna Ekadashi — Vishnu puja, havan, feeding 12 Brahmins, charity; then the vrat continues.
Puja samagri checklist
The Vishnu puja items + the fasting provisions — the list for every Ekadashi.
- A Vishnu/Lakshmi-Narayana picture or shaligram, yellow cloth, wooden seat, kalash, mango leaves, coconut
- Tulsi leaves (plucked on Dashami), panchamrit, Gangajal, yellow sandalwood, akshat (sesame/barley — not rice), yellow flowers and garland
- Incense, ghee lamp, camphor, aarti thali, mauli, paan-supari, dakshina
- Naivedya: fruit (banana-apple-pomegranate), panjiri, makhana kheer, peda, mishri, saffron milk
- Fasting fare: sabudana, kuttu/singhara flour, potato-sweet potato, sama (varai) rice, peanuts, rock salt, curd, fruit, dry fruits
- Reading: the Vishnu Sahasranama, the Gita, the katha of that Ekadashi (the Ekadashi Mahatmya book)
- Charity: grain, clothes, water vessel, umbrella/blanket (by season), yellow clothes-gram
- Paran: rice-dal-sabzi-kheer, Tulsi water
Fasting fare — sabudana, kuttu, sama, fruit, milk; paran with rice
Grain is forbidden on Ekadashi — especially rice, wheat, lentils, brinjal, masoor, onion-garlic; the fasting fare is sabudana-kuttu-singhara-sama-potato-fruit-milk-dry fruits with rock salt; Vishnu's bhog with Tulsi; the Dwadashi paran with rice and dal; by region faral (Maharashtra-Gujarat), the upavasa sadya (south), waterless (the strict custom of Bihar-UP).
- Sabudana khichdi/vada/kheer (peanuts-potato-rock salt), sama (varai/bhagar) rice and kheer, rajgira laddoo/paratha
- Kuttu/singhara poori-pakodi-cheela, potato with cumin, sweet potato, arbi, bottle-gourd and pumpkin sabzi, curd-raita (rock salt)
- Fruit (banana-apple-papaya-pomegranate-grapes), coconut water, milk, buttermilk, makhana, dry fruits, dates; those keeping waterless — nothing
- Vishnu's bhog: panjiri, makhana kheer, saffron milk, fruit, peda — the bhog is incomplete without Tulsi leaves
- Maharashtra/Gujarat faral: sabudana vada, moraiyo khichdi, ratale kees, farali chevda; south: varagu arisi (sama) pongal, fruit; Bengal-Odisha: fruit-milk-luchi (some homes), in Odisha the home fast is rice-free, but at the Puri Srimandir the Mahaprasad ('abhada') is taken even on Ekadashi
- Paran (Dwadashi): rice-dal-sabzi-kheer, Tulsi water first; pumpkin/ridge gourd in many customs; after feeding a Brahmin/the poor
Rules — do's and don'ts
✅ Do
- The vrat on the udaya tithi (list above); paran in Dwadashi avoiding Hari Vasara — exact time from the panchang
- Tulsi leaves essential in the Vishnu puja (plucked on Dashami); yellow clothes and flowers
- Renounce rice and grain, sattvic fruit fare; no sleeping in the day, japa/reading
- Charity — grain, water, clothes; feed a Brahmin/the poor on Dwadashi
- The pregnant/unwell/elderly take fruit and milk; health first
❌ Don't
- No rice or things made of rice, no wheat-lentils-brinjal-masoor-onion-garlic, no stale/outside food
- No plucking Tulsi on Ekadashi, no cutting hair and nails, no oil massage (some customs), no sleeping in the day
- No stretching the paran to Trayodashi, no paran in Hari Vasara, no skipping the paran in Dwadashi
- No lies, slander, anger, quarrels or tamasic entertainment — the essence of the vrat is restraint
- No forced waterless fast — take water and fruit if weak/dizzy; no vrat for children
Vrat katha
The birth of the goddess Ekadashi (Utpanna Ekadashi — Margashirsha Krishna): the demon Mura defeated the gods and seized heaven; Vishnu fought him, and weary, took yogic sleep in a cave at Badrikashram; when Mura tried t… Read the full katha →
Frequently asked questions
When is the next Ekadashi? The Ekadashi dates of {Y}?
The date and tithi window (Delhi) of the next Ekadashi are in the hero above, with the next 12 Ekadashis and their names below it — by the Smarta (householder) udaya tithi rule; there may sometimes be a difference of a day by your city and Vaishnava sect — confirm with a panchang/temple.
What is the difference between Smarta and Vaishnava Ekadashi?
When the Ekadashi is Dashami-viddha (a part of Dashami just before sunrise) or touches two sunrises, Vaishnavas (ISKCON, Srivaishnavas, Madhvas) fast on the next day (the pure Ekadashi), Smarta householders on the first; panchangs list both; follow your sect — the list above is Smarta.
What is the right time for paran?
In the Dwadashi tithi, after sunrise, once Hari Vasara (the first quarter of Dwadashi) has passed, and before Dwadashi ends — usually between 6:30 and 9 in the morning; if Dwadashi ends before noon, right after sunrise; see the end of Dwadashi from the tithi window above, the exact paran time on the panchang.
Can women keep every Ekadashi? During menstruation?
Yes — many women keep both Ekadashis; during menstruation no touching the puja, but the fruit rule can be kept (traditions differ); fruit, milk and fruit in pregnancy and breastfeeding; waterless only for the healthy; the essence of the vrat is restraint and remembrance, not suffering.
The names of the 24 Ekadashis?
Chaitra: Papmochani (K), Kamada (S); Vaishakha: Varuthini, Mohini; Jyeshtha: Apara, Nirjala; Ashadha: Yogini, Devshayani; Shravana: Kamika, Putrada; Bhadrapada: Aja, Parivartini; Ashwin: Indira, Papankusha; Kartika: Rama, Devuthani; Margashirsha: Utpanna, Mokshada; Pausha: Saphala, Putrada; Magha: Shattila, Jaya; Phalguna: Vijaya, Amalaki; Adhika month: Parama (K), Padmini (S) — by the Purnimanta month reckoning (in the Amanta reckoning each Krishna-paksha Ekadashi is counted in the previous month); every date in the list above carries its name.
Why is rice not eaten on Ekadashi?
In the Padma Purana sin resides in grain (rice) on Ekadashi; in folk tales a part of sage Medha/the demon Mura dwells in rice; in Ayurveda one day of light food in a fortnight rests the digestion and brings restraint under the Moon's influence; paran with rice on Dwadashi is auspicious — so the ban is for one day only.
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