Ekadashi 2026 - all 24 dates with Adhik Jyeshtha, names, fasting rules

1. What Ekadashi is

The lunar month is 30 tithis long. Each fortnight has its 11th tithi - Ekadashi. The Padma Purana, the Vishnu Purana, and the Bhagavata Purana all describe Ekadashi as the day on which the doors of Vaikuntha (Vishnu’s abode) are most open to a devotee’s sankalpa.

Twenty-four Ekadashis fall in a regular lunar year (twelve months × two fortnights). 2026 has an Adhik Jyeshtha (intercalary leap month), adding Padmini and Parama as Adhik Maas Ekadashis. The calendar below lists all 24 observed dates for the year.

2. The 24 dates of 2026

Sunrise-tithi calibration. Some northern panchangs may differ by one day in border cases - defer to your family priest if in doubt.

3. Fasting - three levels

• Nirjala - no food and no water for 24 hours from Dashami sunset to Dwadashi sunrise. Strictest. Tradition holds that observing only Nirjala Ekadashi (25 Jun 2026 this year) gives the merit of observing all 24.
• Phalahara - fruits, milk, sabudana, and water permitted. Grains, beans, onion, and garlic avoided.
• Saatvik - one light vegetarian meal, no grains, no beans, no onion-garlic.

Health-permitting, choose the level you can sustain consistently - the Padma Purana stresses that the devotee’s sankalpa matters more than rigour.

4. Sevas traditionally offered on Ekadashi

• Vishnu archana - sahasranama parayana ideal, ashtottara minimum.
• Tulasi pooja - water, kumkum, akshata around the tulasi plant; lamps lit at sunset.
• Bhagavad Gita parayana - full Gita, or one chapter on each Ekadashi cycle.
• Annadana - feeding brahmins observing the fast on Dwadashi morning (parana).
• Gau Seva - feeding cows, especially with jaggery and tulasi leaves.
• Vishnu temple visit - Tirupati, Pandharpur, Srirangam, Guruvayur, Badrinath if accessible.

5. Parana - breaking the fast

Ekadashi fast is broken at sunrise on Dwadashi (the next day), within a specific window called parana. Breaking too early or too late forfeits the fast’s merit. Each Ekadashi listing on the SevaCart panchang shows the exact parana time for your chosen city.

Open the panchang → · Offer a Vishnu seva for an Ekadashi →