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Fasts and festivals

Dev Uthani Ekadashi (Prabodhini Ekadashi) 2026: 20 November

Friday, 20 November 2026

Kartik Shukla Ekadashi

In 44 days
Dev Uthani Ekadashi: a tulsi chaura draped in a red chunri under a sugarcane mandap, with lit diyas and a rangoli around it
Image: made with AI

Fast and parana timings

Parana (breaking the fast)On Dwadashi, after Hari Vasara
1:11–3:18 PM (21 Nov)
Hari Vasara ends
12:09 PM (21 Nov)
Ekadashi tithi
7:17 AM to 6:33 AM (21 Nov)
Dwadashi ends
4:58 AM (22 Nov)

The parana is on the following day (Dwadashi); the date is shown in brackets. The Vaishnava (Gauna) Ekadashi sometimes falls a day later.

For Friday, 20 November 2026, in Indian Standard Time, from the chosen city’s sunrise, sunset and planetary positions. Differences of 1–2 minutes between panchangs are normal. How we calculate

In short

Dev Uthani Ekadashi 2026 is on Friday, 20 November. It is Kartik Shukla Ekadashi, also called Prabodhini or Devutthana Ekadashi. By tradition, Lord Vishnu, who entered Yoga Nidra on Devshayani Ekadashi, wakes on this day, and the four months of Chaturmas come to an end. The fast is broken (parana) the next morning on Dwadashi; see the time for your city below.

Edited by the SanatanBodh editorial teamLast updated: 6 sourcesDrafted with AI, checked against sourcesReport a mistake

At a glance

Tithi
Kartik Shukla Ekadashi
Also called
Prabodhini, Devutthana, Hari Prabodhini, Kartiki Ekadashi
Worshipped
Lord Vishnu (also in his Shaligram form)
Significance
Vishnu wakes from Yoga Nidra; Chaturmas ends
Fast
No grains on Ekadashi; parana the next day, on Dwadashi
Tulsi Vivah
On Dwadashi in many traditions, on Ekadashi in some
After this
Muhurats for weddings and other auspicious events begin again
Maharashtra
The Kartiki Ekadashi yatra to Vitthal at Pandharpur

Chaturmas: waking from Yoga Nidra

Ashadha Shukla Ekadashi is called Devshayani (Harishayani) Ekadashi. By tradition, on that day Lord Vishnu goes into Yoga Nidra on the bed of the serpent Shesha in the Ocean of Milk (Kshirasagara), and he wakes on Kartik Shukla Ekadashi. The roughly four months in between are called Chaturmas. In North Indian tradition, auspicious events such as weddings, griha pravesh (entering a new home) and mundan (first haircut) are not held in this period, and sannyasis stay in one place for their spiritual practice. With Dev Uthani Ekadashi, this period comes to an end.

Vishnu reclining on Shesha

The first chapter of the Durga Saptashati describes how, at the end of a kalpa, when the world had become a single ocean, Lord Vishnu lay in Yoga Nidra with Shesha spread beneath him (see the verse below).

Durga Saptashati, chapter 1

The glory of the month of Kartik

The Kartik Mahatmya in the Uttara Khanda of the Padma Purana calls Kartik the best month for bathing, offering lamps and worshipping Vishnu. Prabodhini Ekadashi falls in the bright fortnight of this month.

Padma Purana, Uttara Khanda (Kartik Mahatmya)

Tulsi Vivah

Dev Uthani Ekadashi also brings the time of Tulsi Vivah. In it, the Tulsi plant is married to a Shaligram (the stone form of Vishnu) or an image of Shri Krishna with the full rites of a wedding: a mandap, kanyadaan, the pheras and a feast. In many traditions it is held on Kartik Shukla Dwadashi, in some on Ekadashi itself, and in many places on any day between Ekadashi and Kartik Purnima. In many regions the mandap is made of sugarcane, and many households consider wedding muhurats to begin only after Tulsi Vivah.

The Ekadashi vrat and parana

On the Ekadashi vrat, grains, especially rice, are not eaten; many people keep a fast without water or with fruit only. The fast is broken (parana) the next day, during Dwadashi tithi, after sunrise. According to popular panchangs, the first quarter of Dwadashi (Hari Vasar) is avoided for parana, and the parana should be done before Dwadashi ends. Sometimes the Smarta and Vaishnava Ekadashis fall on different days; keep the vrat according to your own tradition.

King Ambarisha’s Dwadashi vrat

According to the Bhagavata Purana, on the day of parana the sage Durvasa arrived as a guest and went off to bathe. Dwadashi was about to end, so on the advice of the brahmins King Ambarisha broke his fast with only a sip of water, so that he neither slighted his guest nor broke his vow. This story is linked to the importance of doing the parana within Dwadashi.

Bhagavata Purana 9.4–9.5

How to perform the puja

  1. Step 1

    Sankalpa

    On the morning of Ekadashi, bathe and take the sankalpa (resolve) for the vrat; a fast without water or with fruit only, according to your capacity and health.

  2. Step 2

    Vishnu puja

    Worship Lord Vishnu or the Shaligram: a bath with panchamrit, yellow cloth, Tulsi leaves, flowers, incense and lamp, and naivedya (food offering).

  3. Step 3

    Waking the Lord

    In the evening, draw a chowk in the courtyard or puja place and set out seasonal produce such as sugarcane, water chestnuts and sweet potatoes; blowing the conch and ringing bells or striking a thali, wake the Lord with prabodhan (waking) mantras and folk songs such as "Utho Dev" (folk tradition, especially in North India).

  4. Step 4

    Lamps and jagran

    Light lamps in the house and beside the Tulsi; many families keep a night vigil (jagran) with bhajans and kirtan.

  5. Step 5

    Tulsi Vivah

    According to your tradition, hold the wedding of Tulsi and Shaligram on the same day or on Dwadashi.

  6. Step 6

    Parana

    The next morning, on Dwadashi, after Hari Vasar has passed, break the fast within the parana time given above.

The story

Tulsi and the Shaligram

According to the story in the Prakriti Khanda of the Brahmavaivarta Purana, Tulsi, the daughter of King Dharmadhvaja, performed tapas to have Lord Narayana as her husband, but she was first married to the asura Shankhachuda. Because of Tulsi’s faithfulness to her husband, no one could defeat Shankhachuda. Then Lord Vishnu took Shankhachuda’s form and broke Tulsi’s vow, and Shiva slew Shankhachuda. When she learned the truth, Tulsi cursed Vishnu to become a stone. Vishnu accepted the curse and said that Tulsi’s body would become the river Gandaki, her hair would become the sacred Tulsi plant, and he himself would dwell on the banks of the Gandaki as the Shaligram stone; Tulsi would always be dear to him. In folk tradition, the same story is also told of Vrinda, the wife of Jalandhara. The custom of marrying Tulsi to the Shaligram comes from this bond.

Brahmavaivarta Purana, Prakriti Khanda; folk traditionRead the full katha

Verses

योगनिद्रां यदा विष्णुर्जगत्येकार्णवीकृते।आस्तीर्य शेषमभजत्कल्पान्ते भगवान् प्रभुः॥
At the end of the kalpa, when the world had been submerged in a single ocean, Lord Vishnu spread out Shesha and sank into Yoga Nidra.Durga Saptashati, chapter 1
शान्ताकारं भुजगशयनं पद्मनाभं सुरेशंविश्वाधारं गगनसदृशं मेघवर्णं शुभाङ्गम्।लक्ष्मीकान्तं कमलनयनं योगिभिर्ध्यानगम्यंवन्दे विष्णुं भवभयहरं सर्वलोकैकनाथम्॥
I bow to Vishnu, whose form is peace, who lies on the serpent’s bed, from whose navel grows a lotus, the lord of the gods, the support of the universe, vast as the sky, dark as a rain cloud, with graceful limbs; the beloved of Lakshmi, lotus-eyed, reached by yogis through meditation, who removes the fear of worldly existence, the one lord of all the worlds.Popular Vishnu dhyana shloka

Dev Uthani Ekadashi: relations

See in the knowledge graph

Deities, figures and sages 3

  • Vishnu · Deity worshippedTradition (Kartik Shukla Ekadashi)
  • Tulsi · Deity worshippedTradition
  • Khatu Shyam · Birth festival on this dayTradition of Khatu

Festivals 1

Frequently asked questions

When is Dev Uthani Ekadashi 2026?

On Friday, 20 November. The fast will be broken (parana) the next morning, on Dwadashi.

Is Dev Uthani Ekadashi on 20 November or 21 November?

The fast is on Friday, 20 November (Drik Panchang’s Smarta date), and the parana on 21 November, 1:11–3:18 PM in New Delhi. Families of the Vaishnava tradition keep the Gauna Ekadashi on 21 November. Ekadashi tithi runs from 7:17 AM on 20 November to 6:33 AM on 21 November. Tulsi Vivah is on Saturday, 21 November (Drik Panchang).

When should the parana be done?

The next day, during Dwadashi tithi, after sunrise and once Hari Vasar (the first quarter of Dwadashi) has passed. See the parana time for your city above.

When is Tulsi Vivah?

In 2026, on Saturday, 21 November by Drik Panchang; in some traditions on Ekadashi (20 November) itself. In many places Tulsi Vivah is held on any day from Ekadashi to Kartik Purnima.

What is Chaturmas?

The roughly four months (about five when an Adhik Maas falls in between) from Devshayani Ekadashi (Ashadha Shukla) to Dev Uthani Ekadashi (Kartik Shukla), when, by tradition, Lord Vishnu remains in Yoga Nidra.

Do weddings begin after Dev Uthani Ekadashi?

Yes, in tradition, wedding muhurats begin again after Chaturmas. But a wedding date is fixed only after checking the panchang for a proper muhurat.

What is not eaten on the Ekadashi vrat?

Grains, especially rice. Fruit, milk and foods eaten during fasts can be taken; keep a fast without water only according to your capacity and health.

Sources

  1. Durga Saptashati, chapter 1 (Vishnu’s Yoga Nidra)
  2. Padma Purana, Uttara Khanda (Kartik Mahatmya)
  3. Brahmavaivarta Purana, Prakriti Khanda (the story of Tulsi and Shankhachuda)
  4. Bhagavata Purana 9.4–9.5 (Ambarisha’s Dwadashi vrat)
  5. Folk tradition
  6. Muhurat and moonrise: SanatanBodh panchang calculation, checked against Drik Panchang (New Delhi, 2026–27)

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