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Shukla paksha · Magha · amanta reckoning

When is Jaya Ekadashi 2027?

Jaya Ekadashi 2027

In 114 days

Wed, 17 Feb

Jaya Ekadashi 2027 is on Wednesday, 17 February. Parana, breaking the fast, is on 18 February, 6:57 AM to 9:12 AM in New Delhi.

2028: Monday, 7 February 2028

Parana (breaking the fast), 18 Feb 2027

6:57 AM – 9:12 AM

New Delhi

Also called Bhaimi Ekadashi, Bhami Ekadashi. Those are the same observance and the same date, so they share this page rather than competing with it from a second URL.

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Computed for New Delhi

The date in New Delhi

Wednesday, 17 February 2027

Jaya Ekadashi 2027 timings in New Delhi
TimingNew DelhiWhat it is
Parana (breaking the fast), 18 Feb 20276:57 AM to 9:12 AMThe window is the first fifth of the daylight (pratahkala).

Jaya Ekadashi is not a Gregorian date. It is Shukla paksha tithi 11 of Magha in the amanta reckoning, and the Gregorian day it lands on moves by up to a month between years because twelve lunations fall about eleven days short of a solar year.

Tithi
Ekadashi, Shukla paksha
Lunar month
Magha (amanta)
Tithi begins
16 Feb, 8:20 PM
Tithi ends
17 Feb, 5:32 PM
Decided at
Sunrise
Sunrise in New Delhi
17 Feb, 6:57 AM

Sunrise in New Delhi falls at 6:57 AM on that day, and that is the instant the tithi has to be running at for the day to carry the observance. It is computed for this city rather than assumed, because it is what decides the date.

The two instants above are the astronomy and are not in dispute. The day is an interpretation of them: this observance is decided at sunrise, so it belongs to the day whose sunrise the tithi carries — not simply to the day the tithi begins.

Shukla paksha · Magha

Jaya Ekadashi 2027: Smarta and Vaishnava dates

Listed here (Smarta, the sunrise rule)
Wednesday, 17 February 2027 — The fast belongs to the day whose sunrise carries Ekadashi — the day AstroSage lists and the one this page leads with.
Vaishnava (ISKCON), the arunodaya rule
Wednesday, 17 February 2027 — The same day this year. The Vaishnava rule reads the tithi at arunodaya, the 96 minutes before sunrise, rather than at sunrise; the arunodaya of Wednesday, 17 February 2027 (17 Feb, 5:21 AM) is already inside Ekadashi, not Dashami.

Every day above is computed for New Delhi from the same tithi instants. ISKCON temples publish their own calendar for each city and also apply the Mahadvadashi rules, which can move a fast to Dwadashi in some years — where your temple's calendar differs, follow it.

Meaning and vrat katha

Jaya Ekadashi vrat katha and significance

Also known as Bhami, Bhaimi Ekadashi.

Jaya Ekadashi is the bright-half Ekadashi of Magha, a few days after Basant Panchami. Jaya means "victory", and the day is kept for Vishnu with the belief, carried by its katha, that it frees the keeper from a degraded state of being. It is also called Bhaimi (or Bhami) Ekadashi, and the following day is kept as Bhishma Dwadashi.

The katha

Retold in brief from the Bhavishyottara Purana, in Krishna's Ekadashi-mahatmya to Yudhishthira (some Hindi vrat-katha books place it in the Padma Purana).

In Indra's court in the Nandana garden, the gandharva Malyavan sang and the apsara Pushpavati danced, and the two fell so completely in love that during one performance they could think only of each other. Malyavan's voice faltered and Pushpavati lost her step.

Indra saw it as contempt for the gathering and cursed them both to become pishachas — restless, miserable spirits — and to live on the earth. They found themselves on a freezing slope of the Himalaya, unable to eat, rest or find any comfort, suffering through day and night.

It happened to be the Ekadashi of the bright half of Magha. That day they ate nothing but a little fruit, sheltered under a peepal tree, and were too cold and wretched to sleep at all that night. Without knowing it, they had kept the Jaya Ekadashi fast and its night vigil.

On Dwadashi morning the curse fell away and they took back their own radiant forms. When they returned to heaven, Indra asked in astonishment how they had been freed, and they told him: by the grace of Vishnu and the Jaya Ekadashi. Krishna tells Yudhishthira that whoever keeps this fast need not fear such a fall.

How the fast is kept

  • The fast runs from sunrise on the Ekadashi day to parana on Dwadashi. Many families eat a single plain meal on Dashami, the evening before.
  • Grains and rice are left out on Ekadashi. Those who cannot keep a complete fast take fruit, milk or a phalahar meal; a waterless fast is kept only by those whose tradition and health allow it.
  • Vishnu is worshipped with tulsi leaves, a lamp and his names; reading or hearing the day's katha is part of the observance, and many stay awake for a part of the night in kirtan or japa.
  • Parana is on Dwadashi, after Hari Vasara — the first quarter of Dwadashi — has passed. The window for your city is computed above.

Fasting customs are described here as tradition, not as medical advice. Consult a doctor before fasting, particularly if you are pregnant, diabetic, elderly or on medication.

All 26 · New Delhi

Every Ekadashi and its next date

Twenty-four in an ordinary year, two more in a year with an adhika month. Each has its own page with its katha, parana and Smarta and Vaishnava dates.

The next Ekadashi and its parana · every Ekadashi of 2027 with tithi and parana times

All Jaya Ekadashi 2027 muhurat · New Delhi

Jaya Ekadashi muhurat

Jaya Ekadashi, the bright-half Ekadashi of Magha, is kept for Vishnu as a day of victory: its katha tells of a celestial couple freed from a curse by keeping it. In New Delhi it falls on Wednesday, 17 February 2027: the fast runs from sunrise to parana on Dwadashi, 18 Feb, 6:57 AM to 9:12 AM, and that Dwadashi is Bhishma Dwadashi. It is also called Bhaimi Ekadashi.

All Jaya Ekadashi 2027 muhurat in New Delhi
MuhuratTime in New DelhiWhat it is for
Parana: the time to break the fast18 Feb, 6:57 AM to 9:12 AMThe morning of Dwadashi (the first fifth of the day), Hari Vasara having ended overnight.

The window on Dwadashi, the morning after the fast, in which Jaya Ekadashi is completed. It opens once Hari Vasara is over and normally closes with the first part of the morning; when Hari Vasara runs late it moves past midday, and it never runs beyond the end of Dwadashi. The time shown is computed for New Delhi.

Hari Vasara ends10:46 PMThe end of the first quarter of Dwadashi; the fast is never broken inside it.

Hari Vasara is the first quarter of Dwadashi. The fast is not broken inside it, even when it is already morning, so its end in New Delhi is the earliest moment parana can begin.

Brahma Muhurta5:15 AM to 6:06 AMThe 14th of the night's fifteen muhurtas, ending one muhurta before sunrise.

The hour before dawn on the Ekadashi day, the traditional time to wake, bathe and take the sankalp of the fast.

Sunrise6:57 AMThe upper edge of the Sun on the horizon, with refraction.

The fast is counted from sunrise on Ekadashi to parana on Dwadashi, and the morning puja begins after it.

Auspicious choghadiya (day)
  • Labh 6:57 AM to 8:22 AM
  • Amrit 8:22 AM to 9:46 AM
  • Shubh 11:11 AM to 12:35 PM
  • Chal 3:24 PM to 4:48 PM
  • Labh 4:48 PM to 6:12 PM
The day's Amrit, Shubh, Labh and Chal choghadiyas.

The day's Amrit, Shubh, Labh and Chal periods. Families who cannot worship at dawn choose one of them for the main puja.

Pradosh Kaal: the evening lamps6:12 PM to 8:45 PMFrom sunset for three night muhurtas (a fifth of the night).

The evening after sunset, when lamps are lit before Vishnu and beside the tulsi and the aarti is sung again.

Nishita Kaal: the night vigil18 Feb, 12:09 AM to 1:00 AMThe 8th of the night's fifteen muhurtas, around the middle of the night.

The middle of the night, the heart of the jagran. Those who keep the night awake give this part of it to kirtan and japa.

Rahu Kaal (to avoid)Kept clear of12:35 PM to 1:59 PMRahu's eighth of the daylight, fixed by the weekday: a puja, a purchase or a journey is not begun in it.

The weekday's Rahu Kaal on the Ekadashi day in New Delhi. Many families avoid beginning the sankalp or the main puja inside it; it does not change the fast itself or the parana window.

Auspicious windows that day

Auspicious windows that day
WindowTime in New DelhiWhat it is
Amrit Kaal6:01 PM to 7:29 PMMost Auspicious
Brahma Muhurat5:15 AM to 6:06 AMAuspicious

Windows usually worked around

These are the spans classical muhurta sets aside for beginnings. They are descriptions of a convention, not warnings: the observance is kept on its day regardless, and nothing here needs to be bought, corrected or remedied.

Windows usually worked around
WindowTime in New Delhi
Rahu Kaal12:35 PM to 1:59 PM
Yamaganda Kaal8:22 AM to 9:46 AM
Durmuhurta First12:12 PM to 12:57 PM
Varjyam9:17 AM to 10:44 AM

Every time above is computed for New Delhi around Wednesday, 17 February 2027, from the sunrise, sunset and the positions of the Sun and Moon for this city. The Vedic day runs sunrise to sunrise, so a window whose clock time falls after midnight still belongs to the evening before; a time on another date carries that date.

Puja vidhi · step by step at home

Jaya Ekadashi puja vidhi

  1. The day before: Dashami

    Eat a single simple meal on Dashami, before sunset, without onion, garlic or rice, and keep the evening light and quiet. Clean the puja corner and pick the tulsi leaves you will need, since tulsi is not plucked on Ekadashi itself.

  2. Wake early and bathe

    Rise early on Ekadashi, in Brahma Muhurta if you can, bathe (a few drops of Ganga jal in the water if you have it) and put on clean clothes; yellow is the colour traditionally worn for Vishnu.

  3. Take the sankalp

    Sit before the altar, hold a little water and a flower in your right hand and resolve to keep the vrat: say your name, that you are keeping Jaya Ekadashi for Vishnu, and how you will fast, whether without water, on water alone, on fruit or with one phalahar meal. Then let the water fall. The Ekadashi sankalpa verse in the mantra section can be said here.

  4. Set up the altar

    Spread a yellow cloth on a clean chowki and place an image of Vishnu or Krishna on it (a Shaligram or Laddu Gopal if the house keeps one), with a ghee lamp and a small kalash or lota of water. Remember Ganesh first, with a flower and Om Gam Ganapataye Namah, as every puja begins.

  5. Worship Vishnu

    Bathe a metal idol or the Shaligram with water, then panchamrit, then water again (for a picture, sprinkle water with a flower). Offer sandalwood, yellow flowers, a yellow cloth or mauli, incense, the lamp and tulsi leaves picked the day before, chanting Om Namo Bhagavate Vasudevaya. Many households keep rice out of the Ekadashi puja altogether and offer a flower or a few sesame seeds where akshat would go.

  6. Offer bhog

    Offer what you will eat yourself: fruit, a sweet made without grain, makhana, dry fruit or panchamrit, with a tulsi leaf on each offering. Nothing cooked from grain or pulses is offered or eaten on Ekadashi.

  7. Katha and aarti

    Read or listen to the Jaya Ekadashi vrat katha below, and the Vishnu Sahasranama or a chapter of the Gita if you can. Then sing Om Jai Jagdish Hare with a ghee lamp or camphor, and ask pardon for any mistake made in the puja.

  8. The thousand names, for Bhishma Dwadashi

    The day after Jaya is Bhishma Dwadashi, and it was Bhishma, by the Mahabharata's account, who taught Yudhishthira the thousand names of Vishnu from his bed of arrows. Many read the Vishnu Sahasranama on Jaya Ekadashi, opening with the Shuklambaradharam verse.

  9. Through the day

    Keep the fast as you resolved it, keep Vishnu's name in mind and avoid sleeping in the day, anger, gossip and harsh words. Give water, fruit or food to someone who needs it; charity is part of every Ekadashi.

  10. Lamps at dusk

    At sunset light a ghee lamp before Vishnu and another beside the tulsi plant, without plucking its leaves, and sing the aarti again.

  11. The night vigil

    Stay awake for as much of the night as you can, in kirtan, japa or reading; the middle of the night is the heart of the jagran. Those who cannot keep the whole night keep a part of it.

  12. Dwadashi, Bhishma Dwadashi: give, then break the fast

    Next morning, Bhishma Dwadashi, bathe, worship Vishnu briefly and, as many families do, offer water in Bhishma's memory. Give food or a gift to someone in need, then break the fast inside the parana window with a tulsi leaf and water, saying the parana verse, and after it a simple sattvic meal.

Samagri · what to keep ready

Jaya Ekadashi puja samagri list

  • An image of Vishnu or Krishna A framed picture is enough; a metal idol, a Shaligram or Laddu Gopal is bathed in the puja.
  • A chowki and a yellow cloth Yellow is Vishnu's colour; a clean red cloth also does.
  • Tulsi leaves Picked on Dashami, because tulsi is not plucked on Ekadashi; one goes on every offering.
  • A ghee lamp and cotton wicks One for the altar and one for the tulsi at dusk; sesame oil is the usual alternative.
  • Yellow flowers and a garland Marigold, champa or any fresh yellow flowers; a lotus if you can find one.
  • Chandan (sandalwood paste) For the deity's tilak; haldi paste is the alternative.
  • Roli and haldi For the tilak and for marking the kalash.
  • Panchamrit Milk, curd, ghee, honey and sugar, for the bath of the idol and as prasad.
  • Ganga jal A few drops in the bath water and to purify the altar; clean water if you have none.
  • A kalash or lota of water For the bath, achaman and the sankalp.
  • Incense and dhoop Whatever you use every day.
  • Camphor, an aarti plate and a bell For the aarti; a conch if the house has one.
  • Mauli (kalava) Offered as the deity's cloth or tied on the wrist.
  • A yellow cloth for the deity Optional; mauli takes its place.
  • Fruits of the season Banana, apple, guava, pomegranate or whatever is fresh, offered and then eaten as phalahar.
  • Grain-free sweets Makhana kheer, mishri, peda or dry fruit; nothing made with flour or rice.
  • A few sesame seeds Offered where akshat would go by the many households that keep rice out of the Ekadashi puja.
  • A tulsi mala For 108 repetitions of the mantra.
  • The vrat katha, Vishnu Sahasranama or Gita A book or a phone; reading the katha is part of the vrat.
  • Daan for Dwadashi Grain, fruit, clothes or dakshina, given before parana.
  • The Vishnu Sahasranama For the reading that joins Jaya Ekadashi to Bhishma Dwadashi.

Mantras · in Devanagari, with meaning

Jaya Ekadashi mantras and aarti

Shantakaram: the Vishnu dhyana verse

शान्ताकारं भुजगशयनं पद्मनाभं सुरेशं विश्वाधारं गगनसदृशं मेघवर्णं शुभाङ्गम् ।
लक्ष्मीकान्तं कमलनयनं योगिभिर्ध्यानगम्यं वन्दे विष्णुं भवभयहरं सर्वलोकैकनाथम् ॥

Shantakaram bhujagashayanam padmanabham suresham vishvadharam gaganasadrisham meghavarnam shubhangam
Lakshmikantam kamalanayanam yogibhir dhyanagamyam vande Vishnum bhavabhayaharam sarvalokaikanatham

Meaning: I bow to Vishnu: peaceful in form, resting on the serpent, the lotus at his navel, lord of the gods, support of the universe, vast as the sky, dark as a rain cloud, of auspicious form, beloved of Lakshmi, lotus-eyed, reached by yogis in meditation, who removes the fear of worldly existence, the one lord of all the worlds.

When and how: Once, with folded hands, before the worship begins, picturing Vishnu as the verse describes him.

The Ekadashi sankalpa verse

एकादश्यां निराहारः स्थित्वाहमपरेऽहनि ।
भोक्ष्यामि पुण्डरीकाक्ष शरणं मे भवाच्युत ॥

Ekadashyam niraharah sthitvaham apare'hani
Bhokshyami pundarikaksha sharanam me bhavachyuta

Meaning: O lotus-eyed Lord, I shall stay without food on Ekadashi and eat on the day after. O Achyuta, be my refuge.

When and how: Once in the morning, with water in the right hand, while taking the sankalp of the fast.

Om Namo Bhagavate Vasudevaya (the twelve-syllable mantra)

ॐ नमो भगवते वासुदेवाय

Om Namo Bhagavate Vasudevaya

Meaning: Om, salutation to the Lord Vasudeva, Vishnu as the one who dwells in all beings. It is the mantra Narada taught the boy Dhruva in the Bhagavata Purana.

When and how: The main japa of Ekadashi: 108 times on a tulsi mala during the puja, and as often as you like through the day and the night vigil.

Shuklambaradharam: the opening verse of the Vishnu Sahasranama

शुक्लाम्बरधरं विष्णुं शशिवर्णं चतुर्भुजम् ।
प्रसन्नवदनं ध्यायेत् सर्वविघ्नोपशान्तये ॥

Shuklambaradharam Vishnum shashivarnam chaturbhujam
Prasanna-vadanam dhyayet sarva-vighnopashantaye

Meaning: Meditate on the four-armed Vishnu, clothed in white, bright as the moon, with a gracious face, so that every obstacle is calmed.

When and how: Once before reading the Vishnu Sahasranama or beginning any part of the puja.

The parana verse

अज्ञानतिमिरान्धस्य व्रतेनानेन केशव ।
प्रसीद सुमुखो नाथ ज्ञानदृष्टिप्रदो भव ॥

Ajnana-timirandhasya vratenanena Keshava
Prasida sumukho natha jnana-drishti-prado bhava

Meaning: O Keshava, by this vow be pleased with one who is blinded by the darkness of ignorance. Be gracious, Lord, and grant the sight of knowledge.

When and how: Once on Dwadashi, inside the parana window, before the first sip of water or bite of fruit.

Aarti Vishnu Aarti: Om Jai Jagdish Hare the full text

ॐ जय जगदीश हरे, स्वामी जय जगदीश हरे।
भक्त जनों के संकट, दास जनों के संकट, क्षण में दूर करे॥
ॐ जय जगदीश हरे॥

जो ध्यावे फल पावे, दुःख बिनसे मन का, स्वामी दुःख बिनसे मन का।
सुख सम्पति घर आवे, सुख सम्पति घर आवे, कष्ट मिटे तन का॥
ॐ जय जगदीश हरे॥

मात पिता तुम मेरे, शरण गहूं किसकी, स्वामी शरण गहूं मैं किसकी।
तुम बिन और न दूजा, तुम बिन और न दूजा, आस करूं मैं जिसकी॥
ॐ जय जगदीश हरे॥

तुम पूरण परमात्मा, तुम अन्तर्यामी, स्वामी तुम अन्तर्यामी।
पारब्रह्म परमेश्वर, पारब्रह्म परमेश्वर, तुम सब के स्वामी॥
ॐ जय जगदीश हरे॥

तुम करुणा के सागर, तुम पालनकर्ता, स्वामी तुम पालनकर्ता।
मैं मूरख फलकामी, मैं सेवक तुम स्वामी, कृपा करो भर्ता॥
ॐ जय जगदीश हरे॥

तुम हो एक अगोचर, सबके प्राणपति, स्वामी सबके प्राणपति।
किस विधि मिलूं दयामय, किस विधि मिलूं दयामय, तुमको मैं कुमति॥
ॐ जय जगदीश हरे॥

दीन-बन्धु दुःख-हर्ता, ठाकुर तुम मेरे, स्वामी रक्षक तुम मेरे।
अपने हाथ उठाओ, अपने शरण लगाओ, द्वार पड़ा तेरे॥
ॐ जय जगदीश हरे॥

विषय-विकार मिटाओ, पाप हरो देवा, स्वामी पाप हरो देवा।
श्रद्धा भक्ति बढ़ाओ, श्रद्धा भक्ति बढ़ाओ, सन्तन की सेवा॥

ॐ जय जगदीश हरे, स्वामी जय जगदीश हरे।
भक्त जनों के संकट, दास जनों के संकट, क्षण में दूर करे॥

Om jai Jagdish hare, swami jai Jagdish hare.
Bhakt janon ke sankat, das janon ke sankat, kshan mein door kare.
Om jai Jagdish hare.

Jo dhyave phal pave, dukh binse man ka, swami dukh binse man ka.
Sukh sampati ghar aave, sukh sampati ghar aave, kasht mite tan ka.
Om jai Jagdish hare.

Maat pita tum mere, sharan gahoon kiski, swami sharan gahoon main kiski.
Tum bin aur na dooja, tum bin aur na dooja, aas karoon main jiski.
Om jai Jagdish hare.

Tum pooran Parmatma, tum antaryami, swami tum antaryami.
Parabrahm Parmeshwar, Parabrahm Parmeshwar, tum sab ke swami.
Om jai Jagdish hare.

Tum karuna ke sagar, tum palankarta, swami tum palankarta.
Main moorakh phalkami, main sevak tum swami, kripa karo bharta.
Om jai Jagdish hare.

Tum ho ek agochar, sabke pranpati, swami sabke pranpati.
Kis vidhi miloon dayamay, kis vidhi miloon dayamay, tumko main kumati.
Om jai Jagdish hare.

Deen-bandhu dukh-harta, thakur tum mere, swami rakshak tum mere.
Apne haath uthao, apne sharan lagao, dwar pada tere.
Om jai Jagdish hare.

Vishay-vikar mitao, paap haro deva, swami paap haro deva.
Shraddha bhakti badhao, shraddha bhakti badhao, santan ki seva.

Om jai Jagdish hare, swami jai Jagdish hare.
Bhakt janon ke sankat, das janon ke sankat, kshan mein door kare.

Text as it is commonly sung. The Gita Press Aarti Sangrah prints 'prabhu' for 'swami', 'chhin mein' for 'kshan mein' and 'khal kami' for 'phalkami'; it does not repeat the half-lines, has no 'das janon ke sankat', 'main sevak tum swami' or 'apne sharan lagao', and reads 'tum thakur mere' for 'thakur tum mere, swami rakshak tum mere'. Printed text

Significance

Why Jaya Ekadashi is kept

Two celestial performers, cursed for a moment's distraction, were sent to wander a freezing Himalayan slope as wretched spirits, and keeping this day without knowing it was enough to restore them. That makes it a day for anyone who feels they have fallen below themselves, through a habit, a lapse or a loss of nerve: the fast and a night of kirtan are offered as a way back. Krishna's promise in the katha is that whoever keeps it need not fear such a fall.

It sits in a run of Magha observances: Bhishma Ashtami, the day Bhishma gave up his body, comes a few days before it, Bhishma Dwadashi the day after, and the Magh Purnima bath, when the kalpavasis at Prayagraj complete their month, a few days later. Many read or hear the thousand names of Vishnu on this day, the hymn Bhishma taught from his bed of arrows.

Upay · traditional practice

Jaya Ekadashi upay: traditional remedies

The Vishnu Sahasranama

Read the thousand names of Vishnu once in the day, beginning with Shuklambaradharam; it joins Jaya Ekadashi to Bhishma Dwadashi, since Bhishma taught them.

Keep a fruit fast

On this day the cursed pair of the katha ate only a little fruit. Keeping a fruit fast, if a complete one is too hard, is in the spirit of the day.

Kirtan with full attention

Malyavan and Pushpavati were a singer and a dancer whose attention wandered. Sing bhajans or kirtan to Vishnu in the evening with your whole mind on them.

Water in Bhishma's memory

On Bhishma Dwadashi morning, before parana, many families offer water in memory of Bhishma pitamah, who had no children of his own to offer it.

A dip in Magha

Jaya falls in Magha, the month of holy bathing; those at the Magh Mela bathe at the Sangam, and others add a few drops of Ganga jal to their morning bath.

Give up one failing

Jaya means victory, and its katha is about rising out of a fallen state; resolving to give up one habit that pulls you down, from this Ekadashi on, is in keeping with it.

The custom, in short

Jaya Ekadashi do's and don'ts

Do

  • Eat one light sattvic meal on Dashami, before sunset.
  • Take the sankalp in the morning and keep the fast in the form you chose.
  • Put a tulsi leaf, picked the day before, on every offering.
  • Chant Om Namo Bhagavate Vasudevaya and read or hear the katha.
  • Light a lamp before Vishnu and beside the tulsi at dusk.
  • Keep at least part of the night awake in kirtan or japa.
  • Give food or water to someone in need, and give daan on Dwadashi before parana.
  • Break the fast inside the parana window on Dwadashi.
  • Read the Vishnu Sahasranama, if you can, ahead of Bhishma Dwadashi.

Don't

  • Do not eat rice, wheat, dal or any other grain or pulse on Ekadashi.
  • Do not pluck tulsi leaves on Ekadashi.
  • Do not eat onion, garlic, meat or eggs, or drink alcohol, from Dashami to Dwadashi.
  • Do not sleep during the day.
  • Do not quarrel, lie or speak harshly.
  • Do not break the fast during Hari Vasara, or let Dwadashi pass without parana.
  • Do not press the sick, the elderly, pregnant or nursing women or children into a strict fast; anyone with diabetes or another condition, or on regular medicine, should ask a doctor before fasting.

Across India

Jaya Ekadashi customs and food

By region

Prayagraj (Magh Mela)
Kalpavasis spending Magha at the Sangam keep Jaya Ekadashi with a dip, a fast and katha in the camps.
Gaudiya Vaishnava calendars
The day is listed as Bhaimi Ekadashi, with the fast broken on the Dwadashi that follows.

Bhog, prasad and fasting food

  • Fruit and milk The simplest phalahar: seasonal fruit, milk, curd or buttermilk through the day.
  • Sabudana khichdi Sago with potato and rock salt, often with peanuts; a staple fasting meal in many homes.
  • Kuttu or singhara puri Buckwheat or water-chestnut flour with potato sabzi, in families whose custom allows these flours.
  • Samak, the vrat rice Barnyard millet cooked like rice in North India; some traditions count millets as grain and leave it out.
  • Potato, sweet potato and arbi Boiled, or lightly fried in ghee with rock salt, cumin and green chilli.
  • Makhana Roasted, or as kheer, for the bhog and the fast.
  • Sendha namak (rock salt) Used instead of common salt by most who fast; some keep the day without salt altogether.
  • The parana meal On Dwadashi, a tulsi leaf with water or a fruit first, then a simple home-cooked meal; grain returns with the parana.

Jaya Ekadashi across five years

Two years back, this year, and two ahead. Past years are kept rather than dropped so you can check the engine against a calendar you already have.

Jaya Ekadashi across five years
YearDateStatus
2024Tuesday, 20 February 2024past
2025Saturday, 8 February 2025past
2026This yearThursday, 29 January 2026past
2027Wednesday, 17 February 2027upcoming
2028Monday, 7 February 2028upcoming

Every row is computed for New Delhi from the same ephemeris, not looked up. Sunrise decides which day a tithi names, and sunrise differs across India by more than an hour, so a date computed for Delhi can be a day out elsewhere.

Why calendars disagree about this date

There is no single authority that settles a Hindu festival date, and the divergence is genuine rather than sloppy. Three causes account for almost all of it.

  1. A tithi rarely starts at sunrise. One that is running at the deciding moment on two days — or on none — is claimed by both days under different rules.
  2. Month reckoning. North India runs purnimanta, the south and west amanta. The same dark fortnight carries different month names in the two, so an observance defined as "krishna X of month Y" can land a full lunation apart.
  3. Which moment decides. Most vratas belong to the day whose sunrise carries the tithi, but not all: this one is decided at sunrise. Almanacs that apply the sunrise rule to everything move several festivals by a day.

So this page shows its working. If your pandit or your family almanac gives a different day, the instants above will usually show you exactly why — and that is more useful than a date asserted without one.

Common questions

When is Jaya Ekadashi?

In New Delhi, Jaya Ekadashi falls on Wednesday, 17 February 2027, and Ekadashi tithi runs 8:19 PM (16 Feb) to 5:32 PM. It is the Ekadashi of the bright half of Magha, the same month in every calendar, and the day after it is Bhishma Dwadashi.

Why does another calendar give a different Jaya Ekadashi date?

Three honest reasons. The tithi can be running at the deciding moment on two days or on none. North India reckons the month purnimanta and the south and west amanta, which names the same krishna fortnight differently. And almanacs differ on which moment of the day decides an observance. The instants above are the astronomy; the day is an interpretation of them.

Why is Jaya Ekadashi observed?

Jaya Ekadashi is the bright-half Ekadashi of Magha, a few days after Basant Panchami. Jaya means "victory", and the day is kept for Vishnu with the belief, carried by its katha, that it frees the keeper from a degraded state of being. It is also called Bhaimi (or Bhami) Ekadashi, and the following day is kept as Bhishma Dwadashi.

Where does the Jaya Ekadashi vrat katha come from?

It is told in the Bhavishyottara Purana, in Krishna's Ekadashi-mahatmya to Yudhishthira (some Hindi vrat-katha books place it in the Padma Purana). The katha is retold in full above.

Is Jaya Ekadashi on a different day for Smarta and Vaishnava (ISKCON)?

Not this year — both keep Wednesday, 17 February 2027. The Vaishnava rule reads Ekadashi at arunodaya, and Ekadashi already holds that day's arunodaya.

What is the Jaya Ekadashi parana time?

In New Delhi, the fast is broken on Bhishma Dwadashi within 18 Feb, 6:57 AM to 9:12 AM, once Hari Vasara has passed (10:46 PM). Many families offer water in Bhishma's memory and give food to someone in need just before the parana.

What is the Jaya Ekadashi vrat katha?

In Indra's court the gandharva Malyavan and the apsara Pushpavati fell so deeply in love that their song and dance faltered. Indra cursed them to live as pishachas on the earth, and they found themselves on a freezing slope of the Himalaya. It happened to be Magha Shukla Ekadashi: they ate only a little fruit, sheltered under a peepal and were too cold to sleep, and so kept the Jaya fast and vigil unknowingly. On Dwadashi the curse fell away. The full katha is above.

What is the importance of Jaya Ekadashi?

Jaya means victory. The katha says the fast lifted Malyavan and Pushpavati out of the state of pishachas, so the day is kept for Vishnu with the belief that it frees the keeper from a fallen state, and the Purana adds that whoever keeps it need not fear such a fall. Many keep it as a day of victory over their own failings.

What is Bhaimi Ekadashi?

Bhaimi, or Bhami, Ekadashi is another name for Jaya Ekadashi, the bright-half Ekadashi of Magha; Gaudiya Vaishnava calendars list it under that name. It is the same fast on the same day, with the same katha, and its Dwadashi is Bhishma Dwadashi.

What is Bhishma Dwadashi, the day after Jaya Ekadashi?

It is the Dwadashi of the bright half of Magha, kept in memory of Bhishma, the grandsire of the Mahabharata, who lay on a bed of arrows waiting for the Sun's northward turn and taught Yudhishthira the thousand names of Vishnu. Families offer water in his memory and read the Vishnu Sahasranama, and the Jaya fast is broken on this day.

How is the Jaya Ekadashi vrat kept?

Eat a light meal on Dashami. On Ekadashi bathe early, take the sankalp, worship Vishnu with tulsi, yellow flowers, fruit and a ghee lamp, read the Jaya katha and, if you can, the Vishnu Sahasranama. Keep a fruit or water fast, sing bhajans in the evening and keep part of the night awake. On Bhishma Dwadashi give food or water, then break the fast in the parana window.

Which aarti is sung on Jaya Ekadashi?

Om Jai Jagdish Hare, printed in full above, after the morning puja and again with the evening lamps. Since the katha's gandharva and apsara were singers and dancers, many families make the evening a proper kirtan, with the Ekadashi Mata aarti from their vrat book after the katha.

In which month is Jaya Ekadashi celebrated?

In Magha, on the Ekadashi of the bright fortnight, a few days after Basant Panchami. On the Gregorian calendar it falls between late January and late February; the date for New Delhi is Wednesday, 17 February 2027.

What are the benefits of the Jaya Ekadashi fast?

The Bhavishyottara Purana says the fast freed a cursed couple and that its keeper need not fear a fall into a lower state. Those are the tradition's words, kept with faith, not promises of a result. What the day reliably gives is a day of restraint, the thousand names of Vishnu and a gift to someone in need.

Is Jaya Ekadashi kept at the Magh Mela in Prayagraj?

Yes. Jaya falls inside Magha, when pilgrims and kalpavasis live by the Sangam for the month, and for them it is one of the month's great bathing and fasting days. Those at home keep the same vrat, often adding a few drops of Ganga jal to the morning bath.

What should not be eaten on Jaya Ekadashi?

No rice, wheat, barley or any other grain, no dal or beans, no onion or garlic, and no meat, eggs or alcohol from Dashami to the parana. Common salt is replaced by rock salt. Fruit, milk, makhana, sweet potato and, where custom allows, kuttu or singhara are what the fast is kept on.