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Krishna paksha · Phalguna · amanta reckoning

When is Papmochani Ekadashi 2027?

Papmochani Ekadashi 2027

In 158 days

Fri, 2 Apr

Papmochani Ekadashi 2027 is on Friday, 2 April. Parana, breaking the fast, is on 3 April, 1:39 PM to 4:10 PM in New Delhi.

2028: Tuesday, 21 March 2028

Parana (breaking the fast), 3 Apr 2027

1:39 PM – 4:10 PM

New Delhi

Also called Papamochani Ekadashi, Paapmochani 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

Friday, 2 April 2027

Papmochani Ekadashi 2027 timings in New Delhi
TimingNew DelhiWhat it is
Parana (breaking the fast), 3 Apr 20271:39 PM to 4:10 PMHari Vasara runs past the morning, so parana is kept after madhyahna (midday), in the afternoon window.

Papmochani Ekadashi is not a Gregorian date. It is Krishna paksha tithi 11 of Phalguna 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, Krishna paksha
Lunar month
Phalguna (amanta)
Tithi begins
2 Apr, 12:46 AM
Tithi ends
3 Apr, 2:52 AM
Decided at
Sunrise
Sunrise in New Delhi
2 Apr, 6:10 AM

Sunrise in New Delhi falls at 6:10 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.

Krishna paksha · Chaitra (purnimanta) · Phalguna (amanta)

Papmochani Ekadashi 2027: Smarta and Vaishnava dates

Papmochani Ekadashi is the Ekadashi of the dark (krishna) half of Chaitra in the purnimanta reckoning used across North India, and of Phalguna in the amanta reckoning used in the south and west. It is the same night: the two calendars name the dark fortnight after different months.

Listed here (Smarta, the sunrise rule)
Friday, 2 April 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
Friday, 2 April 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 Friday, 2 April 2027 (2 Apr, 4:34 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

Papmochani Ekadashi vrat katha and significance

Papmochani Ekadashi is the Ekadashi of the dark fortnight between Holi and Chaitra Navratri — Chaitra Krishna in the purnimanta reckoning, Phalguna Krishna in the amanta one — and so the last Ekadashi of the Hindu year. Papmochani means "releaser from sin", and the day is kept for Vishnu as a closing of the year's account before the new one begins.

The katha

Retold in brief from the Bhavishyottara Purana, in Krishna's Ekadashi-mahatmya to Yudhishthira.

In the Chaitraratha forest, where the apsaras and gandharvas came to play in spring, the young sage Medhavi, son of the sage Chyavana, was keeping a long austerity in honour of Shiva.

The apsara Manjughosha set out to break his concentration. She settled nearby and sang and played the vina so sweetly that at last Medhavi's resolve gave way, and he lived with her for many years, losing all count of time.

When she finally asked leave to go home, Medhavi realised how much time had passed and how much of his merit was gone. In anger he cursed her to become a pishachi, a wretched spirit. Manjughosha begged him for a way out, and, his anger cooling, he told her of the Ekadashi of the dark fortnight of Chaitra — Papmochani.

Medhavi then went home to his father ashamed. Chyavana told him that he too had a debt to clear, and that the same Ekadashi would clear it. Both kept the fast. The Purana says Manjughosha regained her own form and returned to heaven, and Medhavi recovered the merit of his austerity. Krishna ends by saying that reading or hearing this story carries the merit of a thousand gifts of cows.

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 Papmochani Ekadashi 2027 muhurat · New Delhi

Papmochani Ekadashi muhurat

Papmochani Ekadashi, the releaser from sin, is the last Ekadashi of the Hindu year, kept for Vishnu in the fortnight between Holi and Chaitra Navratri. In New Delhi it falls on Friday, 2 April 2027: the fast runs from sunrise to parana on Dwadashi, 3 Apr, 1:39 PM to 4:10 PM. It is the Ekadashi of Chaitra Krishna in North India (Phalguna Krishna in the amanta calendar).

All Papmochani Ekadashi 2027 muhurat in New Delhi
MuhuratTime in New DelhiWhat it is for
Parana: the time to break the fast3 Apr, 1:39 PM to 4:10 PMHari Vasara runs past the morning, so parana waits until midday has passed: the aparahna.

The window on Dwadashi, the morning after the fast, in which Papmochani 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 ends3 Apr, 9:16 AMThe 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 Muhurta4:38 AM to 5:24 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.

Sunrise6:10 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)
  • Chal 6:10 AM to 7:44 AM
  • Labh 7:44 AM to 9:17 AM
  • Amrit 9:17 AM to 10:51 AM
  • Shubh 12:25 PM to 1:58 PM
  • Chal 5:06 PM to 6:39 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 lamps6:39 PM to 8:57 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 vigil3 Apr, 12:01 AM to 12:47 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 of10:51 AM to 12:25 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
Abhijit Muhurat12:00 PM to 12:50 PMAuspicious
Amrit Kaal3:15 AM to 5:00 AMMost Auspicious
Brahma Muhurat4:38 AM to 5:24 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 Kaal10:51 AM to 12:25 PM
Yamaganda Kaal3:32 PM to 5:06 PM
Durmuhurta First8:40 AM to 9:30 AM
Durmuhurta Second12:50 PM to 1:39 PM
Varjyam4:40 PM to 6:26 PM

Every time above is computed for New Delhi around Friday, 2 April 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

Papmochani 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 Papmochani 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 Papmochani 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. Close the year's account

    Papmochani is the last Ekadashi of the Hindu year. After the katha, many sit quietly for a while, recall the wrongs of the year, especially those done to others, ask Vishnu's pardon and resolve to set right what can still be set right before the new year opens with Chaitra Navratri.

  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: give, then break the fast

    Next morning bathe, worship Vishnu briefly and give food, grain or a gift to a brahmin or someone in need. Then break the fast inside the parana window: a tulsi leaf with water, or a fruit, first, saying the parana verse, and after it a simple sattvic meal.

Samagri · what to keep ready

Papmochani 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.

Mantras · in Devanagari, with meaning

Papmochani 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.

Krishnaya Vasudevaya

कृष्णाय वासुदेवाय हरये परमात्मने ।
प्रणतक्लेशनाशाय गोविन्दाय नमो नमः ॥

Krishnaya Vasudevaya haraye paramatmane
Pranata-klesha-nashaya Govindaya namo namah

Meaning: To Krishna, son of Vasudeva, to Hari, the Supreme Self, who ends the distress of those who bow to him, to Govinda: salutation again and again. A prayer from the Bhagavata Purana.

When and how: Said with folded hands after the aarti and again at the close of the evening's reflection, asking the Lord who ends the distress of those who bow to him for pardon.

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 Papmochani Ekadashi is kept

The work of this day is an honest stocktaking. Before the new year begins, sit with what went wrong in the old one, ask pardon of the people it hurt, and forgive those who hurt you; the katha's sage, who cursed in anger, needed the same fast as the apsara he cursed. Many hear the story together as a family, since the Purana says reading or hearing it carries the merit of a thousand gifts of cows, and clean the house for the year about to open.

Its katha, from the Bhavishyottara Purana, tells of the young sage Medhavi, whose austerity was broken by the apsara Manjughosha, and of the curse he laid on her in anger; the same Ekadashi freed her and restored his own lost merit. It falls in Chaitra Krishna by the North Indian reckoning (Phalguna Krishna in the amanta one), between mid-March and early April.

Upay · traditional practice

Papmochani Ekadashi upay: traditional remedies

Close the year's account

After the katha, recall the year honestly, the harm done to others above all, ask Vishnu's pardon and write down one thing you will set right before the new year begins.

Ask pardon, and forgive

In the katha, Medhavi's anger cooled and he gave the apsara the way out of his own curse. Speak to someone you have hurt, or let go of a grudge you hold, on this day.

Feed a cow

The katha ends by saying that reading or hearing it carries the merit of a thousand gifts of cows. Feeding a cow, or giving to a gaushala, on Dwadashi is the custom many keep with it.

Hear the katha together

Read the Papmochani katha aloud to the whole household; tradition counts hearing it as part of the merit of the day.

Water for the coming heat

Papmochani comes as the days turn hot. Setting out a pot of water for passers-by or birds is a simple daan that lasts into the summer.

A clean house for the new year

Chaitra Navratri and the Hindu new year follow within days. Clean the house and the puja corner, and give away what you no longer use, so that the year begins uncluttered.

The custom, in short

Papmochani 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.
  • Ask pardon of anyone you wronged in the year, and forgive what you can.

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.
  • Do not curse or speak in anger; in the katha a curse spoken in anger had to be undone by this fast.

Across India

Papmochani Ekadashi bhog and 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.

Papmochani 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.

Papmochani Ekadashi across five years
YearDateStatus
2024Friday, 5 April 2024past
2025Tuesday, 25 March 2025past
2026This yearSunday, 15 March 2026past
2027Friday, 2 April 2027upcoming
2028Tuesday, 21 March 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 Papmochani Ekadashi?

In New Delhi, Papmochani Ekadashi falls on Friday, 2 April 2027, and Ekadashi tithi runs 12:45 AM to 2:52 AM (3 Apr). It is the dark-fortnight Ekadashi after Holi: Chaitra Krishna in the purnimanta calendar of North India, Phalguna Krishna in the amanta calendar.

Why does another calendar give a different Papmochani 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 Papmochani Ekadashi observed?

Papmochani Ekadashi is the Ekadashi of the dark fortnight between Holi and Chaitra Navratri — Chaitra Krishna in the purnimanta reckoning, Phalguna Krishna in the amanta one — and so the last Ekadashi of the Hindu year. Papmochani means "releaser from sin", and the day is kept for Vishnu as a closing of the year's account before the new one begins.

Where does the Papmochani Ekadashi vrat katha come from?

It is told in the Bhavishyottara Purana, in Krishna's Ekadashi-mahatmya to Yudhishthira. The katha is retold in full above.

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

Not this year — both keep Friday, 2 April 2027. The Vaishnava rule reads Ekadashi at arunodaya, and Ekadashi already holds that day's arunodaya.

Is it Papmochani or Papamochani Ekadashi?

Both are the same Ekadashi: Papa-mochani, the one who releases from sin, is written either way, and both spellings are searched about equally. In New Delhi it falls on Friday, 2 April 2027.

What is the Papmochani Ekadashi parana time?

Parana is on Dwadashi: in New Delhi, 3 Apr, 1:39 PM to 4:10 PM. The window opens once Hari Vasara is over (3 Apr, 9:16 AM). In the early heat many break the fast with water, a tulsi leaf and fruit before a simple meal.

What is the Papmochani Ekadashi vrat katha?

The young sage Medhavi, son of Chyavana, was practising austerity in the Chaitraratha forest when the apsara Manjughosha won him over with her music, and he lived with her for years. Realising how much he had lost, he cursed her in anger to become a pishachi, then, his anger cooling, told her of Papmochani Ekadashi. Both kept it: she regained her form and he his lost merit. The full katha is above.

What is the significance of Papmochani Ekadashi?

As its name says, it is kept for release from wrongdoing, and as the last Ekadashi of the Hindu year it serves as a closing of the year's account before Chaitra Navratri. The katha adds that its merit reached both the one who cursed and the one who was cursed.

Which month and season does Papmochani Ekadashi fall in?

It falls in the dark fortnight after Holi, between mid-March and early April, as spring turns to summer. North India counts it in Chaitra, the amanta calendar in Phalguna, and it always comes a few days before Chaitra Navratri.

Is Papmochani the last Ekadashi of the year?

Of the Hindu year, yes: the lunar year begins with Chaitra Shukla Pratipada, and the first Ekadashi after it is Kamada. On the Gregorian calendar it is not: the rest of the year's Ekadashis, about two a month, still lie ahead of it, and two more in a year with an adhika month.

What should be done on Papmochani Ekadashi?

Fast without grain, worship Vishnu with tulsi, yellow flowers and a lamp, read the Medhavi katha and sit quietly with the year behind you: ask pardon for wrongs done, forgive what you can, and resolve to set something right. Give water or food to someone, keep part of the night in kirtan and break the fast in the parana window.

What should not be done on Papmochani Ekadashi?

No rice or other grain, no onion, garlic, meat or alcohol, no daytime sleep and no plucking of tulsi. Above all, given the katha, no curses or words spoken in anger: Medhavi's curse took this very fast to undo.

Does keeping Papmochani really remove sins?

The Purana says so, and that is the tradition's own claim, kept with faith. What the vrat asks in practice is honest: to acknowledge what went wrong, ask pardon, put right what can be put right and begin again, which no fast can do on anyone's behalf.

What can be eaten in the Papmochani fast as the weather turns hot?

Light phalahar suits the season: watermelon, cucumber, banana and other fresh fruit, curd and buttermilk, lemon water with rock salt, and sabudana or makhana. Drink enough water if you are not keeping a water fast, and leave grain, pulses, onion and garlic until the parana.

How is Papmochani linked to Chaitra Navratri and the new year?

It is the last Ekadashi before the Hindu new year, which begins with Chaitra Shukla Pratipada, the first day of Chaitra Navratri, a few days later. Many families use it to close the old year, with the fast, the katha and a clean house, before the new one is welcomed with Ghatasthapana.