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Shukla paksha · Pausha · amanta reckoning

When is Pausha Putrada Ekadashi 2027?

Pausha Putrada Ekadashi 2027

In 85 days

Tue, 19 Jan

Pausha Putrada Ekadashi 2027 is on Tuesday, 19 January. It is Ekadashi of Shukla paksha in Pausha.

2028: Saturday, 8 January 2028

Also called Paush Putrada Ekadashi, Pausa Putrada 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

Tuesday, 19 January 2027

Pausha Putrada Ekadashi is not a Gregorian date. It is Shukla paksha tithi 11 of Pausha 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
Pausha (amanta)
Tithi begins
18 Jan, 10:28 AM
Tithi ends
19 Jan, 7:50 AM
Decided at
Sunrise
Sunrise in New Delhi
19 Jan, 7:14 AM

Sunrise in New Delhi falls at 7:14 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 · Pausha

Pausha Putrada Ekadashi 2027: Smarta and Vaishnava dates

Listed here (Smarta, the sunrise rule)
Tuesday, 19 January 2027 — The fast belongs to the day whose sunrise carries Ekadashi — the day AstroSage lists and the one this page leads with.
Smarta (Drik Panchang), parana inside Dwadashi
Monday, 18 January 2027 — This year Dwadashi begins and ends between two sunrises, so a fast kept on Tuesday, 19 January 2027 has no Dwadashi morning to be broken in. Smarta calendars that require parana inside Dwadashi move the fast back a day.
Vaishnava (ISKCON), the arunodaya rule
Tuesday, 19 January 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 Tuesday, 19 January 2027 (19 Jan, 5:38 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

Pausha Putrada Ekadashi vrat katha and significance

Pausha Putrada Ekadashi is the bright-half Ekadashi of Pausha, in late December or January — the second of the two Putrada ("giver of a son") Ekadashis, the other falling in Shravana. Couples hoping for a child have traditionally kept it, and it is kept today as a prayer for children's wellbeing. When it falls while the Sun is in Dhanu it is also Vaikuntha Ekadashi in South India; the page says so in the years it does.

The katha

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

King Suketuman ruled Bhadravati with his queen Shaibya. They had wealth, a loyal court and a peaceful kingdom, but no child, and the king brooded over who would offer the rites to his ancestors after him.

His sorrow grew until one day he rode alone into the forest without telling anyone. He wandered among the trees until he was exhausted and thirsty, and at last came to a lake covered in lotuses, on whose bank a gathering of sages were reciting the Vedas.

The king bowed to them and told them his trouble. The sages — the Vishvadevas, come to bathe in the lake — told him that the Ekadashi of the bright half of Pausha, called Putrada, was that very day, and that if he kept it he would be blessed with a son.

Suketuman kept the fast there and then, by the lake, and broke it on Dwadashi after bowing to the sages again. The Purana says that the queen conceived soon after he returned home, and that their son grew into a righteous heir. Krishna tells Yudhishthira that this is the reason the day is named Putrada.

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 Pausha Putrada Ekadashi 2027 muhurat · New Delhi

Pausha Putrada Ekadashi muhurat

Pausha Putrada Ekadashi, the bright-half Ekadashi of Pausha, is kept for Vishnu by couples praying for a child and by parents praying for their children's wellbeing. In New Delhi it falls on Tuesday, 19 January 2027: the fast runs from sunrise to parana on Dwadashi, after Ekadashi ends (no Dwadashi sunrise this year). It is one of the year's two Putrada Ekadashis; the other comes in Shravana.

All Pausha Putrada Ekadashi 2027 muhurat in New Delhi
MuhuratTime in New DelhiWhat it is for
Parana: the time to break the fastDwadashi holds no sunrise after this Ekadashi, so the usual parana window does not apply: break the fast once Ekadashi has ended.

The window on Dwadashi, the morning after the fast, in which Pausha Putrada 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 endsDwadashi holds no sunrise after this Ekadashi, so the usual parana window does not apply: break the fast once Ekadashi has ended.

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 Muhurta5:26 AM to 6:20 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.

Sunrise7:14 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 9:53 AM to 11:12 AM
  • Labh 11:12 AM to 12:31 PM
  • Amrit 12:31 PM to 1:51 PM
  • Shubh 3:10 PM to 4:30 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 lamps5:49 PM to 8:30 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 vigil20 Jan, 12:04 AM to 12:58 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 of3:10 PM to 4:30 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 Muhurat12:10 PM to 12:53 PMAuspicious
Amrit Kaal4:00 PM to 5:27 PMMost Auspicious
Brahma Muhurat5:26 AM to 6:20 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 Kaal3:10 PM to 4:30 PM
Yamaganda Kaal9:53 AM to 11:12 AM
Durmuhurta First9:21 AM to 10:03 AM
Varjyam11:38 AM to 1:05 PM
Varjyam (Second)11:53 PM to 1:19 AM

Every time above is computed for New Delhi around Tuesday, 19 January 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

Pausha Putrada 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 Pausha Putrada 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 with Bal Gopal

    Couples praying for a child traditionally worship Vishnu as the child Krishna, Bal Gopal or Laddu Gopal. Set the image on a yellow cloth on a clean chowki, with a ghee lamp and a kalash or lota of water, and remember Ganesh first with a flower and Om Gam Ganapataye Namah.

  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. Pray together as a couple

    Where the vrat is kept for a child, husband and wife sit together for the puja, offer tulsi, yellow flowers and makhan-mishri to Bal Gopal, and chant the Santana Gopala mantra 108 times on a tulsi mala. Parents keeping it for their children name each child in the prayer.

  7. 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.

  8. Katha and aarti

    Read or listen to the Pausha Putrada 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.

  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

Pausha Putrada 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.
  • An image of Bal Gopal or Laddu Gopal For couples keeping the vrat for a child; any image of Vishnu or Krishna also does.
  • Makhan and mishri Butter and rock sugar, the child Krishna's own offering, with a tulsi leaf.

Mantras · in Devanagari, with meaning

Pausha Putrada 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.

The Santana Gopala mantra

ॐ देवकीसुत गोविन्द वासुदेव जगत्पते ।
देहि मे तनयं कृष्ण त्वामहं शरणं गतः ॥

Om Devakisuta Govinda Vasudeva jagatpate
Dehi me tanayam Krishna tvam aham sharanam gatah

Meaning: O son of Devaki, Govinda, Vasudeva, lord of the world: give me a child, Krishna; I have come to you for refuge. The traditional prayer to Krishna as the child Gopala.

When and how: 108 times on a tulsi mala before an image of Bal Gopal, by couples who pray for a child; a prayer of hope, kept with faith and without a promise.

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, or as a short prayer at any time of the fast.

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 Pausha Putrada Ekadashi is kept

In the Bhavishya Purana's katha, King Suketuman, grieving that no child would carry on his line, rode alone into the forest and came to a lake of lotuses where the Vishvadevas had come to bathe; on their word he kept this fast there and then, and the Purana says an heir was born soon after. Its lesson is that a long sorrow can be brought before God and not only borne, and the prayer today takes in daughters and sons alike, and the children a family already has.

It comes in the cold weeks around Makar Sankranti, and a few days later the Paush Purnima bath opens the Magh Mela at Prayagraj, where kalpavasis settle on the sands for a month. At home, parents name each child in the sankalp, give something to children who have less, and worship Bal Gopal together as a family.

Upay · traditional practice

Pausha Putrada Ekadashi upay: traditional remedies

Worship Bal Gopal together

Where the vrat is kept for a child, husband and wife worship Bal Gopal side by side, offer makhan-mishri and tulsi, and keep the fast together as far as their health allows.

The Santana Gopala mantra

Chant Om Devakisuta Govinda 108 times on a tulsi mala in the morning puja and again at dusk. It is a prayer of hope kept with faith, not a promise of a result.

Name each child in the sankalp

Parents keeping Putrada for the children they have name each one in the morning sankalp and pray for their health, studies and character.

Give to children

On Dwadashi give fruit, sweets, warm clothes or books to children in need, at a school, an orphanage or in your neighbourhood; it is a natural way to keep a day devoted to children.

A lotus for Vishnu

The katha's blessing came beside a lake covered in lotuses. Offer Vishnu a lotus if you can find one, or a garland of yellow flowers if not.

Patience with the prayer

Tradition keeps both Putrada Ekadashis, in Pausha and in Shravana, as a pair; many couples keep the two together over the year, alongside whatever medical care they need.

The custom, in short

Pausha Putrada 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.
  • Couples keeping the vrat for a child worship together and chant the Santana Gopala mantra.

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 let the vrat take the place of medical care for a couple hoping to conceive.

Across India

Pausha Putrada Ekadashi customs and food

By region

Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka
In years when the Sun is in Dhanu on this day it is Vaikuntha Ekadashi: devotees pass through the Vaikuntha Dwaram, the northern gate opened before dawn at Srirangam, Tirupati and other Vishnu temples.
North India
Kept as Putrada Ekadashi in Pausha, with Bal Gopal worship by couples praying for a child and by parents for their children.

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.

Pausha Putrada 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.

Pausha Putrada Ekadashi across five years
YearDateStatus
2024Sunday, 21 January 2024past
2025Friday, 10 January 2025past
2025Tuesday, 30 December 2025past
2026This yearnone in 2026 — it falls in late December or January, so a calendar year can have two or none—
2027Tuesday, 19 January 2027upcoming
2028Saturday, 8 January 2028upcoming
2028Wednesday, 27 December 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 Pausha Putrada Ekadashi?

In New Delhi, Pausha Putrada Ekadashi falls on Tuesday, 19 January 2027, with Ekadashi tithi running 10:27 AM (18 Jan) to 7:50 AM. It comes between late December and late January, so a calendar year can have two or none. The other Putrada Ekadashi, in Shravana, falls in July or August and has its own page.

Why does another calendar give a different Pausha Putrada 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 Pausha Putrada Ekadashi observed?

Pausha Putrada Ekadashi is the bright-half Ekadashi of Pausha, in late December or January — the second of the two Putrada ("giver of a son") Ekadashis, the other falling in Shravana. Couples hoping for a child have traditionally kept it, and it is kept today as a prayer for children's wellbeing. When it falls while the Sun is in Dhanu it is also Vaikuntha Ekadashi in South India; the page says so in the years it does.

Where does the Pausha Putrada Ekadashi vrat katha come from?

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

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

Not this year — both keep Tuesday, 19 January 2027. The Vaishnava rule reads Ekadashi at arunodaya, and Ekadashi already holds that day's arunodaya.

What is the Pausha Putrada Ekadashi parana time?

In New Delhi the fast is broken on Dwadashi after Ekadashi ends (no Dwadashi sunrise this year), after Hari Vasara ends (no Dwadashi sunrise this year). Couples who kept the vrat together usually break it together, with a tulsi leaf and a little of the makhan-mishri offered to Bal Gopal before the meal.

What is the Pausha Putrada Ekadashi vrat katha?

King Suketuman of Bhadravati and his queen Shaibya had everything but a child. Grieving, the king rode alone into the forest and came to a lotus lake where sages, the Vishvadevas, were reciting the Vedas. They told him that day was the Putrada Ekadashi of Pausha and that keeping it would bring him a son. He kept the fast there and broke it on Dwadashi, and in time a righteous heir was born. The full katha is above; the Shravana Putrada katha, King Mahijit's, is on its own page.

What is the difference between Pausha Putrada and Shravana Putrada Ekadashi?

Both are Putrada, giver of a child, and both are kept for Vishnu by couples hoping for a child. Pausha Putrada falls in the bright half of Pausha, around January, and tells King Suketuman's katha; Shravana Putrada falls in the bright half of Shravana, around August, and tells King Mahijit's. Many couples keep both.

Is Putrada Ekadashi only for those who want a son?

The name means giver of a son, from the katha's king who needed an heir, but families today keep it for children of either sex: couples hoping for a child, and parents praying for the health and future of their daughters and sons. Anyone who wishes may keep it as an ordinary Ekadashi too.

How should a couple keep the Putrada Ekadashi vrat?

Eat a light meal on Dashami, then bathe early on Ekadashi and take the sankalp together. Worship Bal Gopal or Vishnu with tulsi, yellow flowers and makhan-mishri, chant the Santana Gopala mantra 108 times, read the katha and sing the aarti. Keep a fruit or water fast as health allows, give something to children on Dwadashi and break the fast in the parana window.

Which mantra is chanted on Putrada Ekadashi?

The Santana Gopala mantra, Om Devakisuta Govinda Vasudeva jagatpate, is the traditional prayer of couples hoping for a child, chanted 108 times before Bal Gopal. With it go the twelve-syllable Om Namo Bhagavate Vasudevaya and the Krishnaya Vasudevaya prayer; all three, with their meaning, are in the mantra section.

What can I eat on Putrada Ekadashi?

Phalahar without grain: fruit, milk and curd, makhana, sabudana, potato, sweet potato and singhara or kuttu flour where the custom allows, with rock salt. In the January cold, couples keeping the fast together often share warm milk with dry fruit and a plate of fruit, and the makhan-mishri offered to Bal Gopal becomes prasad.

Is Pausha Putrada Ekadashi the same as Vaikuntha Ekadashi?

In some years. Vaikuntha Ekadashi is the bright-half Ekadashi that falls while the Sun is in Dhanu, the Tamil month of Margazhi, so it is Pausha Putrada in the years when this Ekadashi comes before the Sun enters Makara, and Mokshada in others. In those years this page notes it, and South Indian temples open the Vaikuntha Dwaram before dawn.

Are there upay for Putrada Ekadashi?

The traditional ones are acts of devotion: worship Bal Gopal together, chant the Santana Gopala mantra, offer makhan-mishri and a lotus, name each child in the sankalp and give to children in need on Dwadashi. They are prayers kept with faith, never a guarantee, and no substitute for a doctor's care.

Which aarti is sung on Putrada Ekadashi?

Om Jai Jagdish Hare, given in full above, closes the morning puja and the evening lamps. Families who worship Bal Gopal often add a Krishna aarti or bhajan, and many sing the Ekadashi Mata aarti from their vrat book after the katha.