Festival · Vishnu

Dev Uthani Ekadashi

Prabodhini Ekadashi, the day Lord Vishnu wakes from his four months of sleep, Chaturmas, on the bright eleventh of Kartika. Weddings begin again, Tulsi is married to him, and many keep it as Khatu Shyam’s birthday.

Dev Uthani Ekadashi 2026
Friday 20 November 2026
New Delhi

For New Delhi, Friday 20 November 2026

Shukla Ekadashi tithi

Begins
7:16 am
Ends
6:32 am, 21 Nov
Sunrise
6:48 am
Sunset
5:26 pm
Moonrise
2:22 pm
Moonset
2:58 am, 21 Nov

Worked out for your city. Panchangs can differ by a minute or so.

Full panchang for this day →

Puja times

For New Delhi, Friday 20 November 2026

Parana (breaking the fast), 21 Nov

1:11 pm to 3:18 pm

Hari Vasara ends
12:08 pm
Dwadashi ends
4:57 am, 22 Nov
Ekadashi begins
7:16 am
Ekadashi ends
6:32 am, 21 Nov

Worked out for your city. Panchangs can differ by a minute or so.

How it is kept

Customs vary by region and family

  • Fast through the day, without grains or beans
  • Wake him at dusk with bells, the conch and songs, and offer sugarcane
  • Hold Tulsi Vivah, and break the fast tomorrow in the parana time
Sing Om Jai Jagdish Hare →

What it remembers

Dev Uthani Ekadashi, also called Prabodhini or Devutthana Ekadashi, is the bright eleventh day of Kartika, when Lord Vishnu wakes from the four months of sleep that began on Devshayani Ekadashi in Ashadha. Chaturmas ends, weddings begin again, and in the evening Tulsi is married to him. Those who keep it fast through the day, wake him at dusk with bells, the conch and songs, and break the fast the next morning in the parana time.

Vishnu wakes

The Puranas tell that Lord Vishnu lies down on the serpent Shesha in the ocean of milk on Devshayani Ekadashi, and sleeps through the four months of the rains, Chaturmas. While he sleeps, no weddings or housewarmings are held. On the bright Ekadashi of Kartika he wakes, and the world’s great beginnings can start again.

The marriage of Tulsi

In the telling most families know, Tulsi was once Vrinda, the faithful wife of the asura Jalandhara, whose strength came from her devotion. When Lord Vishnu broke her vow so that Jalandhara could be defeated, she cursed him to become a stone, the shaligram, and became the tulsi plant herself. Vishnu honoured her: every year, when he wakes, he is married to Tulsi.

Khatu Shyam’s birthday

At Khatu in Rajasthan this day is kept as the Janmotsav of Khatu Shyam Ji, the day the head of Barbarika is said to have been set in his temple. The temple is decorated, and devotees sing his bhajans through the night. Some keep the Phalguna Ekadashi as his birthday instead.

Bhishma Panchak

The five days from this Ekadashi to Kartik Purnima are Bhishma Panchak. It is told that Bhishma, lying on his bed of arrows after the war, taught the Pandavas dharma on these days, and that Lord Krishna named them after him. Many keep a light fast through all five.

Keeping Dev Uthani Ekadashi

The fast runs from sunrise to the parana the next morning, and the god is woken at dusk. Families keep it in many ways; follow your own tradition where it differs.

  1. On Dashami, the day before, eat one simple meal before sunset, and pick the tulsi leaves you will need: tulsi is not plucked on Ekadashi.
  2. Bathe early and take the vow (sankalpa) to fast. Keep it without grains or beans, on fruit and milk, or without water, as your health allows.
  3. Clean the puja place or courtyard and draw on it with geru (red earth) and rice paste. Set out sugarcane, water chestnuts (singhara), ber, sweet potatoes and the season’s fruit for him.
  4. At dusk light lamps, then wake him: ring bells, blow the conch and sing, calling on him to rise.
  5. Worship Lord Vishnu with tulsi leaves, yellow flowers and sweets, chant Om Namo Bhagavate Vasudevaya or read the Vishnu Sahasranama, and sing Om Jai Jagdish Hare.
  6. Hold Tulsi Vivah tonight or tomorrow: dress the tulsi plant as a bride, raise a little canopy of sugarcane over her, and marry her to a shaligram or an image of Lord Krishna.
  7. On Dwadashi, break the fast in the parana time shown on this page, starting with tulsi water.

What you need

  • Tulsi leaves, picked the day before
  • Sugarcane, water chestnuts, ber and seasonal fruit
  • Geru and rice paste for the drawing
  • A bell, a conch and lamps
  • For Tulsi Vivah: a red cloth and bangles for the tulsi, and a shaligram

Across India

Pandharpur, Maharashtra

Kartiki Ekadashi, the second great pilgrimage of the year after Ashadhi: lakhs of varkaris come to Vitthal, Lord Vishnu as Vithoba, and the festival runs on to Kartik Purnima.

Uttar Pradesh and Bihar

Courtyards are drawn with geru and rice paste, sugarcane and the season’s first fruits are offered, and women sing to wake the god at dusk. The first canes of the harvest are cut today, and the wedding season opens.

Khatu, Rajasthan

The Janmotsav of Khatu Shyam Ji: the temple is lit and decorated, and his devotees sing through the night.

Pushkar, Rajasthan

The Pushkar fair begins today and runs to Kartik Purnima, when pilgrims bathe in the sacred lake and visit the temple of Lord Brahma.

Gujarat

Tulsi Vivah is held with the full rites of a wedding, and followers of the Swaminarayan tradition keep the day with a fast without water.

When it falls

Shukla Ekadashi of Kartika. Kept on the day this tithi holds at sunrise.

These are the usual rules. A few days can differ by a day in your tradition, so check with your temple.

Dev Uthani Ekadashi in the coming years

New Delhi, India time

  1. 2026Friday 20 November 2026
  2. 2027Wednesday 10 November 2027
  3. 2028Saturday 28 October 2028

Questions

When is Dev Uthani Ekadashi in 2026?

Friday 20 November 2026, in New Delhi. In a few places it can fall a day apart, so the date above is worked out for your city.

When does Dev Uthani Ekadashi fall?

Shukla Ekadashi of Kartika. Kept on the day this tithi holds at sunrise.

How is Dev Uthani Ekadashi kept?

Families fast through the day, without grains or beans, wake him at dusk with bells, the conch and songs, and offer sugarcane and hold Tulsi Vivah, and break the fast tomorrow in the parana time. Customs vary by region and family.

Who is honoured on Dev Uthani Ekadashi?

Vishnu. Prabodhini Ekadashi, the day Lord Vishnu wakes from his four months of sleep, Chaturmas, on the bright eleventh of Kartika. Weddings begin again, Tulsi is married to him, and many keep it as Khatu Shyam’s birthday.

Are Dev Uthani, Prabodhini and Devutthana Ekadashi the same?

Yes. All three names mean the Ekadashi of waking: Prabodhini, the one who wakes, and Dev Uthani or Devutthana, the rising of the god. It is the Shukla Ekadashi of Kartika, also called Hari Prabodhini, Deothan and, in Nepal, Thulo Ekadashi.

When is Tulsi Vivah?

Many families marry Tulsi to Lord Vishnu on the evening of Dev Uthani Ekadashi itself; many others hold it the next day, on Dwadashi, and some on any day up to Kartik Purnima. Follow your family’s custom. In 2026, Dwadashi is on Saturday 21 November.

Why do weddings begin after Dev Uthani Ekadashi?

Weddings, housewarmings and other great beginnings are not held while Lord Vishnu sleeps, through the four months of Chaturmas. When he wakes on this day, they can begin again, so the wedding season opens with Tulsi’s own wedding to him.

Is Dev Uthani Ekadashi Khatu Shyam’s birthday?

At Khatu and among most of his devotees, yes: his Janmotsav is kept on Dev Uthani Ekadashi, the day his head is said to have been set in the temple. Some keep the Phalguna Ekadashi, the great day of his mela, as his birthday instead.

Why do some calendars show it a day later?

Smartas fast on the day Ekadashi holds at sunrise, or the day it begins when it holds at neither sunrise. Vaishnavas, ISKCON among them, avoid an Ekadashi touched by Dashami before dawn and then fast the next day. In 2026 the Smarta fast is on Friday 20 November and the Vaishnava fast on Saturday 21 November. This page follows the Smarta date.

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