Devshayani Ekadashi 2027

About Devshayani Ekadashi

Devshayani Ekadashi is the eleventh day of the bright half of Ashadha, and in 2027 it falls on Wednesday, 14 July 2027. Hindus believe Vishnu lies down on this day for a four-month sleep, so it opens Chaturmas. In Maharashtra it is Ashadhi Ekadashi, when the varkari pilgrimage reaches Vitthal's temple at Pandharpur, and in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana it is Toli Ekadashi.

Devshayani means the day the god lies down to sleep. In the Vaishnava telling, Vishnu settles on the serpent Shesha in the ocean of milk and sleeps until Dev Uthani Ekadashi in Kartik, four months later. The months in between are Chaturmas, roughly the monsoon and the weeks after it.

The same day carries different weight in different parts of India. In Maharashtra it is the biggest day of the varkari year. In the Telugu states it is Toli Ekadashi, toli meaning first. In north Indian homes it is the start of a season of vows and the last call for weddings until autumn.

How the date is worked out

The day is the Ekadashi tithi of Ashadha Shukla paksha, which usually falls in late June or July, a little over a week after the Rath Yatra at Puri. Calendars generally take the day on which Ekadashi is running at sunrise. When the tithi spreads across two sunrises, some panchangs list two dates: householders usually fast on the first, and some Vaishnava traditions on the second.

Years with an extra lunar month push it later. In 2026, after an extra Jyeshtha, it fell on 25 July. The Guru Purnima full moon follows four days later and closes the month of Ashadha.

The wari to Pandharpur

For varkaris, the followers of Vitthal (also called Vithoba or Pandurang), Ashadhi Ekadashi is the end of a walk. About three weeks earlier, two palkhis, or palanquins, set out from Pune district: one from Alandi carrying the padukas, the sacred sandals, of Sant Dnyaneshwar, the other from Dehu with those of Sant Tukaram. Behind them walk lakhs of pilgrims, organised into dindis, groups from one village or community, each walking around its own drummer. The route covers about 250 km.

The walk has its own rituals. At set points, such as near Malshiras and Velapur in Solapur district, the pilgrims gather in great circles for the ringan. Walkers sing the abhangas of Tukaram and Dnyaneshwar and many call each other "Mauli", mother, whatever their age. Carrying the padukas goes back to Tukaram's youngest son, Narayan Maharaj, in 1685, and the wari in its present form was organised in the early nineteenth century by Haibatravbaba Arphalkar, a courtier who was devoted to Dnyaneshwar.

The pilgrims reach Pandharpur, in Solapur district, the day before Ekadashi, bathe in the Chandrabhaga, as the Bhima is called there, and queue for darshan. On Ekadashi morning the Chief Minister of Maharashtra performs the official mahapuja of Vitthal with a varkari couple picked from the crowd. In 2025 that couple came from a village in Nashik district and was also given a year of free state bus travel.

Toli Ekadashi and the north

In Andhra Pradesh and Telangana the day is called Toli Ekadashi, the first Ekadashi. People fast, visit Vishnu and Venkateswara temples and recite the Vishnu Sahasranama. In Hyderabad the TTD temples at Jubilee Hills and Banjara Hills draw long queues.

In Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Gujarat, the day is better known for what it starts. Weddings, the mundan, griha pravesh and other household sacraments stop until Vishnu wakes. Many people take a Chaturmas vow: no onion or garlic, one meal a day, a fast on every Ekadashi, or giving up one favourite food for the four months.

The story read with the fast comes from the Bhavishyottara Purana. Krishna tells Yudhishthira of King Mandhata, whose kingdom had three years of drought. The sage Angiras told him to keep this Ekadashi, and the rains came. It is a fitting story for a fast that falls just as the monsoon sets in.

The fast

Drik Panchang describes four ways people keep it: water only, milk only, fruit only, or one meal before sunset. Grains, beans and pulses are left out in all of them. The single meal is usually sabudana, singhara flour, sweet potato, potato and groundnuts. The fast is broken the next morning, on Dwadashi, after the opening window called Hari Vasara has passed; the time shifts by city, so check a local panchang.

How to wish someone on Devshayani Ekadashi

A good Devshayani wish is devotional and plain. Many people are fasting, so wish them a steady fast and an easy parana the next morning rather than a feast. For Marathi friends it is Ashadhi Ekadashi and the wish is about Vithoba and the wari; "Ram Krishna Hari" is the varkari greeting. For Telugu friends use Toli Ekadashi. For anyone starting a Chaturmas vow, wish them strength to keep it for four months.

Write a few lines in your own words, pick a design and share it as one link on WhatsApp, Instagram or anywhere else. They open an animated card made just for them, with no app and no sign-up.

Language tip: English, Marathi + Hindi and Telugu.

When is Devshayani Ekadashi in each year?

Devshayani Ekadashi is set by the Hindu lunisolar calendar, so it falls on a different date each year. In 2027 it falls 11 days earlier than in 2026.

Frequently asked questions