Vijaya Ekadashi
Unmilani Mahadvadasi
Fasting day
From grains and beans, from sunrise
Break the fast ·
6:45 – 9:55 AM
Break the fast after sunrise and before Dvadashi ends.
What is Vijaya Ekadashi?
Vijaya Ekadashi is the Ekadashi of victory. It comes in the dark fortnight of Phalguna, and in 2027 the Kurukshetra calendar places it on Thursday, 4 March, the same date it lists for Unmilani Mahadvadasi.
Significance
In the Skanda Purana, Lord Brahma describes this Ekadashi to his disciple (and son) Narada Muni. Lord Rama had reached the shore of the ocean with His army of monkeys and bears, but He could see no way to cross to Lanka. On Lakshmana's advice He went to the sage Bakadalbhya, who taught Him the vow of Vijaya Ekadashi. Rama kept it and conquered Ravana.
In this sense, victory means success in the Lord's service. The Bhagavad-gita, spoken on the battlefield of Kurukshetra, closes with the same assurance in the words of Sanjaya:
Wherever there is Kṛṣṇa, the master of all mystics, and wherever there is Arjuna, the supreme archer, there will also certainly be opulence, victory, extraordinary power, and morality. That is my opinion.
Bhagavad-gita 18.78
How to observe it
The sage told Rama to keep vigil with a water pot, flowers and lamps, and to give the pot in charity at dawn on Dvadasi. Today devotees keep the usual Ekadashi fast without grains and beans and give the day to chanting and hearing. At Kurukshetra the fast is broken on Friday, 5 March 2027, between 6:45 AM and 9:55 AM.
Questions
When is Vijaya Ekadashi in 2027?
Vijaya Ekadashi is on Thursday, 4 March 2027, in the Vaishnava calendar for Kurukshetra. It is the Ekadashi of the dark fortnight of Phalguna.
What time should I break the Vijaya Ekadashi fast in Kurukshetra?
Break the fast on Friday, 5 March 2027, between 6:45 AM and 9:55 AM at Kurukshetra, and take grain prasadam within that window.
What is the story of Vijaya Ekadashi?
In the Skanda Purana, Lord Rama reached the shore of the ocean and could find no way across to Lanka. The sage Bakadalbhya taught Him the Vijaya Ekadashi vow, and by keeping it Rama conquered Ravana.
Why is it called Vijaya Ekadashi?
Vijaya means victory. Lord Brahma told Narada Muni that this Ekadashi gives success in this life and the next, as Lord Rama's victory over Ravana shows.
Reviewed by ISKCON Kurukshetra · Updated
Key facts
- Fasting day
- Break fast
- · 6:45–9:55 AM
- Also on this day
- Unmilani Mahadvadasi
- Fast from
- Grains and beans
- Month and fortnight
- Phalguna, dark fortnight
- Narrated in
- Skanda Purana
Seva for this day
Feed devotees and visitors on this holy day, or begin the Bhagavad-gita course with us.