Vijaya Ekadashi is the Ekadashi of victory, and its story is the best known of the winter ones because it belongs to the Ramayana. People keep it before an examination, a journey or a difficult task, asking for the clarity to do their part well. It falls as the winter turns towards spring.
Vijaya Ekadashi falls in the Krishna paksha, the waning fortnight, of Magha in the amanta calendar (months that end at the new Moon). In the purnimanta calendar of north India, where the month ends at the full Moon, the same fortnight belongs to Phalguna.
The katha
The tradition attributes the stories of the Ekadashis, Vijaya Ekadashi among them, to the Padma Purana and the Bhavishyottara Purana, where they are told as conversations, often with Krishna answering Yudhishthira. The story of this Ekadashi is told through the Ramayana.
Rama, with Lakshmana, Sugriva and the army of vanaras, had reached the southern shore of the ocean and stood looking at the sea that separated them from Lanka. Rama asked how such an army could cross, and Lakshmana, remembering a hermit named Vakadalbhya who lived nearby, suggested they ask him.
The sage received Rama with respect and, when he heard the question, advised him to keep the Vijaya Ekadashi of the dark half of the month (Phalguna in the north Indian reckoning). He told Rama to place a pot of water on a bed of seven kinds of grain, with a sacred thread and a coconut or lamp, worship Vishnu, keep the vigil and give the pot to a Brahmin the next morning. Rama followed the instructions with his companions.
The tradition says that after the vrat the way was found and the bridge was built, leading to the victory over Ravana. The story is told to say that even Rama, who was himself Vishnu in the telling, sought a vrat before an undertaking. Readers should know that the Ramayana of Valmiki does not contain this episode, and the tradition attributes it to the Puranas.
How the fast is kept
The sage’s instructions in the story are followed in many homes: a pot of water is placed on seven kinds of grain, with a lamp and flowers, and worship is offered to Vishnu or Rama. The grains are not eaten during the fast, and after the parana they are given away.
Fruit and milk are taken on the day, and many people recite the Vishnu Sahasranama or the name of Rama through the day.
Two reckonings are in use for Vijaya Ekadashi. The Smarta one, used for the dates in the tables, takes the day when Ekadashi is running at sunrise; the Vaishnava one may move Vijaya Ekadashi to the next day if Dashami has crossed into the early morning. For the parana, look at the Timing column: it starts after sunrise, stays within Dwadashi and leaves out Hari Vasara. Keeping Vijaya Ekadashi well means keeping yourself well. Anyone who is pregnant, breastfeeding, elderly or unwell may eat lightly, take their medicine as prescribed and still observe the day in prayer, with a doctor’s advice on the rest.
Where it sits in the year
In the round of the year, Jaya Ekadashi comes before Vijaya Ekadashi and Amalaki Ekadashi after it. To see the whole round, open the Ekadashi page. The Ekadashi vrat vidhi gives the order of worship for Vijaya Ekadashi, and the Ekadashi tithi page explains the tithi.