Ekadashi (Sanskrit: एकादशी, ekādaśī, "Eleven"), also spelled as Ekadasi, is the eleventh lunar day (Tithi) of the shukla (bright) or krishna (dark) paksha (fortnight) of every lunar month in the Hindu calendar (Panchang). In Hinduism and Jainism it is considered a spiritually beneficial day. Scriptures recommend observing an (ideally waterless) fast from sunrise on the day of Ekadashi to sunrise on the day following Ekadashi.[citation needed] Two Ekadashis occur in one month according to positions of the moon. The progression of the moon from full moon to new moon is divided into fifteen equal arcs. Each arc measures one lunar day, called "tithi": The time it takes the moon to traverse that distance is the length of that lunar day. Ekadashi refers to the 11 tithi, or lunar day. The eleventh tithi therefore corresponds to a precise phase of the waxing and waning moon: In the bright half of the lunar month, the moon will appear roughly 3/4 full on Ekadashi, and in the dark half of the lunar month, the moon will be about 3/4 dark on Ekadashi.
Posted on: Wed, 03 Jul 2013 02:40:47 +0000
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