Vishnu

How to recognise Vishnu

1. Four armsFour hands each bear one attribute, the typical form; texts describe twenty-four ways of arranging them, so more than one arrangement is correct.
2. Conch (Panchajanya)A spiral shell that stands for the origin of existence, water and primal sound.
3. Discus (Sudarshana chakra)A flat, spinning, spoked wheel with a sharp rim and six spokes like the petals of a lotus.
4. Mace (Kaumodaki)A club with a rounded head, one of the four attributes he carries.
5. Lotus (padma)A fresh blossom held in one hand, a sign of purity and ever-renewing creation.
6. Blue skin, yellow silk and crownHe has dark-blue skin, a yellow silk pitambara over a dhoti, and a tall, jewelled gold kirita crown.
7. Kaustubha, Srivatsa and vanamalaOn his chest are the Kaustubha gem, said to be the treasure of the ocean, a curl-shaped Srivatsa mark standing for Lakshmi, and a long garland of forest flowers.

Names and titles

• Preserver of the WorldsVishnu's role as sustainer of the cosmos and restorer of dharma
• Lord of the Lotus NavelPadmanabha, the lord with a lotus (padma) in his navel (nabha), from whom Brahma is born
• The All-Pervading OneThe name Vishnu is explained as 'all-pervasive', the one who saturates the whole world
• Clad in Yellow SilkPitambara, the yellow garment named in the classic meditation verse
• Resting on SheshaHe rests on the serpent Shesha (Ananta) on the cosmic ocean, with Lakshmi at his feet and Brahma on the lotus from his navel

Feast days

• Prabodhini (Dev Uthani) Ekadashi20 November 2026

  Prabodhini Ekadashi, also called Dev Uthani, is the day devotees believe Vishnu wakes from his four-month sleep, ending Chaturmasya. Same celebration as the Gauna and 2027 entries, kept in different years or by different calendars.

  How it's celebrated. Devotees fast, bathe early and worship Vishnu, often marking his footprints in rangoli leading into the house. Tulsi Vivah, the symbolic wedding of Tulsi and Vishnu as Shaligram, is held that evening or the next day, often under a sugarcane canopy; it opens the wedding season. Warkari pilgrims also gather at Pandharpur. Customs vary by region.

  Sources: Wikipedia: Prabodhini Ekadashi · Shubh Panchang: Prabodhini Ekadashi rituals · Wikipedia: Vithoba Temple

• Gauna Prabodhini Ekadashi21 November 2026

  Prabodhini Ekadashi as reckoned by Vaishnava calendars, which apply different rules from Smarta ones for choosing the day, so the two can differ by a day. It is the same celebration as the other Prabodhini entries.

  How it's celebrated. The observance matches the other Prabodhini entries: a grain-free fast, worship of Vishnu, and Tulsi Vivah. Which day a community keeps depends on its calendar, so the local panchang or temple is the best guide. Some ISKCON-linked calendars list separate Smarta and Vaishnava dates for Ekadashis.

  Sources: OnlineJyotish: Ekadashi dates, Smarta and Vaishnava · ISKCON Dwarka: Ekadashi calendar · Wikipedia: Prabodhini Ekadashi

• Vaikuntha (Mukkoti) Ekadashi20 December 2026

  Vaikuntha Ekadashi is the day Vaishnavas believe the gate to Vaikuntha, Vishnu's abode, stands open. Kept by solar-month reckoning in Dhanu (Margazhi), it sometimes coincides with Mokshada Ekadashi, the last entry.

  How it's celebrated. At Srirangam the northern gate, the Paramapada Vasal, is opened before dawn and devotees walk through it behind the processional deity Namperumal; it stays open on most days of the ten-day Ra Pathu festival. Tirumala has a similar Vaikunta Dvaram for Mukkoti Ekadasi, as the day is known in Telugu regions. Many Vishnu temples arrange recitations from the Naalayira Divya Prabandham.

  Sources: Wikipedia: Vaikuntha Ekadashi · Travelfika: Vaikunta Ekadasi at Srirangam · ANI: Paramapada Vasal opens, Tamil Nadu temples

• Rama Navami15 April 2027

  Rama Navami celebrates the birth of Rama, whom Vaishnavas and many other Hindus revere as the seventh avatar of Vishnu, born to King Dasharatha and Queen Kausalya of Ayodhya. It is kept on the ninth day of Chaitra's bright fortnight.

  How it's celebrated. Devotees fast, visit temples, recite the Ramayana and sing bhajans, and a birth puja is held at midday. Ayodhya holds processions of Rama, Sita, Lakshmana and Hanuman. At Bhadrapachalam and other southern temples the day includes Sita Rama Kalyanam, the ceremonial wedding; in Mithila and Ayodhya the marriage is marked on Vivaha Panchami instead.

  Sources: Wikipedia: Rama Navami · Hindu Online: Rama Navami · Temples.bio: Rama Navami

• Narasimha Jayanti18 May 2027

  Narasimha Jayanti marks the day Hindus regard Vishnu as taking his man-lion form, Narasimha, to protect his devotee Prahlada from the king Hiranyakashipu. It is kept on Vaishakha Shukla Chaturdashi.

  How it's celebrated. Devotees fast and hold pujas and abhishekams in temples and homes, chanting hymns such as the Narasimha Kavacham. The main rites are in the evening, since Narasimha is believed to have appeared at dusk, and many break the fast after the main puja. Ahobilam and Simhachalam in Andhra Pradesh, Yadagirigutta in Telangana and Melukote in Karnataka are among the temples noted for celebrations.

  Sources: Wikipedia: Narasimha Jayanti · Tirtha Yatra: Narasimha Jayanti

• Devshayani (Shayani) Ekadashi14 July 2027

  Devshayani, or Shayani, Ekadashi is the day devotees believe Vishnu goes to sleep on the serpent Shesha in the ocean of milk, beginning Chaturmasya, the four months of the rains. His waking is kept at Prabodhini Ekadashi.

  How it's celebrated. Devotees take up Chaturmasya vows, fast and worship Vishnu. Weddings and housewarmings are traditionally deferred until Prabodhini Ekadashi. In Maharashtra the Pandharpur Wari, a pilgrimage on foot carrying the palkhis of saints such as Dnyaneshwar and Tukaram, culminates at the Vithoba Temple on this day.

  Sources: Wikipedia: Shayani Ekadashi · Wikipedia: Pandharpur Wari · Wikipedia: Chaturmasya

• Ananta Chaturdashi14 September 2027

  Ananta Chaturdashi honours Vishnu in his endless (Ananta) form, often pictured reclining on the serpent Shesha, with a thread of fourteen knots. It falls on Bhadrapada Shukla Chaturdashi, the day many places also end the Ganesh festival with immersions.

  How it's celebrated. Families worship Vishnu as Ananta and the Anant thread, a cord dyed with turmeric or kumkum with fourteen knots, usually read as the fourteen worlds. Men tie it on the right arm and women on the left; it is traditionally worn for fourteen days, though some wear it longer. The story of Sushila and Kaundinya is commonly read.

  Sources: Wikipedia: Ananta Chaturdashi · Hindutone: Anant Chaturdashi · VedaJyothi: Why the Anant Sutra has 14 knots

• Mokshada Ekadashi9 December 2027

  Mokshada Ekadashi, in Margashirsha, is a fast day dedicated to Vishnu for liberation and shares its day with Gita Jayanti. Some calendars call it Vaikuntha Ekadashi; when the two coincide, it is the same observance as the third entry.

  How it's celebrated. Devotees keep a 24-hour fast, worship Vishnu or Krishna, and read or hear the Bhagavad Gita; gifting a Gita is considered auspicious. ISKCON temples worldwide mark it with Gita Jayanti, and Kurukshetra holds a Gita Mahotsav. Vaikuntha Ekadashi follows the solar month of Dhanu, so in some years it falls on a different Ekadashi; check the temple's own calendar.

  Sources: Wikipedia: Mokshada Ekadashi · Wikipedia: Vaikuntha Ekadashi · Wikipedia: Gita Mahotsav