Why Your Ekadashi Can Fall on a Different Day in Sydney Than in Toronto

If you kept an Ekadashi vrat in Toronto and your cousin in Sydney kept it a day later, neither of you made a mistake. Panchang dates depend on the tithi running at your local sunrise. When sunrise happens at a different time, the date can change too.

This confuses many people who keep Hindu festivals abroad. Here is a real example from next month and the rule behind it.

What the panchang is

Panchang means "five limbs": tithi (lunar day), vara (weekday), nakshatra (the Moon's star), yoga (a combination of Sun and Moon) and karana (half a tithi). Of these, the tithi decides most festival dates.

A tithi is the time it takes the Moon to gain 12 degrees on the Sun. Because the Moon's speed varies, a tithi can last anywhere from about 19 to 26 hours. It begins and ends at the same instant everywhere on Earth. What differs is the local clock time, and crucially, whether it is running at your sunrise.

The sunrise rule

For most observances, the tithi that is running at local sunrise names the whole day. So if Ekadashi begins at 2 am your time, today is Ekadashi. If it begins at 2 pm, today is still Dashami by most calendars, and tomorrow is Ekadashi, provided Ekadashi is still running at tomorrow's sunrise.

The real example: Prabodhini Ekadashi 2026

Prabodhini Ekadashi, also called Dev Uthani Ekadashi, when Lord Vishnu is said to wake from his four-month rest, falls in late November. In 2026, the Ekadashi tithi begins at 01:47 UTC on 20 November and ends at 01:03 UTC on 21 November. Here is what that looks like at sunrise around the world.

Look at Delhi. Ekadashi starts about half an hour after sunrise on the 20th and is over before sunrise on the 21st. It never "owns" a sunrise. Panchangs call this a kshaya tithi, a skipped lunar day, and have rules for where to place the observance. Most Indian calendars list Prabodhini Ekadashi on 20 November. Toronto and London agree. Sydney, Melbourne and Perth, many hours ahead on the clock, find Ekadashi at sunrise on the 21st.

Example: two sisters, two dates

Picture Kavita Sharma, 52, in Mississauga, who keeps every Ekadashi. Her sister Rekha lives in Parramatta, Sydney. Kavita keeps her vrat on Friday 20 November. In Sydney, Ekadashi only begins on Friday afternoon, so Rekha keeps hers on Saturday. Both are correct.

Kavita's son Varun, 24, at university in Glasgow, keeps it on Friday too. When he visits his grandparents in Jaipur at Christmas, he may see a different date for the next Ekadashi on their wall calendar, because sunrise in Jaipur is at a different time.

Why the difference matters

For a family keeping one Ekadashi a year, a day's difference does not matter much. For someone keeping all twenty-four, or a temple planning programmes, it matters a lot. Temples in Brampton, Southall and western Sydney publish their own calendars for this reason, and the good ones calculate from local sunrise.

The same rule applies beyond Ekadashi. Sankashti Chaturthi depends on moonrise, so the time you break the fast in Leicester is different from moonrise in Pune. Pradosh vrat follows local sunset. Even Karwa Chauth moonrise times differ between cities in the same country. Once you know the panchang depends on your own sunrise and moonrise, these differences make sense.

A note on fasting

If you keep a vrat, keep it sensibly. Drink water through the day. If you are on medication, pregnant, diabetic or unwell, speak to your doctor first, and stop if you feel faint. The tradition has always allowed a lighter observance, such as fruit and one simple meal, for those who need it.

Other dates around this Ekadashi

Around this Ekadashi, Venus turned direct on 14 November and returns to its own sign, Libra, on 22 November. Kartik Purnima and Guru Nanak Jayanti follow on 24 November. On 5 December, Rahu and Ketu change signs, and the next Ekadashi follows on 4 December by many calendars, so it is worth checking your local panchang again.

Getting your panchang right

You need a panchang calculated for your location and time zone. Printed Indian calendars are calculated for one place. A local panchang also gives you your daily Rahu Kaal, the auspicious hours, and your Tarabala, the daily star strength based on your own nakshatra.

Free tools and reports

• Today's Panchang: today's tithi, nakshatra, Rahu Kaal and auspicious times. Free.
• Daily horoscope: today's rashifal for all twelve rashis. Free.
• Muhurat Report: good dates for a wedding, a move or a launch, ranked. Uses credits.

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Create your free AstroPal account to get a daily reading set to your own city and your own birth star, or compare with today's panchang for New Delhi.

Names in this article are illustrative.