Tholi Ekadasi, the "first Ekadasi", is the eleventh day of the bright half of Ashadha. On it Vishnu is said to lie down on the serpent Adisesha in the ocean of milk and sleep for four months, until Karthika. For Telugu households it is the gateway to the festival season: from here on, hardly a fortnight passes without one.
The story
The four months of the god's sleep are Chaturmasyam: the monsoon, when travel was hard, when monks and teachers stayed in one place, and when householders took on small vows, giving up one food or another until the rains ended. Weddings are not held in these months.
The day is also called Sayana Ekadasi. It comes when the first rains have softened the ground, and in farming families it is tied to the sowing: the seed is honoured before it goes into the field.
How it is kept
- The fastEkadasi is a fast day. Many take only fruit and milk, and break the fast the next morning, on Dwadasi.
- Pelala pindiFlour of popped grain pounded with jaggery is the dish of the day, eaten and given away.
- Vishnu pujaThe Vishnu Sahasranamam is recited, and temples lay the processional image down to rest.
- Chaturmasya vratamThose who keep the four-month vow begin it today.
Why this date
Tholi Ekadasi is the eleventh tithi (Ekadasi) of the bright half of Ashadha. The calendar follows the Smarta rule: the fast is on the day Ekadasi is in force at sunrise, placed so that it can be broken the next morning while Dwadasi still runs.
Tholi Ekadasi in other years
| Year | Date | Day |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Sunday | |
| 2026 | Saturday | |
| 2027 | Wednesday | |
| 2028 | Sunday | |
| 2029 | Saturday | |
| 2030 | Thursday |
More Telugu festivals
29 JulyGuru Pournamiగురు పౌర్ణమి
21 AugustVaralakshmi Vratamవరలక్ష్మీ వ్రతం
12 MayHanuman Jayantiహనుమజ్జయంతి
19 AprilAkshaya Tritiyaఅక్షయ తృతీయ
27 MarchSri Rama Navamiశ్రీరామ నవమి
28 AugustRakhi Pournamiరాఖీ పౌర్ణమి
Where to see Tholi Ekadasi
In the Telugu states
- Undavalli CavesAndhra PradeshRock-cut caves above the Krishna, opposite Vijayawada, with a reclining Vishnu five metres long carved from a single block.
- Venkateswara Temple, TirumalaAndhra PradeshEvery Ekadasi is kept on the hill; this one opens the four sacred months.
Across India
- PandharpurMaharashtraAshadhi Ekadashi: the Wari, a three-week pilgrimage on foot behind the palanquins of the saints, arrives at Vithoba's temple today.
- PuriOdishaSuna Besha: Jagannath, Balabhadra and Subhadra, still on their chariots, are dressed in gold.
- SrirangamTamil NaduThe largest temple of the reclining Vishnu, on an island in the Kaveri.
- Padmanabhaswamy Temple, ThiruvananthapuramKeralaVishnu in his long sleep, seen through three doors.