Special faith is seen among the devotees regarding Shattila Ekadashi which falls in the holy Ekadashi of Magh month. This Ekadashi is not only a festival of fasting and worship, but is also considered an important occasion for charity, penance and self-purification. According to the scriptures, worshiping Lord Vishnu on this day and doing religious activities to sesame seeds destroys the sins of life and brings blessings of happiness and prosperity. The special thing is that Shattila Ekadashi falls in Magha Krishna Paksha, which is considered as Mokshadayini Tithi.
On this occasion, special pujas, havans and donations are organized in temples across the country, while devotees observe a fast and pray for the blessings of Lord Narayana. Due to religious beliefs and mythology, this Ekadashi becomes the center of faith and belief every year.
According to the Vedic calendar, Shattila Ekadashi will be celebrated in the year 2026 on the Ekadashi date of Krishna Paksha of Magha month. This date will start at 3:17 pm on January 13, 2026 and will end at 5:55 pm on January 14, 2026. According to Sanatan Dharma, Shattila Ekadashi will be celebrated on 14 January 2026. The time of Paran is said to be between 7:15 am to 9:15 am on January 15.
According to religious belief, in ancient times a Brahmin woman was a devotee of Lord Vishnu. She regularly fasted and worshiped but never gave food or money in charity. When she reached Vaikuntha after death, she started facing troubles there. Then Lord Vishnu told that because of not donating he was having to suffer this pain. To solve this problem, God told him to fast on Magh Krishna Ekadashi i.e. Shattila Ekadashi. The woman observed this fast by donating sesame seeds, taking sesame bath and rituals to sesame seeds, due to which she attained salvation. Since then, this Ekadashi came to be called Shattila because of the six activities associated with sesame seeds.
The biggest feature of this Ekadashi is the importance of sesame seeds. According to the scriptures, doing six things to sesame seeds on this day is considered extremely virtuous, which include bathing with sesame seeds, applying the paste of sesame seeds, havan with sesame seeds, donating sesame seeds, consuming sesame seeds and eating food made from sesame seeds.
It is believed that by these measures all the sins of a person are destroyed and he attains wealth, happiness and salvation. The month of Magh itself is considered a month of virtue and this Ekadashi falling in it is considered very fruitful from spiritual point of view.
According to the scriptures, by fasting on Shattila Ekadashi, the sins of a person’s previous births are also destroyed. This fast is considered especially beneficial for those people who are going through financial crisis, disease or mental disturbance in life.
Thus, Shattila Ekadashi is a festival of devotion, charity and self-purification, which is considered the best opportunity to receive the blessings of Lord Vishnu.
