Dev Uthani Ekadashi and Tulsi Vivah 2026 in the USA: Date City-Wise, Smarta and Vaishnava Days, Puja at Home

Quick answer: Dev Uthani Ekadashi 2026 USA date is Friday 20 November 2026, and Tulsi Vivah 2026 USA date is Saturday 21 November 2026 (Drik Panchang, USA). Our city-by-city check gives Friday 20 November for both Smarta and Vaishnava families in every US city in the table below, so both traditions keep the same day. In India the fast splits: Smarta on Friday 20 November and Vaishnava on Saturday 21 November.

Dev Uthani Ekadashi, also called Devutthana, Prabodhini or Karthika Shukla Ekadashi, closes the four months of Chaturmas. As commonly told, Lord Vishnu wakes from his yogic sleep on this day, and the next day households celebrate the wedding of Tulsi (holy basil) with Vishnu in his Shaligram form. It also opens the Hindu wedding season and begins the five days of Bhishma Panchak.

How these dates were made: the country dates are from Drik Panchang. The city dates are calculated with HinduTone's calculator by the sunrise-tithi method that Drik uses. Confirm for your own city on Drik Panchang, and follow your temple or community calendar.

Dev Uthani Ekadashi 2026 USA and Tulsi Vivah 2026 USA: dates at a glance

In India, Drik also lists Kansa Vadh on Friday 20 November, and Guruvayur Ekadashi and Tulasi Vivah on Saturday 21 November. Kartika Purnima, Dev Diwali and Karthigai Deepam follow on Tuesday 24 November.

Dev Uthani Ekadashi 2026: city-wise dates in the USA

An Ekadashi fast is kept on the day when the Ekadashi tithi is present at local sunrise. Here is what the calculation gives for each city:

Every city gives the same answer: Friday 20 November for both traditions. If your town is not listed, it will almost certainly match its nearest big city, but check Drik Panchang for your exact location. These are calendar dates only. For the parana window on Saturday morning, use Drik Panchang for your city.

Why India has two dates and the USA has one

In India, according to Drik, the Dashami tithi is still running at sunrise on Friday 20 November and Ekadashi begins shortly after. Ekadashi then ends before sunrise on Saturday. Because Ekadashi does not hold a full sunrise on either day, the two traditions apply different rules. Smarta families fast on Friday. Vaishnava families, who avoid an Ekadashi touched by Dashami at dawn, fast on Saturday.

The USA is many hours behind India. By the time the sun rises on Friday anywhere from New York to Seattle, Dashami has already ended and Ekadashi is fully present. That gives a clean Ekadashi at Friday's sunrise, so Smarta and Vaishnava reckoning agree. This is why a WhatsApp forward with 'Ekadashi on 21 November' can be right for India and wrong for the USA.

Some US temples print calendars based on Indian dates or on their own sampradaya's rules. If your temple announces a different day, follow your temple.

What Dev Uthani Ekadashi means

Chaturmas begins on Devshayani Ekadashi in Ashadha, when, as commonly told, Vishnu lies down on Shesha in the cosmic ocean. Weddings, griha pravesh and similar beginnings are traditionally avoided during these months. On Prabodhini Ekadashi the deity is 'woken' with conch, bells and kirtan, and the auspicious season restarts. A widely recited waking verse begins:

Uttishthottishtha Govinda tyaja nidram Jagatpate — "Rise, O Govinda, Lord of the world; give up your sleep." Many families simply chant Om Namo Bhagavate Vasudevaya or the Vishnu Sahasranama instead. Use whatever your family tradition follows.

In many North Indian homes the day is called Devuthani Gyaras. Women draw the feet of the deity in rice flour, cover a lamp or a small set of offerings with a basket, and in the evening sing to wake the gods. Seasonal produce such as sugarcane, water chestnut (singhara), sweet potato and jaggery is offered. In Maharashtra, Pandharpur's Kartiki Ekadashi is one of the great Vitthal pilgrimages. In South India the Dwadashi that follows is Ksheerabdi Dwadasi; see our Ksheerabdi Dwadasi and Tulasi Vivah guide and the Karthika Ekadashi (Prabodhini) 2026 guide.

How to keep the Ekadashi fast in the USA

• Choose your level: a nirjala (waterless) fast, a phalahar fast with fruit, milk and nuts, or a single simple meal without grains and beans. All are traditional.
• No grains or beans: rice, wheat, dal and most legumes are avoided. Many families also skip onion and garlic.
• Work day: 20 November is a Friday. Keep fruit and nuts at your desk, and do the main puja in the evening after work.
• Parana: break the fast on Saturday 21 November after sunrise, inside the parana window for your city. Check Drik Panchang for the time; we do not list one.
• Health first: if you are pregnant, elderly, diabetic or on regular medication, choose a light fast or ask your doctor first.

Tulsi Vivah at home: simple steps

As commonly told, Tulsi was once Vrinda, the devoted wife of the asura Jalandhara, and Vishnu promised that she would be worshipped as the tulsi plant and wedded to him as the Shaligram. Every year families re-enact that marriage. You do not need a priest for a simple home ceremony:

1. Clean the space around the tulsi pot and decorate it with rangoli. Many families build a small mandap of four sugarcane stalks tied at the top; in the USA, sugarcane can often be found at Indian or Latin American grocery stores.
2. Dress the tulsi as a bride with a red or yellow cloth or chunari, bangles, a little sindoor or kumkum and flowers.
3. Place the Shaligram, or a small image of Vishnu or Krishna, beside the tulsi. Bathe it with water or panchamrit and offer chandan and a yellow cloth.
4. Light a diya and incense. Offer flowers, fruit, sugarcane pieces, amla and a homemade sweet.
5. Tie the two together with a sacred thread or join their cloths, and move the Shaligram around the tulsi seven times, as in the saptapadi. Family members can sprinkle akshata (rice) as a blessing.
6. Chant a Vishnu mantra or a Tulsi prayer. A widely used Tulasi pranam is: Vrindayai Tulasi-devyai priyayai Keshavasya cha, Vishnu-bhakti-prade devi Satyavatyai namo namah — "Salutations to Vrinda, goddess Tulasi, dear to Keshava, who grants devotion to Vishnu."
7. End with aarti, share the prasad, and give something to charity if you can.

For the full vidhi, longer mantras and the story, see our main Tulsi Vivah 2026 guide.

A US winter tip: tulsi does not like cold. If your plant lives indoors by a sunny window, do the ceremony right there. If yours has died back for the winter, many families use a fresh tulsi plant or a picture of Tulsi Devi. Keep diyas on a metal plate, away from curtains and smoke alarms.

Start of the wedding season and Bhishma Panchak

With Vishnu 'awake', the shaadi season traditionally resumes. Families planning a wedding, mundan or griha pravesh in the USA often ask their priest for a muhurat from late November onwards; take the exact muhurat from your family priest or panchang.

Bhishma Panchak, the last five days of Kartika, begins on Devutthana Ekadashi and ends on Kartika Purnima, which is Tuesday 24 November 2026. As commonly told, Bhishma received his teaching on dharma during these days while lying on the bed of arrows. Some devotees keep a simple diet for all five days, light lamps and read the Vishnu Sahasranama, which tradition places in Bhishma's mouth.

Where Dev Uthani Ekadashi falls in the US festival season

In the USA, Diwali is Sunday 8 November, and Dev Uthani Ekadashi on Friday 20 November falls twelve days later in the Karthika month, the weekend before Thanksgiving week, and Kartika Purnima follows on Tuesday 24 November. See our Karthika Masam 2026 USA guide, the Diwali 2026 USA city-by-city guide and the November 2026 Hindu festival calendar.

• Late autumn: by 20 November, evenings in the North-East and Midwest are dark before 5 PM and cold. Plan the evening puja indoors. Texas, Arizona and California are milder.
• Weekend temple visits: with the Ekadashi on a Friday and Tulsi Vivah on a Saturday, many families visit a temple on the weekend. Check your temple's website for its programme; we do not list temple events or timings.
• Travelling to India: if you are in India on these days, use India's dates: Smarta Friday 20 and Vaishnava Saturday 21 November.

Dev Uthani Ekadashi and Tulsi Vivah 2026 USA: frequently asked questions

When is Dev Uthani Ekadashi 2026 in the USA?

Friday 20 November 2026. Drik Panchang gives this date for the USA, and our city-by-city calculation gives Friday 20 November in all 11 US cities we checked, from New York to Seattle.

Is Dev Uthani Ekadashi on 20 or 21 November for ISKCON and Vaishnava families in the USA?

In the USA our calculation gives Friday 20 November for both Smarta and Vaishnava reckoning, so both traditions keep the same day. The 21 November date you may see belongs to India, where Vaishnava families fast on Saturday 21 November. If your temple publishes its own calendar, follow it.

When is Tulsi Vivah 2026 in the USA?

Drik Panchang gives Saturday 21 November 2026 for Tulasi Vivah in the USA, the day after the Ekadashi fast. Many families hold the ceremony that evening; some communities perform it on any convenient day up to Kartika Purnima, which is Tuesday 24 November.

What time should I break the Dev Uthani Ekadashi fast in the USA?

Parana is done on the morning of Saturday 21 November, after sunrise and within the window your panchang gives. The window depends on your city, so check Drik Panchang for your location; we do not publish parana times.

Can I do Tulsi Vivah at home in an apartment in the USA?

Yes. A potted tulsi plant, a Shaligram stone or a small image of Vishnu or Krishna, a lamp, flowers and a little sweet are enough. Keep the diya on a metal plate away from smoke alarms and curtains.

Why is it called Dev Uthani or Prabodhini Ekadashi?

Both names mean the Ekadashi of 'waking'. As commonly told, Lord Vishnu sleeps on the serpent Shesha for the four months of Chaturmas and wakes on this day, so weddings and other auspicious beginnings resume after it.

Editor's note

Editor's note (6 October 2026): This guide has been restored at its original address after the earlier version was lost. Dates marked Drik are from Drik Panchang. City dates are calculated by our calculator (sunrise and sunset by the Drik method; moonrise is the standard astronomical moonrise, checked against the US Naval Observatory). Please confirm on Drik Panchang for your city and follow your temple or community calendar. We do not list parana times, temple events or darshan timings.

Related guides

• Dev Uthani Ekadashi and Tulsi Vivah 2026 in the UK
• Dev Uthani Ekadashi and Tulsi Vivah 2026 in Canada
• Dev Uthani Ekadashi and Tulsi Vivah 2026 in Australia
• Tulsi Vivah 2026: date, vidhi, mantras and NRI guide
• Karthika Ekadashi 2026: Prabodhini, Vishnu wakes
• November 2026 Hindu festival calendar
• Karthika Masam 2026 in the USA
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