Sunday, 20 December 2026
Margashirsha, Shukla Paksha · Vikram Samvat 2083 · Shaka 1948
Ekadashi · Mokshada Ekadashi (Gita Jayanti)
20 December 2026 is Margashirsha Shukla Paksha Ekadashi, a Ravivaar (रविवार). It is Mokshada Ekadashi (Gita Jayanti), also called Gita Jayanti, Vaikuntha Ekadashi, Mukkoti Ekadashi, Swarga Vathil Ekadashi and Margashirsha Shukla Ekadashi. The tithi runs from 10:09 PM on 19 December 2026 until 8:14 PM. Sunrise at New Delhi is 7:08 AM and sunset is 5:28 PM. Rahu Kaal falls between 4:10 PM and 5:28 PM, and the Abhijit Muhurat is 11:57 AM to 12:38 PM.
Tithi, Paksha and Vaar (तिथि)
Ekadashi begins 10:09 PM, 19 Dec and ends 8:14 PM.
Mokshada Ekadashi (Gita Jayanti)
Mokshada Ekadashi (Gita Jayanti)मोक्षदा एकादशी
Margashirsha Shukla Paksha Ekadashi
Also known as Gita Jayanti, Vaikuntha Ekadashi, Mukkoti Ekadashi, Swarga Vathil Ekadashi, Margashirsha Shukla Ekadashi and Guruvayur Ekadashi.
The day Krishna spoke the Bhagavad Gita to Arjuna on the field at Kurukshetra -- Gita Jayanti. Mokshada means the giver of liberation, and the merit of the fast is traditionally dedicated to ancestors so that they may be released. In the South this is Vaikuntha Ekadashi, when the Vaikuntha Dwaram of every Vishnu temple is opened and the crowds pass through it before dawn.
What devotees do
- Fast from sunrise; no grains.
- Read the Bhagavad Gita, particularly the eleventh chapter.
- Pass through the Vaikuntha Dwaram at a Vishnu temple before dawn, where the custom is kept.
- Offer the merit of the fast to your ancestors.
Within Dwadashi, which runs until 5:36 PM that day.
Shubh Muhurat (शुभ मुहूर्त)
Abhijit is the eighth of the fifteen muhurtas between sunrise and sunset, so it is 41 minutes long today rather than a fixed 48 — it stretches and shrinks with the length of the day.
Ashubh Kaal (अशुभ काल)
We do not publish Varjyam, Dur Muhurat or Godhuli Muhurat. The rules behind them are known, but the underlying tables differ between sources by enough to move a window by the better part of an hour — and these are windows whose whole purpose is telling you not to begin something. We would rather leave them out than print a number we cannot stand behind.
Choghadiya (चौघड़िया)
The day and the night are each divided into eight parts. Amrit, Shubh and Labh are auspicious; Char is neutral; Udveg, Kaal and Rog are best avoided. It is the quickest check there is for whether the next hour and a half is a good time to begin something.
Day — sunrise 7:08 AM to sunset 5:28 PM
Night — sunset 5:28 PM to sunrise 7:09 AM
The night choghadiya belongs to Ravivaar, not to the next day: in the panchang the weekday changes at sunrise, not at midnight.
Nakshatra, Yoga and Karana (नक्षत्र)
The Moon is in Ashwini at sunrise, in its 3rd pada. A karana is half a tithi, which is why there are more of them in a day than anything else here.
Sun and Moon (सूर्य और चंद्र)
Day length is 10 hours 20 minutes, night 13 hours 41 minutes.
Hora (होरा)
Twenty-four planetary hours from sunrise, in the Chaldean order. The first is always ruled by the lord of the weekday — Sun (Surya) today, which is what makes it Ravivaar. Day horas and night horas are not sixty minutes each; they are a twelfth of the actual day and a twelfth of the actual night.
Rashi, Masa and Samvat (मास)
The two masa reckonings differ through every waning fortnight, which is why a calendar from Delhi and one from Chennai can name the same day differently. Today it is Margashirsha in the north and Margashirsha in the south — the same, as they always are in a waxing fortnight.
Questions about 20 December 2026
What tithi is 20 December 2026?
20 December 2026 is Margashirsha Shukla Paksha Ekadashi. The tithi runs from 10:09 PM on 19 December 2026 until 8:14 PM, calculated for New Delhi.
Is 20 December 2026 Mokshada Ekadashi (Gita Jayanti)?
Yes. 20 December 2026 is Mokshada Ekadashi (Gita Jayanti), also known as Gita Jayanti, Vaikuntha Ekadashi, Mukkoti Ekadashi, Swarga Vathil Ekadashi, Margashirsha Shukla Ekadashi and Guruvayur Ekadashi. The day Krishna spoke the Bhagavad Gita to Arjuna on the field at Kurukshetra -- Gita Jayanti. Mokshada means the giver of liberation, and the merit of the fast is traditionally dedicated to ancestors so that they may be released. In the South this is Vaikuntha Ekadashi, when the Vaikuntha Dwaram of every Vishnu temple is opened and the crowds pass through it before dawn.
What is the parana time for Mokshada Ekadashi (Gita Jayanti)?
The fast is broken between 7:09 AM and 9:12 AM on 21 December 2026. Within Dwadashi, which runs until 5:36 PM that day.
What is the Rahu Kaal on 20 December 2026?
Rahu Kaal on 20 December 2026 is from 4:10 PM to 5:28 PM at New Delhi. Yamaganda is 12:18 PM to 1:35 PM and Gulika Kaal is 2:53 PM to 4:10 PM. These are the periods in which new work is traditionally not begun.
What is the shubh muhurat on 20 December 2026?
Abhijit Muhurat, the window good for almost any undertaking, is 11:57 AM to 12:38 PM. Brahma Muhurat is 5:18 AM to 6:13 AM before dawn, and Vijaya Muhurat is 2:01 PM to 2:42 PM.
What time is sunrise and sunset on 20 December 2026?
At New Delhi, sunrise on 20 December 2026 is 7:08 AM and sunset is 5:28 PM. Moonrise is 1:55 PM and moonset is 2:49 AM.
All timings are calculated for New Delhi, India (28.61°N, 77.21°E) in Indian Standard Time, using the Lahiri (Chitrapaksha) ayanamsha. Sunrise and every muhurat derived from it shift by up to an hour across India, so times will differ for your city.