INVC NEWS
New Delhi — : The “Nirjala Ekadashi 2025 : fast will be observed on June 6 by householders, while saints and renunciants will keep the fast on June 7, due to the presence of Harivasar. This sacred Ekadashi holds unmatched spiritual merit in Sanatan Dharma, often called the “King of all Ekadashis.” It is the only Ekadashi where even water is forbidden, making it the most intense and spiritually potent fast of the year. What makes this observance unique beyond the strict fasting rules is the explicit prohibition of rice, mentioned across ancient scriptures like Padma Purana and Skanda Purana.
Two-Day Observance: Why Nirjala Ekadashi Falls on June 6 and 7 in 2025
This year’s calendar has created some confusion among devotees. However, clarity emerges from religious tradition. June 6 (Thursday) is the day when householders (Grihasthas) are advised to fast, and they will break their fast the next day, June 7. Meanwhile, ascetics and saints will observe Nirjala Ekadashi on June 7 (Friday) and complete their fast on June 8, abstaining from both food and water until sunrise on Dwadashi.
This distinction ensures that each group observes the fast at the most spiritually favorable time, as per lunar movements.
Scriptural Warnings: The Mythological Origins of Rice Avoidance
Ancient Hindu scriptures repeatedly advise against eating rice on Ekadashi. The Skanda Purana recounts the story of Maharishi Medha, who left his physical form through yogic self-immolation to escape Mother Krodha’s wrath. His elements merged into the Earth, and from that sacred transformation sprouted rice and barley.
Consuming these grains on Ekadashi is thus symbolically equated to eating the body of a sage, a grave act of spiritual insensitivity. This connection binds the non-consumption of rice with deep reverence for saints and their sacrifices.
Garuda Purana’s View: Rice as a Tamasic Element
The Garuda Purana, a revered scripture often cited during funeral rites and spiritual education, brands rice as a Tamoguni substance. Foods in the Tamasic category are linked to:
Heaviness
Laziness
Mental dullness
Spiritual regression
On Ekadashi, devotees aim to remain in a Sattvic state — clean, uplifted, and meditative. Eating rice interferes with this state, dampening the fast’s potency. The ancient sages strictly recommended Sattvic foods like fruits, nuts, and light vegetables, while warning against heavy grains like rice.
Sinful Association: Lord Vishnu’s Statement to Mother Earth
The Padma Purana narrates a profound dialogue between Mother Earth and Lord Vishnu. When asked which food should be avoided on Ekadashi, Vishnu said: “Eating rice on Ekadashi is as sinful as killing a Brahmin.” That singular declaration seals the spiritual verdict across eras.
Furthermore, rice is described as a food that attracts ghosts and wandering spirits, which is why it is commonly offered during Pitru Paksha or Shraddha rituals for ancestral appeasement. Ekadashi, however, is a day meant for divine connection, not ancestral rituals, and inviting ghostly energies through rice consumption is spiritually discouraged.
Yogic Energy and Divine Slumber: The Yognidra of Lord Vishnu
During Ekadashi, Lord Vishnu enters Yognidra, a divine meditative sleep that allows him to absorb sins from the universe. Scriptures emphasize that during this time, sin-absorbing energies are highly active, and one’s actions — both sacred and sinful — multiply in power.
Consuming rice, with its heavy energy and sinful association, on such a day is believed to:
Invite negative karma
Negate the spiritual gains of the fast
Pollute the inner consciousness
As a result, rice is banned not just ritually but cosmically.
Ayurvedic Insights: How Rice Disrupts the Fasting State
Ayurveda, the ancient Indian system of medicine, supports the non-consumption of rice during Ekadashi on physiological grounds:
High Water Content Increases Tamasic State
Rice contains excess water, which aggravates Kapha dosha, leading to:
Depression
Lethargy
Mucus formation
Digestive sluggishness
Glucose Surge and Toxin Buildup
Rice breaks down quickly into glucose. During fasting, when the digestive fire (Agni) is low, excess glucose is not efficiently absorbed, creating Ama (toxins) in the body. This can lead to:
Bloating
Headaches
Mental fog
Contamination Risk During Seasonal Changes
During transitional seasons — especially around the monsoon, when many Ekadashis occur — rice can easily absorb moisture and become microbially contaminated, making it unsafe and heavy to digest.
Cultural Continuity: Why Elders Always Warn About Eating Rice on Ekadashi
Even without scriptural references, many Indian households have long been guided by an oral tradition: “Don’t eat rice on Ekadashi.” This isn’t mere superstition but the echo of generations preserving spiritual hygiene.
Such guidance often comes from elders who may not cite scripture but live the Dharma, understanding intuitively the energetic and karmic shifts on this day.
Modern research may someday catch up with the layered intelligence of these traditions, but even today, millions continue this practice not out of fear — but faith and reverence.
Impact of Observing a Proper Ekadashi Fast
A properly observed Nirjala Ekadashi — with complete abstinence from water, rice, and Tamasic foods — leads to:
Enhanced mental clarity
Karmic purification
Detachment from bodily cravings
Deep inner silence
This is not just a fast of the stomach but a fast of the senses, mind, and speech. And abstaining from rice is the starting point of that inner discipline.
Nirjala Ekadashi 2025 is an opportunity to align with cosmic energy, shed the weight of past karma, and experience a divine stillness beyond the material realm. Every grain avoided, every craving resisted, builds a step on the ladder toward spiritual ascent.
