Sacred Ekadashi at Guruvayur Temple; thousands fast and visit the shrine

Guruvayur Ekadashi is the Ekadashi of the bright half of the Malayalam month of Vrischikam, celebrated with great devotion at the Sri Krishna Temple in Guruvayur, Kerala, 'the Dwarka of the South'. According to legend, the Guruvayur idol of four-armed Vishnu (worshipped as Krishna) was once worshipped by Krishna's own parents in Dwarka; after Dwarka sank, Guru (Brihaspati) and Vayu installed it here, giving the town its name. Guruvayur Ekadashi is also celebrated as Gita Day, the day Krishna taught the Bhagavad Gita to Arjuna in Guruvayur tradition. The month-long Vilakku (lamp) festival leading up to it has the temple lit with thousands of lamps every night, and the Chembai Sangeetholsavam, a 15-day Carnatic music festival in memory of Chembai Vaidyanatha Bhagavatar, ends on Ekadashi. The temple stays open continuously for about 54 hours, from the early hours of Dashami until Dwadashi morning, with a special Udayasthamana puja and the Ekadashi Vilakku procession with caparisoned elephants. The elephant Guruvayur Keshavan, who died on Ekadashi in 1976, is commemorated each year. Devotees fast and break it with the Dwadashi panam offering and prasad.

Grains avoided; many take only fruit or observe a complete fast.