Indira Ekadashi is the Ekadashi of the dark half of Ashvin (Bhadrapada in the amanta reckoning), and it always falls inside Pitru Paksha, the fortnight of the ancestors. Its katha is about a king who learned that his late father had not yet found rest, and who kept this fast and gave its merit so that his father could move on in peace.
The next Indira Ekadashi, with Smarta and Vaishnava days, is on the Ekadashi dates page; open the day there for the parana window in your city. The ancestral fortnight around it is on the Pitru Paksha page.
The katha
Yudhishthira said, "Govinda, tell me about the Ekadashi that comes in the dark half of Ashvin. What is its name, and what does keeping it do?"
Krishna said, "It is called Indira. It brings peace even to those who have gone before us. Listen to its story."
In the age of truth there was a king named Indrasena who ruled from the city of Mahishmati. He was a devotee of Vishnu, kind to his people, and blessed with children, grandchildren and wealth. His days passed in duty and in remembering God.
One day, as he sat in his court, the sage Narada came down from the sky, playing his vina. The king rose, washed his feet, seated him in the place of honour and asked, "Great sage, what brings you here? Is all well in the worlds you travel?"
Narada said, "King, I have come with a message. Not long ago I went to the realm of Yama, the lord of the departed. There, among those waiting, I saw your father. He was well treated, but he could not move on. In his life he had begun an Ekadashi vow and left it broken, and that unfinished vow kept him waiting there. When he saw me he said, 'Sage, my son Indrasena rules in Mahishmati. Please go to him. Ask him to keep the Indira Ekadashi of Ashvin and give me its merit, so that I may go on.' That is why I have come."
The king's eyes filled with tears. He folded his hands and said, "Tell me how to keep it, and I will do it exactly."
Narada explained. "On Dashami, bathe in the morning with a quiet mind. At midday, offer shraddha to your ancestors with devotion, and eat only once. On Ekadashi morning, take the vow before Vishnu: 'Today I will eat nothing; tomorrow I will eat, Lord, under your shelter.' At midday, before the shaligram, offer shraddha again for your father, feed brahmins, and give a portion of the offered food to a cow. Worship Hari with flowers and incense, and stay awake through the night singing his names. On Dwadashi morning, worship again, feed the brahmins, and then eat quietly with your family and those who depend on you."
When Ashvin came, Indrasena kept the Ekadashi just as Narada had said, together with his queens, his children and his household. At the end of the day, as he finished, flowers fell from the sky. His father, freed from waiting, rose on Garuda and went to the abode of Vishnu, blessing his son as he went.
Indrasena ruled his kingdom without trouble for many years. When his time came he handed the throne to his son and also went to Vishnu's world.
Krishna said, "This is the glory of Indira Ekadashi. Whoever hears it, or reads it, is freed from his faults, and it gives rest to the departed of his family."
Reading the story calmly
This is a story about a parent who has died, and it may touch a fresh grief. The Purana speaks of Yama's realm and a father held back, but the feeling at its centre is tender: a father reaching out to his son, and a son answering. Nobody's parent is lessened because a ritual was not done; the katha simply gives grieving people something to do with their love.
What the day is kept for
Families keep Indira Ekadashi to remember parents, grandparents and others who have died, and to offer them the merit of a day given to God. The mahatmya says the fast lifts the departed to higher worlds and frees the one who keeps it from past faults; people hold that as the comfort the story offers, not as an account to be settled.
How it is kept
Because the day falls in Pitru Paksha, many households combine the fast with a shraddha or tarpan: water with sesame offered to the ancestors, and food offered and given away. A portion is set aside for a cow, a crow or a dog, as is customary in the fortnight. Since the one fasting does not eat grain that day, the meal cooked for the ancestors and for guests is served to others, and the fasting person eats only after parana. The order of the fast itself is on the Ekadashi puja vidhi page.
Neighbouring Ekadashis
Before Indira comes Parsva Ekadashi, when Vishnu turns in his sleep, and after it Papankusha Ekadashi, the day after Dussehra. For the tithi on any day in your city, see the panchang.