Ramanandi — observances and vrat guides
Ramanandi devotion places Sita and Rama at the centre of worship, with Hanuman and the Ram darbar closely woven into its devotional life. Rama-centred festivals, Ekadashi and full-moon observances serve different purposes. Recitation, satsang and temple participation can be as important as restraint from food. A calendar entry naming Vishnu does not automatically supply the full Rama-bhakti setting of a Ramanandi observance. The guides retain the deity descriptions and meal practices recorded for this tradition. Readers can follow the yearly festival cycle while comparing the recurring lunar days without losing their individual devotional emphasis.
The catalog currently includes 21 distinct entries in this collection. Examples are Ram Navami (Ramanandi); Hanuman Jayanti (Ramanandi); Sita Navami (Janaki Jayanti); Vivah Panchami (Sita-Ram Vivah); Purnima Vrat (Ramanandi). Their recorded devotional focus includes Lord Sri Rama; Sri Hanuman (Sankat Mochan); Devi Sita (Janaki Mata); Sita-Ram (the divine wedding); Sita-Ram darbar (Sri Ram, Devi Sita, Lakshman, Hanuman) on the night of the full moon. Follow the individual links below for the full description, calendar dates, mantra and allowed or avoided foods; each link leads to a dedicated observance page rather than a search result.
Calendar dates are references, not a substitute for the observance rules of your chosen city and community. Lunar days can cross civil-date boundaries, and regional practice can change which day is kept. Meal suggestions are optional ideas for an allowed meal, not instructions to eat during a complete fast. Children, pregnant people and anyone with a medical condition should seek appropriate advice before fasting. Compare the linked guides with your family or temple's practice and choose a discipline suited to your health.
All 21 observances in this collection
- Ram Navami (Ramanandi) — March 27, 2026
Sri Ram Navami — the appearance day of Maryada Purushottam Bhagavan Sri Ram. The greatest festival in the Ramanandi calendar. Ayodhya, the janma-bhumi, hosts lakhs of Ramanandi sadhus and grihastha bhaktas. The Ram Janma-muhurta (Abhijit muhurta around noon) sees abhishekam at every Ram mandir from Ayodhya to Chitrakoot to Janakpur.
- Hanuman Jayanti (Ramanandi) — April 2, 2026
Hanuman Jayanti — the appearance day of Sri Hanuman. Falls on Chaitra Purnima per the Ramanandi reckoning (some traditions hold Kartik Krishna Chaturdashi instead). At Ayodhya's Hanuman Garhi, Sankat Mochan in Varanasi, and every Ramanandi akhada, day-long Sundara Kanda parayan and Hanuman Chalisa recitation continues until the evening abhishekam.
- Sita Navami (Janaki Jayanti) — April 25, 2026
Sita Navami — the appearance day of Devi Sita, who emerged from the furrow ploughed by King Janaka at Janakpur (now in Nepal). Falls on Vaishakha Shukla Navami, exactly one month after Ram Navami. The Ramanandi Sampradaya holds Sita-Ram as one inseparable tattva, and this day is observed especially by married women.
- Vivah Panchami (Sita-Ram Vivah) — December 14, 2026
Vivah Panchami — the day Bhagavan Ram and Devi Sita were wed at Janakpur after Ram broke the Pinaka-bow of Shiva. Margashirsha Shukla Panchami. Ayodhya, Janakpur, and every Ramanandi mandir reenacts the wedding through the night with full vivah-vidhi, wedding bhog, and continuous Siyaram-naam.
- Purnima Vrat (Ramanandi) — May 1, 2026
Purnima Vrat — the recurring monthly full-moon fast of the Ramanandi Sampradaya. Per the Vikram Samvat Purnimanta panchang followed at Ayodhya, every Purnima marks the close of a lunar month and is observed as a complete Sita-Ram seva day. Fasting from sunrise, Sundara Kanda parayan through the day, and abhishekam of the Ram darbar at moonrise are the three core practices.
- Tulsi Vivah (Ramanandi) — November 21, 2026
Tulsi Vivah — the symbolic marriage of Tulsi-Vrinda Devi to Bhagavan Vishnu in the form of Shaligram (or Ram in the Ramanandi tradition). Performed on Kartik Shukla Dwadashi or Trayodashi, immediately after Prabodhini Ekadashi. Marks the start of the auspicious wedding season after chaturmas.
- Ekadashi Vrat (Ramanandi) — May 13, 2026
Ekadashi — the eleventh day of each lunar paksha — is the most sacred recurring fast for every Vaishnava sampradaya. The Ramanandis observe both pakshas (Krishna and Shukla) as a complete grain-free fast. The 24 Ekadashis of the year carry distinct names and kathas, but the core practice — sankalpa, no grain, Sita-Ram naam, jagaran (night vigil), and Dwadashi-morning paaran — is identical.
- Sankashti Chaturthi (Ramanandi) — May 5, 2026
Sankashti Chaturthi — the monthly Krishna-paksha fourth-day fast dedicated to Sri Ganesh. Observed by Ramanandi grihasthas as the obstacle-removing prelude to all Sita-Ram seva. Fast is broken at moonrise with arghya to both Ganesh and the chandra-deva.
- Amavasya — Pitru Tarpan (Ramanandi) — May 16, 2026
Amavasya — the monthly new-moon day — is observed by Ramanandi grihasthas for pitru-tarpan (offerings to ancestors) and Sarayu snan at Ayodhya. The day is kept satvik and quiet, with continuous Sita-Ram naam dedicated to the ancestors' moksha.
- Akshaya Tritiya (Ramanandi) — April 19, 2026
Akshaya Tritiya — the imperishable third day of Vaishakha Shukla. Considered one of the most auspicious days of the Vikram Samvat year for any new dharmic undertaking, charitable giving, or spiritual sankalpa. At Ayodhya, this day opens the Chandan Yatra — 21 days of sandalwood seva for the Ram darbar.
- Ganga Dussehra (Ramanandi) — May 25, 2026
Ganga Dussehra — the tenth day of Jyeshtha Shukla — marks the descent of Maa Ganga to earth through King Bhagiratha's penance. For Ramanandis, this is also Sarayu-avataran day, since the Sarayu at Ayodhya is held to be Ganga's elder sister and equally sacred.
- Ratha Yatra (Ramanandi) — July 16, 2026
Ratha Yatra — the chariot festival of Ashadha Shukla Dwitiya. While Puri's Jagannath Yatra is the most famous, every Ramanandi matha at Ayodhya, Chitrakoot, and Janakpur runs its own Sri Ram-Sita ratha-yatra on this day, moving the deities through the streets in a flower-decked chariot pulled by sadhus and bhaktas.
- Devshayani Ekadashi · Chaturmas Vrat begins (Ramanandi) — July 25, 2026
Devshayani Ekadashi — Ashadha Shukla 11 — the day Sri Ram (Vishnu) enters cosmic sleep on Sheshnag. The four-month Chaturmas vrat begins today and continues until Prabodhini Ekadashi (Kartik Shukla 11). All weddings, gruha-pravesh, mundan, and other auspicious sanskaras pause; tapasya, parayan, and Sita-Ram naam intensify.
- Jhulan Yatra (Ramanandi) — August 24, 2026
Jhulan Yatra — five days from Shravana Shukla Ekadashi to Shravana Purnima (Raksha Bandhan). Ramanandi mathas at Ayodhya, Chitrakoot, and Janakpur set up elaborate flower-jhulas (swings) for the Sita-Ram darbar. Each evening through the five days, devotees gather to swing the deities, sing Jhulan-bhajans, and offer monsoon-sweet bhog.
- Krishna Janmashtami (Ramanandi flavor) — September 4, 2026
Krishna Janmashtami — Bhadrapada Krishna Ashtami — observed by Ramanandis with a midnight-fast culminating in bal-Krishna abhishekam. The Ram darbar at every Ramanandi mandir adds a small bal-Krishna murti for the day, and the maha-mantra (Hare Krishna · Hare Ram) is sung through the night.
- Govardhan Puja · Annakut (Ramanandi) — November 10, 2026
Govardhan Puja / Annakut — Kartik Shukla Pratipada, the day after Diwali. Every Ramanandi mandir at Ayodhya, Chitrakoot, and Janakpur builds a Govardhana-replica beside the Ram darbar and offers the 56-item chappan bhog. The day is a celebration of abundance, gratitude, and Bhagavan's protective grace.
- Prabodhini Ekadashi · Chaturmas Vrat ends (Ramanandi) — November 20, 2026
Prabodhini Ekadashi — also called Devotthana Ekadashi — Kartik Shukla 11. The day Bhagavan Vishnu / Sri Ram awakens from the four-month Chaturmas Yoga-nidra. The wedding season immediately reopens (Tulsi Vivah is performed the next day, Kartik Shukla Dwadashi). All four-month vrats and food restrictions are formally concluded with sankalpa-mochan.
- Makar Sankranti · Sarayu Snan (Ramanandi) — January 14, 2026
Makar Sankranti — the day Surya Bhagavan enters Makara rashi (Capricorn) and begins Uttarayan. Falls on January 14-15 in the Gregorian calendar (one of the very few Hindu festivals fixed to the solar calendar rather than the lunar one). At Ayodhya, lakhs of Ramanandi sadhus and bhaktas bathe in the Sarayu and offer arghya to Surya — the kuladevata of Sri Ram's Suryavansha.
- Magha Mela · Prayagraj Triveni Snan (Ramanandi) — February 1, 2026
Magha Mela — the annual one-month Vaishnava-Shaiva pilgrimage at Prayagraj's Triveni Sangam (confluence of Ganga, Yamuna, and the hidden Saraswati). Runs from Paush Purnima through Magha Purnima. The Ramanandi akhadas — Nirmohi, Nirvani, and Digambar — set up massive shibirs at the mela for the full month, hosting kalpvas (austerity-residence) for thousands of grihasthas.
- Vasant Panchami (Ramanandi) — January 23, 2026
Vasant Panchami — Magha Shukla Panchami — the first day of vasant ritu (spring season) and the avirbhav (appearance) day of Devi Saraswati. Yellow is the day's colour — yellow clothes, yellow flowers, yellow food. Ramanandis honour Saraswati alongside Sita-Ram, recognising her as the vani-shakti without which the Ramayana itself could not have been spoken.
- Holi · Phalguna Purnima (Ramanandi) — March 4, 2026
Holi — the spring colour-festival on Phalguna Purnima eve (Holika Dahan) and Chaitra Krishna Pratipada morning (Holi proper / Dhulendi). At Ayodhya, the Ramanandi mandirs hold the most joyful Sita-Ram-Holi of the year — flower-petals, abeer, and gulal showered on the Ram darbar, with continuous Siyaram-naam-sankirtan and Holi-bhajans through the day.