Tag festivals of India

What Is Vaikunta Ekadasi Origin Procedure

The other one is Chandra Manasa where one follows the waxing and waning of the Moon.

In Surya Manasa, the Stars, Nakshatras are given importance for calculations of festivals and auspicious occasions.

Chandra Manasa takes into account the wacing and waning of the Moon, called the Thithis. Nakshatras 28 and Thithis are fifteen.

For January Vaikuntha Ekadashi...
Next Day Parana Time = 06:45 to 08:32
On Parana Day Dwadashi End Moment = 08:32

Ekadashi Tithi Begins = 09:09 on 31/Dec/2014
Ekadashi Tithi Ends = 08:40 on 1/Jan/2015
Thitihs are taken into account for calculation of inauspicious occasions like death and performance of Death related rituals like Srardha.

The period from the New Moon Day to Full Moon Day is called Sukla Paksha, which is considered auspicious and for auspicious occasions days/dates are fixed during this period.

However major Vows or Vratas are observed during the waning Moon period, Krishna Paksha.

Vaikunta Ekadasi,Shivratri,Shashti(for Lord Subramanya), Ganesh Chaturthi are observed in this period.

Of the major Vrats, Vaikunta Ekadasi is observed in Onesiance to Lord Vishnu and this is believed to grant many a boon, including the ttainment of Lord Vishu'sfeet at His Abode, The Vaikunta.

This is observed on the eleventh day of the Moon Cycle and the one that falls during Sukla Paksha is important.

However, most important Ekadasi which occurs in the month of Mrigasira, Margazhi in Tamil,December-January in Gregorian calendar, is of special importance and is celebrated on agrand scale in sri Vaishnava Temples, Sriranagam and Srivilliputtur are famous for this occasion.

Early in the morning of the Vaikunta Ekadasy Day, the doors leading to the Inner Sanctum of Lord Vishnu is opened and people enter through this. Special poojas are performed.

Dance Drama For Vishnu ‘Arayar Sevai’

In the Sanatana Dharma, Vedic practice, there are 16 Upachaaras or ways of offering Obeisance to the Lord.

These were originally 64 .

I will be posting on this in detail.

A special practice in Tamil Nadu of offering Obeisance to Lord Vishnu has been in practice from the 10th Century AD.

One, a male, from a designated Family, performs Dance Drama with a special dress, singing poems from the Devotional text of the Sri Vaishnavas,The Naalayira Divya Prabhandam.

Though many a Vishnu Temple in Tamil Nadu follow this, SriRanagam, Srivilliputtur and Alwar Thirunagari are the three places which are traditionally following this custom and they are famous.

The right to perform belongs one family in Srirangam, two each in Srivillipuutur and Alwarthirunagari.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1VIFAQiyxEU

The Right is Hereditary.

The Pagal Pathu(10 day time) and Ra Pathu(10 day night time) festival is celebrated in the month of Margazhi(December–January) for twenty days. The first ten days are referred as Pagal-Pathu (10 day day time festival) and the second half as Ra Pathu(10 day night-time festival). The first day of Ra pathu is Vaikunta Ekadashi.[31] The eleventh day of each fortnight in Tamil calendar is called ekadesi and the holiest of all ekadesis as pervaishnavite tradition is the Vaikunta Ekadashi. Nammazhwar, one of the 12 azhwars.

During this period this Dance Drama is enacted.

This is called the 'Arayar Sevai'