Overview
Mokshada Ekadashi (Sanskrit: मोक्षदा एकादशी, Mokṣadā Ekādaśī, meaning 'the eleventh day of moksha') is a Hindu holy day observed on the eleventh lunar day (ekadashi) of the waxing fortnight in the month of Margashirsha (Agrahayana), which corresponds to November–December in the Gregorian calendar.
The day is observed by Hindus, particularly those of the Vaishnava tradition, with a twenty-four hour fast in honour of the deity Krishna, regarded as an avatar of Vishnu. According to tradition, the observance is dedicated to the worship of Vishnu in the hope of liberation from sins and the attainment of moksha, or spiritual liberation, after death.
Mokshada Ekadashi coincides with Gita Jayanti, which commemorates the day on which Krishna is believed to have delivered the discourse of the Bhagavad Gita to the warrior Arjuna, as described in the Hindu epic Mahabharata. This sermon is said to have been imparted at the start of the climactic war at Kurukshetra between the Pandavas and their cousins, the Kauravas. The 700-verse Bhagavad Gita addresses a wide range of Hindu philosophical ideas and remains among the most influential texts of the tradition.
References
Adapted from the English Wikipedia article on Mokshada Ekadashi.