Yudhisthira Maharaj
said, Oh Lord Sri Krishna, O glorious son of Vasudeva,
please be merciful to me and describe the EkAdasii
that occurs during the dark fortnight of the month of PhAlguna
(February-March).
Lord Sri Krishna replied, Oh Yudhisthira,
Oh king of kings, gladly I shall tell you about this great fast, known as VijayA EkAdasii. Whoever observes
it certainly achieves success in this life and the next. All the sins of one
who fasts on this EkAdasii and hears its sublime
glories are eradicated.
NArada Muni once asked lord BrahmA, who sits on a lotus flower about the VijayA EkAdasii. Sri NArada said, Oh best of all the demigods, kindly tell me
the merit one can achieve by faithfully observing VijayA
EkAdasii.’ NArada’s great
father then replied, My dear son, this oldest of
fasting days is pure, and it nullifies all sins. I have never revealed this to
anyone until today, but you can understand beyond any doubt that this EkAdasii bestows the result indicated by its name… (VijayA meaning Victory).
When Lord RAma
was exiled to the forest for fourteen years, He, the goddess SitA, and His divine brother Lakshmana
stayed at Panchavati as mendicants. Mother SitA was then kidnapped by the demon RAvana,
and Lord RAma seemingly
became bewildered like an ordinary man by distress. While searching for His
beloved consort, the Lord came upon the dying JatAyu
and thereafter killed His enemy Kabandha. The great
devotee-vulture JatAyu returned to Vaikuntha after telling RAma how
His dear SitA had been abducted by RAvana.
Later, Lord RAma
and Sugriva, the king of the monkeys, became friends.
Together they amassed a grand army of monkeys and bears and sent HanumAnji his minister to
Lakshmana replied, Oh best of all beings, Oh
origin of all the devas, Oh
primal personality, the great sage BakadAlbhya lives
on an island just four miles from here. Oh RAghava,
he has seen many BrahmAs come and go, so aged and
wise is he. Let us go to him, take his darshan
(audience) and ask him how We can safely reach Our
goal.
So RAma and Lakshmana
proceeded to the humble Ashram of the incomparable BakadAlbhya
Muni. Approaching him, the two Lords paid Their
respectful obeisances to him as if he were a second
Vishnu. BakadAlbhya could immediately understand,
however, that Sri RAma was
actually the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who for His own reasons had
appeared on the Earth and was enacting just like a human being. "Sri RAma", said BakadAlbhya,
"Oh best of the beings, why have You come to my
lowly abode?" The Lord replied, "Oh great, twice born brahmin, I have come here to the
ocean shore with My phalanx of monkey and bear warriors in order to cross the
sea and conquer LankA and its demon horde headed by RAvana. Oh greatest of sages, please be merciful unto Me and please tell Me how I can cross this vast ocean. That
is why I have come to your Ashram today." The sage said, "Oh Lord Sri
RAma, I shall tell you of the most exalted of all
fasts, observing which You will surely conquer RAvana and be eternally glorified. Kindly now listen with
full attention."
"On the day before EkAdasii,
fashion a water pot of gold or silver, or even copper. Even clay will do if
these metals are unavailable. Fill the pot with pure water and then decorate it
nicely with mango leaves. Cover it and place it near a holy altar upon a mound
of seven grains (the seven grains are barley, wheat, rice, corn, chickpeas, kukani, and dahl or peas). Now
take Your morning bath, decorate the water pot with
flower garlands and sandalwood paste, and in the concave lid atop the pot place
there the barley, pomegranate, and coconut. Now with great love and devotion
worship the water pot Deity form and offer Him incense, sandalwood paste,
flowers, a ghee lamp, and a plate of sumptuous foods. Remain there awake that
night beside this sacred pot. On top of the lid filled with barley, etc., place
a golden mUrthy of Lord Sri NArAyana.
When EkAdasii dawns, take Your
morning bath and then decorate the water pot with fine sandalwood paste and
garlands. Then worship the pot again with first class incense, lamps,
sandalwood paste and flowers dipped in sandalwood paste, and then
devoutly/devotedly place many kinds of cooked food, pomegranate, and coconut
before the water pot. Then remain awake over night.
When the DwAdasi
dawns, take the waterpot to the bank of a holy river,
or even to the shore of a small pond. After worshipping it again properly, Oh King of kings,
offer it with all the aforementioned ingredients to a pure hearted brahmin, expert in the Vedic
sciences. If You and Your military commanders observe
the VijayA EkAdasii in this
way, You will surely be victorious in every way."
Lord Sri RAmachandra Bhagavan, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, did just as BakadAlbhya Muni instructed, and thus He conquered all
demoniac forces. Similarly, anyone who observes the VijayA
EkAdasii in this way will always be victorious in
this mortal world, and after leaving this world he/she will reside forever in
the anxiety free realm of the
Oh NArada, my son, from this
history you can understand why one should observe this EkAdasii
fast properly, strictly following the rules and regulations. This fast is
powerful enough to eradicate all one’s sinful reactions, even the most
abominable ones.
Lord Sri Krishna concluded, Oh Yudhisthira,
anyone who reads or hears this history will attain the same great merit as that
which is earned by performing a horse sacrifice on days of yore.
Thus ends the narration of the glories of PhAlguna-krishna EkAdasii or VijayA EkAdasii, from the Skanda PurAna.