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Saphala Ekadasi

from Bhavisya-uttara Puran

 

Yudhisthira Maharaj said, “O my Dear Lord Sri Krishna, what is the name of

that

Ekadasi that occurs during the dark fortnight of the month of Pausha

(December-January)? How is it observed, and which Deity is to be worshipped

on

that sacred day? Please narrate these details to me fully, so that I may

understand Oh Janardana.” The Supreme Personality of Godhead Sri Krishna

then

replied, “O best of kings, because you desire to hear, I shall fully

describe

to you the glories of the Pausha-krishna Ekadasi.

“I do not become as pleased by sacrifice or charity as I do by My devotee's

observance of a full fast on Ekadasi. To the best of one’s ability,

therefore,

one should fast on Ekadasi, the day of Lord Hari.

“O Yudhisthira, I urge you to hear with undivided intelligence the glories

of

Pausha-krishna Ekadasi, which falls on a Dwadasi. As I explained previously,

one should not differentiate among the many Ekadasis. O king, to benefit

humanity at large I shall now describe to you the process of observing

Pausha-krishna Ekadasi.

“Pausha-krishna Ekadasi is also known as Saphalaa Ekadasi. On this sacred

day

one should worship Lord Narayana, for He is its ruling Deity. One should do

so

by follow the previously described method of fasting. Just as among snakes

Shesha-naga is the best, and among birds Garuda is the best, among

sacrifices

the Ashvamedha-yajna is the best, among rivers Mother Ganges is the best,

among

gods Lord Vishnu is best, and among two-legged beings the brahmins are the

best, so among all fasting days Ekadasi is by far the best. O foremost of

kings

who took your birth in the Bharata dynasty, whoever strictly observes

Ekadasi

becomes very dear to Me and indeed worshipable by Me in every way. Now

please

listen as I describe the process for observing Saphalaa Ekadasi. “On

Saphalaa

Ekadasi My devotee should worship Me by offering Me fresh fruits according

to

time, place and circumstance, and by meditating on Me as the all-auspicious

Supreme Personality of Godhead. He should offer Me jaambira fruit,

pomegranate,

betal

nuts and leaves, coconut, guava, varieties of nuts, cloves, mangoes, and

different kinds of aromatic spices. He should also offer Me incense and

bright

ghee lamps, for such an offering of lamps on Saphalaa Ekadasi is especially

glorious. The devotee should try to stay awake the Ekadasi night.

“Now please hear with undivided attention as I tell you how much merit one

gets

if he fasts and remains awake throughout the entire night singing and

chanting

the glories of Narayana. O best of kings, there is no sacrifice or

pilgrimage

that yields merit that is equal to or better than the merit one gains by

fasting on this Saphalaa Ekadasi. Such fasting – particularly if one can

remain

awake and alert the entire night long – bestows the same merit upon the

faithful devotee as the performance of austerity for five thousand earthly

years. O lion among kings, please hear from Me the glorious history that

made

this Divine Ekadasi famous.

“Once there was a City called Champaavati, which was ruled by the saintly

King

Maahishmata. He had four sons, the eldest of whom, Lumpaka, always engaged

in

all manner of very sinful activities – illicit sexual encounters with the

wives

of others, gambling, and continual association with known prostitutes. His

evil

deeds gradually reduced the wealth of his father, King Maahishmata. Lumpaka

also became very critical of the numerous devas, the empowered universal

attendants of the Lord, as well as toward the brahmins, and every day he

would

go out of his way to blaspheme the Vaishnavas. At last King Maahishmata,

seeing

the unrepentant brazen fallen condition of his son, exiled him to the

forest.

Out of fear of the king, even compassionate relatives didn’t come to

Lumpaka’s

defense, so angry was the king toward his son, and so sinful was this

Lumpaka.

“Bewildered in his exile, the fallen and rejected Lumpaka thought to

himself,

‘My father has sent me away, and even my kinsmen do not raise but a finger

in

objection. What am I to do now?’ He schemed sinfully and thought, ‘I shall

sneak back to the city under cover of darkness and plunder its wealth.

During

the day I shall stay in the forest, and as night returns, so shall I to the

city.’ So thinking, the sinful Lumpaka entered the darkness of the forest.

He

killed many animals by day, and by night he stole all manner of valuable

items

from the city. The city-dwelling folk apprehended him several times, but out

of

fear of the king they left him alone. They thought to themselves that it

must

have been the accumulated sins of Lumpaka’s previous births that had forced

him

to act in such a way that he lost his royal facilities and became to act so

sinfully like a common selfish thief.

“Though a meat-eater, Lumpaka would also eat fruits every day. He resided

under

an old banyan tree that unknown to him happened to be very dear to Lord

Vaasudeva. Indeed, many worshipped as the demi-god (representative

departmental

head) of all the trees in the forest. In due course of time, while Lumpaka

was

doing so many sinful and condemnable activities, the Saphalaa Ekadasi

arrived.

On the eve of the Ekadasi (Dasami) Lumpaka had to pass the entire night

without

sleep because of severe cold that he felt due to his scanty bedclothes

(bedding). The cold not only robbed him of all peace but almost of his very

life. By the time the sun rose, near dead, his teeth chattering and near

comatose. In fact all that Ekadasi morning, he remained in that stupor and

could not awaken out of his near comatose condition.

“When midday of the Saphalaa Ekadasi arrived, the sinful Lumpaka finally

came

to and managed to rise up from his place under that banyan tree. But with

every

step he took, he stumbled and fell to the ground. Like a lame man, he walked

slowly and hesitantly, suffering greatly from hunger and thirst in the midst

of

the jungle. So weak was Lumpaka that he couldn’t even concentrate to nor

muster

strength to go and kill even a single animal that whole day. Instead, he was

reduced to collecting whatever fruits had fallen to the ground of their own

accord. By the time he returned to his banyan tree home, the sun had set.

“Placing the fruits on the ground next to him (at the base of the sacred

banyan

tree), Lumpaka began to cry out, ‘O, woe is me ! What should I do ? Dear

father, what is to become of me? O Sri Hari, please be merciful to me and

accept these fruits as an offering !’ Again he was forced to lie awake the

whole night without sleep, but in the meantime the all merciful Supreme

Personality of Godhead, Lord Madhusudana, had become pleased with Lumpaka’s

humble offering of forest fruits, and He accepted them. Lumpaka had

unwittingly

observed a full Ekadasi fast, and by the merit he reaped on that day he

regained his kingdom with no further obstacles. “Listen, O Yudhisthira, to

what happened to the son of King Maahishmata when but a fragment of the

merit

spouted up within his heart.

“As the Sun beautifully rose in the sky on the day following Ekadasi, a

handsome horse approached Lumpaka as if seeking him out, and stood next to

him.

At the same time, a voice suddenly boomed out from the clear blue sky

saying,

‘This horse is for you, Lumpaka! Mount it and ride swiftly out of this

forest

to greet you family! O son of King Maahishmata, by the mercy of the Supreme

lord Vaasudeva and the strength of the merit you acquired by observing

Saphalaa

Ekadasi, your kingdom will be returned to you without any further

hindrances.

Such is the benefit you have gained by fasting on this most auspicious of

days.

Go now, to you father and enjoy your rightful place in the dynasty.’ “Upon

hearing these celestial words resounding from above, Lumpaka mounted the

horse

and rode back to the city of Champaavati. By the merit he had accrued by

fasting on Saphalaa Ekadasi, he had become a handsome prince once more and

was

able to absorb his mind in the lotus feet of the Supreme Personality of

Godhead, Hari. In

other words, he had become My pure devotee.

“Lumpaka offered his father, King Maahishmata, his humble obeisances and

once

more accepted his princely responsibilities. Seeing his son so decorated

with

Vaishnava ornaments and tilak (udhvara pundra) King Maahishmata gave him the

kingdom, and Lumpaka ruled unopposed for many, many years. Whenever the

Ekadasi

came, he worshipped the Supreme Lord Narayana with great devotion. And by

the

mercy of Sri Krishna he obtained a beautiful wife and a fine son. In old age

Lumpaka handed his kingdom over to his son – just as his own father, King

Maahishmata, had handed it over to him. Lumpaka then went to the forest to

dedicate his concentrate attention to gratefully serve the Supreme Lord with

controlled mind and senses. Purified of all material desires, he left his

old

material body and returned back to home, back to Godhead, attaining a place

near the lotus feet of his worshipful Lord, Sri Krishna.

“O Yudhisthira, one who approaches Me as Lumpaka did will become completely

free of lamentation and anxiety. Indeed, anyone who properly observes this

glorious Saphalaa Ekadasi – even unknowingly, like Lumpaka – will become

famous

in this world. He will become perfectly liberated at death and return to the

spiritual abode of Vaikuntha. Of this there is no doubt. Moreover, one who

simply hears the glories of Saphalaa Ekadasi obtains the same merit derived

by

one who performs a Rajasurya-yajna, and at the very least he goes to heaven

in

his next birth, so where is the loss?”

Thus ends the narration of the glories of Pausha-krishna Ekadasi, or

Saphalaa

Ekadasi, from the Bhavishya-uttara Purana.

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