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 Saphala 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 Mahishmata.
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 Mahishmata.
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 Vasudeva.
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 Champavati.
By the merit he had accrued
by fasting on Saphala 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 Mahishmata, his humble obeisances and
once more accepted his princely responsibilities.
Seeing his son so decorated with Vaishnava
ornaments and tilak (udhvara pundra) King Mahishmata 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 Saphala 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 Saphala Ekadasi, from the Bhavishya-uttara Purana.
Hare
Krishna ...
