One day, King Yudhisthira told to Krishna,  Hey Madhav please tell us about the Ekadashi of Chaitra mass of Krishna paksha. Lord Krishna stated the story of the Papamocani Ekadashi. After that Lord Krishna revealed the whole Pastime, that Once upon a time there was a king, named Mandhata, who asked about Papamocani  Ekadashi to sage Lomas. Then Lomas sage told the story to Mandhata king. He said.

A long time ago, Kubera, the treasurer of the gods, had a beautiful garden named “chaityaratha”. Spring season used to prevail throughout the year in that garden, due to which the apsaras,  Gandharva and demigods keep roaming.

Sage Medhavi, a great devotee of Shiva, was also doing penances there. Many times Apsaras want to disturb his penances but they failed. An Apsara named Manjughosha decided to break the penance of the sage.

So she started living thereby making a hut near the sage’s ashram. For many times she tried to disturb the sage with her beautiful dance and singing. Then one day, Kaamdev appeared and started attacking sage with his cupid arrows. This happened Because Lord Shiva after sacrificing his wife Sati, slit the throat of his father-in-law, Prajapati Daksha.  After that Shiva gave him the head of a goat. Then lord Shiva went on the austerity of sixty thousand years. At that time,  Lord Brahma sent Kaamdev to bring him out of Samadhi.

Then lord Shiva got angry and opened his third eye and destroyed Kaamdev. So at that time, kaamdev’s physical body was demise but his spiritual body was saved. Therefore, when Kaamdev came to know that the medhavi Sage was a devotee of Shiva, he want to disturb his penance by entering into his body. At the same time, Manjughosha arrived. By entering Kaamdev, Sage Medhavi looked more attractive and sage dropped all his weapons and surrounded Manjughosha. And the fall down was started for sage because of the woman’s Company. After a long period Manjughosha just realized that the sage had fully fallen, she asked for permission to return back to heaven. But Sage asked Manjunghosha to stay more and So she agreed to stay for 56 years, 9 months and 3 days. After that, she asked again to go back.

The sage again denied. At that time Manjughosha felt some fear, that if the sage got to know the reality of her cheating,  then sage will become angry and gave a curse to her. But in due course of time, Medhavi realised about all these cheatings. After that, he got angry and cursed Manjughosha to become a demon. Manjughosha fell at Sage’s feet for forgiveness and started crying. After that sage told the remedy that when she fasts on Papamocani Ekadashi of Krishna paksha of Chaitra mass, then she will be able to get rid of his curse.

After saying all this, he went to his father sage Chyawan. After reaching, he told the whole story to him, and his father also subjected him that, you just do perform, Papamocani Ekadashi, then all your Sins will get eradicated.

In this way, a person, who observes this fast all his sins will be eradicated and he will get the Pure devotion of Lord Krishna.

Why is this Ekadashi fasting is special?

The speciality of Papamocani Ekadashi is that by observing this fast all the sins get eradicated. The Sin in a living being is like a mirror  Covered with dust and one cannot see his real face in it. Similarly, when the living being has the sins of many lives with him, then he too cannot know the reality of this world and his life remains trapped in a cycle of birth and death. That’s why this Papamocani Ekadashi is so special.

By observing this fast, all the sins get destroyed and the person attains pure devotion unto the lotus feet of Supreme Personality of Godhead, Krishna.

What is the significance of Papamocani Ekadashi?

The importance of Papamocani Ekadashi is described in the Bhavishyotra Purana. It was first narrated to king Mendhata by sage Lomasa and after that Lord Krishna to king Yudhishthira. This Ekadashi destroys all the sins and also frees one from all sorts of anxiety and miserable conditions of life. This Ekadashi’s observation is equal to donating one thousand cows. The main purpose of observing this Ekadashi fast is to control one’s bodily demands and Spend more time chanting Krishna’s names & Listening to Bhagavad Gita & Srimad Bhagavatam, which is full of Krishna’s transcendental pastimes.

The Ekadashi coming in the month of Falgun is known as Amalaki Ekadashi. Amalaki means “Gooseberry”. Gooseberry has a distinctive position in scripture. When Lord Vishnu for the sake of creation gave birth to Brahma Ji at the same time, he also brought Gooseberry tree or Amla tree. Lord Vishnu has described the Gooseberry tree as “Advi-Vrksh”. It is believed that Lord Vishnu dwell in this tree. 

Conversation Between King Madhata and Shri Vashistha

Once King Mahdhata requested to Vashishta Muni -Shri Vashishta kindly do a favour on me, please narrate the significance of the auspicious fast which is named Amalaki Ekadashi.

Saint Vashishta says: “Dear King I will narrate you the story of the most auspicious propitious fast that is known as Amalaki Ekadashi. This Ekadashi falls in the month of Phagun in Shukla Paksha.

By doing this fast all sins of a person get annihilated.

Benefits of Amalaki Ekadashi

It is believed that the sequel of Amalaki Ekadashi fast is equivalent to the donation of 1000 cows.

Tale of significance of Amalaki Ekadashi-

“There was a town named as Vaidesh, Where Brahmins, Kshatriya, Vaishya, Shudra. All varna used to live joyfully. In that town, Vedic mantras were reverberating everywhere and there was no miscreants, vicious doer and atheist in that town. King Chatarat of the Chandravarshi Dynasty was the ruler of that town who was a very knowledgeable and religious man. No one in that town was found poor or miser. Everyone used to worship Lord Vishnu and keep fast on Ekadashi. Once on the day of Amalaki Ekadashi of Falgun month king along with all the people of the town went to the temple. There everyone worshipped the Gooseberry tree with Incense, Deep, Naivadiya, Panch Ratna, e.t.c. and started chanting the names of Lord Vishnu. Everyone stayed awake In that temple the whole night on that auspicious day. At night a person set foot in that place. that person was a wrongdoer. He was feeling restless in thirst and hunger. He sat in one corner of the temple with a desire to get some food. Sitting at the corner he was listening to the significance of Amalaki Ekadashi. On that day with other people, he also remained awake the whole night. Early morning along with all other people that person also went back to his residence. After a few days, that wrongdoer person died. Although that person had done many sins and due to that he deserves hell but as he had kept the Amalaki Ekadashi fast and stayed awoken the whole night he took birth as King Vidhurath and he was named Vasurath.

King Vidhurath’s Anecdote

King Vidurath after growing up along with his men took care of 10 villages. He also became a very religious, truthful, hardworking and true devotee of Lord Vishnu. He gave equal respect to people and giving charity was his eternal work. Once king Vasurath went to a forest for hunting and lost the route and as he was not having directional knowledge, He slept under a tree, after some time a gang reached there and spotting the king alone, they started screaming Kill Him! Kill Him! And started running toward King Vasurath. They attacked the king saying that “this crooked king had killed our child, mother, father and everyone else and expelled us from the country and now by killing him we will take our revenge.

A Strange Incident Happened

At the same time from the king’s body a divine lady appeared. That lady was extremely beautiful and was dressed in beautiful dress and ornaments, her eyebrows were bent and from her eyes raging flame was coming out. She was Lord Of Death, and all the robbers were killed in a fraction of a second and the king became unconscious after the incident. 

When the king came back in sense

King was stranged to found all the robbers dead and he was thinking that who had killed them in this forest and who is his well-wisher in this forest? While King Vasurath was thinking about all this suddenly a prophecy happened “Dear King in this world other than Lord Vishnu who else can help you” after hearing this prophecy King thanked Lord Vishnu and greeted him. Then he came back to his town and happily ruled there and at the end he went to Vaikuntha Dham” thus Vashishta Muni says to King Mahdhata that “Anyone who will fast on this very scared Amalaki Ekadashi that person without any doubts attains Vaikuntha Dham”

How to keep Amalaki Ekadashi fast

A person who wants to keep Amalaki Ekadashi fast should sleep remembering Lord Vishnu one night prior to the fast and on the day of Amalaki Ekadashi after bathing should pray Lord Vishnu with sesame seed, kush and mudra. And by taking water in hand a person should say to lord that I am doing Amalaki Ekadashi fast for the happiness of Lord Vishnu and with the desire of salvation, I also request Lord Vishnu to take me under his shelter so that I may finish this fast successfully. After worshipping God, a person should worship Gooseberry Tree. The next day a person should feed Brahmins and donate to needy people and after doing all these activities a person can break the fast and have food and water.

Our Vedic literature, Acharyas, tell us to observe fast on Ekadashi and other festivals. As per them, observing fast on Ekadashi and other important festivals is a must and an integral part of spiritual life. Acharyas tell us that such regulations are made for those who want to associate with the Lord, Shri Hari, in the transcendental world. All great souls follow the regulations and get the result.

Pastime behind Vijaya Ekadashi

Once Maharaja Yudhishthira asked Lord Krishna,“O Vasedeva! Which Ekadashi comes during the Krishna paksha of phalgun month? Please tell me about it.”

Lord replied that once upon a time Devarshi Narada asked Brahmaji, “Please tell me about the regulations that one should observe on the Krishna paksha Ekadashi of phalgun month”.

Brahmaji informed Narada, “O Narada! Ekadashi during the Krishna paksha of phalgun month is known as Vijaya Ekadashi. Observing fasting on Vijaya Ekadashi destroys sinful reactions for both old and new sins. I haven’t told anyone about this Ekadashi before. This Ekadashi provides victory to all human beings.”

Why Lord Ramchandra ji had to observe fast on Vijaya Ekadashi?

In Treta Yuga, when Lord Ramachandra ji accepted to live in the forest in exile for 14 years, He started living in Panchvati with Lakshman ji and Sitaji. Demon king Ravana kidnapped Sitaji there. When Lord Ram and Lakshman came to know about the incident They were saddened by sorrow. They started searching for Sitaji. In the course of searching for Sitaji, They met dying Jatayu. Jatayu told Them the whole abduction story of Sitaji and died, attaining a higher planetary system. Further searching for Sitaji, They befriended Sugreeva and Lord Ram ji killed Baali.

Hanuman ji went to Lanka and found Sitaji there. After burning Lanka, Hanuman ji returned back to Lord Ram and informed Him about the whole scenario. Lord Ram, after hearing from Hanuman, decided to start for Lanka with Sugreeva along with his army. Reaching the seashore, Lord Ram told Lakshman ji that there were many deadly living creatures in that unfathomable sea. How could they cross the sea easily?

Lakshman ji replied, “O Lord! You are the original Supreme Personality of Godhead. You are omniscient and there is nothing which is unknown to You. Sage Bakad Albhya has lived on this island since ancient times and his hermitage is nearby. O Raghunandan, we should enquire from him.”

Instructions from sage Bakad Albhya

So Lord Ram went to meet sage Bakad Albhya in his hermitage and greeted him. The great sage, seeing Lord Ram, understood immediately that Ram ji none other than the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Very humbly and with all respects he enquired from Lord Ram. He asked, “O Lord! How can I serve you? What is the motive behind your visit to my hermitage?”

Lord Ram replied, “O great sage! I am here to kill Ravana. Please tell me the way to cross this ocean.”

Bakad Albhya replied, “O Ram! By observing fast on Krishna paksha Ekadashi of phalgun month, undoubtedly You will win and You will be able to cross this ocean as well. To observe fast on this Ekadashi, one should make a pot of gold or silver or copper or mud and fill it with pure water. Decorate the pot with mango leaves and establish it on the deities altar. On the day of Ekadashi, after taking bath, one should worship the Lord, Shri Hari, with incense sticks, lamp, coconut, offerings. Thereafter spend the entire day chanting holy names of the Lord in front of the pot. Continue to chant holy names of the Lord the entire night. On dvadashi, on the bank of a river or a pond donate the pot in charity to an eligible brahman after worshipping the pot.”
 

Sage continued and said, “O Ram! If you observe this fast along with all of Your commanders of the army, undoubtedly victory would be Yours.”

In this way, Brahma ji explained Narada, “Narada! As per instructions from the sage, Lord Ramchandra ji observed fast on the Ekadashi and became victorious. O Son!, By the effect of observing fast on this Ekadashi, people will get success and will attain higher planets.”

Lord Shri Krishna further assured that by abiding by the rules and regulations of Vijaya Ekadashi, one attains the result of performing Vajpayi sacrifice.

How to observe Ekadashi in Kaliyuga?

When the lord incarnated as Shri Ram, He personally also observed fast on Ekadashi, one can understand from this incident that Ekadashi is very very dear to the Lord. We all should also learn from the ideal character of Lord Shi Ramchandra ji and must observe fast on this Ekadashi with full determination. We all should chant more and more the holy names of the Lord so that the unwanted dirt of lust, anger, greed, illusion, madness, envy would be removed. Thus we can take shelter of the lotus feet of the Lord.

Hare Krishna!

Fast Breaking time:- 18th Feb from 06:57 AM to 10:42 AM (New Delhi) 

Vedic literature describes that observing fast on Ekadashi destroys all sins. Lord Shri Krishna pleases very much with this fast and bestows eternal blessings to the devotees. In each month, fast observation and worship of Lord Shri Krishna on every Ekadashi of Shukla Paksha and Krishna Paksha are prescribed as per Vedic injunction. There are incalculable benefits of Ekadashi. Ekadashi fast frees one from all sins and transcends this vast ocean of material existence. In various Purans, it is mentioned that one should not eat anything after sunset from the tenth day onwards. One should think of God while taking a rest at night. On the day of Ekadashi, one should rise early in the morning and worship Lord Shri Krishna after taking a bath. One should offer Tulsi leaves, sandals, Ganga water, and fruits to Lord. One should refrain from ill talks, lies, fraud and devote his time to chanting Krishna’s name, remembering Krishna’s various pastimes, and thinking of the Lord’s eternal abode. 

➢   Vedic Evidence

We learn about this Ekadashi from a conversation between Lord Shri Krishna and Emperor Yudhishthira in Bhavisya Uttar Puran. Emperor Yudhishthira asked Lord, “Hey Janardan, what is the story behind Ekadashi on Shukla paksha in the month of Magh? How to observe fast on this Ekadashi and to whom should one worship?”   

Lord Shri Krishna replied, “O great king, listen carefully. Ekadashi on Shukla paksha in the month of Magh is popularly known as Jaya Ekadashi. This auspicious date destroys all sins and can liberate one. Anyone who abides with it, will not have to suffer in ghostly species of life. That’s why one should consciously abide by and observe fast on Ekadashi.”

“Once Indra, King of heaven, along with other demigods and damsels, were strolling in the Nandan forest, which was decorated very beautifully with parijaat flowers. Indra, King of 50 crores of Gandharvas, organized a dance program in the forest to entertain themselves. Pushpadant, chief of Gandharvas and Chitrasen, chief musician of Indra’s assembly, with his wife Malani, was also there in the forest. Pushpadant’s daughter was Pushpavanti, and Malyavaan was the son of Chitrasen and Malani. They also participated in the dance to please King Indra. Pushpavanti and Malyavaan developed an affection for one another and became agitated. They were illusioned and couldn’t concentrate on their performances. They were unable to focus on the tone and tempo of the song due to which Indra understood and took it as his disrespect. He cursed them.”

➢   Indra’s curse to Malyavaan and Pushpavanti

“King Indra angrily cursed them with the following words – ‘You fools, you both have disregarded and disobeyed my command thus disown you both. You should fall down to ghostly species and suffer for your misdemeanour in the lower planetary system as a couple’. They became extremely sad after hearing such harsh words from Indra. They fell down on earth as ghost couples and lived miserably near the Himalayan mountain. They lost their sense of smell, sense of taste, sense of touch, etc. They were unable to sleep even for a moment and thus were experiencing excruciating pain. That place was extremely cold and due to which they always had goosebumps and chattering teeth.”

“One day, he told his ghost wife, ‘We must have committed many sins in our previous life due to which we have got this miserable and horrible birth in ghostly species of life. It must be better to rot in hell than to suffer in this ghostly form. Therefore we should not commit any more sins in this life and try to get out of this form.’ In that way, they were living their lives.”

➢   The transformation from ghost form to demigods form

“On one day, they didn’t take any foodstuff and refrain from committing any sin, coincidently it was Jaya Ekadashi in the Shukla Paksha of Magh month. They didn’t even take any fruit or nongrain foodstuff. Tormented by tremendous sorrow, they spent their day sitting beneath a peepal tree until sunset. It was very cold that night, so they couldn’t even sleep for a moment.”  
Lord Krishna addressed emperor Yudhishthira, “O King! Because they observed fast on Jaya Ekadashi and because they didn’t sleep that night; on the next day they were freed from the ghostly species of life. They got their original form of demigod and demigoddess back. Decorated beautifully with costly garments and ornaments, they departed for the heavenly planet. At that time, it started to rain with flowers. They went to meet Indra and paid their obeisances. Indra was amazed to see their original form and enquired from them, how did they get freedom from ghostly life?

Malyavaan replied, “O Indra! We were freed from ghostly life due to the causeless mercy of Lord Shri Hari and because of observing fast on Jaya Ekadashi.”

➢   Indra’s view on Jaya Ekadashi

Indra replied, “O Malyavaan! By observing fast on Jaya Ekadashi and by the causeless mercy of Lord Shri Krishna, not only you were freed from the ghostly condition of life but also became more venerable than us. Whoever takes shelter of Lord Shri Hari and observes fast on Ekadashi; they are worshippable. All glories to both of you.”

Lord Krishna further told Yudhishthira, “O King! Jaya Ekadashi even frees from the guilt of Brahma-hatya. It should be understood that one who has observed fast on Jaya Ekadashi, has already accumulated results of all charity and sacrifices. Just by hearing and reading the glories of Jaya Ekadashi, one gets the result of agnishtom sacrifice; by observing fast one gets to Vaikuntha.” In this way, Lord concluded the significance and glories of Jaya Ekadashi in Bhavishya Uttar Puran. 

➢   Lord Varahadeva appearance day 

Lord Varahadeva appeared on the next day of Jaya Ekadashi i.e. Dwadashi. Thus on Jaya Ekadashi nirjala fasting is observed for half-day and celebration of Lord Varahadeva’s appearance on Dwadashi.

➢   Glories of Jaya Ekadashi

From the above story, we can understand that Malyavaan and Pushpavanti observed fasting on Jaya Ekadashi unknowingly. Even after that, they were not only freed from the ghostly conditions of life and got their original form back, but also became worshippable by Indra. What would be unattainable for one who observes fast very diligently on Jaya Ekadashi? One should think about it. 

➢   How to observe Jaya Ekadashi in Kaliyuga?

Therefore, we all should observe fasting on this Ekadashi which is extremely lovable to Lord Shri Krishna and provides impetus to reach the supreme goal of one’s life, love of Godhead. We all should chant Hare Krishna mahamantra individually and in the group as much as possible, read scriptures like Srimad Bhagavad Gita, Srimad Bhagavatam, and concentrate on the lotus feet of the Lord by reducing the bodily needs on this day. 

Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare,
Hare Ram Hare Ram Ram Ram Hare Hare

Jaya Ekadashi Date:- 1 Feb 2023 (Wednesday)
Fast breaking time:- 2 Feb 2023 (Thursday), between 07:09 am to 10:46 am