Varuthinii Ekadasii: As told in the Bhavishya-uttara Purana

Sri Yudhisthira Maharaj said, “Oh Vasudeva, I offer my most humble obeisances unto You. Please now describe to me the ekadasii of the dark fortnight (krsna paksha) of the month of vaisakha (April-May), including its specific  merits and influence.”

Lord Sri Krishna replied, “Oh King, in this world and the next, the most auspicious and magnanimous ekadasii is varuthinii ekadasii, which occurs during the dark fortnight of the month of vaisakha.

Whosoever observes a complete fast on this sacred day has his sins completely removed, obtains continuous happiness, and achieves all good fortune.

Fasting on varuthinii ekadasii makes even an unfortunate woman fortunate. Upon anyone who observes it, this ekadasii bestows material enjoyment in this life and liberation after the death of this present body. It destroys the sins of all and saves people from the miseries of repeated rebirth.

“By observing this ekadasii properly, King mandhata was liberated. Many other kings also benefited from observing it – kings such as maharaja dhundhumara, in the ikshvaku dynasty, who became free from leprosy resulting from the curse that Lord Shiva had imposed upon him as a punishment.

Whatever merit one obtains by performing austerities and penances for ten thousand years is achieved by a person who observes varuthinii ekadasii.

The merit one achieves by donating a great amount of gold during a solar eclipse at Kurukshetra is gained by one who observes this one ekadasii with love and devotion, and certainly attains his goals in this life and the next. In short, this ekadasii is pure and very enlivening and the destroyer of all sins.

“Better than giving horses in charity is giving elephants, and better than giving elephants is giving land. But better still than giving land is the giving of sesame seeds, and better than that is giving of gold. Still better than giving gold is giving food grains - for all the forefathers, demigods (devas), and human beings become satisfied by eating grains. Thus there is no better gift of charity than this in the past, present or future.”

“Yet learned scholars have declared that giving away a young maiden in marriage to a worthy person is equal to giving away food grains in charity. Moreover, Lord Sri Krishna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, has said that giving cows in charity is equal to giving food grains. Still better than all these charities is teaching spiritual knowledge to the ignorant. Yet all the merits one can attain by performing all these acts of charity are attained by one who fasts on the varuthinii ekadasii.”

“One who lives off the wealth of his daughters suffers a hellish condition until the inundation of the entire universe, Oh bharata. Therefore one should be especially careful not to use the wealth of his daughter. Oh best of kings, any householder who takes his daughter’s wealth out of greed, who tries to sell his daughter, or who takes money from the man to whom he has given his daughter in marriage – such a householder becomes a lowly cat in his next life. Therefore it is said that whoever, as a sacred act of charity, gives away in marriage a maiden decorated with various ornaments, and who also gives a dowry with her, obtains merit that cannot be described even by Chitragupta, the chief secretary of yamaraja in the heavenly planets. That very same merit, however, can be easily achieved by one who fasts on the varuthinii ekadasii.

“The following things should be given up on the Dashami, (the tenth phase of the Moon), the day before the ekadasii: eating on bell-metal plates, eating any kind of urid-dahl, eating red-lentils, eating chick-peas, eating kondo (a grain that is primarily eaten by poor people and that resembles poppy seeds or agarpanthas seeds), eating spinach, eating honey, eating in another person’s house/home, eating more than once, and participating in sex of any kind.

“On the ekadasii itself one should give up the following: gambling, sports, sleeping during the daytime, betal nuts and its leaf, brushing one’s teeth, spreading rumours, faultfinding, talking to the spiritually fallen, anger, and lying.

“On the dwadasii the day after ekadasii (the twelfth phase of the Moon), one should give up the following: eating on bell-metal plates, eating urid-dahl, red-lentils, or honey, lying, strenuous exercise or labour, eating more than once, any sexual activity, shaving the body, face or head, smearing oils on one’s body, and eating in another’s home.”

Lord Sri Krishna continued, “Whoever observes the varuthinii ekadasii in this way becomes free from all sinful reactions and returns to the eternal, spiritual abode. One who worships Lord janardana (Krishna) on this ekadasii by staying awake throughout the entire night, also becomes free from all his previous sins and attains to the spiritual abode. Therefore, Oh king, he who is frightened of his accumulated sins and their attendant reactions, and thus of death itself, must observe varuthinii ekadasii by fasting very strictly.

“Finally, Oh noble Yudhisthira, he who hears or reads this glorification of the sacred varuthinii ekadasii obtains the merit earned by donating one thousand cows in charity, and at last he returns home, to the Supreme abode of Lord Vishnu in the Vaikunthas.”

 

 Mohini Ekadasi: from the Kurma Purana

Sri Yudhisthira Maharaja said, “Oh  janardana, what is the name of the ekadasii that occurs during the light fortnight (sukla paksha) of the month of vaisakha (April-May) ? What is the process for observing it properly? Kindly narrate all of these details to me.”

The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Lord Sri Krishna replied, “Oh blessed son of Dharma, what Vasishtha Muni once told to Lord Ramachandra I shall now describe to you. Please hear Me attentively.

“Lord Ramachandra asked Vasishtha Muni, ‘Oh great sage, I would like to hear about the best of all fasting days – that day which destroys all kinds of sins and sorrows. I have suffered long enough in separation from My dear sita, and so I wish to hear from you about how My suffering can be ended.’

“The sage Vasishtha replied, ‘Oh Lord rama, Oh You whose intelligence is so keen, simply by remembering Your name one can cross the ocean of the material world. You have questioned me in order to benefit all of humanity and fulfill everyone’s desires. I shall now describe that day of fasting which purifies the whole world.

“ ‘Oh Rama, that day is known as vaisakha-sukla ekadasii, which falls on dvadasii. It removes all sins and is famous as Mohinii ekadasii
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“ ‘Truly, Oh dear Rama, the merit of this ekadasii frees the fortunate soul who observes it from the network of illusion. Therefore, if You want to relieve Your suffering(s), observe this auspicious ekadasii perfectly, for it removes all obstacles from one's’ path and relieves the greatest miseries. Kindly listen as I describe its glories, because for one who even just hears about this auspicious ekadasii, the greatest sins are nullified.

“ ‘On the banks of the Sarasvati River there was once a beautiful city named bhadravati, which was ruled by King dyutiman. Oh rama, that steadfast, truthful, and highly intelligent king was born in the dynasty of the Moon (Chandra-vamsa). In his kingdom was a merchant named dhanapala, who possessed a great deal of wealth of food grains and money. He was also very pious. Dhanapala arranged for lakes to be dug, sacrificial arenas to be erected, and beautiful gardens to be cultivated for the benefit of all the citizens of bhadravati. He was an excellent devotee of Lord Vishnu and had five sons: sumana, dyutiman, medhavii, Sukriti, and Dhrishthabuddhi.

“ ‘Unfortunately, his son Dhrishthabuddhi always engaged in greatly sinful activities, such as sleeping with prostitutes and associating with similar degraded persons. He enjoyed illicit sex, gambling, and many other varieties of acts aimed at gratifying the senses. He disrespected the demigods (devas), the brahmins, the forefathers and other elders of the community, as well as his family’s guests. The evil-hearted Dhrishthabuddhi spent up his father’s wealth indiscriminately, always feasting on untouchable foods and drinking alcohol to excess.

“ ‘One day dhanapala kicked Dhrishthabuddhi out of the house after he saw him walking along the road arm-in-arm with a known prostitute. From then on all Dhrishthabuddhi’s relatives were highly critical of him and distanced themselves from him also. After he had sold all of his inherited ornaments and become destitute, the prostitute also abandoned him and insulted him because of his poverty.

“ ‘Dhrishthabuddhi was now full of anxiety, and also hungry. He thought, “What should I do ? Where should I go ? How can I maintain myself ? “ He then began to steal. The king’s constables arrested him, but when they learned who it was, and that his father was the famous dhanapala, they released him. He was caught and released in this way many times. But at last, sick of his arrogance and total disrespect for others, and their property, the ill-mannered Dhrishthabuddhi was apprehended, handcuffed, and then beaten.  After whipping him, the king’s marshals warned him, “Oh evil minded one ! There is no place for you in this kingdom……….!!!”

“However, Dhrishthabuddhi was freed from his tribulation by his father and immediately thereafter entered the dense forest. He wandered here and there, hungry and thirsty and suffering greatly. Eventually he began killing the jungle animals, the lions, deer, boars, and even wolves for food. Always ready in his hand was his bow, always on his shoulder was his quiver full of arrows. He also killed many birds, such as chakoras, peacocks, kankas, doves and pigeons. He unhesitatingly slaughtered many species of birds and animals to maintain his sinful way of life, the sinful results accumulating more and more each day. On account of his previous sins, he was now immersed in an ocean of great sin that was so relentless that it appeared that he could not get out.

“Dhrishthabuddhi was always miserable and anxious, but one day, during the month of vaisakha, by the force of some of his past merit he chanced upon the sacred Ashrama of kaundinya Muni. The great sage had just finished bathing in the Ganges River, and water was dripping from him still. Dhrishthabuddhi had the great good fortune to touch some of those droplets of water that were falling from the great sage’s wet clothing. Instantly Dhrishthabuddhi was freed of his ignorance, and his sinful reactions were reduced. Offering his humble obeisances to kaundinya Muni, Dhrishthabuddhi prayed to him with joined palms; ”Oh great brahmana, please describe to me some of the atonement I may perform without too much endeavour. I have committed so many sins in my life, and these have now made me very poor.”

“The great rishi replied, “Oh son, listen with great attention, for by hearing me your life will change, and you will become free of all your remaining sins. In the light fortnight of this very month, vaisakha (April-May) there occurs the sacred Mohinii ekadasii, which has the power to nullify sins as vast and weighty as Mount Sumeru. If you follow my advice and faithfully observe a fast on this ekadasii, which is so dear to Lord Hari, you will be freed from all the sinful reactions of many, many births.”

“Hearing these words with great joy, Dhrishthabuddhi promised to observe a fast on Mohinii ekadasii according to the sage’s instructions and direction. Oh best of kings, Oh ramachandra Bhagavan, by fasting completely on Mohinii ekadasii, the once sinful Dhrishthabuddhi, the prodigal son of the merchant dhanapala, became sinless. Afterwards he achieved a beautiful transcendental form and, free at last of all obstacles, rode upon the carrier of Lord Vishnu, Garuda, to the Supreme abode of the Lord.

“Oh ramachandra, the fast day of Mohinii ekadasii removes the darkest illusory attachments to material existence. There is thus no better fast day in all the three worlds than this.’ ”

Lord Sri Krishna concluded, “…and so, Oh Yudhishthira, there is no place of pilgrimage, no sacrifice, and no charity that can bestow merit equal to even one sixteenth of the merit a faithful devotee of Mine obtains by observing the Mohinii ekadasii. And He who hears and studies the glories of Mohinii ekadasii achieves the merit of giving away one thousand cows in charity.