Vasant Punjabi
Vice-President & Pushtikul Elite Member - May 2003
1047 Posts
|
|
Posted - 08 March 2005 : 04:18:58
Jai Shri Krishna,
Well here is the answer
Importance of JAYA Ekadashi
Yudhisthira Maharaja said, "0 Lord of lords, Shri Krishna, all glories unto
You! 0 master of the universe, You alone are the source of the four
types of living entities-those born from eggs, those born from
perspiration, those born from seeds, and those born from embryos. You
alone are the root cause of all, 0 Lord, and therefore You are the
creator, maintainer, and destroyer.
"My Lord, You have so kindly explained to me the auspicious day known as
Sat-tila Ekadasi, which occurs during the dark fortnight of the month of
Magha [January-February]. Now please explain the Ekadasi, that occurs
during the light fortnight of this month. By what name is it known, and
what is the process for observing it? Who is the Deity that is worshiped
on this sublime day, which is so very dear to You?"
Lord Shri Krishna replied, "0 Yudhisthira, I shall gladly tell you about
the Ekadasi, that occurs during the light half of the month of Magha.
This Ekadasi, obliterates all kinds of sinful reactions and demoniac
influences affecting the spirit soul. It is known as Jaya Ekadasi, and
the fortunate soul who observes a fast on this sacred day is relieved of
the great burden of ghostly existence. Thus there is no better Ekadasi,
than this, for it truly bestows freedom from birth and death. It is to
be honored very carefully and diligently. So I ask you to listen to Me
very attentively, 0 Pandava, as I explain a wonderful historical episode
regarding this Ekadasi, an episode I have already related in the Padma
Purana
"Long, long ago in the heavenly planets, Lord Indra ruled his celestial
kingdom very nicely, and all the demigods living there were very happy
and content. In Nandana Forest, which was beautifully graced with
parijata flowers, Indra drank ambrosia whenever he liked and enjoyed the
service of fifty million celestial maidens, the Apsaras, who danced in
ecstasy for his pleasure.
"Many singers, led by Puspadanta, sang in voices sweet beyond compare.
Citrasena, Indra's chief musician, was there in the company of his wife
Malini and his beautiful son Malyavan. An Apsara named Puspavati became
very much attracted to Malyavan; indeed, Cupid's sharp arrows pierced
the core of her heart. Her beautiful body and complexion, along with the
enchanting movements of her eyebrows, captivated Malyavan.
"0 king, listen as I describe the splendid beauty of Puspavati: She had
incomparably graceful arms with which to embrace a man like a fine
silken noose; her face resembled the moon; her lotus eyes reached almost
to her lovely ears, which were adorned with wonderful earrings; her
thin, ornamented neck looked like a conch; her waist was very slender,
the size of a fist; her hips were broad, and her thighs like the trunks
of banana trees; her naturally beautiful features were complemented by
gorgeous ornaments and garments; her breasts were highly raised; and to
look upon her feet was to behold newly grown red lotuses.
"Seeing Puspavati in all her heavenly beauty, Malyavan was bewitched at
once. They had come with other performers to please Lord Indra by
singing and dancing enchantingly, but because they had become so
enamored of each other, pierced through the heart by the arrows of
Cupid, lust personified, they were utterly unable to sing or dance
properly before the lord and master of the heavenly realms.' Their
pronunciation was wrong and their rhythm careless. Lord Indra understood
the source of the errors at once. Offended at the discord in the musical
performance, he became very angry and screamed, 'You useless fools! You
pretend to sing for me while in a stupor of infatuation with each other!
You are mocking me! I curse you both to suffer henceforth as pisacas
[hobgoblins]. As husband and wife, go to the earthly regions and reap
the reactions of your offenses.'
"Struck dumb by these harsh words, Malyavan and Puspavati at once became
morose and fell from the beautiful Nandana Forest in the kingdom of
heaven to a Himalayan peak here on planet earth. Immeasurably
distressed, and their celestial intelligence vastly diminished by the
effects of Indra's fierce curse, they lost their senses of taste and
smell, and even their sense of touch. It was so cold and miserable high
on the Himalayan wastes of snow and ice that they could not even enjoy
the oblivion of sleep.
"Roaming aimlessly hither and thither in those harsh altitudes, Malyavan
and Puspavati suffered more and more, from one moment to the next. Even
though they were situated in a cave, because of the snowfall and cold
their teeth chattered ceaselessly, and their hair stood on end because
of their fright and bewilderment.
"In this utterly desperate situation, Malyavan said to Puspavati, 'What
abominable sins did we commit to have to suffer in these pisaca bodies,
in this impossible environment? This is absolutely hellish! Though hell
is very ferocious, the suffering we are undergoing here is even more
abominable. Therefore it is abundantly clear that one should never
commit any sin.'
"And so the forlorn lovers trudged onward in the snow and ice. By their
great good fortune, however, it so happened that that very day was Jaya
Ekadasi, the Ekadasi of the light fortnight of the month of Magha.
Because in their misery they neglected to drink any water, kill any
game, or even eat whatever fruits and leaves were available at that
altitude, they unknowingly observed Ekadasi by fasting completely from
all food and drink. Sunk in misery, Malyavan and Puspavati collapsed
beneath a pipal tree and did not even try to get up. The sun had set by
this time.
"The night was even colder and more miserable than the day. They
shivered in the frigid snowfall as their teeth chattered in unison, and
when they became numb, they embraced just to keep warm. Locked in each
other's arms, they could enjoy neither sleep nor sex. Thus they suffered
through the whole night under the powerful curse of Indra.
"Still, 0 Yudhisthira, by the mercy of the fast they had by chance
observed on Jaya Ekadasi, and because they had remained awake all night,
they were blessed. Please hear what happened on the next day. As Dvadasi
dawned, Malyavan and Puspavati had given up their demoniac forms and
were once again beautiful heavenly beings wearing lustrous ornaments and
exquisite garments. As they looked at each other in amazement, a
celestial airplane [vimana] arrived on the spot. A chorus of heavenly
denizens sang their praises as the couple stepped into the beautiful
aircraft and proceeded directly to the heavenly regions, buoyed up by
the good wishes of everyone. Soon Malyavan and Puspavati arrived at
Amaravati, Lord Indra's capital city, and then they immediately went
before their lord and offered him their cheerful obeisances.
"Lord Indra was astonished to see that they had been restored to their
original status and forms so soon after he had cursed them to suffer as
demons far, far below his celestial kingdom. Indra asked them, 'What
extraordinary meritorious deeds have you performed so that you could
give up your pisaca bodies so quickly after I had cursed you? Who
released you from my irresistible curse?'
"Malyavan replied, '0 lord, it was by the mercy of the Supreme
Personality of Godhead, Lord Vasudeva, and also by the powerful
influence of Jaya Ekadasi, that we were released from our suffering
condition as pisacas. This is the truth, 0 master: Because we executed
devotional service to Lord Visnu by observing Jaya Ekadasi, the day most
dear to Him, we have happily been restored to our former status.'
"Indra said, 'Because you served the Supreme Lord Kesava (Shri Krishna) by observing
Ekadasi, you have become worshipable even by me, and I can see that you
are now completely purified of sin. Whoever engages in devotional
service to Lord Shri Hari (Shri Krishna) becomes praiseworthy and worshipable even by
me. Of this there is no doubt.' Lord Indra then gave Malyavan and
Puspavati free rein to enjoy each other and wander about his heavenly
planet.
"Therefore, 0 Yudhisthira, one should strictly observe a fast on the day
of Lord Hari,(Shri Krishna) especially on Jaya Ekadasi, which frees one from the sin
of killing even a twice-born brahmana. A great soul who observes this
fast with full faith and devotion has in effect given all kinds of
charity, performed all kinds of sacrifice, and bathed in all the holy
places of pilgrimage. Fasting on Jaya Ekadasi, qualifies one to reside
in Vaikuntha and enjoy unending happiness for billions of yugas-indeed,
forever. 0 great king, one who even hears or reads these glories of Jaya
Ekadasi, achieves the blessed merit attained by performing an Agnistoma
sacrifice, during which hymns from the Sama-veda are recited."
Jai Shri Krishna.
Vasant
|