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 Decem!er"#anuary$%
&ow is it o!ser'ed, and which Deity is to !e worshi((ed on that
sacred day%
P)ease narrate these detai)s to me fu))y, so that * may understand Oh
#anardana+"
,he Su(reme Persona)ity of -odhead Sri Krishna then re()ied, "O
!est of kings, !ecause you desire to hear, * sha)) fu))y descri!e to you
the g)ories of the Pausha"krishna Ekadasi+
"* do not !ecome as ()eased !y sacrifice or charity as * do !y My
de'otee.s o!ser'ance of a fu)) fast on Ekadasi+
,o the !est of one.s a!i)ity, therefore, one shou)d fast on Ekadasi, the
day of Lord &ari+
"O Yudhisthira, * urge you to hear with undi'ided inte))igence the
g)ories of Pausha"krishna Ekadasi, which fa))s on a Dwadasi+
/s * e0()ained (re'ious)y, one shou)d not differentiate among the
many Ekadasis+
O king, to !enefit humanity at )arge * sha)) now descri!e to you the
(rocess of o!ser'ing Pausha"krishna Ekadasi+
"Pausha"krishna Ekadasi is a)so known as Sa(ha)aa Ekadasi+
On this sacred day one shou)d worshi( Lord 1arayana, for &e is its
ru)ing Deity+
One shou)d do so !y fo))ow the (re'ious)y descri!ed method of
fasting+
#ust as among snakes Shesha"naga is the !est, and among !irds
-aruda is the !est, among sacrifices the /sh'amedha"yajna is the
!est, among ri'ers Mother -anges is the !est, among gods Lord
2ishnu is !est, and among two")egged !eings the !rahmins are the
!est, so among a)) fasting days Ekadasi is !y far the !est+
O foremost of kings who took your !irth in the 3harata dynasty,
whoe'er strict)y o!ser'es Ekadasi !ecomes 'ery dear to Me and
indeed worshi(a!)e !y Me in e'ery way+
1ow ()ease )isten as * descri!e the (rocess for o!ser'ing Sa(ha)aa
Ekadasi+
On Sa(ha)aa Ekadasi My de'otee shou)d worshi( Me !y offering Me
fresh fruits according to time, ()ace and circumstance, and !y
meditating on Me as the a))"aus(icious Su(reme Persona)ity of
-odhead+
&e shou)d offer Me jaam!ira fruit, (omegranate, !eta) nuts and
)ea'es, coconut, gua'a, 'arieties of nuts, c)o'es, mangoes, and
different kinds of aromatic s(ices+
&e shou)d a)so offer Me incense and !right ghee )am(s, for such an
offering of )am(s on Sa(ha)aa Ekadasi is es(ecia))y g)orious+
,he de'otee shou)d try to stay awake the Ekadasi night+
1ow ()ease hear with undi'ided attention as * te)) you how much
merit one gets if he fasts and remains awake throughout the entire
night singing and chanting the g)ories of 1arayana+
O !est of kings, there is no sacrifice or (i)grimage that yie)ds merit
that is e4ua) to or !etter than the merit one gains !y fasting on this
Sa(ha)a Ekadasi+
Such fasting " (articu)ar)y if one can remain awake and a)ert the
entire night )ong " !estows the same merit u(on the faithfu) de'otee
as the (erformance of austerity for fi'e thousand earth)y years+
O )ion among kings, ()ease hear from Me the g)orious history that
made this Di'ine Ekadasi famous+
Once there was a 5ity ca))ed 5ham(aa'ati, which was ru)ed !y the
saint)y King Mahishmata+
&e had four sons, the e)dest of whom, Lum(aka, a)ways engaged in
a)) manner of 'ery sinfu) acti'ities " i))icit se0ua) encounters with the
wi'es of others, gam!)ing, and continua) association with known
(rostitutes+
&is e'i) deeds gradua))y reduced the wea)th 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, eiled him to the forest.
!ut 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.
#$ewildered in his eile, the fallen and re%ected Lumpaka thought
to himself, "My father has sent me away, and even my kinsmen do
not raise but a finger in ob%ection. &hat am ' to do now("
)e schemed sinfully and thought, "' shall sneak back to the city
under cover of darkness and plunder its wealth.
*uring the day ' shall stay in the forest, and as night returns, so
shall ' to the city."
+o thinking, the sinful Lumpaka entered the darkness of the forest.
)e killed many animals by day, and by night he stole all manner of
valuable items from the city.
,he city-dwelling folk apprehended him several times, but out of
fear of the king they left him alone.
,hey 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.
#,hough a meat-eater, Lumpaka would also eat fruits every day.
)e resided under an old banyan tree that unknown to him happened
to be very dear to Lord Vasudeva.
'ndeed, many worshipped as the demi-god .representative
departmental head/ of all the trees in the forest.
'n due course of time, while Lumpaka was doing so many sinful and
condemnable activities, the +aphalaa 0kadasi arrived.
!n the eve of the 0kadasi .*asami/ Lumpaka had to pass the entire
night without sleep because of severe cold that he felt due to his
scanty bedclothes .bedding/.
,he cold not only robbed him of all peace but almost of his very
life.
$y the time the sun rose, near dead, his teeth chattering and near
comatose.
'n fact all that 0kadasi morning, he remained in that stupor and
could not awaken out of his near comatose condition.
#&hen midday of the +aphalaa 0kadasi arrived, the sinful Lumpaka
finally came to and managed to rise up from his place under that
banyan tree.
$ut 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 %ungle.
+o weak was Lumpaka that he couldn"t even concentrate to nor
muster strength to go and kill even a single animal that whole day.
'nstead, he was reduced to collecting whatever fruits had fallen to
the ground of their own accord.
$y the time he returned to his banyan tree home, the sun had set.
1lacing the fruits on the ground net to him .at the base of the
sacred banyan tree/, Lumpaka began to cry out, "!, woe is me 2
&hat should ' do (
*ear father, what is to become of me( ! +ri )ari, please be merciful
to me and accept these fruits as an offering 2"
Again he was forced to lie awake the whole night without sleep, but
in the meantime the all merciful +upreme 1ersonality of 3odhead,
Lord Madhusudana, had become pleased with Lumpaka"s humble
offering of forest fruits, and )e accepted them. Lumpaka had
unwittingly observed a full 0kadasi fast, and by the merit he reaped
on that day he regained his kingdom with no further obstacles.
#Listen, ! 4udhisthira, to what happened to the son of King
Maahishmata when but a fragment of the merit spouted up within
his heart.
#As the +un beautifully rose in the sky on the day following 0kadasi,
a handsome horse approached Lumpaka as if seeking him out, and
stood net to him.
At the same time, a voice suddenly boomed out from the clear blue
sky saying, ",his horse is for you, Lumpaka2 Mount it and ride swiftly
out of this forest to greet you family2 ! son of King Maahishmata, by
the mercy of the +upreme lord Vaasudeva and the strength of the
merit you ac5uired by observing +aphalaa 0kadasi, your kingdom
will be returned to you without any further hindrances.
+uch is the benefit you have gained by fasting on this most
auspicious of days.
3o now, to you father and en%oy your rightful place in the dynasty."
6pon hearing these celestial words resounding from above,
Lumpaka mounted the horse and rode back to the city of
7hampavati.
$y the merit he had accrued by fasting on +aphala 0kadasi, he had
become a handsome prince once more and was able to absorb his
mind in the lotus feet of the +upreme 1ersonality of 3odhead, )ari.
'n other words, he had become My pure devotee.
#Lumpaka offered his father, King Mahishmata, his humble
obeisances and once more accepted his princely responsibilities.
+eeing 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.
&henever the 0kadasi came, he worshipped the +upreme Lord
8arayana with great devotion.
And by the mercy of +ri Krishna he obtained a beautiful wife and a
fine son.
'n old age Lumpaka handed his kingdom over to his son - %ust 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 +upreme Lord with controlled mind
and senses.
1urified of all material desires, he left his old material body and
returned back to home, back to 3odhead, attaining a place near the
lotus feet of his worshipful Lord, +ri Krishna.
#! 4udhisthira, one who approaches Me as Lumpaka did will become
completely free of lamentation and aniety.
'ndeed, anyone who properly observes this glorious +aphalaa
0kadasi - even unknowingly, like Lumpaka - will become famous in
this world.
)e will become perfectly liberated at death and return to the
spiritual abode of Vaikuntha.
!f this there is no doubt. Moreover, one who simply hears the
glories of +aphala 0kadasi obtains the same merit derived by one
who performs a 9a%asurya-ya%na, and at the very least he goes to
heaven in his net birth, so where is the loss(#
,hus ends the narration of the glories of 1ausha-krishna 0kadasi, or
+aphala 0kadasi, from the $havishya-uttara 1urana.