Akshaya Triteeya is the Yugadi Day for Tretaayuga(Kartheeka Shukla Navami – Kruthayuga Yugadi,Maagha Amaavasye – Dwapara yuga YugaadiBhadrapada Krishna Trayodashi – Kaliyuga YugadiChaitra Shukla paadya - Starting Day of Srushti)Akshaya Triteeya - Akshaya indicates “it does not have kshaya”. Meaning the punya got from yajna, yaajana daana will be hundreds times when compared to the punya performed.
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Ekadashi upavasa is on Friday April 25th andDwadashi parane is on Saturday April 26th after local sunrise. Significance: Sri Krishna replied, "Oh King, in this world and the next, the most auspicious and magnanimous Ekadashi is VarUthinii Ekadashi, which occurs during the dark fortnight of the month of Chaitra. Whoever observes a complete fast on this sacred day has his sins completely removed, obtains continuous happiness, and achieves all good fortune. The main message from this ekadashi is about daana ( charity ) especially daana with no expectations. Fasting on VarUthinii Ekadashi makes even an unfortunate woman fortunate. Upon anyone who observes it, this Ekadashi 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 Ekadashi 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 EkAdashi. 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 Ekadashi with love and devotion to Sri Hari, and certainly attains his goals in this life and the next. In short, this Ekadashi is pure and very enlivening and the destroyer of all sins. Tradition of Charity is very ancient in India, here are statements in Purana. "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 off gold. Still better than giving gold is giving food grains - for all the forefathers, 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." Interesting Note about Charity in Hinduism: ( Please see Sri Krishna's reply below ) Giving grains in charity is very auspicious. Once Yudhisthira asked Sri Krishna, "Dear Krishna, can anyone go to heaven without performing sacrifice or undergoing austerity ?" Sri Krishna replied, annadau jaladash chaiva Aturash cha chikithsakah trvidhaM svargam AyAti vinA yajnena bhAratah "Oh son of BhArata, those who give food grains, drinking water, or medicine to the needy go to heaven without performing any sacrifice or undergoing austerity." (MahAbhArata) Also, Krishna states in Bhagavad GitA (BG 3:14.) annAd bhavanti bhUtAni: "All beings subsist on food grains." Therefore a gift of food grains is said to be the topmost charity. Moreover, if the food is consumed as prasAda, after naivedya to Sri Hari with devotion ( naivedya) , then it awards the recipient liberation from the material world. Practice: From Padma Puran: Dashami + Ekadashi + Dwdashi all three make Harivasara or thithitrya. On all these three days few things are restricted. kamsyaM mAMsaM masArAMshca caNakAn kOdravAMsthatA shAkaM madhu parAnnaMca punrbhOjana maiThunE vaishNavO vrata kartAca dashamyAm dashavarJyayEt || "The following ten things should be given up on the Dashami, (the tenth phase of the Moon), the day before the Ekadashi: eating on bell-metal plates, eating any kind of urid-dahl, eating red-lentils, eating chick-peas, eating kondo (a kind of grainthat 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. dyUtaM krIDAMca nidrAMca tAMbUlaM daMtadhAvanaM parApavAdaM paishunyaM stEyaM hiMsAM tathAratiM khrOdhaM caiva anrataM vAkya mEkAdashyaM vivarjayEt|| "On the Ekadashi day one should give up the following eleven: 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. kAMsyaM mAMsaM surAM kshoudraM tailaM patita bhAshaNaM vyAyAmaMca pravAsaMca punarbhOjana maithunaM vraksha praShTaM masUrAnnaM dvAdashyAM parivarjayEt || "On the DwAdashi the day after Ekadashi (the twelfth phase of the Moon), one should give up the following tweleve: eating on bell-metal plates,eating urid-dahl, red-lentils, or honey, lying, strenuous exercise, travel, 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." Sri Krishna continued, "Whoever observes the VarUthinii Ekadashi in this way becomes free from all sinful reactions and returns to the eternal, spiritual abode. One who worships Lord JanArdana (Krishna) on this Ekadashi 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 Ekadashi by fasting very strictly. "Finally, Oh noble Yudhisthira, he who hears or reads this glorification of the sacred VarUthinii Ekadashi obtains the merit earned by donating one thousand cows in charity, and at last he returns home, to Sri Hari." from Padma Mahapurana part-3 uttarakhanda 49th chapter. MadhvesharapNamastu. Ekadashi upavasa is on Friday April 11th andDwadashi parane is on Saturday April 12th
The Ekadashi that occurs during the light fortnight of Chaitra is named Kamada Ekadashi. It consumes all sins. It is very purifying, and it bestows the highest merit upon one who faithfully observes it. Also interesting to note from the story how a wife saved her husband from curse by performing ekadashi. On dwadashi day special pooja is offered to Sri Hari using 'damana manjari' a daisy like plant with bluish green leaves and small yellow flowers. This is called damankOtsava. Prior to this pooja, poojas are offered to rati and Manmatha ( Kamadeva, hence the name Kamada Ekadashi ) On the ekadashi day, infront of Sri Hari rati and kama deva idols are installed on a sarvotobhadra mandala. dhavana twigs are also placed along. After kamadeva pooja is done, Keshava idol is installed/invoked in the center and pooja done to Sri Keshava with damana manjaris along with kama gayatri ( Please talk to your gurus for more detailed info on this pooja ) Kamadeva is worshipped with anthryami deva of Pradhuymna as Sri Hari roopa. It is very auspicious to do pooja to Sri Hari with Dhavana & maruga leaves in the month of Chaitra. Katha from Purana: ( Padma Puran ) Once, long ago, there was a city named Nagpura and Naga King Pundarika was its ruler. In his court there were Nagas, Gandharvas, Kinnaras, and Apsaras among its citizens. Among the Gandharvas were Lalit and his wife Lalita, who was a lovely couple. These two were intensely attracted to each other. Lalita loved her husband dearly, and likewise he constantly thought of her within his heart. They were inseparable. Once, in the court of King Pundarika, many Gandharvas were singing, Lalit was one among them. While singing Lalit could not help thinking about his beloved, and because of this distraction he lost track of the song's melody. Lalit sang the song improperly, and one of the envious snake named kakort who was in attendance at the king's court complained to the king that Lalit ws lost in the thought's of his wife that's because he lost track and sang improperly. The king became furious upon hearing this, and he shouted, 'Oh foolish knave, because you were lustfully thinking of your wife instead of reverently thinking of your king as you performed your court duties, I curse you to at once become a Demon !, a man-eating demon with a terrified appearance. Lalit immediately became a fearful Demon. His arms were eight miles long, his mouth was as big as a huge cave, his eyes were as awesome as the sun and moon, his nostrils resembled enormous pits in the earth, his neck was a veritable mountain, his hips were four miles wide, and his gigantic body stood a full sixty-four miles high. Thus poor Lalit, the Gandharva singer, had to suffer the reaction of his offense against King Pundarika. Seeing her husband suffering as a horrible monster,mLalita became overwhelmed with grief. She thought, 'Now that my dear husband is suffering the effects of the kings' curse, what is left for me? What should I do? Where should I go?' In this way Lalita grieved day and night. Instead of enjoying life as a Gandharvas wife, she wandered everywhere in the thick jungle with her husband, who had fallen completely under the spell of the king's curse. He wandered fitfully across forbidding region, a once-beautiful Gandharva now reduced to the behavior of a man-eater. One day, while wandering in the jungle, Lalita met the sage Shringi . He was sitting on the peak of the Vindhyachala Hmountain. Approaching him, she immediately offered the ascetic her respectful obeisance's. The sage noticed her bowing down before him and said, 'Sister, Who are you and why have you come here? Why you look so gloomy. Please tell me everything in truth.' Lalita replied, 'Oh Brahmana, my name is Lalita. I wander in the jungle with my dear husband, whom King Pundarika has cursed to become a man-eating demon. I am greatly aggrieved to see him like this. Oh Saint, please tell me how I can perform some act of atonement on behalf of my husband. How can I free him from this demonic form, please help me. The sage replied, 'There is an Ekadashi named Kamada that occurs in the light fortnight of the month of Chaitra. It is coming up soon. Whoever fasts on this day has all his desires fulfilled. If you observe this Ekadashi fast according to its rules and regulations and give the merit you thus earn from your fast to your husband, he will be freed from the curse at once.' Lalita faithfully observed the fast of Kamada Ekadashi according to the instructions of the sage Shringi, and on Dvadasi she appeared before him and the Deity of Lord Vasudeva and said, ' mayAtaM tadvrataM chIrNM kAmadAyA upOkshaNaM | tasya puNya prabhAvENa gachChatvatya pishAchatA || I have faithfully observed the fast of Kamada Ekadashi. By the merit earned through my observance of this fast, let my husband be free from the curse that has turned him into a beast. May the merit I have gained thus free him from his misery.' And Lalita's husband, who stood nearby, was at once freed from the king's curse. He immediately regained his original form as the Gandharva Lalit, a handsome heavenly singer adorned with many beautiful ornaments. All this was accomplished by the power and glory of Kamada Ekadashi. At last the Gandharva couple boarded a celestial airplane and ascended to heaven. Sri Krishna continued, 'Oh Yudhishthira! , anyone who hears this story should certainly observe holy Kamada Ekadashi to the best of his ability, such great merit does it bestow upon the faithful devotee. I have therefore described its glories to you for the benefit of all humanity. There is no better Ekadashi than Kamada Ekadashi. it also nullifies demoniac curses. In all the three worlds and moreover it grants all the wishes'. its also equivalent of doing Vajapayee yagna. Thus ends the narration of "Kamada Ekadashi" from Padma Purana Part-3 uttarakhanda 48th chapter. Sri MadhvesharpaNamastu: |
AuthorKrishna Mutt Kondapur Blog is an attempt to update the mutt bandhus with Madhva events ,programs in Hyderabad Archives
March 2016
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