Sri Sayana Ekadashi (Padma / Devshayani Ekadashi)शयन एकादशी

Sri Yudhishthira Maharaja once asked Lord Sri Krishna: "O Keshava, what is the name of the Ekadashi that occurs in the bright fortnight of Ashadha? Who is its worshipable Deity, and what is its proper observance?" Lord Krishna replied that He would gladly relate a most wonderful history — one that Lord Brahma himself had once narrated to his son, Sri Narada Muni, recorded in the Bhavishya-uttara Purana.

Narada Muni had similarly asked his father: "What is the Ekadashi of Ashadha Shukla, and how should one observe it to please Lord Sri Vishnu?" Lord Brahma, the original guru of the Vaishnava sampradaya, answered: "O purest of devotees, there is nothing in this or any other world equal to Ekadashi, the day of Sri Hari. Fasting on Ashadha-shukla Ekadashi — known as Padma Ekadashi and also as Sayana Ekadashi — purifies one of all sins and fulfils every desire. To illustrate its power, hear the story of Maharaja Mandhata."

In a previous age there ruled a most powerful and saintly emperor named Mandhata, a chakravarti monarch whose kingdom encompassed the entire earth. He was a tapasvi-raja — a king-saint — devoted to dharma, truthful, charitable and tireless in serving his subjects as his own children. Under his rule no living being suffered, no calamity was known, and even the rains came at the prescribed times.

But fate has its own designs even for the most pious. Suddenly, a terrible drought struck Mandhata's kingdom and continued unabated for three years. No rain fell. Crops withered, rivers ran dry, cattle died of thirst, and the citizens cried out to their king for relief. The Vedic sacrifices that depended on grain offerings could not be performed; even brahmanas had no food to offer to the demigods or to the forefathers. The king's heart broke at the sight of his suffering people. Although he had committed no sin he knew of, he understood that somewhere a subtle error must lie — for, as the Vedas declare, a kingdom mirrors the karma of its ruler.

Determined to find the cause and the remedy, Mandhata took a small army and entered the deep forest. After much wandering he came at last to the ashrama of the great sage Angira Muni, son of Lord Brahma. The king offered his obeisances at the sage's lotus feet, narrated the calamity of his kingdom, and beseeched the muni to reveal the cause of the drought and prescribe its remedy.

The all-knowing Angira Muni meditated for a moment and then spoke gravely: "O great king, in your kingdom one shudra is performing severe austerities although it is not his prescribed duty in this age. This act, being against varnashrama-dharma, is the unseen cause of the drought." The king grew distressed: "Sage, that shudra has done no wrong to me; he is performing austerity in his own way. How can I order his death simply for that? Please give me another remedy that will harm no one."

Pleased with the king's compassion, Angira Muni revealed a most merciful path: "O righteous king, return to your capital and there, in the bright fortnight of Ashadha, observe the great Padma Ekadashi together with all your subjects — your queen, your ministers and your citizens. Fast with full devotion to Lord Hrishikesha, the master of the senses, perform jagaran in the night with kirtan, and offer the merit of the vrata for the welfare of your kingdom. By the mercy of Sri Vishnu, rain will surely return."

Maharaja Mandhata returned to his capital and proclaimed the vow throughout the land. On the auspicious Padma Ekadashi, the entire kingdom — king, queen, ministers, brahmanas, vaishyas, shudras, women and children — observed the fast together with one mind and one purpose. The night was spent in chanting the holy names of Lord Hari. At the moment of Dvadashi-parana the next morning, dark clouds gathered, gentle thunder rolled across the sky, and rain poured down in torrents upon the parched earth. Rivers swelled, fields turned green, and the citizens danced in joy, glorifying their king and the matchless mercy of Sri Hari.

Lord Brahma concluded to Narada Muni — and Lord Krishna, in turn, to Yudhishthira: "From that day onward, Sayana Ekadashi has been famous as the bestower of every welfare, both material and spiritual. On this very day, Lord Sri Vishnu enters into yoga-nidra upon Sesha Naga in the ocean of milk, where He rests for four months until He rises again on Utthana Ekadashi. This four-month period is known as Chaturmasya. During these months a devotee should intensify austerity, study scripture and worship — for whatever sadhana is performed in Chaturmasya is multiplied many times over." Thus Sayana Ekadashi inaugurates the most spiritually potent season of the entire Vaishnava year.