Kamada Ekadasi
(from the Varaha Purana)
Sri SUta GoswAmi said, "Oh sages, let me offer my humble and respectful
obeisances unto the Supreme Lord Hari, Bhagavan Sri Krishna, the son of Devaki
and Vasudeva, by whose mercy I can describe the fast day that removes all kinds
of sins. It was to the devoted Yudhisthira that Lord Krishna glorified the
twenty-four primary EkAdasiis, which destroy sin, and now I shall recount one of
those narrations to you. Great-learned sages have selected these twenty-four
narrations from the eighteen PurANas, for they are truly sublime.
"Yudhishthira MahArAja said, 'Oh Lord Krishna, Oh VAsudeva, please accept my
humble obeisances. Please describe to me the EkAdasii that occurs during the
light part of the month of Chaitra [March-April]. What is its name, and what are
its glories?'
"Lord Sri Krishna replied, 'Oh Yudhishthira, please listen to Me attentively as
I relate the ancient history of this sacred EkAdasii, a history Vasishtha Muni
once related to King Dilipa, the great-grandfather of Lord RAmachandra.
"'King Dilipa asked the great sage Vasishtha, "Oh wise brAhmana, I wish to hear
about the EkAdasii that comes during the light part of the month of Chaitra.
Please describe it to me."
"'Vasishtha Muni replied, "Oh king, your inquiry is glories. Gladly shall I tell
you what you wish to know. The EkAdasii that occurs during the light fortnight
of Chaitra is named KAmadA EkAdasii. It consumes all sins, as a forest fire
consumes a supply of dry firewood. It is very purifying, and it bestows the
highest merit upon one who faithfully observes it. Oh king, now hear an ancient
history which is so meritorious that it removes all one's sins simply by being
heard.
"'"Once, long ago, there existed a city-state named Ratnapura, which was
decorated with gold and jewels and in which sharp-fanged snakes would enjoy
intoxication. King Pundarika was the ruler of this most beautiful kingdom, which
numbered many Gandharvas, Kinnaras, and ApsarAs among its citizens.
"'"Among the Gandharvas were Lalita and his wife LalitA, who was an especially
lovely dancer. These two were intensely attracted to each other, and their home
was full of great wealth and fine food. LalitA loved her husband dearly, and
likewise he constantly thought of her within his heart.
"'"Once, at the court of King Pundarika, many Gandharvas were dancing and Lalita
was singing alone, without his wife. He could not help thinking about her as he
sang, and because of this distraction he lost track of the song's meter and
melody. Indeed, Lalita sang the ending of his song improperly, and one of the
envious snakes who was in attendance at the king's court complained to the king
that Lalita was absorbed in thinking of his wife instead of his sovereign. the
king became furious upon hearing this, and his eyes turned crimson with rage.
Suddenly he shouted, 'Oh foolish knave, because you were lustfully thinking of a
woman instead of reverently thinking of your king as you performed your court
duties, I curse you to at once become a cannibal!'
"'"Oh king, Lalita immediately became a fearful cannibal, a great man-eating
demon whose appearance terrified everyone. 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 Lalita, the loving Gandharva singer, had to
suffer the reaction of his offense against King Pundarika.
"'"Seeing her husband suffering as a horrible cannibal, LalitA became
overwhelmed with grief. She thought, 'Now that my dear husband is suffering the
effects of the kings' curse, what is to be my lot? 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 had to wander everywhere in the thick jungle with her
monstrous husband, who had fallen completely under the spell of the king's curse
and was wholly engaged in terrible sinful activities. He wandered fitfully
across forbidding region, a once-beautiful Gandharva now reduced to the ghastly
behaviour of a man-eater. Utterly distraught to see her dear husband suffer so
much in his dreadful condition, LalitA began to cry as she followed his mad
journeying.
"'"By good fortune, however, LalitA came upon the sage Shringi one day. He was
sitting on the peak of the famous VindhyAchala Hill. Approaching him, she
immediately offered the ascetic her respectful obeisances. The sage noticed her
bowing down before him and said, 'Oh most beautiful one, who are you? Whose
daughter are you, and why have you come here? Please tell me everything in
truth.'
"'"LalitA replied, 'Oh great age, I am the daughter of the great Gandharva
ViradhanvA, and my name is LalitA. I roam the forests and plains with my dear
husband, whom King Pundarika has cursed to become a man-eating demon. Oh
brAhmana, I am greatly aggrieved to see his ferocious form and terribly sinful
activities. Oh master, please tell me how I can perform some act of atonement on
behalf of my husband. What pious act can I perform to free him from this demonic
form, Oh best of brAhmanas?'
“ ‘The sage replied, 'Oh heavenly maiden, there is an EkAdasii 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
EkAdasii fast according to its rules and regulations and give the merit you thus
earn to your husband, he will be freed from the curse at once.' LalitA was
overjoyed to hear these words from the sage.
"'"Lalita faithfully observed the fast of KAmadA EkAdasii according to the
instructions of the sage Shringi, and on DvAdasi she appeared before him and the
Deity of Lord VAsudeva and said, 'I have faithfully observed the fast of KAmadA
EkAdasii. By the merit earned through my observance of this fast, let my husband
be free from the curse that has turned him into a demoniac cannibal. May the
merit I have gained thus free him from misery.'
"'"As soon as LalitA finished speaking, her husband, who stood nearby, was at
once freed from the king's curse. He immediately regained his original form as
the Gandharva Lalita, a handsome heavenly singer adorned with many beautiful
ornaments. Now, with his wife LalitA, he could enjoy even more opulence than
before. All this was accomplished by the power and glory of KAmadA EkAdasii. At
last the Gandharva couple boarded a celestial airplane and ascended to heaven."'
"Lord Sri Krishna continued, 'Oh Yudhishthira, best of kings, anyone who hears
this wonderful narration should certainly observe holy KAmadA EkAdasii 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 EkAdasii than KAmadA EkAdasii. It can eradicate even the sin
of killing a brAhmana, and it also nullifies demoniac curses and cleanses the
consciousness. In all the three worlds, among movable and immovable living
entities, there is no better day'"
Note: Special thanks to Jaya Tirtha Caran prabhu from NZ for allowing us to use some of the content from his site to compile these pages - http://www.hknet.org.nz
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