Yudhiṣṭhira Mahārāja said, "O Janārdana, what is the name of the Ekādaśī that occurs during the dark fortnight of the month of Jyeṣṭha (May-June)? I wish to hear from You the glories of this sacred day of Hari. Please narrate everything to me"
Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa said, "O king, your inquiry is wonderful because the answer will benefit the whole human society. This Ekādaśī is so sublime and meritorious that even the greatest sins can be erased by its potency. O great king, the name of this unlimitedly meritorious Ekādaśī is Aparā Ekādaśī. Whoever fasts on this holy day becomes famous all over the universe. Even such sins as killing a brāhmaṇa, a cow or an embryo; blasphemy; or having sex with another man‟s wife are completely eradicated by observing Aparā Ekādaśī.
"O king people who bear false witness are most sinful. A person who falsely or sarcastically glorifies another; one who cheats while weighing something on a scale; one who fails to execute the duties of his varṇa or āśrama (an unqualified man‟s posing as a brāhmaṇa, for example, or a person reciting the Vedas wrongly); one who invents his own scriptures; one who cheats others; one who is a charlatan astrologer, a cheating accountant, or a false āyurvedic doctor. All these are surely as bad as persons who bears false witness and they are all destined for hellish punishments. But simply by observing Aparā Ekādaśī, all such sinners become completely free of their sinful reactions.
"Warriors who fall from their kṣatriya-dharma and flee the battlefield go to a ferocious hell. But, O Yudhiṣṭhira, even such a fallen kṣatriya, if he observes fasting on the Aparā Ekādaśī, is freed of that great sin and goes to heaven.
"That disciple is the greatest sinner who, after receiving a proper spiritual education from his spiritual master, turns around and blasphemes him. Such a so-called disciple suffers unlimitedly. But even he, rascal though he be, if he simply observes Aparā Ekādaśī, can attain to the spiritual world. Listen, O king, as I describe to you further glories of this Ekādaśī.
"The merit attained by one who performs all of the following acts of piety is equal to the merit achieved by one who observes Aparā Ekādaśī: bathing three times daily in Puṣkara-kṣetra during Kārtika (October-November); bathing at Prayāg in the month of Māgh (January-February) when the sun is in the zodiac of Capricorn; rendering service to Lord Śiva at Varāṇasī during Śiva-rātri; offering oblations to one‟s forefathers at Gayā; bathing in the sacred River Gautamī when Jupiter transits Leo; having darśana of Lord Śiva at Kedārnātha; seeing Lord Badrinātha when the Sun transits the sign of Aquarius; and bathing at the time of a solar eclipse at Kurukṣetra and giving cows, elephants, and gold there in charity. All the merit one gets from performing these pious acts is gained by a person who observes the Aparā Ekādaśī fast. Also, the merit attained by one who donates a pregnant cow, along with gold and fertile land, is attained by one who fasts on this day.
"In other words, Aparā Ekādaśī is an axe that cuts down the fully matured forest full of trees of sinful deeds, it is a forest fire that burns sins as if they were kindling firewood, it is the sun blazing before one‟s dark misdeeds, and it is a lion stalking the meek deer of impiety. Therefore, O Yudhiṣṭhira, whoever truly fears his past and present sins must observe Aparā Ekādaśī very strictly. One who does not observe this fast must be born again in the material world, like one bubble among millions in a huge body of water, or like a small ant among all other species.
"Therefore one must faithfully observe the sacred Aparā Ekādaśī and worship the Supreme Personality of God, Śrī Trivikrama. One who does so is freed of all his sins and promoted to the abode of Lord Viṣṇu.
"O Bhārata, for the benefit of all humanity I have thus described to you this the importance of the holy Aparā Ekādaśī. Anyone who hears or reads this description is certainly freed from all kinds of sins, O king.
Thus ends the Vṛjavāsī narration of the glories of Jyeṣṭha-kṛṣṇa Ekādaśī or Aparā Ekādaśī, from the Brahmāṇḍa Purāṇa.
Notes
1. Puṣkara-kṣetra, in western India, is the only place on Earth where a bonafide temple of Lord Brahmā is to be found.
2. The Vedas declare, narAh budbudA samAh: "The human form of life is like a bubble in water". In water, many bubbles form and then suddenly burst a few seconds later. Thus if a person does not utilize his rare human body to serve the Supreme Personality of God, Śrī Kṛṣṇa, his life has no more value or permanence than a bubble in water.
Therefore, as the Lord herein recommends, we should serve Him by fasting on Hari-vAsara, or Ekādaśī.
In this regard, Śrīla A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada writes in the Śrīmad Bhagavatam (SB 2:1:4 purport) "The great ocean of material nature is tossing with the waves of time, and the so-called living conditioned are something like foaming bubbles, which appear before us as bodily self, wife, children, society, countrymen, etc. Due to a lack of knowledge of self, we become victimized by the force of ignorance and thus spoil the valuable energy of human life in a vain search after permanent living conditions, which are impossible in this material world."
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