2016 Yogini Ekadashi in India: The Myth, The Legend

Of the 26 Ekadashi’s that are celebrated in a year by the Hindu believers in India, the Yogini Ekadashi is one very important Ekadashi that people always prepare themselves for.

Yogini Ekadashi is an important festival that presents many Hindu believers with an opportunity to cleanse themselves of their past sins and commit themselves towards living their lives in a more effective manner in the future. This day is regarded by many as the most important day for people who are inclined to materialism and those who need nurturing towards the path of spirituality. It is a day set aside by many to fast and pray in the most sacred way. Those who totally abstain from food on this day are believed to receive great rewards.

The History of Yogini Ekadashi

Padma Puran is the original source of the Ekadashi rites. According to Padma Puran, every person, young and old, big and small, rich or poor, must fast during the Ekadashi.

As I mentioned earlier, the Yogini Ekadashi is one out of the 26 Ekadashi’s that are observed in a year in India.

According to this post on AstroCamp, the legend of the festival goes thus…

The famous king of Alakapuri called Kuvera, who was also a treasurer of the Devas, was a worshiper of Lord Shiva. He had in his employ a servant named, Hemamali. Hemamali was his gardener. He was a Yaksha like Kuvera and deeply in love with his wife Swarupavatii. Hemamali’s work consisted of visiting Manasarovar Lake and bringing back flowers for his master Kuvera, which he offered to Lord Shiva during Puja. Once it so happened that after picking the flowers, Hemamali went home instead of going to Kuvera. He spent time at his home making love to his wife and in the process forgot his duty toward his master.

Kuvera began the Puja and after observing that Hemamali had not returned with the flowers by midday, he asked another servant what had caused the delay. The servant went looking for Hemamali and discovered that Hemamali was busy making love to his wife. He reported that to Kuvera which made him extremely angry. He summoned Hemamali before him right away. He upbraided him for his sins and cursed him that he would suffer from white leprosy and will get separated from his wife.

Hemamali thus left Alakapuri with the disease of white leprosy and lived in forests with nothing to eat or drink. He lived his life in misery, as he couldn’t even sleep because of the pain his disease gave him. After suffering for many days and wandering hopelessly he eventually reached the Himalayas. There he came across a great saint called Markandeya Rishi. He was a great ascetic whose life extended even beyond the life of Brahma. Hemamali offered his obeisance to the Rishi from a distance, as he was feeling sinful and guilty. Upon which the Rishi asked him to explain the cause of his dreadful condition. Hemamali told him the story truthfully and begged him to offer a solution for his problem. Rishi Markandeya replied that by being truthful Hemamali had pleased him immensely and he would offer him a solution. Thus, the Rishi told Hemamali of the fast during Yogini Ekadashi which would cure him of his dreadful disease. Hemamali dutifully performed the fast and became a handsome man. He returned home to live a happy life with his wife.

The story was being narrated by Lord Krishna himself to Yudhishthira according to the Brahma-Vaivarta Purana. Lord Krishna observes that the fast done on Yogini Ekadashi is equal in effect to the merit one obtains by feeding 88000 Brahmins. A lot of past sins can be washed away by a simple fast on this one day. The fast will also make a person’s soul pure and his mind pious.

The day of Yogini Ekadashi

1. Wake up early in the morning.
2. Take a shower and offer prayers.
3. Perform a simple Puja to Lord Vishnu at home.
4. Light a lamp and offer fruits and tulsi leaves.
5. The procedures are done again in the afternoon and evening.
6. At night, one is advised not to sleep, but to meditate or pray on Vishnu. The fast is then broken in the morning at sunrise after a lamp is lit for Lord Vishnu.

Special thanks to FestivalsOfIndia and AstroCamp.

The 2016 Yogini Ekadashi is set to hold on Thursday 30th June 2016.