VAIKUNTA EKADASI

The King of all Ekadasis coming in a calendar year is the Vakunta Ekadasi every year! The Sukla paksha Ekadasi during the Dhanurmasa coinciding with the Tamil month Margazhi is called Vaikunta Ekadasi. This Ekadasi is specially important to Vaishnavites and elaborate arrangements are made to celebrate it in all the Vaishnavite temples in South India! Lakhs of people throng to Sri Venkateswara Temple at Tirupati and the Sri Ranganathaswamy Temple in SriRangam in Tamil Nadu! It is staunchly believed by all devotees that the Vaikunta dwara-- the gate of Lord’s  inner sanctum is opened on this day! This Ekadasi is also called “ Mukkoti Ekadasi” and people who observe fast and pass through through the” Vaikunta Dwaram” in every temple, specially arranged, are assured of a place in Swarga or heaven! ‘Parana’ means breaking the fast! It is done usually on the morning of the next day after sunrise within the Dwadasi hours. Generally Ekadasi is a day for fasting and observed by the Saivites and particularly by the Vaishnavites and Madhwas. The belief of passing through the Vaikunta Dwara, opened once in a year on this day, makes Vaikunta Ekadasi very significant and special! Large crowds wait throughout the previous night to gain entry into the gate first to get salvation or moksha!

Ekadasi is not without its legend! King Rukmangada was an ardent devotee Lord Vishnu. His wife was Sandhyavali.The king ruled the country righteously and treated his subjects as his own children! His kingdom was a picture of peace, plenty and prosperity! King Rukmangada was blessed with a son, Dharmangada. The devotion of the king for Lord Vishnu became almost obsessive and he followed the Ekadasi fasting as a religious regimen! In his passion for the Ekadasi Vrata, he ordered that all citizens in his kingdom should follow the Vrata without fail! In their love and regard for the king and his exemplary bhakthi, the people obeyed the order of the king and days rolled on in this fashion for several years! The Devas became jealous of king Rukmangada and his people! “How can the king and his people accumulate so much of punya' by performing the Ekadasi Vrata?”, they thought! They wanted to test the king if his devotion to the Lord is genuine or not. Will he stick to perform the Vrata under the most difficult conditions?

A Divine damsel of bewitching beauty, Mohini was sent to king Rukmangada with the avowed purpose of diverting his attention from the Ekadasi Vrata. “ Beauty provoketh thieves sooner than gold” Who has not fallen a victim to the guiles and gestures of exceptionally beautiful women?  Was it not the case with the great sage Viswamitra? She came with all her glamour! There was love at first sight! The king was head over heels in love with her forgetting his dear queen Sandhyavali! He wanted to marry her. But she would not accept his hand easily! After dodging him for many days, she laid down certain conditions for marrying the king. She said that the king should fulfil every one of her wishes. He  should not refuse any of her desires. If he were to reject any of her wishes she would leave him and return to her place! In his love and lust for her, king Rukmangada accepted her conditions and days passed on smoothly for some time! Queen Sandhyavali was shocked at the conduct of her own husband. Mohini was eagerly awaiting an opportunity for striking!

The chance came to her presently! Ekadasi came and the king became very busy with arrangements for the Vrata. He was about to fast and sit in prayer and meditation as usual. Mohini’s moment had come and she insisted that he should not follow the Ekadasi Vrata! She wanted to spend time with him! The king was  shocked and surprised at this curious wish of his paramour! He tried to dissuade her in insisting but in vain . He wasn't ready to give up the Ekadasi Vrata nor was he prepared to lose Mohini, his darling damsel! He was in dilemma. But his devotion to the Lord won and he said he would do anything to satisfy Mohini except giving up the Ekadasi Vrata! Now there was another option for Mohini! Her object was to create a situation where the king should be in a very tight corner! She thought for a while and quickly replied. She wanted the king to kill his son Dharmangada if she is to stay with him!

King Rukmangada had to pay a very heavy price for his love for this lady! However he had no choice! He could not waver about his devotion to the Lord and the Ekadasi Vrata! He told the matter to his dear queen Sandhyavali and his son Dharmangada! The queen broke into inconsolable tears! Dharmangada remained calm and composed! It was his duty to obey the king, his father! Without any hesitation, he asked his father to behead him for the sake of saving the Ekadasi Vrata which was a regular event all the years! He made himself ready for the sacrifice! Mohini was a silent witness to all these scenes before her! At last the king picked up courage. His body quivered and the hands trembled and he felt very weak at the thought of beheading his own dear child!

There was suspense all around! People were aghast at what was going to happen--the king killing his own son! Dharmangada sat down bending his head and expecting the sword to come down upon him at any moment! Rukmangada took the sword in his trembling hand to bring it down on the bent neck of his son! And at that very moment the miracle happened! Lord Vishnu appeared before king Rukmangada and complimented him on his faith and devotion! He revealed that all that had happened was a test for his devotion and that the king had come out unscathed from the crucial experience! Dharmangada was crowned as the King and both the king and his queen Sandhyavali  went to heaven by the grace of Lord Vishnu! Though  legendary, the story underlines the significance of fasting on the Ekadasi day! The day is very dear to  Lord Vishnu and those who fast on the day and meditate on the Lord are sure to get salvation! Fasting for two days in a month is sure to keep the person sound in body and mind!! Why not we follow this and keep ourselves fit?

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