Shayani Ekadashi or Maha-ekadashi (lit. "The great eleventh") or Prathama-ekadashi (lit. "The first eleventh") or Padma Ekadashi is the eleventh lunar day (Ekadashi

Ekadashi

Ekadashi , also spelled as Ekadasi, is the eleventh lunar day of the shukla or krishna paksha of every lunar month in the Hindu calendar . In Hinduism and Jainism it is considered a spiritually beneficial day...

) of the bright fortnight (Shukla paksha) of the Hindu

Hindu

Hindu refers to an identity associated with the philosophical, religious and cultural systems that are indigenous to the Indian subcontinent. As used in the Constitution of India, the word "Hindu" is also attributed to all persons professing any Indian religion...

 month of Ashadha (June - July). Thus it is also known as Ashadhi Ekadashi or Ashadhi. This holy day is of special significance to Vaishnavas, followers of Hindu preserver god Vishnu

Vishnu

Vishnu is the Supreme god in the Vaishnavite tradition of Hinduism. Smarta followers of Adi Shankara, among others, venerate Vishnu as one of the five primary forms of God....

. On this day images of Vishnu and Lakshmi

Lakshmi

Lakshmi or Lakumi is the Hindu goddess of wealth, prosperity , light, wisdom, fortune, fertility, generosity and courage; and the embodiment of beauty, grace and charm. Representations of Lakshmi are also found in Jain monuments...

 are worshipped, the entire night is spent singing prayers, and devotees keep fast and take vows on this day, to be observed during the entire chaturmas

Chaturmas

Chaturmas is a holy period of four months , beginning on Shayani Ekadashi—the eleventh day of the first bright half, Shukla paksha, of Ashadh —until Prabodhini Ekadashi, the eleventh day of the first bright half of Kartik in Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism.Chaturmas is reserved the...

, the holy four month period of rainy season. These may include, giving up a food item or fasting on every Ekadashi day.

It is believed that Vishnu falls asleep in Ksheersagar - cosmic ocean of milk - on Shesha

Shesha

In Hindu tradition, Shesha or Sheshanaag is the king of all nagas, one of the primal beings of creation, and according to the Bhagavata Purana, an Avatar of the Supreme God known as Sankarshan. In the Puranas, Shesha is said to hold all the planets of the Universe on his hoods and to constantly...

 nāga

Naga

Naga or NAGA may refer to:* Nāga, a group of serpent deities in Hindu and Buddhist mythology.-People:* Nayan / Nayar/Nair people of Kerala Society* Naga people, a diverse ethnic identity in Northeast India...

, the cosmic serpent. Thus the day is also called Dev-Shayani Ekadashi (lit. "god-sleeping eleventh") or Hari

Hari

Hari is an Avatar, another name of and , and appears as the 650th name in the Vishnu sahasranama of Mahabharata. In Sanskrit "hari" sometimes refers to a colour, green, yellow, or fawn-coloured/khaki. It is the colour of the Sun and of Soma...

-shayani Ekadashi (lit. "Vishnu-sleeping eleventh") or Shayana Ekadashi. Vishnu finally awakens from his slumber four months later on Prabodhini Ekadashi

Prabodhini Ekadashi

Prabodhini Ekadashi is the 11th lunar day in the bright fortnight of the Hindu month of Kartik. It marks the end of the four-month period of Chaturmas, when god Vishnu is believed to sleep...

- eleventh day of bright fortnight in the Hindu month Kartik

Kartik

Kartik may refer to:* Kartika , a month in the Indian national calendar and Bengali calendar* Kartik * Karttikeya, the brother of Ganesha in the Hindu mythology...

 (October-November). This period is known as Chaturmas

Chaturmas

Chaturmas is a holy period of four months , beginning on Shayani Ekadashi—the eleventh day of the first bright half, Shukla paksha, of Ashadh —until Prabodhini Ekadashi, the eleventh day of the first bright half of Kartik in Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism.Chaturmas is reserved the...

(lit. "four months") and coincides with the rainy season. Thus, Shayani Ekadashi is the beginning of Chaturmas. Devotees start observing the Chaturmas vrata

Vrata

In the context of Hinduism and Hindu mythology, the term vrata denotes a religious practice to carry out certain obligations with a view to achieve divine blessing for fulfillment of one or several desires. Etymologically, vrata, a Sanskrit word , means to vow or to promise...

 (vow) to please Vishnu on this day.

A fast is observed on Shayani Ekadashi. The fast demands abstainance from all grains, beans, cereals, certain vegetables like onions and certain spices and all kinds of meat and eggs.

Significance

In the scripture Bhavishyottara Purana

Bhavishya Purana

The Bhavishya Purana is one of the eighteen major Hindu Puranas. It is written in Sanskrit and attributed to Rishi Vyasa, the compiler of the Vedas. The title Bhavishya Purana signifies a work that contains prophecies regarding the future...

, god Krishna

Krishna

Krishna is a central figure of Hinduism and is traditionally attributed the authorship of the Bhagavad Gita. He is the supreme Being and considered in some monotheistic traditions as an Avatar of Vishnu...

 narrates significance of Shayani Ekadashi to Yudhisthira

Yudhisthira

In the great Hindu epic Mahabharata, Yudhisthira , the eldest son of King Pandu and Queen Kunti, was king of Indraprastha and later of Hastinapura. He was the leader of the Pandava side in the Kurukshetra War...

, as the creator-god Brahma

Brahma

Brahma is the Hindu god of creation and one of the Trimurti, the others being Vishnu and Shiva. According to the Brahma Purana, he is the father of Mānu, and from Mānu all human beings are descended. In the Ramayana and the...

 narrated the significance to his son Narada

Narada

Narada or Narada Muni is a divine sage from the Vaisnava tradition, who plays a prominent role in a number of the Puranic texts, especially in the Bhagavata Purana, and in the Ramayana...

 once. The story of king Mandata is narrated in this context. The pious king's country had faced drought for three years, but the king was unable to find a solution to please the rain gods. Finally, sage Angiras advised the king to observe the vrata

Vrata

In the context of Hinduism and Hindu mythology, the term vrata denotes a religious practice to carry out certain obligations with a view to achieve divine blessing for fulfillment of one or several desires. Etymologically, vrata, a Sanskrit word , means to vow or to promise...

 (vow) of Dev-shayani ekadashi. On doing so by the grace of Vishnu

Vishnu

Vishnu is the Supreme god in the Vaishnavite tradition of Hinduism. Smarta followers of Adi Shankara, among others, venerate Vishnu as one of the five primary forms of God....

, there was rain in the kingdom.

Pandharpur Yatra

This day, a huge yatra

Yatra

' , in Hinduism and other Indian religions, generally means pilgrimage to holy places such as confluences of sacred rivers, places associated with Hindu epics such as the Mahabharata and Ramayana, and other sacred pilgrimage sites. Tīrtha-yātrā refers to a pilgrimage to a holy site, and is...

 or religious procession of pilgrims culminates at Pandharpur

Pandharpur

Pandharpur is an important pilgrimage city on the Bhimā river in Solāpur district, Maharashtra, India. The Vithoba temple attracts about half a million Hindu pilgrims during the major yātrā in the month of Ashadh ....

, a town in south Maharashtra

Maharashtra

Maharashtra is a state located in India. It is the second most populous after Uttar Pradesh and third largest state by area in India...

, situated on the banks of the Bhima River

Bhima River

The Bhima River originates in Bhimashankar hills near Karjat on the western side of Western Ghats, known as Sahyadri, in Maharashtra state in India. Bhima flows southeast for 861 km through Maharashtra, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh states...

. Pandharpur is main center of worship of the deity Vithoba

Vithoba

Vithoba , also known as Vitthala and Panduranga , is a Hindu god, worshipped predominantly in the Indian states of Maharashtra, Karnataka, Goa and Andhra Pradesh. He is generally considered a manifestation of the Hindu god Vishnu or his Avatar Krishna...

, a local form of Vishnu. Thousands of pilgrims come to Pandharpur on this day from different parts of Maharashtra. Some of them carry Palkhis (palanquins) with the images of the saints of Maharashtra. Dnyaneshwar

Dnyaneshwar

Dnyāneshwar , also known as Jñanadeva , was born into a Deshastha Brahmin Kulkarni family.He was a 13th century Maharashtrian Hindu saint , poet, philosopher and yogi of the Nath tradition whose works Bhavartha deepika teeka ,...

's image is carried from Alandi

Alandi

Alandi is a city and a municipal council in Pune district in the state of Maharashtra, India.-Geography:Alandi is located on the banks of the Indrayani River, east of Pune, India. It has an average elevation of .-Demographics:...

, Tukaram

Tukaram

Sant Tukaram was a prominent Varkari Sant and spiritual poet during a Bhakti movement in India.Sant Tukaram was born and lived most of his life in Dehu, a town close to Pune in Mahārāshtra, India. He was born to a couple with the family name "More", the descendent of the Mourya Clan with first...

's from Dehu

Dehu

-Demographics: India census, Dehu had a population of 5340. Males constitute 52% of the population and females 48%. Dehu has an average literacy rate of 77%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 83% and, female literacy is 72%. In Dehu, 11% of the population is under 6 years...

, Eknath

Eknath

Eknath was a prominent Marathi scholar and religious poet. He is called a "sant" in the Marathi tradition as are most other religious poets...

's from Paithan

Paithan

Paithan , formerly Pratishthana, is a city and a municipal council in Aurangabad district in the Indian state of Maharashtra. The city was the capital of the Sātavāhana empire of ancient India that ruled from 2nd century BC to 2nd century AD...

, Nivruttinath

Nivruttinath

Nivruttinath was a saint in the Varkari tradition. He was born in to a Deshastha Brahmin family and was the elder brother and the guru of Dnyaneshwar, the first Varkari saint....

's from Trimbakeshwar

Trimbakeshwar

Trimbakeshwar or Trambakeshwar is an ancient Hindu temple in the town of Trimbak, in the Nashik District of Maharashtra, India, 28 km from the city of Nashik GPS Reference 20.021944 N, 73.729935 E. It is dedicated to Lord Shiva and is one of the twelve Jyotirlingas.It is located at the source...

, Muktabai's from Muktainagar

Muktainagar

Muktainagar is a small town situated on National Highway No. 6 and now become the Ashian Highway 46 at the northern border of Maharashtra in India...

, and Sopan

Sopan

Sopan was a Hindu bhakti Saint and also younger brother of Sant Dnyaneshwar.Sopan means a new chapter in India, and means polite in Indonesian....

's from Sasvad. These pilgrims are referred to as Warkaris. They sing Abhangas (chanting hymns) of Saint Tukaram and Saint Dnyaneshwar, dedicated to Vithoba.