English
Rama Ekadashi Vrat Katha: Chandrabhaga and Shobhana
Source: Traditional Ekadashi vrat katha (traditionally attributed to the Brahmavaivarta Purana)
When Yudhishthira asked, Krishna told the story of the Ekadashi in the dark fortnight of Kartik, called Rama Ekadashi. Rama means Goddess Lakshmi.
In ancient times there was a glorious king named Muchukunda, a devotee of Lord Vishnu. In his kingdom Ekadashi was kept so faithfully that on that day not only people but even animals and birds took no food or water.
The king had a daughter, Chandrabhaga. She was married to Shobhana, son of King Chandrasena. Shobhana was good-natured but physically very weak. He could not go hungry even for one meal.
Once, in the month of Kartik, Shobhana came to his in-laws' home. As it happened, the very next day was Ekadashi. By the king's order it was announced in the city with drums: “Tomorrow is Ekadashi. No one is to take food.”
Worried, Shobhana went to his wife: “My dear, I won't be able to bear the hunger. Tell me what to do.” Chandrabhaga said, “My lord, in my father's kingdom no one eats on Ekadashi. If you wish to eat, you must go somewhere else.”
Shobhana thought for a while, then said firmly, “No, I too will keep the fast. What happens next is the Lord's will.”
He kept the fast. But as the day wore on, his weak body was overcome by hunger and thirst. All night everyone kept vigil, and Shobhana's breathing grew fainter. By sunrise, Shobhana's body had fallen still.
King Muchukunda had Shobhana's last rites performed with due ceremony. Chandrabhaga stayed on in her father's home, worshipping the Lord and keeping the Ekadashi fast with full devotion.
Meanwhile, by the power of the Rama Ekadashi fast, Shobhana received the kingdom of a divine city, Devapura, on Mount Mandara. A palace studded with gold and jewels, gandharvas and apsaras in attendance: there he reigned like Indra.
One day a brahmana named Somasharma from Muchukunda's city arrived there on pilgrimage. He recognised Shobhana. Shobhana welcomed him with respect and asked after his wife's family.
Somasharma asked, “Your Majesty, how did you gain this wondrous kingdom?” Shobhana said, “It is the fruit of the Rama Ekadashi fast. But this kingdom is unstable, because I kept that fast not with full faith but under compulsion. Tell Chandrabhaga all this. Only she can make it stable.”
Somasharma returned and told Chandrabhaga everything. She was filled with joy and said, “Take me to my husband.”
Somasharma took her to the hermitage of the sage Vamadeva near Mount Mandara. Through the sage's mantras and the merit of her own Ekadashi fasts, Chandrabhaga's body became divine, and she reached Shobhana.
Chandrabhaga said to her husband, “My lord, since I was eight years old I have kept every Ekadashi with devotion. All that merit I offer to you.” At that very moment Shobhana's kingdom became stable and unshakeable.
The two lived happily in that divine city. Krishna said, “O king, whoever keeps the Rama Ekadashi fast, and even whoever hears its story, receives auspicious fruit.”
What this story teaches
Merit gained even under compulsion bears fruit, but only merit gained with faith is lasting. And a life partner's true devotion can make even fortune steady.
Rama Ekadashi falls in the dark fortnight of Kartik, a few days before Diwali. It is customary to worship Lord Vishnu together with Goddess Lakshmi (Rama), to fast and keep night vigil, and to break the fast on Dwadashi. The sources of the Ekadashi kathas are given differently in different texts; this one is traditionally attributed to the Brahmavaivarta Purana.
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