Satyanārāyaṇa Vrata Kathā

The Satyanārāyaṇa Vrata Kathā is the cycle of narratives told in the Bhavishya Mahā Purāṇa, in the Pratisarga Parva, second khaṇḍa, chapters 24 to 29. It goes with the Satyanārāyaṇa Vrata, a pūjā (worship) that is performed in very many homes. The narrative begins with Nārada’s visit to Vaikuṇṭha, where Bhagavān Nārāyaṇa teaches him the vrata (a vow with fasting and worship). It then follows five devotees through whom the power of the vrata is shown.

Nārada’s compassion and Nārāyaṇa’s teaching (chapter 24)

Nārada Mahārshi wanders through all three worlds for the welfare of all the worlds (loka-kalyāṇa). One day he came down to Mṛtyu-loka, the world of mortals. He saw beings everywhere suffering the results of their own pāpa-karma (sinful action): disease, poverty, loss, grief, imprisonment and fear. This troubled him deeply, and he went back to Vaikuṇṭha.

Bhagavān Nārāyaṇa received him warmly and said: “Nārada, you are sad. Tell me what weighs on your mind.”

Nārada described the suffering of Mṛtyu-loka and asked: “O Prabhu Nārāyaṇa, who is the one deva, worshipped by all, who fulfils the wishes of beings in all four yugas? Is there a simple vrata that even ordinary people can keep, to end their suffering?”

Nārāyaṇa answered with great love: “In the Satya Yuga I was Vishṇu. In Tretā I came as the avatāras. In Dvāpara I came as Śrī Kṛshṇa and others. Now, in the Kali Yuga, I am Satyanārāyaṇa. The vrata and the kathā (narrative) given to me in this form can fulfil all right wishes and destroy all the pāpas of this age. Even Brahmā’s four tongues cannot fully describe the fruits of this vrata.”

He then taught Nārada the whole vrata vidhi (the method): how to do the pūjā, the mantra of dedication, and the sacred stotras (hymns of praise) of Satyanārāyaṇa. The mantra is:

Karomi te vrataṃ deva sāyaṃ kāle tvad-arcanam |
Śrutvā gāthāṃ tvadīyāṃ hi prasādaṃ te bhajāmy aham ||

Nārada bowed at the lotus feet of Nārāyaṇa and went down to the earth to spread the vrata.

The first person Nārada met was a poor brāhmaṇa in Kāśī. Nārada taught him the whole vrata. The brāhmaṇa kept it faithfully and was freed from poverty.

The brāhmaṇa Śatānanda (chapter 25)

The second chapter of the kathā is about Śatānanda, a brāhmaṇa whose life had been full of pāpa because of bad company. He heard of the Satyanārāyaṇa Vrata and kept it with full śraddhā (faith). The grace of the vrata burned away his pāpa and changed his life. It brought him peace in his family, wealth and, in the end, moksha (liberation). His account shows that the vrata works even for a man whose past is full of adharma, when he comes to it with real repentance and faith.

King Candrācūḍa (chapter 26)

Candrācūḍa was a king with wealth and power. He kept the Satyanārāyaṇa Vrata and received the highest fruit of satya-vrata: freedom from birth and death, and nearness to Bhagavān Satyanārāyaṇa. The same Bhagavān Satyanārāyaṇa who frees the poor also lifts up the powerful who come to him with humility.

The woodcutter (chapter 27)

The third chapter is about a poor woodcutter (kaṭṭhevāḍa). He met a brāhmaṇa who was keeping the Satyanārāyaṇa Vrata, asked about it and was taught it. With whatever he had, he kept the vrata sincerely. His poverty ended, his family grew prosperous, and at the end of his life he reached the joy of svarga (heaven). The vrata needs only śraddhā and bhakti (devotion), not costly things.

Sādhu-vaiśya and his son-in-law (chapter 28)

The fourth chapter is about Sādhu-vaiśya, a merchant who travelled to trade, and his son-in-law. Before a long trading journey Sādhu kept the vrata and made a vow to Satyanārāyaṇa: “If I return safely with profit, I will do the pūjā again when I come back.” The journey went better than he had hoped.

When he reached home, he was carried away by the joy of meeting his family, and he forgot to keep his vow at once.

Bhagavān Satyanārāyaṇa showed his displeasure. The merchant’s boat was at the port, full of goods, but it suddenly looked empty to the officers on the shore. His son-in-law was put in prison on suspicion. Sādhu’s wife reminded him of the vow he had not kept. He at once did the pūjā with repentance. The boat was then found full of goods, and his son-in-law was set free.

This chapter teaches that a vow made to Bhagavān Satyanārāyaṇa must be kept quickly and sincerely. Delay caused by worldly excitement is a kind of neglect.

Satyadharma, the final refuge (chapter 29)

The fifth and last chapter of the main kathā returns to the base of it all: satya (truth) and dharma (right living) are the last refuge of all beings. The vrata is more than a ritual. It brings the devotee’s life into line with satya-tattva, the principle of truth that Satyanārāyaṇa himself is. When the devotee receives the prasāda (blessed food) with full reverence, he receives not only food but the anugraha (grace) of Bhagavān Satyanārāyaṇa.

The chapter ends with the words sarvatra Satyanārāyaṇa: Satyanārāyaṇa is everywhere, in all beings, at all times. The vrata is the outer form; the truth it points to is that Satyanārāyaṇa is present everywhere.

Sources

• Bhavishya Mahā Purāṇa, Pratisarga Parva, Khaṇḍa 2, Chapter 24 (Nārada and Nārāyaṇa; the poor brāhmaṇa of Kāśī)
• Bhavishya Mahā Purāṇa, Pratisarga Parva, Khaṇḍa 2, Chapter 25 (Śatānanda)
• Bhavishya Mahā Purāṇa, Pratisarga Parva, Khaṇḍa 2, Chapter 26 (King Candrācūḍa)
• Bhavishya Mahā Purāṇa, Pratisarga Parva, Khaṇḍa 2, Chapter 27 (the woodcutter)
• Bhavishya Mahā Purāṇa, Pratisarga Parva, Khaṇḍa 2, Chapter 28 (Sādhu-vaiśya and his son-in-law)
• Bhavishya Mahā Purāṇa, Pratisarga Parva, Khaṇḍa 2, Chapter 29 (Satyadharma)