Origin of Ekādaśī
In the Uttara Khaṇḍa of the Padma Mahā Purāṇa, Bhagavān Kṛshṇa tells Yudhishṭhira how the Ekādaśī began. The asura Mura drove the devas out of svarga (heaven). Bhagavān Vishṇu fought him for a long time and then withdrew to a cave to sleep. Mura followed to kill him. A maiden was born from the sleeping body of Bhagavān Vishṇu and killed Mura with a sound. Bhagavān Vishṇu named her Ekādaśī, “the Eleventh”. This is chapter 38.
The asura Mura drives out the devas
Before the Ekādaśī observance began, an asura named Mura, of the Tālajangha line, ruled the world of the asuras. His capital was the city of Candravatī. His power was so great that he drove all the devas out of their home in svarga. Indra, the Ādityas, the Maruts and all the deva-gaṇas (hosts of devas) were thrown out. They wandered without their own realm and without their rights.
The devas could not beat Mura by their own strength. They went to Bhagavān Vishṇu for help. Bhagavān Vishṇu agreed to fight for them. (Chapter 38)
The battle and the cave
Bhagavān Vishṇu fought Mura. The fight was long and fierce. Mura was very hard to defeat, and the battle went on for a long time with no clear end in Bhagavān Vishṇu’s favour. At last Bhagavān Vishṇu chose to leave the battle for a while. He went to a cave, a very lonely place, and lay down to sleep. He wished to rest and gather strength before he fought again. (Chapter 38)
The maiden born from Bhagavān Vishṇu’s body
Mura followed Bhagavān Vishṇu to the cave. He meant to kill the sleeping Bhagavān Vishṇu and end the fight for good. As Mura came near, something wonderful happened. From the body of Bhagavān Vishṇu, from his sleeping form, a maiden was born. She rose from his divine radiance (tejas). She was a shining and fierce being, born straight from Bhagavān Vishṇu himself. She stood between Mura and the sleeping Bhagavān Vishṇu and faced the asura.
The maiden challenged Mura to battle. (Chapter 38)
The killing of Mura
The maiden and Mura fought. The Uttara Khaṇḍa records that she killed Mura with the sound of her hūṃkāra, the sacred syllable “hūṃ” spoken with great force. The hūṃkāra destroyed Mura where weapons had not. (Chapter 38)
Bhagavān Vishṇu’s joy and the vara
Bhagavān Vishṇu woke and found Mura dead and the cave safe. He saw the maiden who had finished what had been so hard for him, and who had guarded him in his sleep from the asura who sought to kill him. He was filled with joy and deep regard for her.
He asked the maiden what vara (boon) she wished. She had one request: “May those who fast on this day, the day of my appearing, the eleventh tithi (lunar day) of the fortnight, be freed from all their pāpa (sin) and reach moksha (liberation).”
Bhagavān Vishṇu granted this vara fully and without holding anything back. He named her Ekādaśī, “the Eleventh”, after the eleventh tithi on which she had appeared and on which she killed Mura. From that time Ekādaśī has been the best day for fasting and spiritual practice. (Chapter 38)
Why Bhagavān Kṛshṇa tells this
Bhagavān Kṛshṇa gives this account to Yudhishṭhira at the start of a long teaching on the Ekādaśī vratas (vows) in the Uttara Khaṇḍa. He tells it to show why Ekādaśī is kept with fasting, a night vigil and devotion to Bhagavān Vishṇu. The chapters that follow give the names of all twenty-four Ekādaśīs of the year, with an account to go with each one. Bhagavān Kṛshṇa teaches these to Yudhishṭhira in turn. (Chapter 38)
Sources
- Padma Mahā Purāṇa, Uttara Khaṇḍa, Chapter 38