Dvādaśī Vratas

Dvādaśī Vrata, simply known as Dvadashi Vratas, Sanskrit: द्वादशी व्रत, Telugu: ద్వాదశి వ్రతాలు, Hindi: द्वादशी व्रत.

A vrata is a sacred vow, usually a fast or a set of observances kept on a chosen day. Dvādaśī is the twelfth lunar tithi, the twelfth day of each half of the lunar month, and it is held to be especially sacred to Bhagavān Vishṇu.

The Dvādaśī vratas are kept through the months of the year, each with its own form of Bhagavān Vishṇu, its own rite, its own dāna and its own phala (fruit).

Per Nārada Purāṇa

The Nārada Purāṇa gives the teaching of Sanātana Maharshi on the vratas kept on the twelfth lunar tithi, Dvādaśī, through the months of the year. It is found in the Pūrvārdha, Chapter 121. The chapter gives the monthly Dvādaśī vratas: Madana Dvādaśī, Bhartṛ Dvādaśī, Govatsa Dvādaśī, Nīrājana Vrata, Sādhya Vrata, Dvādaśāditya Vrata, Akhaṇḍa Vrata, Rūpa Vrata and Sujanna Dvādaśī. It then speaks at length of the eight Mahā-Dvādaśīs, which have special marks.

These vratas give nearness to Bhagavān Vishṇu (Vishṇu-sāmīpya), svarga (heaven) and many worldly varas (boons).

The monthly Dvādaśī vratas

Caitra Śukla Dvādaśī: Madana Dvādaśī

Set up a new kalaśa (pot) filled with white rice. Surround it with many kinds of fruit and with stalks of sugarcane. Cover it with two white cloths and anoint it with white sandal. Place sweet bhakshyas (sweets) and gold on it, as one is able. Put a copper vessel with jaggery on top. On it set up Acyuta, who is Śrī Hari in the form of Kāma (Kāmarūpī), and worship with gandha and the upacāras. The next morning worship again and give a gift to a brāhmaṇa. Feed brāhmaṇas and give dakshiṇā.

After one year of keeping the vrata, the udyāpana (concluding rite) is a gift of a śayyā (bed) with a cow of ghee (ghṛta-dhenu), gold, a mūrti of Kāmadeva, a white cow, cloth, and a brāhmaṇa couple (brāhmaṇa-dampati). While giving, pray: “May Śrī Hari, who has the form of Kāma, be pleased.”

Phala: freedom from all pāpa, and likeness to Hari (Hari-sāmya).

Bhartṛ Dvādaśī, on the same day. Prepare a decorated śayyā with a flower pavilion above it. Set up Śrī with Hari and worship them with gandha and the upacāras. The next morning give golden mūrtis of brāhmaṇas together with the śayyā. Feed brāhmaṇas and give dakshiṇā. Phala: a steady married life (dāmpatya), and the enjoyment of the bhoga of both worlds for seven births.

Vaiśākha Śukla Dvādaśī

Keep the fast with mastery of the senses (indriya-jaya). Worship Mādhava with gandha and the upacāras. Give a brāhmaṇa sweet cooked food with a water pot (udaka-kumbha), with the prayer “May Mādhava be pleased.” Phala: the grace of Mādhava.

Jyeshṭha Śukla Dvādaśī

Worship Trivikrama with gandha and the upacāras. Give a brāhmaṇa a karaka (water vessel) with sweet food. Eat once (eka-bhukta). Phala: the grace of Trivikrama: all bhoga in this world and moksha at the end.

Āshāḍha Śukla Dvādaśī

Worship twelve brāhmaṇas one after another with gandha and the upacāras. Feed them sweet food. Give each of them cloth, a daṇḍa (staff), a brahmasūtra (sacred thread), a ring and a vessel, with the prayer “May Vishṇu be pleased.”

Śrāvaṇa Śukla Dvādaśī

Worship Śrīdhara with gandha and the upacāras, with devotion. Feed the best of brāhmaṇas with a meal of curd, give silver as dakshiṇā, and bow to the ground. Pray: “May Deveśa Śrīdhara be pleased.” Phala: the grace of Śrīdhara.

Bhādrapada Śukla Dvādaśī

Worship Vāmana properly. In the presence of Vāmana, feed twelve brāhmaṇas with pāyasa (sweet rice and milk). Give gold as dakshiṇā. Phala: the pleasure of Śrī Mahāvishṇu.

Āśvayuja Śukla Dvādaśī

Worship Padmanābha with gandha and the upacāras. Feed brāhmaṇas with sweet food and give gold as dakshiṇā. Phala: Padmanābha gives all the bhoga wished for, and the path to Śvetadvīpa.

Kārtika Kṛshṇa Dvādaśī: Govatsa Dvādaśī

On this Dvādaśī draw a cow with her calf on a copper vessel, using fragrant sandal paste. Worship with garlands of flowers. Do the rite as the vidhi says, with an arghya of flowers, unbroken rice (akshata) and sesame. Pour water at the cow’s feet and say:

“O Kshīra-sāgara-saṃjātā! Surāsura-namaskṛtā! Sarva-devamayā Devī! Sarva-devālaṃkṛtā — O Gau! Accept this arghya.”

This means: “O Cow, born from the Milk Ocean, bowed to by devas and asuras, devī made of all the devas, adorned by all the devas, accept this arghya.”

Then offer food such as māsha (black gram). Feed one, five or ten cows, with the prayer:

“O Surabhi! Jagat-mātā! Who ever abides in Vishṇu-pada — accept this grāsa. O Sarva-deva-svarūpiṇī! Fulfil my desire.”

This means: “O Surabhi, mother of the world, who always lives in the place of Bhagavān Vishṇu, accept this mouthful (grāsa). O one who has the form of all the devas, fulfil my wish.”

On this day these are to be avoided: food cooked in oil (taila-pakva), food cooked in a pot (sthālī-pakva), cow’s milk, cow’s ghee, cow’s curd and buttermilk (takra).

Kārtika Śukla Dvādaśī

Worship Dāmodara with gandha and the upacāras. Feed twelve brāhmaṇas with sweet cooked food. Worship water-filled kumbhas covered with cloth, and give them modaka (sweet balls) and gold with love. Phala: the pleasure of Śrī Mahāvishṇu; all bhoga; Vishṇu-sāyujya (union with Bhagavān Vishṇu) at death.

Nīrājana Vrata, on the same day. In the evening, awaken the sleeping Jagannātha and decorate him. Kindle new fire with mantras and offer homa in the blazing fire. Offer nīrājana (waving of lamps) to Śrī Hari in a silver lamp. Then offer nīrājana in order to:

• Lakshmī
• Sarasvatī
• Caṇḍikā
• Sūrya
• Śaṅkara
• Gaurī
• Yaksha
• Gaṇapati
• the Navagrahas
• the Mātṛ-devatās
• the Pitṛs
• the mountains
• the serpents
• all the cows

Make a maṇḍala for the mahishyas. With cries of namaḥ and jaya, the sound of bells and conches, and with adorned bulls, horses and elephants and all the signs of royalty (rāja-cihna), the great festival of nīrājana (mahā-nīrājana-mahotsava) is held. After this śānti, in the land and the city, diseases cease and health (ārogya) reigns.

Mārgaśīrsha Śukla Dvādaśī: Sādhya Vrata

Worship the twelve Sādhya-devas. The text names: Manobhava, Prāṇa, Nara, Vīryavān, Citi, Haya, Nṛpa, Haṃsa, Nārāyaṇa, Vibhu and Prabhu, and calls them twelve in all. Set up each on a darbha seat made of rice grains. Worship with gandha and flowers. Feed twelve brāhmaṇas and give dakshiṇā, with the prayer “May Nārāyaṇa be pleased.”

Dvādaśāditya Vrata, on the same day. Worship the twelve Ādityas: Dhātā, Mitra, Aryamā, Pūshā, Śukra, Aṃśu, Varuṇa, Bhaga, Tvashṭā, Vivasvān, Savitā and Vishṇu. Do this on every Śukla Dvādaśī for one year. At the end give twelve golden pratimās (images), one to each of twelve brāhmaṇas, with sweet food and honour (satkāra). Phala: the keeper reaches the Sūrya-loka of the Dvādaśādityas and enjoys bhoga. He returns as a dharmātmā (person of dharma), a human free of disease. At last he passes through the maṇḍala of Sūrya to Parabrahma, who is spotless (nirañjana), without form (nirākāra) and free of the pairs of opposites (nirdvandva).

Akhaṇḍa Vrata, also on this day. Make a mūrti of Janārdana in gold. Worship it with gandha and flowers. Feed twelve brāhmaṇas every month. The keeper of the vrata takes only one meal, at night. At the end of the year, worship the Janārdana mūrti and give it with a cow (dhenu) to the guru. Pray: “Whether I kept the Akhaṇḍa vrata for a hundred births or hardly at all, O worshipful one, let akhaṇḍa (unbroken) stay here always by your grace.” Feed twelve brāhmaṇas with khaṇḍa-pāyasa (pāyasa with sugar) and give gold as dakshiṇā. Phala: Vishṇu-loka, reached in a golden vimāna.

Pushya Kṛshṇa Dvādaśī: Rūpa Vrata

On Daśamī, bathe. In a copper or clay vessel, catch the dung of a white cow, or a cow of one colour, before it falls to the earth. Make 108 balls and dry them in the sunlight.

On Ekādaśī, keep the fast. Worship a golden pratimā of Vishṇu and keep jāgaraṇa through the night with auspicious songs, recitation of praise (stuti-pāṭha) and japa.

On Dvādaśī at dawn, place the pratimā in a water-filled kalaśa and worship with the sixteen offerings (shoḍaśopacāra). Kindle new fire from wood and rice-straw. Worship, and offer homa 108 times with the dried dung balls (gomaya), sesame and ghee, with the Dvādaśākshara mantra:

Oṃ namo bhagavate Vāsudevāya

Then feed brāhmaṇas with pāyasānna (sweet rice and milk). Give the golden pratimā with the kalaśa to the guru, and give dakshiṇā to the brāhmaṇas. Phala: beauty (rūpa) and good fortune (saubhāgya), for both men and women.

Pushya Śukla Dvādaśī: Sujanna Dvādaśī

This vrata is kept for a year and begins on this day. Begin by drinking water from a cow’s horn (go-śṛṅga-jala-pāna) and walking around a cow (pradakshiṇā).

Each month, on Śukla Dvādaśī, give:

• a prastha of ghee with barley (yava)
• sesame for homa
• a water pot
• silver
• sweet cooked food
• an umbrella (chattra)
• gold (hema)
• sandal (candana)
• palika
• cloth

Each month also take these: cow’s urine (go-mūtra), water, ghee, vegetables, pāyasa, and curd with milk.

At the end of the year make a golden pratimā of Sūrya in a copper vessel. Worship it as the vidhi says. Give it with a cow to the guru, and feed twelve brāhmaṇas and give dakshiṇā. Phala: birth in a noble family (uttama-kula), free of disease, with wealth and grain, and with mastery of the senses.

Phālguna Śukla Dvādaśī

Worship Śrī Hari with gandha and flowers. Give the golden pratimā to one who knows the Veda (veda-jña). Feed twelve brāhmaṇas, give dakshiṇā, and eat with relatives.

The eight Mahā-Dvādaśīs

Nārada asks about the eight special Dvādaśīs, and Sanātana explains them.

Special provisions

If Āśvayuja Śukla Dvādaśī falls with Anurādhā-nakshatra, or Bhādrapada Śukla Dvādaśī with Śravaṇā-nakshatra, or Kārtika Śukla Dvādaśī with Revatī-nakshatra, both vratas may be kept together. Doing so is not a dosha (fault).

On all other Dvādaśīs, eat once (eka-bhukta). The Dvādaśī-Ekādaśī vrata is nitya (to be kept always). It has no udyāpana and is kept for the rest of one’s life.

Per Varāha Purāṇa

The Varāha Purāṇa gives twelve monthly Dvādaśī vratas, one for each month of the lunar year. Each honours one form (an avatāra or an aspect) of Bhagavān Vishṇu, also called Nārāyaṇa. Each has its own arcanā mantras (mantras of worship), its own image and kumbha (water vessel) set-up, and a story (kathā) that shows the power of the vrata. The twelve vratas are in Chapters 40 to 55.

All twelve follow the framework of the Dharaṇī Vrata: fast on Ekādaśī, do pūjā on Dvādaśī, and give the kumbha with an image to a qualified brāhmaṇa at sunrise. The Purāṇa then gives more Vishṇu-Dvādaśī vratas in Book 2, and the seasonal Dvādaśī worship of Book 3, Chapter 123.

The twelve monthly vratas

1. Pausha (Mārgaśīrsha): Kūrma Dvādaśī (Ch. 40)

• Deva: Kūrma (the Tortoise).
• Setting: During the churning of the ocean, in the month of Pausha, Janārdana himself became the tortoise.
• Arcanā mantras:
• Oṃ Kūrmāya namaḥ for the feet
• Nārāyaṇāya namaḥ for the waist
• Saṃkarshaṇāya namaḥ for the belly
• Viśokāya, Urobhavāya namaḥ for the throat
• Image: Kūrma with the Mandara mountain, in a copper vessel with ghee.
• Phala: The faithful keeper destroys all gathered pāpa (sin) and goes at once to Hari-loka.

2. Māgha: Varāha Dvādaśī (Ch. 41)

• Deva: Varāha (the Boar).
• Setting: Bhūdevī was lifted from Pātāla.
• Arcanā mantras: Oṃ Varāhāya namaḥ, Mādhavāya, Kshetrajñāya, Viśvarūpāya, Sarvajñāya, Prajāpataye, Pradyumnāya.
• Image: A golden Varāha in a copper vessel filled with seeds of every kind.
• Example: King Vīradhanu was afflicted with brahmahatyā (the pāpa of killing a brāhmaṇa). He kept this vrata and reached the eternal realm, higher even than Indra.

3. Phālguṇa: Narasiṃha Dvādaśī (Ch. 42)

• Deva: Narasiṃha (the Man-lion).
• Setting: The slaying of Hiraṇyakaśipu.
• Arcanā mantras: Narasiṃhāya namaḥ, Govindāya, Viśvabhuje, Śitikaṇṭhāya, Piṅgakeśāya, Asuradhvaṃsanāya, Toyātmane.
• Image: Narasiṃha in gold (or wood), wrapped in white cloths.
• Example: King Vatsa was defeated and driven out. He kept this vrata, and Bhagavān Narasiṃha gave him the Sudarśana Cakra. He won back his kingdom, performed a thousand aśvamedha yajñas, and then went to Vishṇu-loka.

4. Caitra: Vāmana Dvādaśī (Ch. 43)

• Deva: Vāmana (the Dwarf, also Trivikrama).
• Setting: Bali was bound and the three worlds were won back.
• Arcanā mantras: Namo Vāmanāya, Vishṇave, Vāsudevāya, Sampūrṇakāya, Viśvakṛte, Vyomarūpiṇe, Viśvajite.
• Image: A dwarf brāhmaṇa in gold, holding a kamaṇḍalu (water pot), an umbrella, sandals and a rosary, with a white sacred thread.
• Example: King Haryaśva had no child. He kept this vrata, and Bhagavān Vishṇu gave him a son, Kuvalāśva, a great cakravartī (emperor).

5. Vaiśākha: Paraśurāma Dvādaśī (Ch. 44)

• Deva: Paraśurāma, the son of Jamadagni.
• Setting: The earth was cleared of kshatriyas twenty-one times.
• Arcanā mantras: Namo Jāmadagnyāya, Sarvadhāriṇe, Madhusūdanāya, Śrīvatsa-dhāriṇe, Kshatrāntakāya, Maṇikaṇṭhāya.
• Image: Paraśurāma with his axe (paraśu), in a bamboo vessel.
• Example: King Vīrasena had no child. He followed the teaching of the ṛshi Yājñavalkya and kept this vrata. He received King Nala as his son, who is called puṇya-śloka (of holy fame) to this day.

6. Jyeshṭha: Rāma Dvādaśī (Ch. 45)

• Deva: Rāma, the son of Daśaratha, as Trivikrama and Rāmābhirāma.
• Setting: The Rāma avatāra of Bhagavān Vishṇu.
• Arcanā mantras: Rāmābhirāmāya namaḥ, Trivikramāya, Dhṛtaviśvāya, Saṃvatsarāya, Sarvāstradhāriṇe.
• Image: A pair of golden images, Rāma and Lakshmaṇa.
• Example: King Daśaratha was a real king and had no child. Vasishṭha taught him this very vrata. Bhagavān Vishṇu was born as Rāma and as three other sons.
• Phala in the next life: Residence in Indraloka for fourteen reigns of Indra, and then birth as a great king who performs a hundred yajñas.

7. Āshāḍha: Vāsudeva Dvādaśī (Ch. 46)

• Deva: Vāsudeva, the cosmic form of Bhagavān Kṛshṇa with four vyūhas (forms).
• Setting: Bhagavān Vishṇu’s promise to Bhūdevī, and the purpose of Kṛshṇa’s birth.
• Arcanā mantras: Vāsudevāya, Saṃkarshaṇāya, Pradyumnāya, Aniruddhāya, Cakrapāṇaye, Bhūpataye, Purushāya.
• Image: A golden Vāsudeva with the four vyūhas, in the kumbha.
• Example: Vasudeva and Devakī had no child. On the teaching of Nārada they kept this vrata. Bhagavān Vishṇu was born as Kṛshṇa, and the well-known Kṛshṇāvatāra came from this vrata.

8. Śrāvaṇa: Dāmodara Dvādaśī (Ch. 47)

• Deva: Dāmodara, Kṛshṇa bound with a rope by Yaśodā.
• Arcanā mantras: Dāmodarāya namaḥ, Hṛshīkeśāya, Sanātanāya, Śrīvatsa-dhāriṇe, Cakrapāṇaye, Haraye, Muñja-keśāya, Bhadrāya (for the śikhā, the tuft of hair).
• Image: A golden Dāmodara, given to a brāhmaṇa learned in the Veda.
• Example: King Nṛga, in the Kṛtayuga, was alone in a forest. Fourteen thousand hunters attacked him. A divine woman came out of his body and killed the hunters. The ṛshi Vāmadeva explained it. Nṛga had once overheard the teaching of this vrata, and he had kept the Ekādaśī fast with the worship of Bhagavān Vishṇu. This earned him the protection of the tīrthi-śakti in all his lives.

9. Bhādrapada: Kalki Dvādaśī (Ch. 48)

• Deva: Kalki, the avatāra still to come.
• Arcanā mantras: Namo Kalkine, Hṛshīkeśāya, Mleccha-vidhvaṃsanāya jagat-mūrtaye, Śitikaṇṭhāya, Khaḍgapāṇaye, Catur-bhujāya, Viśvamūrtaye.
• Image: A golden Kalki in a vessel.
• Example: King Viśāla of Kāśī was driven out and had no money. In the Gandhamādana forest he met the Nara-Nārāyaṇa ṛshis, who taught him this vrata. He became a great cakravartī, and Badarī was named after him (Viśāla). In the end he reached moksha (liberation).
• The Nara-Nārāyaṇa ṛshis also give a full guide on which avatāra to worship for which purpose.

10. Āśvayuja: Padmanābha Dvādaśī (Ch. 49)

• Deva: Padmanābha, Bhagavān Vishṇu with the lotus in his navel.
• Arcanā mantras: Padmanābhāya namaḥ, Padmayonaye, Sarvadevāya, Pushkarākshāya, Avyayāya, Prabhavāya.
• Image: A golden Padmanābha in the kumbha.
• Example: King Bhadrāśva had a first wife, Kāntimati, who had five hundred co-wives, and all of them served her in fear. The ṛshi Agastya came to the king as a guest. He saw this and danced with joy, and he explained it. Kāntimati had once been the maid of a vaiśya named Haridatta, and the king had been Haridatta’s śūdra servant. On one Āśvayuja Dvādaśī Haridatta went to worship Bhagavān Vishṇu, and he left the two of them to keep the lamps of the temple burning through the night. They did so, though the lamps were Haridatta’s and not their own. This one act of keeping a lamp burning in Vishṇu’s temple for their master gave them their royal births. Agastya said:

Even keeping someone else’s lamp burning in Hari’s presence gives such fruit. Think what your own lamp, lit with bhakti, will give.

11. Kārtika: Kārtika Dvādaśī (Ch. 50)

• Deva: Sahasraśīrsha Nārāyaṇa (the thousand-headed).
• Arcanā mantras: Sahasraśirase namaḥ, Viśvarūpiṇe, Jñānāstrāya, Śrīvatsāya, Jagadgrasishṇave, Divyamūrtaye, Sahasrapādāya. To end, Oṃ namo Dāmodarāya is said for all the limbs.
• Image: Bhagavān Vishṇu in yoga-nidrā, in gold (the reclining form), worshipped with a diagram of a wheel with sixteen spokes.
• Dāna: The four ocean-vessels go to four brāhmaṇas. The image of Bhagavān Vishṇu goes to a fifth brāhmaṇa of high qualification. A Pañcarātra ācārya gives merit a crore (ten million) times greater.
• Examples: Prajāpati himself kept this vrata and reached the highest state. King Yuvnāśva obtained Māndhātā. King Kṛtavīrya obtained Kārtavīryārjuna. Śakuntalā obtained the cakravartī son of Dūshyanta.

12. Mārgaśīrsha: the standard Dvādaśī (Ch. 39 and again later)

This is the base vrata, with Bhagavān Vishṇu in the form of Matsya, as the ṛshi Durgāsa taught it to the hunter who had turned from his ways. The full vidhi is the Dharaṇī Vrata.

What is common to all twelve

1. The Ekādaśī fast, with the saṅkalpa (vow) made the evening before.
2. The bath on Dvādaśī morning, with the mantras for sacred earth.
3. Arcanā of the deva with the mantras of that month.
4. The kumbha (a vessel of water with the image) set before the deva.
5. A night vigil (jāgara), with the story of that avatāra told.
6. The gift at sunrise of the kumbha, the image and dakshiṇā to a qualified brāhmaṇa.
7. Feeding brāhmaṇas with good food.
8. The keeper’s own meal, taken in silence with the family.

More Vishṇu-Dvādaśī vratas (Book 2)

Book 2 goes on with more Vishṇu-Dvādaśī vratas beside the twelve monthly ones of Book 1.

Caitra Śukla Dvādaśī: the vrata taught to the apsarasas (Book 2, Ch. 54)

• Deva: Hari with Lakshmī (Lakshmī-sahita Hari).
• Setting: Nārada taught this vrata at Māna-sarovara to a gathering of apsarasas who wanted Nārāyaṇa as their husband. They had not first bowed to him with praṇāma. He taught it all the same, saying that the mere speaking of Vishṇu’s name had already done much.
• When: In Caitra, in the śukla paksha, on Dvādaśī. Fast on that day and worship Hari at night.
• Set-up: Prepare a couch covered with white cloth. Place on it a silver image of Hari with Lakshmī. Build a maṇḍapa of flowers over the couch.
• Night vigil (jāgaraṇa): Dance (nṛtya), music (vādya) and song (gīta) through the whole night.
• Arcanā mantras:
• Oṃ namo manobhavāya for the head (śiras)
• Namo’naṅgāya for the waist (nābhi)
• Namaḥ kāmāya for the shoulders (bhuja)
• Namaḥ suśāstrāya for the abdomen (udara)
• Namo manmathāya for the feet (pāda)
• Namo Haraye for all the limbs (sarvāṅga), with jasmine and jāji flowers
• Offering: Place four stalks of sugarcane before Hari, one in each of the four directions.
• Dāna: At sunrise the next morning, give to a learned brāhmaṇa, one who knows the Veda and the Vedāṅgas and is sound of limb, with dakshiṇā. Honour the other brāhmaṇas too.
• Phala: Hari is pleased. Bhagavān Nārāyaṇa becomes the protector of the keeper. The vrata gives all that true bhakti to Hari’s name can give. The apsarasas received Bhagavān Vishṇu himself as husband.
• Example: The apsarasas kept this vrata at Māna-sarovara and Hari was pleased with them. As Nārada had foretold, they later obtained Vishṇu as their husband. They also went through the śāpa (curse) of Ashṭāvakra, and were carried off by cowherds, because they had not shown respect to Nārada.

Mārgaśīrsha Śukla Dvādaśī: the Bhū-dvādaśī Vrata and Kubja-kāmra Tīrtha (Book 2, Ch. 55)

• Deva: Bhū-devī with Bhagavān Vishṇu (Vishṇu and Bhūmī together).
• Setting: This vrata is named as the best (śreshṭha) of all vratas for winning the grace of Bhagavān Vishṇu. The account ends with the founding of the tīrtha of Kubja-kāmra (the “dwarf mango tree”), where Bhagavān Vishṇu himself appeared and gave moksha to the king who kept the vrata.

Before the day, from Daśamī to Ekādaśī

• From Mārgaśīrsha Pratipad through Daśamī, take one meal a day (ekabhukta).
• Bathe at noon on Daśamī and worship Bhagavān Vishṇu.
• Make the formal saṅkalpa for the Dvādaśī vrata in the usual way, naming the month.

Dvādaśī day

• Prepare the image of the earth (bhū-nyāsa vidhi): a golden image of Bhū-devī with golden limbs, adorned with all the seven pātālas and the kulaparvatas (the chief mountains). Place it before Hari.
• Cover it with two white cloths and add seeds of every kind.
• Worship with the five gems (pañca-ratna), saying Priya-dattā (given in love).
• Keep a night vigil (jāgaraṇa).

Gifts at dawn

Gifts go to twenty-four brāhmaṇas, one to each:

• One cow and one bull
• A pair of garments
• A ring (aṅgulīyaka)
• Earrings (mūrvulā)
• Golden earrings (suvarṇa-kuṇḍala)
• One village (eka grāma)

Then:

• To one poor brāhmaṇa among them, give ornaments and two garments, as one is able (yathā-śakti).
• Make a golden image of Bhū-devī, or a silver one if one cannot afford gold, and give it with two cows and two garments.
• Give pairs of cows and ornaments on both the śukla and the kṛshṇa Dvādaśī.
• Give food to brāhmaṇas, and give footwear, sandals and an umbrella as one is able.

The closing prayer

Kṛshṇaḥ, Dāmodaraḥ, Viśvarūpaḥ, Hariḥ — may the deva always be pleased with me.

Phala: The Purāṇa says the fruit cannot be counted and cannot be told in a thousand years. In short, the keeper wins all prosperity and at the end is absorbed into Paramātmā.

The king and Kubja-kāmra

In the first yuga (ādi-yuga) there was a king who had studied the Vedas well and held firm to his vratas. He wanted a son. Brahmā taught him this vrata, and he kept it exactly. Bhagavān Vishṇu appeared before him in the form of a dwarf brāhmaṇa. At the moment he arrived, a huge mango tree that stood there shrank (kuñcita) to a small size, a great wonder.

The king understood the wonder. He said, “The coming of this brāhmaṇa made the great tree shrink.” He bowed (praṇāma) and asked Hari to show his true form. Bhagavān Vishṇu showed himself with the śaṅkha, the cakra and the gadā, and said:

Because I came here and this great mango tree shrank, this tīrtha shall be known as Kubja-kāmra (dwarf mango).

From cow and bird to brāhmaṇa, whoever gives up the body at this tīrtha will receive five hundred vimānas to carry them to Vishṇu’s realm. For yogins there is direct moksha (sākshāt-mukti).

Bhagavān Vishṇu then touched the king with the tip of his śaṅkha, and the king reached nirvāṇa, the highest state.

Ṛtu-pūjā Dvādaśī (Book 3, Ch. 123)

Book 3, Chapter 123, teaches the worship of Bhagavān Vishṇu on the Dvādaśī of each ṛtu (season), with flowers of that season.

Vasanta Ṛtu: Phālguṇa Dvādaśī

• Flower: Vana-malle (wild jasmine).
• Deva: Vāsudeva.
• Worship: Bhagavān Vāsudeva is worshipped with garlands of wild jasmine on Phālguṇa Dvādaśī. The mantra names him as the one who pervades all. The scent of spring spreading through the forest is known as his own presence spreading through creation.

Grīshma Ṛtu: Summer Dvādaśī

• Flower: Śāla (Shorea robusta).
• Deva: Vishṇu.
• Worship: Śāla blossoms are offered on the summer Dvādaśī with the mantra of this season. The flowers that bloom in the height of summer are offered to Bhagavān Vishṇu as the source of strength in the hardest season of the year.

Pre-monsoon: Vaiśākha Dvādaśī

• Flower: Maddi or mahua (Madhuca longifolia).
• Celebration: The worship on Vaiśākha Dvādaśī is described as a joyful celebration of the whole creation, with the music of gandharvas and apsarasas, honouring Bhagavān Vishṇu as the year comes to its fullness before the monsoon begins.

Varshā Ṛtu: Āshāḍha Dvādaśī (Śayana-pūjā)

• Sign: The monsoon clouds gather, lightning lights the sky and the rains begin.
• Worship: Āshāḍha Dvādaśī is the start of the yoga-nidrā of Bhagavān Vishṇu, his sleep of the Cāturmāsya (the four months). The keeper lovingly lays the deva to rest in the Śayana-pūjā. For the four months of the rains he tends Bhagavān Vishṇu as he rests on Ādiśesha upon the cosmic waters.

Per Vishṇu Dharmottara Purāṇa

Chapters 157 to 165 of the Vishṇu Dharmottara Purāṇa explain the Dvādaśī vratas step by step.

These chapters cover the year-long Rājyaprada Dvādaśī for gaining a kingdom, the many Kāma-Dvādaśīs for wished-for fruits, the Dvādaśīs of the bright and dark fortnights month by month, the very special Śravaṇa Dvādaśī, the Tila Dvādaśī, and the Dvādaśākshara mantra.

Rājyaprada Dvādaśī: Fasting for a Kingdom (Chapter 157)

The Rājyaprada Dvādaśī is a vrata kept for one full year. The devotee fasts on every Dvādaśī of the year, in both the Śukla Paksha (bright fortnight) and the Kṛshṇa Paksha (dark fortnight). The aim is to gain or keep rājya (royal power). The steps for the two fortnights are a little different. The phala (fruit, or result) is a kingdom, prosperity and protection of the realm.

Kāma-Dvādaśī: Dvādaśī for Desired Fruits (Chapter 158)

This chapter teaches that every Dvādaśī of the year, when kept with a clear intention, gives the fruit that is wished for. Dvādaśī is the most powerful tithi (lunar day) for vratas to Vishṇu. Each month’s Dvādaśī has its own phala, which depends on the devatā (deity) honoured, the naivedya (food offered), and the intention of the devotee.

Month-by-Month Śukla Paksha Dvādaśīs (Chapter 159)

Chapter 159 goes through the Dvādaśī of the bright fortnight month by month and gives the phala of each:

• Mārgaśīrsha Dvādaśī: the phala of the Agnishoma sacrifice
• It continues in this way through all twelve months
• Kārttika Dvādaśī: the phala of the Sarvamedha, equal to all yajñas (sacred fire offerings)

The chapter ends with the greatest fruit, Śvetadvīpa. Those who keep all twelve Dvādaśīs with full devotion reach Bhagavān Vishṇu’s own abode.

Kṛshṇa Paksha Dvādaśīs (Chapter 160)

The Dvādaśī of the dark fortnight is kept with tila (sesame) and by chanting the name of Kṛshṇa. Its phala is freedom from naraka (the realms of suffering). A devotee who keeps these Dvādaśīs through the year is protected from every kind of naraka.

Śravaṇa Dvādaśī (Chapter 161)

The Śravaṇa Dvādaśī is the Dvādaśī of the bright fortnight of Bhādrapada month when it falls on the Śravaṇa nakshatra (lunar mansion). Keeping it gives the merit of visiting all tīrthas (holy places) at once. If this Dvādaśī also falls on a Wednesday (Budha-vāra), it is thought to be extremely rare and auspicious, and the merit is multiplied. The holy place linked with it is the meeting point of the Candrabhāgā and Toshī rivers.

Piśāca Mokshaṇa: The Story (Chapter 162)

The teaching story for the Śravaṇa Dvādaśī is about a merchant who met pretas (restless spirits of the dead) in a desert. One preta told him about his condition and asked him to perform śrāddha (rites for the departed) at Gayā. Through this śrāddha the pretas were set free.

The Glory of Tila Dvādaśī (Chapter 163)

Chapter 163 praises the Tila Dvādaśī, the Dvādaśī kept with sesame. This chapter records the two great mantras of the Vaishṇava tradition:

• Dvādaśākshara mantra: “Oṃ namo bhagavate Vāsudevāya”, the twelve-syllable mantra
• Ashṭākshara mantra: “Oṃ namo Nārāyaṇāya”, the eight-syllable mantra

Both are taught as the main mantras for the pūjā of Tila Dvādaśī, and their power is praised at length.

The Story of Tila Dvādaśī: Queen Nayanasunarī (Chapter 164)

The story that shows the power of Tila Dvādaśī is that of Nayanasunarī, a queen of Magadha, who kept this vrata with devotion. In this chapter the holy river Vitastā is said to be Umā (Pārvatī) herself, appearing as a river. Nayanasunarī’s co-wife Vasantikā learned the vrata from her and kept it too. Through the power of Tila Dvādaśī, both of them reached Śvetadvīpa, the divine abode of Bhagavān Vishṇu.

Sources

• Nārada Mahā Purāṇa, Pūrvārdha, Chapter 121
• Varāha Mahā Purāṇa, Chapters 40–55 (the twelve monthly Ekādaśī and Dvādaśī vratas), with Chapter 39 for the standard Mārgaśīrsha vrata
• Varāha Mahā Purāṇa, Book 2, Chapter 54 (the Caitra Śukla Dvādaśī vrata taught to the apsarasas)
• Varāha Mahā Purāṇa, Book 2, Chapter 55 (the Bhū-dvādaśī Vrata and Kubja-kāmra Tīrtha)
• Varāha Mahā Purāṇa, Book 3, Chapter 123 (the Ṛtu-pūjā Dvādaśī observances)
• Vishṇu Dharmottara Purāṇa, Pūrvārdha, Chapters 157–165