Aśūnyaśayana Vrata (Skanda Purāṇa)
Aśūnyaśayana Vrata, simply known as Ashunyashayana Vrata, Sanskrit: अशून्यशयन व्रत, Telugu: అశూన్యశయన వ్రతం, Hindi: अशून्यशयन व्रत.
The Aśūnyaśayana Vrata is a Vaishṇava vrata kept for four months, beginning on Śrāvaṇa Śukla Dvitīyā (the second tithi of the bright half of Śrāvaṇa). It is kept again in Mārgaśīrsha and Caitra. It is for the welfare and long life of a woman’s husband. The Skanda Purāṇa gives it in the Vaishṇava Khaṇḍa, in the Vaiśākha Māsa Māhātmya, Chapter 10.
The name aśūnyaśayana means “the never-empty bed”. The bed of the divine couple, Bhagavān Vishṇu and Lakshmī, must never be left empty.
Rati’s grief and the vrata
Bhagavān Śiva opened his third eye and burned Kāma (Manmatha) to ashes. Kāma’s wife Rati could not be comforted. She went to the devas and told them her sorrow: “My husband is gone. What shall I do? By what puṇya (merit) can I get him back?”
The devas and ṛshis felt pity for her. They taught her the Aśūnyaśayana Vrata. They said: “Keep this vrata faithfully. By its power your husband will return.”
Rati kept the vrata with complete devotion. By the power of the vrata Kāma came back. Kāma was born again as Pradyumna, the son of Bhagavān Kṛshṇa and Rukmiṇī.
When it is kept
- It begins on Śrāvaṇa Śukla Dvitīyā.
- It lasts four months from that day.
- It is kept again in Mārgaśīrsha and again in Caitra, with the udyāpana in between.
What is needed
- A gold image of Lakshmī and Nārāyaṇa
- A gold image of Kṛshṇa and Rukmiṇī
- A silver image of Varāha (Bhagavān Vishṇu as the Boar)
- Enough food and material to feed twelve brāhmaṇas
The daily rite
During the four months the devotee worships the divine couple, Lakshmī and Nārāyaṇa. The bed of the couple is kept always occupied, and this is the meaning of aśūnyaśayana. Their beds are made auspicious and fully furnished. They must not be left bare or empty at any time during the vrata.
The homa
- The Purusha-sūkta, the hymn of the Ṛgveda Saṃhitā about the cosmic Purusha, is used for the homa.
- The Vishṇu Gāyatrī mantra is used throughout.
- The offerings into the fire are made to Bhagavān Vishṇu in his supreme form.
The udyāpana
- Twelve brāhmaṇas are fed, with all the needed offerings.
- The gold images of Lakshmī and Nārāyaṇa and of Kṛshṇa and Rukmiṇī are given to a worthy brāhmaṇa.
- The silver Varāha image is also given.
The phala
The vrata is for saubhāgya (a husband’s welfare) and dīrgha-āyus (long life) of one’s husband. Women who keep it faithfully are promised the company of their husbands in all future births. By the grace of Bhagavān Vishṇu they reach moksha in the end.
Its place in the Vaiśākha Māhātmya
The vrata begins in Śrāvaṇa, yet it is taught inside the Vaiśākha Māhātmya. The Māhātmya teaches that the grace of Bhagavān Vishṇu, once won through Vaiśākha Dharma, reaches across all months. Rati received this teaching while seeking to get Kāma back. It belongs to the Vaiśākha and Kāma narrative of Chapters 9 and 10, which explains why the Vaiśākha Māhātmya was first made.
Sources
- Skanda Purāṇa, Vaishṇava Khaṇḍa, Vaiśākha Māsa Māhātmya, Chapter 10
- Skanda Purāṇa, Vaishṇava Khaṇḍa, Vaiśākha Māsa Māhātmya, Chapters 9 and 10