Varāha Mahā Purana
63 - Putrapräptivrata
Agastya said:
1. O king, now listen to the brief account of the Putrapräptivrata. I am going to give you.
2. This Putrapräptivrata (the vow for getting a son) is to be performed fasting on the Ashtamï tithi in the dark half of the month of Bhädrapada.
3. The Sankalpa should be made on the Saptami day and the worship to Vishnu as Krishna lying in Devaki’s lap surrounded by the mothers, should be conducted on Ashtami.
4. On the Ashtami day, early in the morning, Vishnu should be worshipped with full concentration of mind.
5. Then homa should be performed with barley, black sesamum, ghee and curd. Brahmans should be fed and given dakshinä.
6. Then the performer of vrata may take food, first Bilva leaves, and then with Oils. and other items.
7. Doing in this way on the Krishnapaksha every month, an issueless person begets children.
8-10. It is known that in ancient times the valiant king Shürasena who was issueless, performed penance in the Himalayas, and the Lord himself told him about this vrata, and accordingly he performed it and got a son Vasudeva by name who later on performed many sacrifices. And the saintly king (Shürasena) gained salvation.
11. Thus, O king, I have told you about Krishnashtami (In this Vrata), at the end of the year, a pair of cows should be gifted to a Brahmin.
12. Such is the Putravrata narrated to you. By performing it one gets freed from all sins.
Summary of chapter 63 of the Varāha Mahā Purana is as follows:
Filled with intense spiritual longing, the saintly King Prahlāda abdicates his royal duties temporarily to undertake a grand pilgrimage across the holy tīrthas, sacred rivers, and divine shrines of Jambūdvīpa. Accompanied by righteous sages, Prahlāda visits holy sites such as Badarīkāśrama, Kurukshetra, Prayāga, and Vārāṇasī, offering devout prayers to both Bhagavān Vishṇu and Parameśvara Śiva at every sacred altar. His pilgrimage exemplifies the supreme mood of bhāgavata devotion, demonstrating that true royal nobility finds its highest fulfillment in visiting holy lands and bathing in sacred waters.