Utpanna Ekadashi Vrat Katha · उत्पन्ना एकादशी व्रत कथा

Yudhishthira asked Krishna about the Ekadashi of the dark fortnight of Margashirsha, and Krishna told him its story.

Long ago a mighty demon named Mura defeated Indra and all the gods and drove them out of heaven. The gods went to Vishnu, resting on the ocean of milk, and begged for his protection. Vishnu promised to help and went to battle against Mura.

The war went on for a very long time, and Mura could not be overcome. At last Vishnu, weary, went to Badrikashram and lay down to rest in a cave there, called Hemavati. Mura followed him and, finding him asleep, moved to kill him.

At that moment a radiant maiden appeared from Vishnu's body. She challenged Mura, fought him, and slew him.

When Vishnu woke and saw the demon dead, he asked how it had happened, and the maiden told him. Pleased, he told her that since she had been born on the eleventh lunar day (ekadashi), she would be known as Ekadashi, and he blessed her: whoever keeps the fast on her day would be freed from sin and reach Vishnu's own abode. This is why this Ekadashi is called Utpanna, the Ekadashi of her appearance.

This is the story of how Ekadashi itself began, and so it is often read by those starting the Ekadashi fasts. It belongs to Utpanna Ekadashi, the Ekadashi of the dark fortnight of Margashirsha (in the purnimanta calendar), and is told as part of the series in which Krishna describes each Ekadashi to Yudhishthira.

The published versions are in Hindi prose and differ in length and in details such as the length of the war and the name of the cave. The retelling above keeps only what at least two of the versions linked below agree on.

The katha is read or heard on Utpanna Ekadashi as part of the worship of Vishnu. Customs vary by family and region.