Vighneshvara Chaturthi Vrat Katha | Puasha Shukla Chaturthi Vrat Katha

Vighneshvara Chaturthi Vrat Katha

King Dasharatha said to Sage Vashishtha - "O great sage! You have described the Mahatmya of Margashirsha Shukla Paksha Chaturthi Tithi Vrat. O great one! I am completely satisfied by your description of the Mahatmya. Now, O revered Guru! Please narrate to me the glorious Mahatmya of Pausha Shukla Paksha Chaturthi Vrat, which is the bestower of all boons."

Sage Vashishtha said - "O king! Now, I will briefly describe the Mahatmya of Pausha Shukla Paksha Chaturthi Tithi because it is impossible for any person on this Earth to recount its detailed Mahatmya."

Sage Vashishtha began the story thus - "In ancient times, a virtuous and noble Brahmin man lived in the city of Avanti. His name was Sudanta. Sudanta was knowledgeable, ethical, and a scholar of scriptures. His wife's name was Vilasini, who was a faithful and righteous woman of great integrity. Sudanta was the official priest in the palace of King Brihadratha. He counselled the king to rule his kingdom by following the path of righteousness. King Brihadratha always followed the advice of Sudanta and nurtured his kingdom justly by following his guidance.

Sudanta had no shortage of wealth or material comfort in his life. However, due to his past Karma, none of his children survived and his wife remained childless. Their children would die in infancy. To alleviate this Karmic curse, he observed fasts, made donations and performed many religious rituals, but he remained childless. Thereafter, distressed with his situation, he retired to the forest with his wife. After wandering in the forest for a long period of time, that Brahmin immersed himself in hard penance with the desire to end his life.

At the time when Sudanta was immersed in penance, the great Sage Vamadeva Ji, who is revered among Yogis, arrived there. Upon seeing Sage Vamadeva in front of him, Sudanta reverently bowed down and worshipped him. Then, he said - 'O Vamadeva! Your divine Darshan has blessed my wretched soul, my entire existence and knowledge.'

Thereafter, the Brahmin Sudanta again said - 'O great sage! I have no son! What would be my fate upon death? O greatest among Yogis! Please tell me what fate awaits the person who does not have a son of his own?'

Sage Vamadeva said - 'O great Brahmin! You have always been a righteous man in your life. However, you should know the sin that you committed to deserve such fate. You are the official priest of Brihadratha, the king of Avanti. Therefore, you have committed the same sin that your king has committed. Because the glorious Vrat of Chaturthi Tithi has been forsaken by the entire human race, all people of the world have become devoid of the four aims of human life, known as Purushartha, that is Dharma (righteousness), Artha (wealth), Kama (desire) and Moksha (liberation). Although you and the king have always followed the path of Dharma, the abandonment of Chaturthi Vrat has given you this great suffering in your life.'

Upon hearing such words from Sage Vamadeva, Sudanta again entreated - 'O reverent sage! Please enlighten me about the nature of this Vrat and how this Vrat bestows the person with all four aims of human life. Also, please tell me how a person who has abandoned this Vrat suffers in his life. Kindly describe the Mahatmya of this glorious Vrat.'"

Sage Vashishtha said - "O Dasharatha! When Sudanta asked such questions about the Chaturthi Vrat, the greatest among Yogis, Sage Vamadeva described the complete Mahatmya of Chaturthi Vrat. Upon listening to the Mahatmya, Sudanta felt exceedingly astonished. Thereafter, to understand the true nature of Lord Ganesha, Sudanta again asked - 'O great sage! Please enlighten me about the true essence of Lord Ganesha, who is the master of Gana. Kindly describe His form to me. After learning about His form, I will meditate upon Lord Ganesha every day.'

Sage Vamadeva said - 'O noble Brahmin Sudanta! You must listen to the great teachings of Lord Ganesha, which will guide you on the path to becoming a true devotee of Lord Ganapati. In earlier times, I performed hard penance to propitiate Lord Ganesha. O fortunate one! I devoted myself in such an intense penance that the entire Universe became affected by its ferocity. I developed the will to suppress my urges and learned to control my mind. However, when I still did not find peace in anything, I took refuge at the feet of Lord Shiva, who is worshipped by all Yogis.'

Lord Shiva asked me - 'O Vamadeva! Tell me what is the purpose of your visit? Please tell me everything that is bothering you without any hesitation. Be assured that I will help you.' I joined my hands and entreated thus - 'O Mahadeva! Please enlighten me about the path to achieve absolute Yoga Shanti, that is, Yogic peace.'"

Now, Sage Vashishtha said to King Dasharatha - "O king! Upon hearing the request of great Yogi Vamadeva, Lord Shiva, who is the origin of all Yogas and follower of Ganapatya tradition, again said to Sage Vamadeva - 'O great sage! You must regard Lord Ganesha as the bestower of absolute Yoga Shanti. When self-realisation is attained, then strive to embody the knowledge that is accomplished through the syllable Gakara. The realisation of the Nakara syllable occurs through detachment. Lord Ganesha, who is the manifestation of Yoga Himself, is the Lord of both the syllables "Ga" and "Na". Thus, Lord Ganesha, who is the very embodiment of Yoga Shanti, bestows peace even upon peace itself.

Saying thus, Lord Shiva bestowed Ekakshara Mantra, i.e., one-syllable Mantra upon Sage Vamadeva by following the proper rituals. Thereafter, I bowed down before Lord Shiva and retired to the forest to immerse myself in the meditation and worship of Lord Ganesha. Lord Ganesha acknowledged my devotion by granting me Yoga Shanti. Afterward, I became known in the entire Universe as a Yogi. Even after attaining Yoga Shanti, I remained absorbed in the meditation and worship of Lord Ganesha.

After ten years had passed, Lord Ganesha appeared at my hermitage to grant me the boon and said in a thunderous voice just like the clouds roar in the sky - 'O Vamadeva! I am extremely happy with your penance; thus, you must ask for anything that your heart desires. O great sage! I will fulfil your every wish because I am exceedingly satisfied with your devotion.' Upon hearing such kind words of Lord Ganesha, I got up from my deep meditation and stood before Him reverently. I worshipped Him and sang hymns in His praise.

Pleased with devotion and the hymns that I sang, Lord Ganesha again commanded me to ask for any boon that my heart desires. I reverently said - 'O Gajanana Ganesha! Please grant me your Bhakti in accordance with Ganapatya tradition. Apart from this I have no other wish. O Lord! If you are pleased with me, then bless me with your eternal devotion as a boon.' Lord Ganesha granted me my wish by saying "Tathastu" and disappeared from sight and I became the most devout devotee of Lord Ganapati. O great Brahmin! From that moment I attained absolute peace. Therefore, you must worship Lord Ganesha, it would certainly bless you with eternal peace. Thereafter, Sage Vamadeva bestowed Ekakshara Mantra upon Sudanta by following the proper rituals and disappeared from sight."

Sage Vashishtha said - 'O king! After receiving the Mantra, Brahmin Sudanta returned to his town and narrated the whole account to the King Brihadratha. The king, with the advice of Sudanta, announced that every citizen of his kingdom shall observe the Vrat of Chaturthi Tithi. Thereafter, Sudanta was honoured by the king for his guidance and dedicated his life to the devotion of Lord Ganesha. Thereafter, the first Chaturthi Tithi that occurred was Pausha Shukla Paksha Chaturthi Tithi. The king, along with the people of his kingdom, observed the Chaturthi Vrat with great devotion. With the blessing of that Vrat, Sudanta's wife got pregnant and gave birth to a beautiful son who lived a long life.

After this incident, every human being on Earth observed the glorious Vrat of Lord Ganesha on both Shukla Paksha and Krishna Paksha Chaturthi Tithi. By the virtue of this great Vrat, all citizens of the kingdom got rid of their illnesses and led a happy and prosperous life. Upon death, they went to the abode of Lord Ganesha, Swananda. The priest of the king, Brahmin Sudanta, also became revered among Yogis as a virtue of his service and dedication to Yoga. All Yogis began worshipping and respecting him. King Brihadratha became an ardent devotee of Lord Ganesha and immersed in His devotion."

Sage Vashishtha said - "O King Dasharatha! I have thus described the glorious Mahatmya of Pausha Shukla Paksha Chaturthi Vrat which bestows the person with all their heart desires. Now, O honourable one! Listen to another Mahatmya regarding this Vrat. In ancient times, there lived an immensely miserly and greedy Vaishya man. However, that Vaishya man was extremely hardworking despite being greedy. Once, thieves broke into his house with the intention of burglary. They attacked him with a weapon and robbed all his valuables and savings. The Vaishya man could not endure the attack and lost consciousness. When he regained consciousness, feeling aggrieved, he went to the forest and began to cry inconsolably.

By divine coincidence, that day was Chaturthi Tithi of Pausha Shukla Paksha. In distress, the Vaishya man did not eat any food or drink water that day. When the night fell, he could not sleep because of the pain and thus he remained awake the whole night. Because of his injury, that greedy man died the next day on the Panchami Tithi.

O king! Thus, although inadvertently, that Vaishya man observed the Chaturthi Vrat. And by the virtue of the Vrat, upon death he received the Darshan of Lord Ganesha in Swananda and ultimately attained oneness with Brahman, i.e., became Brahmabhuta. Countless human beings have lived a prosperous life by observing this auspicious Vrat and attained liberation upon death. Despite this, it is impossible to describe the glory of this Vrat completely. Therefore, whoever listens to or reads this sacred Mahatmya of the Pausha Shukla Paksha Chaturthi Vrat attains all the desires of their heart."