Holidays & Observances: Devshayani Ekadasi

For all the posts in this Holidays & Observances series, go here.

For prologue on Ekadasi, go to the very first post here.

Prologue: I have been meaning to write a series about Holidays and Observances that we (my family and friends) follow in both India (my birth country) and USA (my adopted country). This series is dedicated to those. On a side note, perhaps I might witness some of the celebrations from other countries as well that may get their way into this series. 🙂

The second Ekadasi for the month of June is Devshayani Ekadasi which was on 29th this year. This is the day Lord Vishnu starts his four month long slumber called as the Chaturmas (= four months). He goes to sleep in Ksheersagar (= the cosmic ocean milk) on a bed made of his coiled serpent, Sheshnag.

Followers worship Lord Vishnu with yellow flowers, sun and lamps. Sweet dishes made using pure ghee is a traditional offering to Lord Vishnu. And one recites Vishnu Sahasranama in honor of the Lord. As I mentioned in the very first Ekadasi post, if you put the religion aside, allowing your body to fast twice a month is an excellent way of cleansing and detoxifying to aid in repair and rejuvenation.