Harishayani Ekadashi Wrata/Eid Al Adha/Chaturmaas Wrata Aarambha

Harishyani Ekadashi, which falls on the Ashadha Shuklapaksha, is described in the Vedic scriptures as an important Ekadashi. Since the creator Lord Hari i.e. Vishnu is going to sleep in the Ksheer Sagar for four months from this Ekadashi, this Ekadashi is also called Harishyani Ekadashi or Devashyani and Asare Ekadashi. It is believed that people the lord Vishnu who sleeps on this Ekadashi wake up only on Haribodhini Ekadashi of the month of Kartik. The sleeping time of lord Vishnu is therefore cited as chaturmas, or the four months era.

Let me simplify Chaturmasa for you, shall I?

Tulsi Planting Day
Harishyani Ekadashi is also called Tulsi Planting Day. Basil seeds sown on Nirjala Ekadashi are worshiped by sowing on this day. The fasts of Shravan, Ganesh Chaturthi, Haritalika Tij, Rishi Panchami, Nagpanchami, Navratri, Kojagrat Purnima, Govardhan Puja, etc., which are performed during the four months of Lord Vishnu's sleep, are the major fasts of Chaturmasa.

The story of Harishyani Ekadashi
Mandata, a religious king, ruled a prosperous kingdom in the ancient period, but three consecutive years of drought caused problems in the kingdom, the rivers dried up, and the trees lost their greenery. King Mandata thought that Lord Narayan, the god of rain, was angry with him due to some mistake of his, but he could not find out the mistake he had made. One day, the king meets a sage named Angira and learns about the glory of Harishyani Ekadashi as a solution to the problem.

No matter what the legends and stories say, good and true deeds are an invaluable asset of human life. Keep moving towards the path of truth, progress will be with you.

Bakra- Eid, a national holiday in Nepal

The festival is observed on the 70th day of Eid-ul-Fitr or Ramadan and today under many names, 'Eid U Zoha' or 'Il Ud Adha'. According to the Islamic calendar 'Hijri Samvat', this festival is celebrated on the 10th day of the new month 'Jul Hijja'.

Muslim communities across the globe are observing this divine day with utmost dedication. In the Islamic community, on this day, everyone gets up in the morning, takes a bath, cleanses themselves, goes to open spaces or mosques to offer prayers, and embraces and exchanges good wishes. There is a tradition of sacrificing goats, bullocks, and buffaloes after returning home from prayers. The meat of the sacrificed animal is divided into three parts, one part for oneself, and another part for one's close friend, and the last third for the poor and helpless.

According to the Slim Scriptures, about four thousand years ago today, Hazrat Ibrahim saw his God asking him to scarify his most beloved object in a dream. With a pure dedication in his heart, he now decides to scarify his most beloved son for the god. The next day, in reality, he sacrifices his son but later his son was saved by the grace of God. The dream was to examine his level of dedication. Bakhrid is commemorated to redefine the real meaning of scarifying, the purpose of the sacrifice is to awaken the feeling that life and death are all for God.

It is considered necessary for every Muslim to make the Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia once in a lifetime, for which there is a fixed time. The Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca from today is also the day of the formal conclusion of this year's pilgrimage.

On this day, people's attention is also drawn to the collective need and each person is determined to fulfill it according to his/her status. It is better to return home by another route than the one from which Idgah came. The purpose of doing so is to ensure that no part of the settlement is emptied of the bustle of the people and the praise of Allah.

This festival is celebrated for three days and in this way, the Muslims who are not allowed to perform Qurbani send money to their village and other places of proximity. Baker's Eid should be stopped only by associating it with Kurbani, meaning taking life, but also respecting the value of life. Today's festival is a festival of harmony and good wishes. Happy Eid-ul-Zoha to all Muslim brothers and sisters!

Chaturmaas Wrata Aarambha
Chaturmasa commences on Asadh Dwadashi and ends on Kartik Dashami, a day after Ashadh Ekadashi and a day before Kartik Ekadashi. Srimannarayana who is sleepless, hungerless, and is equipped with a divine and Paramatma soul pretends to sleep from this Ekadashi, which is acknowledged as Yogi Nindra, he sleeps till Kartika Dwadashi and the sleeping tenure is exactly 4 mounts which is Chaturmasa or the period of four months. No marriages or upanayana will be performed during these four months, Sri Hari will be in deep sleep and any auspicious functions performed during this time will be ignored by the supreme soul and divine power, as per Skanda Purana. Adding logics into these restrictions, these are the super busy time for farmers where they plant paddy, irrigate, clean the fields and protect their fields. This is also a busy time for animal farming, greenery, and newer leaf in the trees and the prevailing monsoon makes community functions harder. Logically, these busiest months of the year finds harder to accommodate auspicious functions like marriage, Upanayana, and all, so Chaturmasa deals with this and restricts them with religious logic. Chaturmasa states everyone to focus on work and productivity as their god is sleeping. Everyone should observe Chaturmasa irrespective of caste, creed, gender, women irrespective of their menstruation period and age, this means everyone should focus on their profession and agriculture in these four months.

What is Ekadashi ?
According to the Vedic Sanatan Hindu calendar 'Panchang', the time it takes for a full moon to reappear in the new moon is divided into fifteen equal periods and each moving time part of the moon is called a date, lunar date.

The eleventh day of the date fixed according to the position of the moon is called Ekadashi. In Vedic Sanatan Hinduism, Ekadashi is considered as a day to worship Lord Vishnu. The glory of Ekadashis is clearly described in Bhavishyottar Purana. It is customary to observe a brat, chant hymns, listen to Ekadashi Mahatma Stories, perform Hoom and vajan etc. 

Suyog Dhakal