Fasts and Fasting
1.123.11 “Fasting on Ekadasi days (eleventh day) in both halves of the month shall be observed. It removes sins and wards off hell – nay it enables one to attain Visnuloka and gives everything desired.
1.123.12-13 “For authentic fasts, the eleventh and twelfth phases of moon [tithi] should cover the full day from sunrise to sunset and the thirteenth phase should be at sunrise. The Parana [taking food] should be on the twelfth day. This vrata can be performed even when there is impurity due to birth and death. If the eleventh phase covers the whole day from sunrise to sunset Lord Hari is present [suddha Ekadasi]. If part of the day is covered by the tenth phase and part by the eleventh phase, demons permeate that [viddha Ekadasi]. Fasts shall not be undertaken then.”
1.124.* Sivaratri
1.127.* Bhima Ekadasi (removes all great sins, no more birth)
1.128.6 “Wearing flower garlands, ornaments and gaudy clothes, smearing of scented unguents, washing the teeth and applying collyrium spoil the fast.”
1.128.7 “…Constant drinking of water, chewing betel leaves, sleeping during the day, gambling and sexual intercourse spoil a vrata.”
1.128.8-9 “In all vratas ten virtuous practices should be followed: forbearance, truthfulness, sympathy, charity, purity, control over the sense organs, worship of gods, sacrificial offering into the fire, contentment and non-stealing.”
1.128.13 “During Malamasa or the intercalary month many auspicious rites are not performed [for example installation of Deities, sacrifices, vratas, tonsure ceremony, second initiation, marriages, crowning of kings, etc.]
1.128.14-17 …Two phases of the moon on the same day are very auspicious such as: 2.+3., 3.+4., 4.+5., 6.+7., 8.+9. 11.+12. 14.+purnima, amavasya+1. The conjunction of tithis other than these is very frightful, destroying all previous merits.
1.141.5-8 The future line of kings in the Iksvaku race will be: …Sakya, Suddhodana [father of Gautama Buddha], Bahula [Rahula],…
1.142.19-29 story of sinful brahmana-leper and whore-monger Kausika and his chaste wife who stopped the sun from rising. Demigods on Brahma’s advice propitiated the chaste wife of Atri, Anasuya, who made her the sun rise and resuscitated Kausika, too.
1.221.23 “Even the very sight of good men purifies one. It is better than the holy places of pilgrimage. The benefit from a holy place is derived later but that from the contact of good men is immediately effective.
1.222.30 “Gruel, curd, milk, buttermilk and Krsara (mixture of jaggery, rice and gingelly seeds) can be taken even from a sudra. These together with pulse and honey can be taken from a low caste person.
1.222.49 “…During sports wearing of blue cloth is not forbidden. Nor it is forbidden as a bedsheet. An indigo dyed cloth should not be touched otherwise. Persons regularly using blue cloth will fall into hell.
1.222.63-66 “The constituents of Pancagavya are as follows: Milk taken from a gold colored cow, the cow dung of a white cow, urine of a copper colored cow, clarified butter of the milk of a blue cow and the curd of the milk of a black cow. Water added should be consecrated by Kusa grass. Eight Masas of cow’s urine, four Masas of dung, twelve Masas of milk, ten Masas of curd and five Masas of ghee form the correct proportion. This Pancagavya removes all impurities.
1.223.27 “When Tamas alone is predominant, the people utter falsehoods always, are lethargic, somnolent, seeking violent means and overwhelmed by grief, delusion, terror and wretchedness, know that to be Kali age.
1.223.28 “Then people are lustful and harsh in speech. Country is overrun by thieves and robbers. Vedas are spoiled by Pasandas (misinterpreters).
1.223.28 “Kings will be begging of the subjects. People will be overpowered by their penises and bellies. [They will be carnal minded and gluttonous.] The religious students will be divested of their rites and impure. Mendicants will turn householders.
1.223.30 “Ascetics will begin to stay in villages. Depositors will be covetous of wealth. People will be short in stature but very gluttonous. Thieves and robbers will be considered holy.
1.223.31 “Servants will leave their masters in the lurch; the ascetics will cast off their religious rite; Sudras will begin to receive daksinas and Vaisyas will turn to austerities.
1.223.32-33 “All people will be disgruntled appearing like pisacas. They will be worshiping fire, deities and guests by unjustifiable means of feeding. When Kali age sets in, people will never offer water libations to their Pitrs. They will be devoted to womenfolk and for all appearance they will not be different from Sudras, O Saunaka.
1.223.34 “Women will give birth to many children. Their good fortune will decline. If they are rebuked they will simply scratch their heads and defy all orders.
1.223.35 “Overwhelmed by heretics people will cease to worship Visnu. But, O brahmanas, though the Kali age is full of defects, there is a great benefit in it.
1.223.36-37 “In Kali, by singing songs in praise of Lord Krsna one can free oneself from the great bondage. In Krta age people have to perform sacrifices and in the Treta they have to recite japas. In the Dvapara age, by serving the Lord they can attain salvation but in Kali that is possible only by singing songs in praise of the Lord. Hence, Hari is to be contemplated upon forever and worshiped, O Saunaka.
1.225.20-21 “If a person causes any impediment to a sacrifice, act of charity or performance of a marriage he shall be reborn as a worm. If a person takes food without first offering the same to deities, manes and brahmanas, he is reborn as a crow after undergoing the hardships of hell. A man insulting his elder brother is born again as a crane.
1.225.30 “A thief of Kalapa (peacock’s plumes or a woman’s girdle or any other ornament) is reborn as an eunuch. (…) If a person steals flowers he is born as a poor beggar. If a person steals lac-juice he is born again as a lame man.
1.225.33 “A stealer of knowledge (a person who does not pay for instructions received) undergoes hardships in many hells and is born again as a dumb man.”
1.226.3-5 “The tree of Ignorance sought by the worldly minded for the sake of happiness and peace has the great basin round it in the form of riches and food grains. Its root is sin. The germinating sprout is the feeling of Egoism. The great main trunk is the feeling of ‘My-ness’. Houses, fields, etc., are its branches. Wives, sons, etc. are the tender leaves. Those who imbibe the divine Brahmarasa free from dusts (of Rajoguna) and are thornless hew it down with the axe of learning and merge themselves in the [consciousness of the] Supreme God.
1.226.10 “That is called house where one stays; that is diet whereby one sustains oneself. Similarly, that is real knowledge which is conducive to salvation. Ignorance brings about adverse results.
1.226.16 “One shall conquer the various defects in the body by means of Pranayama. By Puraka (inhalation), somnolence is to be conquered. By Kumbhaka (retention of breath), one can conquer the shivering sensation. By Recaka (exhalation), one can conquer the augmentation or excess of heat in the body.
1.227.12 “A person who has mastered all the systems of Vedanta is better than thousands of Mantrayajins (those who perform sacrifice reciting mantras). A devotee of Lord Visnu is better than ten millions of such Vedantins.
1.227.13 “Ekantins (those who are single-minded in Lord’s devotion) attain the greatest region even with their gross body. This unswerving faith in Visnu makes them identical with Him and He is fondly attached to them also.
1.227.23 “He who does not listen to the songs of praise of the divine qualities of the discus-bearing lord of lords (Visnu), is no better than a deaf man. He is to be banished from all religious activities.
1.227.33 “The worldly existence is a poisoned tree but two of its fruits are comparable even to nectar; one is devotion to Lord Kesava and the other is a chance association with His devotees.
1.228.12-20 glories of the holy name of Visnu
(13) “If a man calls out the name of the Lord even in his dream it destroys all his sins. Then what doubt is there that the sins will be removed when the name of Janardana is openly repeated?
