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Om Sree Gurubhyo Namaha
SREE SATHYANAARAAYANA VRATHA KATHAA
(The following stories highlighting the significance and importance of Sathya Naaraayana Vratha, an integral part of the Sathya Naaraayana Pooja and form the second part of the Pooja. The first part comprises of Poojas to Lord Ganesha, to Navagrahas, to Ashtadhikpaalakaas, to Panchalokapaalakaas and to Lord Sathyanaaraayana. The Vratha Kathaa is divided into five chapters.)
CHAPTER 1
Once, Shounak and 88,000 other rishis assembled at the forest Naimisharanyaa and asked Maharishi Sootha, the narrator of the Puraanaas, " Oh! Maharishi, please tell us how mankind can attain salvation ?". Maharishi Sootha replied: " Once Naarada Muni asked Lord Vishnu , the consort of Lakshmi, the same question. I will tell you what Lord Vishnu told Naarada, so listen carefully." Once, Naarada, during one of his sojourns to the various worlds, came to earth. There he saw the people suffering as a result of their past deeds. To alleviate their sufferings and bring about salvation, Naarada travelled to Vishnu Loka. There he found Lord Vishnu adorned with Conch, Chakra, Gadhaa and Lotus in His four hands and a garland around His neck. Naarada spoke humbly: " Oh, Supreme Lord, the Saviour of the destitute and the troubled, I surrender at Thy feet." Lord Vishnu asked: "Naarada , why have you come here ? Tell me what you want and I will fulfuill your wishes." Naarada replied: "Oh, Bhagavaan, people on earth are suffering in many ways as a result of their own past sinful deeds. Please bestow Thy grace and reveal to me as to how they can be helped." Lord Vishnu replied," Oh, Naarada, mankind can rid itself of all its sorrows by performing a Pooja called Sathyanaaraayana Pooja. This Pooja when performed according to religious rites will bring happiness, peace of mind and wealth in this life and salvation beyond." On hearing this, Naarada was filled with joy and addressing Lord Vishnu thus: " Oh, Lord, in Your infinite grace, please tell me the details of the Pooja that you just mentioned, how and when to perform it and who has performed it before." Lord Vishnu answered: " This Pooja can be performed any month on a full-moon day. One must gather his friends and relatives, perform the Pooja with devotion and offer fruits, flowers, ghee, milk, yogurt, butter, wheat flour, sugar and honey to the Lord. After the Pooja is over, he must read the Sathyanaayana Kathaa and distribute the prasaad to everybody. If the Pooja is thus performed, it will bring fulfillment of one’s wishes. Particularly, in the Kaliyuga, this Pooja brings contentment."
CHAPTER 2
Maharishi Sootha continued addressing the assembled rishis, " Oh Rishis, I will tell you, who all observed the Sathyanaaraayana Pooja in the past. Once, there lived a very poor brahmin in the beautiful city of Kaasi. Plagued by acute hunger,—he used to wander about here and there everyday. Lord Vishnu took the form of an old man, appeared before the poor brahmin and asked: " Friend, why are you wandering aimlessly ?" The poor brahmin replied, "Sir. I am a very poor man. Unable to bear Ihe pangs of hunger, I beg for alms. Sir, if you know a way out of this misery, please tell me." Whereupon, Lord Vishnu, who was in the guise of an old man, replied, " Oh, Brahmin, Lord Sathyanaaraayana grants His devotees’ wishes and removes their sorrows. So you should perform His Pooja and reap its benefit." Lord Vishnu then explained the details of the Sathyanaaraayana Vratha to the poor brahmin and disappeared.
The poor brahmin immediately resolved to perform the Pooja. After a sleepless night, he got up early in the morning and went to beg for alms, his mind fixed only on one thing, namely the Pooja. That day he got a lot of money with which he bought fruits, milk, yogurt and honey and performed the Pooja with his relatives and friends. With Lord Naaraayana’s grace, he shed his poverty and lived a contented life. Every month on the full-moon day he performed the Pooja and finally attained Moksha (Salvation). Maharishi Sootha thus told the assembled rishis the story which originally was narrated by Lord Vishnu to Naarada Muni. The rishis then addressed Maharishi Sootha: "Oh, the Great One, please tell us in detail who else performed the Pooja." Maharishi Sootha continued: "One day when the poor brahmin from Kaasi was observing the Sathyanaaraayana Vratha, a wood-cutter entered his house and asked for water. Seeing the brahmin perform the Pooja, the wood-cutter inquired what the Pooja was about and what good it would bring. The brahmin, who had been bestowed with Lord Naaraayana’s grace, spoke:
" This is called Sathyanaaraayana Vratha. Anyone who observes the Vratha will get all the riches. I myself have been bestowed with wealth." The wood-cutter was delighted to hear this. He learned the proper way to perform the Pooja, ate the Prasaad that was offered and went away.
With Lord Sathyanaaraayana in his mind, the wood-cutter resolved that he would observe the Vratha with whatever he was going to make by selling firewood that day. He went to that part of the city where rich people lived, sold the firewood and made twice the normal profit. Pleased with his luck, the wood-cutter bought bananas, sugar, milk, ghee, yogurt, honey and wheat flour and performed the Sathyanaaraayana Pooja with his friends and relatives. By Lord Naaraayana’ s grace, he acquired enormous wealth and lived comfortably and attained Moksha.
CHAPTER 3
In the olden days there lived a wise king by the name Ulkamukha. He had mastered his senses and always spoke the truth. He used to go to the temple every day and give gifts to the brahmins. His lotus-faced wife was a pure and pious woman. One day, the royal couple was performing the Sathanaaraayana Pooia on the banks of the river. A merchant called Saadhu sailed by. Seeing the king perform some Pooja, saadhu stopped his boat, got off and addressed the king humbly: " Oh, King, would you tell me what you are doing with such devotion and concentration ?" The king replied, "Oh, Saadhu, I have no children. In order that I may be blessed with children, I am worshipping the Almighty Lord Sathyanaaraayana." On hearing this Saadhu spoke humbly: "Oh, king please tell me how to perform the Sathyanaaraayana Vratha, as I too have no children." The king told him all the details. Saadhu returned homeand with great joy told his wife, Leelaavathi, that they should perform Sathyanaaraayana Pooja which will fulfill their desire to have children. He then resolved to perform the Pooja after the child was born. Then by divine grace, Saadhu’s wife conceived and in due course, a beautiful daughter was born to them. They named the child Kalaavathi.
One day, Leelaavathi reminded her husband of his promise to perform Pooja. Saadhu told his wife that he would do the Pooja at the time of his daughter’s wedding and got busy with his work. In the meantime, Kalaavathi grew up and blossomed into a lovely girl. Saadhu sent out messengers to find a suitable bridegroom for his daughter. One of his messengers found a good-natured and handsome boy from Kanchanaa Nagar. Saadhu found the boy to be suitable match for Kalaavathi and celebrated his daughter’s wedding with great pomp and show. But Saadhu completely forgot about the Sathyanaaraayana Pooja and thus angered Lord Sathyanaaraayana.
Then one day Saadhu went on a business trip with his son-in-law. He stopped to trade at Ratnapura that was ruled by King Chandraketu. Lord Sathyanaaraayana placed a curse on Saadhu. One day some thieves robbed the king’s treasury and were running away. The king’s soldiers followed them in hot pursuit. The frightened thieves threw all the loot near Saadhu and escaped. Finding the king’s treasure near Saadhu and his son-in-law, the king’s soldiers arrested them and brought them before the king. The king ordered them to be chained and thrown into the prison. Because of Lord Naaraayana’s curse, nobody even listened to what Saadhu had to say in his defence. King Chandraketu also had all their merchandise confiscated. Lord Naaraayana’s curse did not spare Saadhu’s wife. Some robbers broke into her house and Leelaavathi lost everything.
One day, Kalaavathi was very hungry and ran out of the house. She wandered here and there and stopped at a house where Sathyanaaraayana Pooja was being performed. She stayed at that place until the Pooja was finished and ate the prasaad that was offered. When she reached home, it was late night. Leelaavathi asked her where she had been. Kalaavathi told her mother that she was listening to Sathyanaaraayana Katha in somebody’s house Leelaavathi at once remembered her. husband’s promise to perform the Pooja and resolved to observe the Sathyanaaraayana Vratha herself. She collected all her relatives and friends and Lord Sathyanaaraayana was pleased with Leelaavathi’s prayers. He appeared before King Chandraketu in his dream and told him to release the two merchants from prison as they were not the real thieves. If the king failed to do so, Lord Naaraayana warned that his kingdom, wealth and children would all be destroyed. Next morning, the King told his minister about his dream and ordered Saadhu and his son-in-law to be released. The latter were frightened and stood before the king with bowed heads. The king talked to them gently and said, " You two have suffered a great deal because of your fate, but there is nothing to fear." The king returned their merchandise, gave them new clothes and lots of gifts and bade them good-bye.
CHAPTER 4
Saadhu and his son-in-law loaded their boat with riches given to them by the king and sailed homeward. Lord Sathyanaaraayana wanted to test Saadhu further. He took the form of an ascetic with a trident, appeared before Saadhu and asked him what he was carrying in his boat. Without realizing that the ascetic was indeed Lord Naaraayana in disguise, Saadhu laughed mockingly and said, " You brahmin, were you thinking of stealing my things ? We do not have any valuables in the boat except vessels." Whereupon Lord Naaraayana replied, "Oh, Saadhu, so be it." The ascetic then departed in great haste and stood by the seashore. When Saadhu went to his boat, he discovered to his horror that the boat was filled with vessels just as he had falsely told the ascetic. Saadhu swooned at the sight but he was revived by his son-in-law who spoke: " This must be the curse of the ascetic. He must be a mystic. Let us go to him and ask his forgiveness." The two merchants then went to the seashore where the ascetic was meditating. They fell- at his feet and repeatedly begged for his forgiveness.
Pleased by Saadhu’s devotion , the Lord said, " Saadhu, do not weep. You suffer because you have broken your promise time and again." On hearing this Saadhu prayed to God, " Oh Lord, even Brahma and other Devaas drowned in your Maayaa, cannot comprehend your various forms ? How can I, with my limited knowledge, comprehend your various forms ? I pray according to my limited knowledge. Please show me your true form and bless me." Upon hearing his prayer, God was pleased and granted his wishes, restoring his merchandise in the boat, and disappeared. The two merchants then joyfully sailed homeward. On reaching their hometown, they sent a messenger to their wives informing them of their safe arrival.
Just at that time, Leelaavathi and Kalaavathi were performing the Sathyanaaraayana Vratha. Leelaavathi quickly finished the Pooja and asked her daughter to do so too. She then hurried to the seashore to meet her husband. Kaiaavathi, in her hurry to meet her husband, did not eat the prasaad. This attitude of hers angered Lord Sathyanaaraayana. He caused the ship and her husband to drown in the sea. Not finding her husband, Kalaavathi started weeping. All were wonderstuck and friolitpnpd Saadhu was at a loss to know what to do. Thinking that it was Lord Naaraayana’s Maayaa. he announced to everybody that he would perform Sathyanaaraayana Pooja and prayed to Lord Naaraayana again and again. At this, Lord Sathyanaaraayana, the savior of the sinners, was very pleased and said, "Oh Saadhu, your daughter did not eat the prasaad in her haste to see her husband, so I made him and the boat disappear. Let her go home, take the prasaad and return." On hearing this, Kalaavathi rushed home and took the prasaad. When she returned to the seashore, she found to her joy her husband and the boat. Saadhu then returned home happily with his relatives and performed the Sathyanaaraayana Pooja every full-moon day. With God’s grace, he enjoyed all the comforts in this world and finally attained salvation.
CHAPTER 5
Maharishi Sootha continued: " Once there was a king called Thungadhwaja who underwent a lot of misery after refusing the Sathyanaaraayana prasaad." One day, after hunting, he was resting under a shady tree. Some cowherds were happily performing Sathyanaaraayana Pooja nearby. The king, in his vanity, refused the prasaad they offered. When he reached his palace, he found that his kingdom, his 100 sons, his wealth and everything was destroyed. Then it occurred to him that Lord Sathyanaaraayana was probably angry with him. He went back to the cowherds, prostrated himself before Lord Sathyanaaraayana and performed the Pooja with great devotion. Lord Sathyanaaraayana showered His blessings and he found that his kingdom, his 100 sons, his wealth and everything was retuned as it was.
He lived happily and entered Vaikuntha after death.
Maharishi Sootha said, " Oh holy men, I have narrated to you the Sathyanaaraayana Katha which was originally told by Lord Vishnu to Naarada Muni. By observing this Vratha, mankind can attain salvation. In this Kaliyuga, observance of the Vratha can lead to fulfillment of one’s wishes." Thus ended the narration of Maharishi Sootha after which Shounak and the other rishis returned to their respective abodes.