Amalaki Ekadashi
Worship Of Indian Gooseberry Tree
Amalaki Ekadasi is observed by the devotees of Lord Vishnu with utmost devotion on the eleventh day of the waxing moon, which falls between February and March every year and also it appears between Maha Shivaratri and Holi festival. It is also known as Amalaka Ekadasi and Phalguna Shukla Paksha Ekadasi. All the ardent devotee of Lord Vishnu celebrates this day in high esteem. Amla trees are worshipped on Amalaki Ekadasi day in an exclusive manner. Amla tree or Amalaka tree is also referred to as Indian gooseberry tree. It is believed that Lord Vishnu resides in the tree and that’s the reason why Lord Vishnu’s devotees observe the day. They seek divine blessings of their Lord on this special day of Amalaki Ekadasi.
Significance Of Amalaki Ekadasi
Amalaki Ekadasi is an auspicious day that holds more significance compared to other Ekadasi days and other festivals. Amalaki Ekadasi is also considered as the beginning of grand celebrations of the most popular festival Holi. On this day, devotees worship Amla tree considering it as Lord Vishnu and also offer sincere prayers to Lord.
Goddess Maha Lakshmi is considered to be boundless. People offer their holy prayers to the Goddess of wealth on this day. And also, it is believed that Lord Krishna, an eighth incarnation of Lord Vishnu along with Radha is known to reside near the Amla tree. People get peace of mind whenever they worship Amla – Indian goose berry tree. The Amla tree holds the most significant health benefits and also it provides prosperity and good health. It is widely used for its medicinal properties in the manufacturing industry because it contains Vitamin C.
Why Worshipping Lord Dhanvantri On Amalaki Ekadasi Is Very Auspicious?
Why Amalaki Ekadasi Is Being Observed
Once there was a king named ‘Chitrasen’. He laid emphasis on fasting and he had good faith on Amalaki Ekadasi. People in his kingdom, also regularly observe the Ekadasi fasting. One day, King Chitrasen went into the forest. At the time, some asuras of forest attacked him with their killing weapon. But, not a single weapon of the demons hurt the king due to the boon he got from the observance of Ekadasi fasting. All the deadly weapons changed to colourful flowers by the grace of Lord Vishnu.
Then large number of demons gathered and abused the King physically. At that time, a divine power came out from the body of the King and destroyed all the demons. He was surprised when he came to consciousness and found all the demons dead. The King wondered who had killed them. A revelation broke out and said, Oh my beloved King! These all asuras have been destroyed due to your Amalaki Ekadasi fast observance. The divine power of Amalaki Ekadasi appeared from your body and destroyed all demons. And the divine power had gone back into your body after killing all the demons. The King became very happy and he narrated the importance of Amalaki Ekadasi fasting to everyone.
Rituals On Amalaki Ekadasi
On this great day, worshipping Lord Dhanvantri, the first physician of the Vedas (the twelfth avatar of Lord Vishnu), is considered auspicious. He emerged with a pot of nectar of immortality or elixir of life after continuous efforts to churn the ocean by the gods and demons. He is the original exponent of Indian traditional form of medicine, Ayurveda. By offering special rituals to Lord Dhanvantri on Amalaki Ekadasi day, you will get relief from physical, psychological and mental sufferings and also it helps to lead a happy and prosperous life and increase your life span to a great extent.
