Putraja Ekadasi occurs on the dark fortnight of the tamil month Aavani
(Aug-Sep).
There once lived a king named Mahijitha who ruled the kingdom of Mahismathipuri. The king did not have Putra Bakiam (Putra means son) and had no children. One day the king called upon all the learned men in his palace and asked them why he did not have any children even though he did not commit any sins during his life time. The king's advisers could not give a proper answer and they set out to various ashrams to find the answer from Rishis. Finally they met Lomasa Rishi and they told him about their king's problem and wanted a solution. Lomasa Rishi told them to ask their king to observe Putraja Ekadasi.
He further went on and said that in his previous birth the king was born as a merchant who travelled several villages and towns to sell his goods. Once while travelling he was very thirsty and he arrived at a pond in the outskirts of a village. When he was about to drink the water, there came a cow and its calf which were also very thirsty. The merchant chased away the cow and the calf and drank the water. That is the reason he doesn't have Putira Bakiam in this birth, explained the Rishi. The learned men went back to the palace and explained the whole story to the king. The king then observed Putraja Ekadasi and was blessed with kids.
Ekadasi Index
