Adhyaya 38

In PP.6.38, the sanctity of Ekādaśī and Dvādaśī is extolled, especially when they coincide with auspicious nakṣatras. The chapter names Jayā (Ekādaśī with Punarvasu), Vijayā (Śukla-dvādaśī with Śravaṇa), and Jayantī (the sin-destroying Dvādaśī, particularly with Puṣya). It then lays out vrata discipline: the differences between full fasting, nakta, and ekabhakta; gradations of purity and bathing; restraints in conduct; worship, lamp-offering, vigil, and dāna. Ekādaśī is taught to be equally meritorious in both fortnights, with careful timing rules regarding “piercing,” Trispṛśā Dvādaśī, and proper pāraṇa. The origin narrative tells of Mura’s oppression of the devas and Indra’s appeal to Viṣṇu with praise and refuge-seeking. Viṣṇu battles and withdraws to a cave; from His own body a maiden-śakti manifests as Ekādaśī and slays Mura. Viṣṇu grants her boons so that devotees who honor Ekādaśī and the great Mahādvādaśī may be blessed with dharma, prosperity, and mokṣa.