Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 10
उपवासी नरो भूत्वा यस्तु कुर्यात्प्रजागरम् । मुच्यते सर्वपापेभ्यो गायंस्तस्य शुभां कथाम्
upavāsī naro bhūtvā yastu kuryātprajāgaram | mucyate sarvapāpebhyo gāyaṃstasya śubhāṃ kathām
जो मनुष्य उपवास करून रात्रिजागरण करतो, तो त्या प्रभूची शुभ कथा गात गात सर्व पापांतून मुक्त होतो।
Mārkaṇḍeya
Tirtha: Bala–Keśava-tīrtha on Revā
Type: kshetra
Scene: Night at the riverbank shrine: lamps flicker, devotees seated in a circle singing Hari-kathā, some standing in vigil with folded hands; the river glimmers under moonlight; the deity shrine of Bala–Keśava illuminated.
FAQs
Devotional discipline—fasting, vigil, and sacred singing—purifies the devotee and is portrayed as a powerful means of pāpa-kṣaya (removal of sin).
The practice is taught in the flow of the Yojaneśvara tīrtha-māhātmya, implying these vows are especially meritorious when observed there.
Upavāsa (fasting), prajāgara (night vigil), and gāna/kīrtana of the Lord’s auspicious kathā.