31) KURMA-DWADASHI VRATA

This particular austerity is dedicated to the worship of lord Kurma- the incarnation of lord Vishnu. It is celebrated on the twelfth day of the bright half of the Hindu month ‘pausha’. The austerity which commences on the tenth day itself when a devotee is supposed to purify himself by taking a holy bath. On the following day he observes a fast and worships lord Kurma with appropriate rituals. He breaks his fast on dwadashi which marks the conclusion of the austerity. A devotee who observes a fast on this auspicious day becomes absolved of all his sins and attains salvation.

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