Vindhya parvat ke ghane van mein Krodhana naam ka ek atyant kroor vyaadh (shikaari) rehta tha. Naam ke anuroop hi uska svabhaav tha — krodhi, hinsak aur nirdayi. Usne apna sampoorn jeevan jeev-hatya, chori, jhooth, madya aur anya ghor paapon mein bita diya. Dharma, daya ya pooja-paath se uska door tak koi naata na tha.
Jeevan bhar paap karte-karte jab uska antkaal nikat aaya, to use lene saakshaat Yamdoot aa pahunche. Apni mrityu aur narak ki yaatnaaon ki kalpana se woh thar-thar kaanpne laga. Bhay aur pashchaataap se vyaakul hokar woh apne praan bachaane aur uddhaar ka maarg khojne, paas hi tapasya kar rahe Angira rishi ki sharan mein bhaaga.
Rishi ke charanon mein girkar usne gidgidaate hue kaha — "He muniraaj! Maine jeevan bhar ghor paap kiye hain. Ab Yamdoot mujhe lene aaye hain. Koi aisa saral upaay bataaiye jisse mere itne paap chhoot jaayein aur meri sadgati ho." Daya-mayi rishi ne use sant-saral upaay diya — "He vyaadh, aaj Ashwin maas ke Shukla paksha ki Papankusha Ekadashi hai. Yeh Ekadashi paapon ke liye ankush (goad) ke samaan hai. Shraddha se is vrat ka upvaas rakh, Bhagwan Vishnu (Padmanaabh) ka naam-smaran kar aur raatri-jagran kar."
Shikaari ne sachche hriday se pashchaataap karte hue, rishi ke bataaye anusaar Papankusha Ekadashi ka vrat kiya, Vishnu ka naam japa aur jagran kiya. Us ek hi vrat ke atul punya-prabhav se uske jeevan bhar ke saare paap bhasm ho gaye. Yamdoot use chhodkar khaali haath laut gaye, aur antkaal mein woh paapi shikaari bhi divya vimaan par baithkar Vishnu-lok ko prasthaan kar gaya.
Seekh: Papankusha Ekadashi sikhaati hai ki sachche pashchaataap aur shraddha se kiya gaya ek hi vrat jeevan bhar ke paapon ke pahaad ko bhi nasht kar sakta hai. Bhagwan ki sharan mein koi bhi, kabhi bhi, der nahi hoti.