Once there was a good king. He was wedded to truth, good conduct and sense-control. Every day he used to visit the temple, worship the Lord, and distribute alms to the needy. Once he was performing Sri Satyanarayan Vrata on the banks of a river when there came a merchant in a ship loaded with precious goods. He approached the king and was curious to know about the puja and wanted to understand the reasons and fruits of performing the ritual.

The king explained, "My friend, what we are doing is a Vrata called Sri Satyanarayana Puja. We are worshiping Lord Narayana or Maha Vishnu".

The merchant said, "Please tell me in detail how to perform this Vrata. As I have not been fortunate to have a child even after many years of marriage, I would like to pray for a child." The king told him about the Vrata in detail and the merchant returned home. He narrated it all to his wife and they took a resolution to perform this Vrata and fast once they have a child.

Sometime later his wife Lilavati became pregnant and delivered a girl who was named Kalavati.  Lilavati reminded her husband about the Vrata but he was quite casual about it and kept on postponing it. On Lilavati’s persuasion, he convinced her that they would now perform the puja on the auspicious occasion of their daughter’s wedding. Years went by and his daughter grew of age and was ready to be married. The merchant found a suitable groom and married his daughter off, and in all the preparations and celebrations, again forgot to perform the Vrata.

The merchant and his wife Lilavati had not kept their promise they had given to the Lord twenty years ago. They developed a habit of saying things and not keeping their promises. The merchant had all that he desired for but the merchant had forgotten to worship God and do good deeds of charity. The Lord now wanted to remind him.

The law of Karma applies to all living beings. Due to all this wrong karmas their family had been doing, it was now time to pay for the wrong karmas and go through some difficulties. They witnessed a big loss in their business, and started getting health problems. The merchant’s wife remembered that they are paying for their own wrong deeds and so she took the first step of correcting it.

They decided to do the Satyanarayan Vrata, reconsidered that 'God is All,' and started following the rules of living righteously. Gradually, their conditions improved and they all lived happily again.

Moral: Promises are meant to be kept. Always keep your word. Think before talking and giving your word. Once you say something try your best to keep your word, do not become selfish and forget what you had told.

[Sri Satyanarayan Katha as retold by Babita Thakker]