Skip to main content

Fifth Skandha · Chapter 22

Chapter 22

Unit 109 of 318Fifth Skandha · Chapter 22Fifth Skandha · Chapter 221 source entries

Fifth Skandha · Chapter 22

Source

व्यास उवाच पराजिताः सुराः सर्वे राज्यं शुम्भः शशास ह । एवं वर्षसहस्रं तु जगाम नृपसत्तम ॥ १ ॥ भ्रष्टराज्यास्ततो देवाश्चिन्तामापुः सुदुस्तराम् । गुरुं दुःखातुरास्ते तु पप्रच्छुरिदमादृताः ॥ २ ॥ किं कर्तव्यं गुरो ब्रूहि सर्वज्ञस्त्वं महामुनिः । उपायोऽस्ति महाभाग दुःखस्य विनिवृत्तये ॥ ३ ॥ उपचारपरा नूनं वेदमन्त्राः सहस्रशः । वाच्छितार्थकरा नूनं सूत्रैः संलक्षिताः किल ॥ ४ ॥ इष्टयो विविधाः प्रोक्ताः सर्वकामफलप्रदाः । ताः कुरुष्व मुने नूनं त्वं जानासि च तत्क्रियाः ॥ ५ ॥ विधिः शत्रुविनाशाय यथोद्दिष्टः सदागमे । तं कुरुष्वाद्य विधिवद्यथा नो दुःखसंक्षयः ॥ ६ ॥ भवेदांगिरसाद्यैव तथा त्वं कर्तुमर्हसि । दानवानां विनाशाय अभिचारं यथामति ॥ ७ ॥ बृहस्पतिरुवाच सर्वे मन्त्राश्च वेदोक्ता दैवाधीनफलाश्च ते । न स्वतन्त्राः सुराधीश तथैकान्तफलप्रदाः ॥ ८ ॥ मन्त्राणां देवता यूयं ते तु दुःखैकभाजनम् । जाताः स्म कालयोगेन किं करोमि प्रसाधनम् ॥ ९ ॥ इन्द्राग्निवरुणादीनां यजनं यज्ञकर्मसु । ते यूयं विपदं प्राप्ताः करिष्यन्ति किमिष्टयः ॥ १० ॥ अवश्यम्भाविभावानां प्रतीकारो न विद्यते । उपायस्त्वथ कर्तव्य इति शिष्टानुशासनम् ॥ ११ ॥ दैवं हि बलवत्केचित्प्रवदन्ति मनीषिणः । उपायवादिनो दैवं प्रवदन्ति निरर्थकम् ॥ १२ ॥ दैवं चैवाप्युपायश्च द्वावेवाभिमतौ नृणाम् । केवलं दैवमाश्रित्य न स्थातव्यं कदाचन ॥ १३ ॥ उपायः सर्वथा कार्यो विचार्य स्वधिया पुनः । तस्माद्‌ ब्रवीमि वः सर्वान्संविचार्य पुनः पुनः ॥ १४ ॥ पुरा भगवती तुष्टा जघान महिषासुरम् । युष्माभिस्तु स्तुता देवी वरदानं ददावथ ॥ १५ ॥ आपदं नाशयिष्यामि संस्मृता वा सदैव हि । यदा यदा वो देवेशा आपदो दैवसम्भवाः ॥ १६ ॥ प्रभवन्ति तदा कामं स्मर्तव्याहं सुरैः सदा । स्मृताहं नाशयिष्यामि युष्माकं परमापदः ॥ १७ ॥ तस्माद्धिमाचले गत्वा पर्वते सुमनोहरे । आराधनं चण्डिकायाः कुरुध्वं प्रेमपूर्वकम् ॥ १८ ॥ मायाबीजविधानज्ञास्तत्पुरश्चरणे रताः । जानाम्यहं योगबलात्प्रसन्ना सा भविष्यति ॥ १९ ॥ दुःखस्यान्तोऽद्य युष्माकं दृश्यते नात्र संशयः । तस्मिञ्छैले सदा देवी तिष्ठतीति मया श्रुतम् ॥ २० ॥ स्तुता सम्पूजिता सद्यो वाञ्छितार्थान् प्रदास्यति । निश्चयं परमं कृत्वा गच्छध्वं वै हिमालयम् ॥ २१ ॥ सुराः सर्वाणि कार्याणि सा वः कामं विधास्यति । व्यास उवाच इति तस्य वचः श्रुत्वा देवास्ते प्रययुर्गिरिम् ॥ २२ ॥ हिमालयं महाराज देवीध्यानपरायणाः । मायाबीजं हृदा नित्यं जपन्तः सर्व एव हि ॥ २३ ॥ नमश्चक्रुर्महामायां भक्तानामभयप्रदाम् । तुष्टुवुः स्तोत्रमन्त्रैश्च भक्त्या परमया युताः ॥ २४ ॥ नमो देवि विश्वेश्वरि प्राणनाथे सदानन्दरूपे सुरानन्ददे ते । नमो दानवान्तप्रदे मानवाना- मनेकार्थदे भक्तिगम्यस्वरूपे ॥ २५ ॥ न ते नामसंख्यां न ते रूपमीदृ- क्तथा कोऽपि वेदादिदेवस्वरूपे । त्वमेवासि सर्वेषु शक्तिस्वरूपा प्रजासृष्टिसंहारकाले सदैव ॥ २६ ॥ स्मृतिस्त्वं धृतिस्त्वं त्वमेवासि बुद्धि- र्जरा पुष्टितुष्टी धृतिः कान्तिशान्ती । सुविद्या सुलक्ष्मीर्गतिः कीर्तिमेधे त्वमेवासि विश्वस्य बीजं पुराणम् ॥ २७ ॥ यदा यैः स्वरूपैः करोषीह कार्यं सुराणां च तेभ्यो नमामोऽद्य शान्त्यै । क्षमा योगनिद्रा दया त्वं विवक्षा स्थिता सर्वभूतेषु शस्तैः स्वरूपैः ॥ २८ ॥ कृतं कार्यमादौ त्वया यत्सुराणां हतोऽसौ महारिर्मदान्धो हयारिः । दया ते सदा सर्वदेवेषु देवि प्रसिद्धा पुराणेषु वेदेषु गीता ॥ २९ ॥ किमत्रास्ति चित्रं यदम्बा सुतं स्वं मुदा पालयेत्पोषयेत्सम्यगेव । यतस्त्वं जनित्री सुराणां सहाया कुरुष्वैकचित्तेन कार्यं समग्रम् ॥ ३० ॥ न वा ते गुणानामियत्तां स्वरूपं वयं देवि जानीमहे विश्ववन्द्ये । कृपापात्रमित्येव मत्वा तथास्मा- न्भयेभ्यः सदा पाहि पातुं समर्थे ॥ ३१ ॥ विना बाणपातैर्विना मुष्टिघातै- र्विनाशूलखड्गैर्विना शक्तिदण्डैः । रिपून्हन्तुमेवासि शक्ता विनोदा- त्तथापीह लोकोपकाराय लीला ॥ ३२ ॥ इदं शाश्वतं नैव जानन्ति मूढा न कार्यं विना कारणं सम्भवेद्वा । वयं तर्कयामोऽनुमानं प्रमाणं त्वमेवासि कर्तास्य विश्वस्य चेति ॥ ३३ ॥ अजः सृष्टिकर्ता मुकुन्दोऽवितायं हरो नाशकृद्वै पुराणे प्रसिद्धः । न किं त्वत्प्रसूतास्त्रयस्ते युगादौ त्वमेवासि सर्वस्य तेनैव माता ॥ ३४ ॥ त्रिभिस्त्वं पुराराधिता देवि दत्ता त्वया शक्तिरुग्रा च तेभ्यः समग्रा । त्वया संयुतास्ते प्रकुर्वन्ति कामं जगत्पालनोत्पत्तिसंहारमेव ॥ ३५ ॥ ते किं न मन्दमतयो यतयो विमूढा- स्त्वां ये न विश्वजननीं समुपाश्रयन्ति । विद्यां परां सकलकामफलप्रदां तां मुक्तिप्रदां विबुधवृन्दसुवन्दिताङ्‌घ्रिम् ॥ ३६ ॥ ये वैष्णवाः पाशपताश्च सौरा दम्भास्त एव प्रतिभान्ति नूनम् । ध्यायन्ति न त्वां कमलाञ्च लज्जां कान्तिं स्थितिं कीर्तिमथापि पुष्टिम् ॥ ३७ ॥ हरिहरादिभिरप्यथ सेविता त्वमिह देववरैरसुरैस्तथा । भुवि भजन्ति न येऽल्पधियो नरा जननि ते विधिना खलु वञ्चिताः ॥ ३८ ॥ जलधिजापदपङ्कजरञ्जनं जतुरसेन करोति हरिः स्वयम् । त्रिनयनोऽपि धराधरजाङ्‌घ्रिपं- कजपरागनिषेवणतत्परः ॥ ३९ ॥ किमपरस्य नरस्य कथानकै- स्तव पदाब्जयुगं न भजन्ति के । विगतरागगृहाश्च दयां क्षमां कृतधियो मुनयोऽपि भजन्ति ते ॥ ४० ॥ देवि त्वदङ्‌घ्रिभजने न जना रता ये संसारकूपपतिताः पतिताः किलामी । ते कुष्ठगुल्मशिरआधियुता भवन्ति दारिद्र्यदैन्यसहिता रहिताः सुखौघैः ॥ ४१ ॥ ये काष्ठभारवहने यवसावहारे कार्ये भवन्ति निपुणा धनदारहीनाः । जानीमहेऽल्पमतिभिर्भवदङ्‌घ्रिसेवा पूर्वे भवे जननि तैर्न कृता कदापि ॥ ४२ ॥ व्यास उवाच एवं स्तुता सुरैः सर्वैरम्बिका करुणान्विता । प्रादुर्बभूव तरसा रूपयौवनसंयुता ॥ ४३ ॥ दिव्याम्बरधरा देवी दिव्यभूषणभूषिता । दिव्यमाल्यसमायुक्ता दिव्यचन्दनचर्चिता ॥ ४४ ॥ जगन्मोहनलावण्या सर्वलक्षणलक्षिता । अद्वितीयस्वरूपा सा देवानां दर्शनं गता ॥ ४५ ॥ जाह्नव्यां स्नातुकामा सा निर्गता गिरिगह्वरात् । दिव्यरूपधरा देवी विश्वमोहनमोहिनी ॥ ४६ ॥ देवान्स्तुतिपरानाह मेघगम्भीरया गिरा । प्रेमपूर्वं स्मितं कृत्वा कोकिलामञ्जुवादिनी ॥ ४७ ॥ देव्युवाच भो भोः सुरवराः कात्र भवद्‌भिः स्तूयते भृशम् । किमर्थं ब्रूत वः कार्यं चिन्ताविष्टाः कुतः पुनः ॥ ४८ ॥ व्यास उवाच तच्छ्रुत्वा भाषितं तस्या मोहिता रूपसम्पदा । प्रेमपूर्वं हृदुत्साहास्तामूचुः सुरसत्तमाः ॥ ४९ ॥ देवा ऊचुः देवि स्तुमस्त्वां विश्वेशि प्रणताः स्म कृपार्णवे । पाहि नः सर्वदुःखेभ्यः संविग्नान्दैत्यतापितान् ॥ ५० ॥ पुरा त्वया महादेवि निहत्यासुरकण्टकम् । महिषं नो वरो दत्तः स्मर्तव्याहं सदापदि ॥ ५१ ॥ स्मरणाद्दैत्यजां पीडां नाशयिष्याम्यसंशयम् । तेन त्वं संस्मृता देवि नूनमस्माभिरित्यपि ॥ ५२ ॥ अद्य शुम्भनिशुम्भौ द्वावसुरौ घोरदर्शनौ । उत्पन्नौ विघ्नकर्तारावहन्यौ पुरुषैः किल ॥ ५३ ॥ रक्तबीजश्च बलवांश्चण्डमुण्डौ तथासुरौ । एतैरन्यैश्च देवानां हृतं राज्यं महाबलैः ॥ ५४ ॥ गतिरन्या न चास्माकं त्वमेवासि महाबले । कुरु कार्यं सुराणां वै दुःखितानां सुमध्यमे ॥ ५५ ॥ देवास्त्वदङ्‌घ्रिभजने निरताः सदैव ते दानवैरतिबलैर्विपदं सुनीताः । तान्देवि दुःखरहितान् कुरु भक्तियुक्ता- न्मातस्त्वमेव शरणं भव दुःखितानाम् ॥ ५६ ॥ सकलभुवनरक्षा देवि कार्या त्वयाद्य स्वकृतमिति विदित्वा विश्वमेत‌द्युगादौ । जननि जगति पीडां दानवा दर्पयुक्ताः स्वबलमदसमेतास्ते प्रकुर्वन्ति मातः ॥ ५७ ॥

vyāsa uvāca parājitāḥ surāḥ sarve rājyaṃ śumbhaḥ śaśāsa ha | evaṃ varṣasahasraṃ tu jagāma nṛpasattama || 1 || bhraṣṭarājyāstato devāścintāmāpuḥ sudustarām | guruṃ duḥkhāturāste tu papracchuridamādṛtāḥ || 2 || kiṃ kartavyaṃ guro brūhi sarvajñastvaṃ mahāmuniḥ | upāyo'sti mahābhāga duḥkhasya vinivṛttaye || 3 || upacāraparā nūnaṃ vedamantrāḥ sahasraśaḥ | vācchitārthakarā nūnaṃ sūtraiḥ saṃlakṣitāḥ kila || 4 || iṣṭayo vividhāḥ proktāḥ sarvakāmaphalapradāḥ | tāḥ kuruṣva mune nūnaṃ tvaṃ jānāsi ca tatkriyāḥ || 5 || vidhiḥ śatruvināśāya yathoddiṣṭaḥ sadāgame | taṃ kuruṣvādya vidhivadyathā no duḥkhasaṃkṣayaḥ || 6 || bhavedāṃgirasādyaiva tathā tvaṃ kartumarhasi | dānavānāṃ vināśāya abhicāraṃ yathāmati || 7 || bṛhaspatiruvāca sarve mantrāśca vedoktā daivādhīnaphalāśca te | na svatantrāḥ surādhīśa tathaikāntaphalapradāḥ || 8 || mantrāṇāṃ devatā yūyaṃ te tu duḥkhaikabhājanam | jātāḥ sma kālayogena kiṃ karomi prasādhanam || 9 || indrāgnivaruṇādīnāṃ yajanaṃ yajñakarmasu | te yūyaṃ vipadaṃ prāptāḥ kariṣyanti kimiṣṭayaḥ || 10 || avaśyambhāvibhāvānāṃ pratīkāro na vidyate | upāyastvatha kartavya iti śiṣṭānuśāsanam || 11 || daivaṃ hi balavatkecitpravadanti manīṣiṇaḥ | upāyavādino daivaṃ pravadanti nirarthakam || 12 || daivaṃ caivāpyupāyaśca dvāvevābhimatau nṛṇām | kevalaṃ daivamāśritya na sthātavyaṃ kadācana || 13 || upāyaḥ sarvathā kāryo vicārya svadhiyā punaḥ | tasmād‌ bravīmi vaḥ sarvānsaṃvicārya punaḥ punaḥ || 14 || purā bhagavatī tuṣṭā jaghāna mahiṣāsuram | yuṣmābhistu stutā devī varadānaṃ dadāvatha || 15 || āpadaṃ nāśayiṣyāmi saṃsmṛtā vā sadaiva hi | yadā yadā vo deveśā āpado daivasambhavāḥ || 16 || prabhavanti tadā kāmaṃ smartavyāhaṃ suraiḥ sadā | smṛtāhaṃ nāśayiṣyāmi yuṣmākaṃ paramāpadaḥ || 17 || tasmāddhimācale gatvā parvate sumanohare | ārādhanaṃ caṇḍikāyāḥ kurudhvaṃ premapūrvakam || 18 || māyābījavidhānajñāstatpuraścaraṇe ratāḥ | jānāmyahaṃ yogabalātprasannā sā bhaviṣyati || 19 || duḥkhasyānto'dya yuṣmākaṃ dṛśyate nātra saṃśayaḥ | tasmiñchaile sadā devī tiṣṭhatīti mayā śrutam || 20 || stutā sampūjitā sadyo vāñchitārthān pradāsyati | niścayaṃ paramaṃ kṛtvā gacchadhvaṃ vai himālayam || 21 || surāḥ sarvāṇi kāryāṇi sā vaḥ kāmaṃ vidhāsyati | vyāsa uvāca iti tasya vacaḥ śrutvā devāste prayayurgirim || 22 || himālayaṃ mahārāja devīdhyānaparāyaṇāḥ | māyābījaṃ hṛdā nityaṃ japantaḥ sarva eva hi || 23 || namaścakrurmahāmāyāṃ bhaktānāmabhayapradām | tuṣṭuvuḥ stotramantraiśca bhaktyā paramayā yutāḥ || 24 || namo devi viśveśvari prāṇanāthe sadānandarūpe surānandade te | namo dānavāntaprade mānavānā- manekārthade bhaktigamyasvarūpe || 25 || na te nāmasaṃkhyāṃ na te rūpamīdṛ- ktathā ko'pi vedādidevasvarūpe | tvamevāsi sarveṣu śaktisvarūpā prajāsṛṣṭisaṃhārakāle sadaiva || 26 || smṛtistvaṃ dhṛtistvaṃ tvamevāsi buddhi- rjarā puṣṭituṣṭī dhṛtiḥ kāntiśāntī | suvidyā sulakṣmīrgatiḥ kīrtimedhe tvamevāsi viśvasya bījaṃ purāṇam || 27 || yadā yaiḥ svarūpaiḥ karoṣīha kāryaṃ surāṇāṃ ca tebhyo namāmo'dya śāntyai | kṣamā yoganidrā dayā tvaṃ vivakṣā sthitā sarvabhūteṣu śastaiḥ svarūpaiḥ || 28 || kṛtaṃ kāryamādau tvayā yatsurāṇāṃ hato'sau mahārirmadāndho hayāriḥ | dayā te sadā sarvadeveṣu devi prasiddhā purāṇeṣu vedeṣu gītā || 29 || kimatrāsti citraṃ yadambā sutaṃ svaṃ mudā pālayetpoṣayetsamyageva | yatastvaṃ janitrī surāṇāṃ sahāyā kuruṣvaikacittena kāryaṃ samagram || 30 || na vā te guṇānāmiyattāṃ svarūpaṃ vayaṃ devi jānīmahe viśvavandye | kṛpāpātramityeva matvā tathāsmā- nbhayebhyaḥ sadā pāhi pātuṃ samarthe || 31 || vinā bāṇapātairvinā muṣṭighātai- rvināśūlakhaḍgairvinā śaktidaṇḍaiḥ | ripūnhantumevāsi śaktā vinodā- ttathāpīha lokopakārāya līlā || 32 || idaṃ śāśvataṃ naiva jānanti mūḍhā na kāryaṃ vinā kāraṇaṃ sambhavedvā | vayaṃ tarkayāmo'numānaṃ pramāṇaṃ tvamevāsi kartāsya viśvasya ceti || 33 || ajaḥ sṛṣṭikartā mukundo'vitāyaṃ haro nāśakṛdvai purāṇe prasiddhaḥ | na kiṃ tvatprasūtāstrayaste yugādau tvamevāsi sarvasya tenaiva mātā || 34 || tribhistvaṃ purārādhitā devi dattā tvayā śaktirugrā ca tebhyaḥ samagrā | tvayā saṃyutāste prakurvanti kāmaṃ jagatpālanotpattisaṃhārameva || 35 || te kiṃ na mandamatayo yatayo vimūḍhā- stvāṃ ye na viśvajananīṃ samupāśrayanti | vidyāṃ parāṃ sakalakāmaphalapradāṃ tāṃ muktipradāṃ vibudhavṛndasuvanditāṅ‌ghrim || 36 || ye vaiṣṇavāḥ pāśapatāśca saurā dambhāsta eva pratibhānti nūnam | dhyāyanti na tvāṃ kamalāñca lajjāṃ kāntiṃ sthitiṃ kīrtimathāpi puṣṭim || 37 || hariharādibhirapyatha sevitā tvamiha devavarairasuraistathā | bhuvi bhajanti na ye'lpadhiyo narā janani te vidhinā khalu vañcitāḥ || 38 || jaladhijāpadapaṅkajarañjanaṃ jaturasena karoti hariḥ svayam | trinayano'pi dharādharajāṅ‌ghripaṃ- kajaparāganiṣevaṇatatparaḥ || 39 || kimaparasya narasya kathānakai- stava padābjayugaṃ na bhajanti ke | vigatarāgagṛhāśca dayāṃ kṣamāṃ kṛtadhiyo munayo'pi bhajanti te || 40 || devi tvadaṅ‌ghribhajane na janā ratā ye saṃsārakūpapatitāḥ patitāḥ kilāmī | te kuṣṭhagulmaśiraādhiyutā bhavanti dāridryadainyasahitā rahitāḥ sukhaughaiḥ || 41 || ye kāṣṭhabhāravahane yavasāvahāre kārye bhavanti nipuṇā dhanadārahīnāḥ | jānīmahe'lpamatibhirbhavadaṅ‌ghrisevā pūrve bhave janani tairna kṛtā kadāpi || 42 || vyāsa uvāca evaṃ stutā suraiḥ sarvairambikā karuṇānvitā | prādurbabhūva tarasā rūpayauvanasaṃyutā || 43 || divyāmbaradharā devī divyabhūṣaṇabhūṣitā | divyamālyasamāyuktā divyacandanacarcitā || 44 || jaganmohanalāvaṇyā sarvalakṣaṇalakṣitā | advitīyasvarūpā sā devānāṃ darśanaṃ gatā || 45 || jāhnavyāṃ snātukāmā sā nirgatā girigahvarāt | divyarūpadharā devī viśvamohanamohinī || 46 || devānstutiparānāha meghagambhīrayā girā | premapūrvaṃ smitaṃ kṛtvā kokilāmañjuvādinī || 47 || devyuvāca bho bhoḥ suravarāḥ kātra bhavad‌bhiḥ stūyate bhṛśam | kimarthaṃ brūta vaḥ kāryaṃ cintāviṣṭāḥ kutaḥ punaḥ || 48 || vyāsa uvāca tacchrutvā bhāṣitaṃ tasyā mohitā rūpasampadā | premapūrvaṃ hṛdutsāhāstāmūcuḥ surasattamāḥ || 49 || devā ūcuḥ devi stumastvāṃ viśveśi praṇatāḥ sma kṛpārṇave | pāhi naḥ sarvaduḥkhebhyaḥ saṃvignāndaityatāpitān || 50 || purā tvayā mahādevi nihatyāsurakaṇṭakam | mahiṣaṃ no varo dattaḥ smartavyāhaṃ sadāpadi || 51 || smaraṇāddaityajāṃ pīḍāṃ nāśayiṣyāmyasaṃśayam | tena tvaṃ saṃsmṛtā devi nūnamasmābhirityapi || 52 || adya śumbhaniśumbhau dvāvasurau ghoradarśanau | utpannau vighnakartārāvahanyau puruṣaiḥ kila || 53 || raktabījaśca balavāṃścaṇḍamuṇḍau tathāsurau | etairanyaiśca devānāṃ hṛtaṃ rājyaṃ mahābalaiḥ || 54 || gatiranyā na cāsmākaṃ tvamevāsi mahābale | kuru kāryaṃ surāṇāṃ vai duḥkhitānāṃ sumadhyame || 55 || devāstvadaṅ‌ghribhajane niratāḥ sadaiva te dānavairatibalairvipadaṃ sunītāḥ | tāndevi duḥkharahitān kuru bhaktiyuktā- nmātastvameva śaraṇaṃ bhava duḥkhitānām || 56 || sakalabhuvanarakṣā devi kāryā tvayādya svakṛtamiti viditvā viśvameta‌dyugādau | janani jagati pīḍāṃ dānavā darpayuktāḥ svabalamadasametāste prakurvanti mātaḥ || 57 ||

English translation

1-7. Vyasa said O King! When the Devas were all defeated, S’umbha began to govern all their kingdoms; thus one thousand years passed away. The Devas, on the other hand, deprived of their kingdoms, were all drowned in an ocean of cares and anxieties; at last they began to feel very much and were greatly afflicted. They asked with reverence their own Guru Brihaspati, “O Guru! What are we to do now? O All knowing! You are the Great Muni; kindly say unto us if there be any means by which we can get rid of this our present crisis. There are thousands of Vedic Mantrams which yield the desired results, if they are worshipped with due rites and ceremonies and if all the rules be observed thereof. O best of Munis! Many Yajhas are mentioned in the Vedas that yield all the desired results; you know them all; so kindly perform those Yajhas. Do all those ceremonies duly that are ordained in the Vedas for the killing of enemies; O Descendant of Angirasa! You ought to perform as early as possible those sacrifices for magical purposes to destroy the Danavas so that all our miseries come to an end.”

8-22. Brihaspati said “O Lord of the Suras! All the mantras mentioned in the Vedas yield the desired results, but subservient to the Great Destiny only; they do not give results of themselves but do so in obedience to to the laws ordained by Nature. You all are the presiding Deities of the Vedic Mantras; but, now, by the strange irony of Time, you are put to difficulties and troubles; what can I do now in this case? See! Indra, Agni, Varuna, and other gods are invoked in sacrifices; how, then, can sacrificial ceremonies do good when you are put to so great difficulties. Therefore there is no remedy to those which will take place unavoidably; but those who are wise declare that in such cases means are to be adopted. Some sages say that Fate is strong but those who advocate the cause of taking remedial

means say that Fate is powerless; remedies or manly exertions lead to all success. But, O King of the Devas! The embodied souls ought to resort to both Fate and Remedies; it is never advisable to depend solely on Fate. Therefore, it is advisable to think out again and again as far as one’s own Intellect goes, the best remedies. O Devas! I have thought over again and again on this subject and say to you my opinion. Hear. In days of yore, the Bhagavati, being appeased, killed Mahisasura; and when you all praised and chanted hymns to Her, She gave you this boon that She will remove all your sorrows and troubles no sooner you remember Her, and She told that you all must remember Her whenever any difficulty would arise to you out of this Great Destiny. She would, then, free you all of your ocean of great difficulties. Therefore do you all now go to the highly sacred and exquisitely beautiful Himalayan mountains and worship the most worshipful Chandika Devi with your love and devotion. Know all the rules of the Seed mantra of Maya and be engaged in taking Her name accompanied with burnt offerings. I have come to know, by Yogic power, that She will be pleased with You. I see that today your difficulties will come to an end; there is not the least doubt in this. I have heard that the Devi resides always in the Himachal; if you worship and praise and chant hymns to Her, She will certainly grant you your desired boons. Therefore fully decide on this thing and go to the Himalayas. O Devas! She will fulfil all your desires and carry out all your intentions.”

23-24. Vyasa said O King! Hearing thus his words, the Devas departed to the Himalayas and they became all merged in the devotional worship of the Supreme Goddess and began to meditate constantly in their hearts the Seed mantra of Maya (Hrim). They bowed down to the Goddess Maha Maya, the Discarder of all the fears of Her Bhaktas and began to chant hymns to Her with perfect devotion.

25-42. O Goddess! Salutation to Thee! O Thou, the Lord of the Universe! the Lord of our hearts! Thou art the Everlasting Bliss and the Giver of bliss to the Devas! Salutation to Thee! Thou art the Destroyer of the Danavas and Thou art the Giver of all desires of human beings. Thou canst be approached with devotion. Salutation to Thee! O Thou, the Incarnate of all the Devas! Thy names are endless; Thy forms are endless; none can count them. Thou residest always as the Force Incarnate in all the actions, in the Creation, Preservation and Dissolution of Beings. O Goddess! Thou art the Memory, Constancy, Intelligence, Old Age. Thou art the nourishment, contentment; Thou upholdest all; Thou art the beauty, peace, good knowledge, prosperity and happiness. Thou art the Goal, fame, and intellect and Thou art the Eternal Seed unmanifested. We now bow down to those forms of Thine through which Thou dost serve the purpose of the Devas in this world as we are now in need of peace. Thou art forgiveness and mercy; Thou art the Yoga Nidra (a state between sleep and wakefulness); Thou art the kindness and Thou residest in all the beings in so many forms, great and grand, and so very celebrated; O Goddess! Thou hadst already served the cause of the gods in killing our great enemy Mahisasura, puffed up with vanity. Therefore Thy mercy is well known amongst the gods; what more. Thy mercy is known, since very ancient times and it is narrated in the Vedas. What wonder is there that a mother nourishes gladly her own sons and preserves them carefully! For Thou art the Mother of the Devas; Thou art the great source of help to them; therefore dost Thou fulfill all their desires with Thine whole heart. O Devi! We do not know the limit of Thy qualities nor of Thy forms; O Goddess! Thou art worshipped by the whole Universe. Thou art fully competent to save all from dangers; we are objects of Thy pity; dost Thou save us from our present troubles! Thou art capable to kill enemies without shooting any arrrows, without striking any blows, without hurling any trident, axes, S’aktis, clubs, or any other weapons; merely by Thy mere will Thou canst kill; still for sports and for the good of all beings Thou incarnatest and fightest for the sake of Lila. The ignorant persons know such things as birth, death, etc., that this world is not eternal; that no actions can be without any

cause; we, therefore, ascertain by reasoning and inference that Thou art the Supreme Cause of this whole Universe. Brahma is the Creator, Visnu is the Preserver, and Mahes’a is the Destroyer; so it is related in the Puranas. Thou again hast given birth to these three Gods in the respective cycles; therefore Thou art the Mother of all; there is no doubt in this. O Devi! In days of yore, these three Devas worshipped Thee; Thou Wert pleased and gavest them all the best powers. Being thus endowed with Thy powers, they have been able to create, preserve and destroy this Universe beautifully. Art they not foolish, though they be Yatis (persons of self-controlled nature), who do not worship the Universal Mother, the Consciousness Incarnate, the Giver of liberation, on Whose feet are worshipped by the Devas, and worshipping Whom, one gets the fruits of all one’s desires? Certainly those Vaisnavas, Sauras (worshippers of the Sun) and Pas’upatas (worshippers of S’iva) are foolish braggarts who do not meditate Thee as the embodiment of Kamala (prosperity), modesty, beauty, continuancy. Fame, nourishment. O Mother! The Asuras, Hah, Hara and other great Devas worship Thee in this world; therefore those mortals are certainly deceived by their Creator that do not worship Thee on the surface of this earth. O Devi! Hari himself serves the lotus feet of Laksmi by colouring them (toes and other fingers of the feet) red with lac juice; Hara is very anxious to serve the lotus feet and take the dust thereof of Parvati; Laksmi and Parvati are but Thy part manifestations; therefore to serve them is, in other words to serve Thee. What to speak of other persons, even those who can discriminate between real and unreal and those who have left their worldly homes and have become dispassionate towards worldly objects, even those Munis worship forgiveness and mercy, that are but Thy parts; therefore who is there in this world that does not serve Thy lotus-feet! O Devi! Those human beings plunge into the dreadful wells of this Samsara, the round of birth and death, and are deprived of all pleasures, who do not serve Thy lotus feet. What more can be said than the fact that those fallen beings suffer terribly from poverty, humility, leprosy, headache, and the chronic enlargement of spleen. O Mother! Those persons are void of any wealth and wife; they are the carriers of loads of wood and collect

grass and leaves and show their skill in such acts; they are of little understanding and never they served in their previous births Thy lotus-feet. This we have come to know very well within our heart of hearts.

43-47. Vyasa said O King! When all the Devas thus eulogised, instantly the Devi Ambika, full of youth and beauty appeared there out of mercy. That extraordinary beautiful Bhagavati, endowed with all auspicious signs, and adorned with the Divine clothings, ornaments, and garlands and sandal paste, etc., appeared before the Devas. Before Whom, even the world enchanter Cupid bows down; with such beautiful. Divine appearance, the Devi emerged from the mountain cave in order to take Her ablutions in the Ganges. That Devi, sweet voiced like a cuckoo, gladly smiling began to say to the Devas, singing hymns to Her, in a voice deep like that of a rumbling cloud.

48. The Devi said O Best of Suras! Whom are you praising constantly in this place? What do you want! Why are you so anxious and seem to be so much care-worn? Do please tell all this to Me in detail.

49. Vyasa said O King! The Devas were first enchanted by Her beauty and softness; then, being encouraged by Her sweet words, began to speak with great joy.

50-57. O Devi! We pray toThee, O Lord of his Universe! We bow down to Thee. O Thou, the Ocean of mercy! Protect us from all the troubles; we are very much care-worn and tormented by the Daityas. O Great Goddess! In ancient times Thou didst kill Mahisasura, the

source of troubles to all and then told us to remember Thee whenever any difficulty would arise.

Then Thou wouldst undoubtedly remove all the troubles arising from the Daityas no sooner we remember Thee. O Devi! We have now remembered Thee for that very reason. At present the two dreadful Asuras, S’umbha and Nis’umbha have sprang up and are creating great disturbances; and they cannot be killed by any male beings. The powerful Raktavija and Chanda Munda and other Asuras united have dispossessed the Devas of their Heavens. Thou alone art our goal and refuge; without Thee there is none other to save us. Therefore, O Beautiful One!

Thou dost do this work for the Devas who are extremely troubled and distressed. O Powerful Devi! The Devas are always at the services of Thy lotus feet; still the very powerful Danavas are throwing them into dangers; O Mother! Thou art the Preserver of the distressed; therefore dost Thou preserve the Devas, devoted to Thee. O Mother! The Danavas, being very much emboldened by their powers, are creating many havocs on the surface of the Earth; now remembering that, in the beginning of the Yugas, Thou didst create all this Universe, Thou dost now ought to protect all this Universe.

Here ends the Twenty-second Chapter of the Fifth Book on the eulogising of the Devi by the Devas in S’ri Mad Devi Bhagavatam of 18,000 verses by Maharsi Veda Vyasa.

Complete chapter-aligned witnesses. Sanskrit Wikisource page 24419, revision 74857 (2016-07-22T00:05:45Z). English is Swami Vijñanananda’s complete 1921–23 public-domain translation, controlled against the archival OCR and its chapter page at https://sacred-texts.com/hin/db/bk05ch22.htm. Historic spelling and transliteration are lightly normalized; no verse-by-verse alignment is asserted.