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Devi Bhagavatam (Devi
Puranam)
THE FIFTH BOOK
Chapter I
On the superiority of Rudra over Visnu
1-5. The Risis said :-- The great legendary story, the life of Srī Krisna,
supremely divine, destructive of all sins, has been narrated by you, O Sūta!
But, O Blessed One! You, though highly intelligent, have dwelt on it not at
a great length; hence many doubts are cropping up in our minds. A very
difficult tapasyā was performed by Vāsudeva the part incarnate of Visnu, who
had to go to forest to worship Siva. Next, it has been known that the Devī
Pārvatī, the part incarnate of the Great Mother, the Mother of the universe,
the Supreme, and Perfect offered boons to Srī Krisna. How did it then come
to pass that Srī Krisna, being himself the God, had to worship Pārvatī and
Mahādeva? Is it that Srī Krisna was inferior to Mahādeva and Pārvatī? This
is our doubt.
6-7. Sūta spoke :-- Hear then, the reasons, O noble Risis! that I heard
from Vyāsa; I will now sing before you those meritorious deeds Srī Krisnā.
The son of Parīksit, the intelligent Janamejaya had also the same doubts
that you now have, when he heard the story before from Vyāsa; and he asked
the same questions that you now ask.
8-11. Janamejaya said :-- O son of Bhagavatī! I have heard from you much
about the Supreme Goddess, the Highest Cause; still the doubts are not
leaving me. O Fortunate One! Krisna the Deva of the Devas, the Visnu
incarnate, worshipped Sambhū and had to perform dire penances; this is my
great wonder! He is the soul of all the Jīvas, the One Ruler and Lord of
this world and He is able to confer all the Siddhis; how is it, then, that
the Lord Hari had to perform very difficult asceticism like an ordinary
mortal. He who is able to create this universe, moving and non-moving, He
who is able to preserve and destroy it, why did He practise such a terrible
penance.
12-54. Vyāsa said :-- True it has been said by you that Vāsudeva the
Janārdana, is the destroyer of the Daityas and He is able to create and
preserve the Devas and do all other acts for them. But the Great Lord
assumed a human body; therefore he had to perform his duties like a man and
observe the Varna and Ās'rama Dharmas pertaining to human beings. Respecting
the elderly persons, worshipping the spiritual teachers, doing service to
the Brahmānas, adoring and propitiating the Devas, feeling sorrow at times
of sorrow, feeling pleasure at times of happiness, feeling dejection or
expressing censure or scandal, or having sexual intercourse with women, in
other words, to feel lust, anger, greediness and other passions when their
proper time arises. All these are natural to all human beings; how can,
then, Srī Krisna though intrinsically of pure qualities, become Nirguna
(devoid of human qualities) when he assumed a human body which is Saguna,
i.e., with qualities. O Ruler of men! The extinction of the Yādava race by
the curse of Gāndhārī, the daughter of Subala, and the curse of a Brāhmin,
Krisna's leaving his human coil, the stealing away of his wives, the robbing
of their wealth on the way by the dacoits of the Āvīra tribe, Arjuna's
becoming powerless to hurl any weapons on those dacoits, Krisna's not
knowing anything about the stealing away of Pradyumna and Aniruddha from his
Dvārkā palace, these all correspond verily to exertions and failings
appropriate to human bodies. Again the Risi Nārāyana is the part incarnate
of Visnu, and Vāsudeva is the part incarnate of the Risi Nārāyana; hence
what wonder is there, if Vāsudeva be seen to adore and propitiate Siva?
Siva is the God of gods; and He is the Lord of all the causal bodies that
exist; in the state of Susupti (deep sleep). In this respect, Siva is the
creator of Visnu and Visnu worships Him in this light. Rāma, Krisna and
others are all part incarnations of Visnu; so there is no wonder if they
worship Siva. The letter A is Bhagvān Brahmā ; the letter U is Bhagvān
Hari; the letter M is Bhagvān Rudra and the half letter m is Mahes'varī,
the Supreme Mother of the universe. The sages, therefore, consider Visnu
superior to Brahmā; they again consider Rudra superior to Visnu and
Māhes'varī (Turīya State) again superior to Rudra. The speciality of the
half letter is that it can never be uttered; it is the symbol of the Eternal
Devī. In all the S'āstras, therefore, the superiority of the Devī is
established. Visnu is superior to Brahmā; Rudra is superior to Visnu.
Therefore no doubt can arise in Krisna's worshipping Siva. It is through
the will of Siva that a second Rudra originated from the forehead of Brahmā
to offer boons to him (i. e., to Brahmā). This second Rudra is venerable and
entitled to all worship; what to speak of the First Rudra? O King! It is
through the proximity of the Devī that the importance and superiority of
Siva is thus established. Thus the incarnations of Hari arise in yugas
after yugas through the intervention of the Yoga
Māyā; so there is no need to discuss on this point. Why to Achyuta alone, to
Brahmā and Siva also She gives troubles for getting involved into
incarnations, She the Yoga Māyā who is indirectly, with the twinklings of
Her eyes, creating, preserving and destroying this universe. It is the Yoga
Māyā that caused Krisna to be transferred from his lying-in chamber to the
village Vraja and then protected him in the house of the cowherd Nanda;
afterwards took him to Mathurā for the destruction of Kamsa, whence he was
led again out of Jarāsandha's fear to the city Dvārkā. It is She that
created from Her Ownself the eight Nāikās (the leading mistresses) and also
sixteen thousand and fifty women for the pleasure and enjoyment of Krisna
Bhagwān, the incarnation of Ananta (Visnu Bhagavān); thus Krisna Bhagavān
was made completely subservient to them just like a perfect slave. When a
young woman, though she is alone, can bind a man down by the network of Māyā,
like strong iron chain, what wonder is there that the sixteen thousand and
fifty women would make Krisna play in their hands like a Suka bird and make
him an instrument to serve any purpose that they liked. Srī Krisna got
himself so much under the control of Satyabhāmā that He went gladly under
her commands to Indra's heavens to get the Pārijāta flowers. There he had to
fight with Indra and subsequently stole away the Pārijāta tree and gave it
to Satyabhāmā as a very valuable ornament to be kept in her room. Behold!
The same Krisna, by His own prowess, defeated Sis'upāla and others for the
preservation of religion and then stole away Rukminī, the daughter of Bhīma
and afterwards married her as his legal wife; where is the rule, then
observed that it is a sin to take away another's wife? Thus all embodied
beings get themselves subdued by Ahamkāra and do acts, good or bad,
confounded and deluded by the network of Moha that always drags one down
below. From the Mūlā Prakriti are born Brahmā, Visnu, and Hara and from the
Tāmasic Ahamkāra of Prakriti is created this whole cosmos, moving and
non-moving. The lotus-born Brahmā becomes free when he is free from Ahamkāra;
otherwise He becomes engaged in this world affairs. When freed from this
Ahamkāra, all the Jīvas become free; and their houses, wealth, wives, sons
and brothers are quite powerless to tie them down; but when bound by
Ahamkāra, the Jīvas come under their control. O king! This Ahamkāra is the
cause bondage to all the beings; I am the doer, this work is done by my
power; or this I will do myself thinking thus, the embodied beings fall
themselves under this bondage. An earthen pot cannot be made without earth;
no effects can be visible without a cause; consequently Visnu is preserving
this universe, because of this Ahamkāra (imposed on
him by Prakriti). The human beings are always drowned in their cares and
anxieties simply because they are bound by this Ahamkāra; when they become
free from this Ahamkāra, their cares and anxieties at once vanish. Moha
(delusion) comes out of Ahamkāra; world and the enjoyments thereof come out
of Moha; otherwise how can it be accounted for, that Hari and others, the
mine of all good and auspiciousness, take their several incarnations in
various wombs? Neither Moha nor this world comes to those that are bereft of
Ahamkāra. Men are of three kinds, Sāttvic, Rājasic, and Tāmasic; O king!
Brahmā, Visnu and S'iva are sprung respectively from the Rājasic, Sāttvic,
and Tāmasic Ahamkāras. In these three, the three Ahamkāras are always to be
found, so the Munis, that have realised the Real Essence, declare. They are
all bound by this Ahamkāra; there is no doubt in this. The Pundits of dull
intellect, and deluded by Māyā declare that Visnu takes various incarnations
out of his own free will; for when it is seen that men of even inferior
intellects do not entertain any desire to enter into the wombs, painful and
terrible; how will Visnu, then, the Holder of the discus, like to come into
this womb! The slayer of Madhu, the Vaisnavas say, entered all at once into
the wombs of Kaus'alyā and Devakī, full of faeces and other dirty things, of
His own free will. But you must think out what happiness can Madhusūdana,
quitting his Vaikuntha Heavens, attain in this womb, full of so many
troubles, and where arise, like poisons, hundreds of cares and thoughts to
torment an individual! Especially when it is seen that human beings perform
asceticism, sacrifice Yajńas and do various charities, that they would avoid
thus entering in wombs, which is very painful and terrible. How can Bhagavān
Visnu be called independent? If so, He would never have yielded to enter
into various wombs. Therefore, O king! Know this that this whole universe is
under the control of Yoga Māyā; the Devas, men, birds, what more everything
from Brahmā down to a blade of grass are all under the control of Yoga Māyā.
Brahmā, Visnu and Hara all are bound by the rope of Her Māyā. So they roam
easily by Her Māyā from womb to womb like a spider.
Here ends the First Chapter of the Fifth Book on the superiority of Rūdra
over Visnu in the Mahā Purānam of S'rīmad Devī Bhāgavatam by Maharsi Veda
Vyāsa, consisting of eighteen thousand verses.
Chapter II
On the birth of Dānava Mahisa
1-2. The king said :-- Lord! You have described fully the glory of the Mahā
Mayā Yoges'varī; now describe Her Life and Character; I am very eager to
hear them. This whole universe, moving and nonmoving, has been created by
Mahes'varī; who is there that desires not to hear Her Glory!
3-7. Vyāsa spoke :-- O king! You are very intelligent; I will describe in
detail all this to you; whoever does not describe Her Glory to the peaceful
and faithful, is certainly low-minded? In days of yore, a terrible battle
ensued between the Devas and Dānava forces on this earth when Mahisāsura was
the Ruler of this world. O king! Mahisāsura went to the mountain of Sumeru
and performed a very severe and excellent tapasyā, wonderful even to the
gods. O king! Meditating on his Ista Devatā (the deity for his worship) in
his heart, elapsed full ten thousand years, when Brahmā the Grandfather of
all the Lokas, was pleased with him. The fourfaced Brahmā, arrived there on
his vehicle the swan, asked Mahisāsura O One of virtuous soul! Ask from me
what is your desired object; I will grant thee boon.
8. Mahisa said :-- O Lord, Lotus-eyed! I want to become immortal! therefore
O Thou, the Grandfather of the Devas! Dost thou do for me so that I have no
fear of death.
9-11. Brahmā said :-- O Mahisa! Birth must be followed by death, and death
must be followed by birth; this is the eternal law of nature. Then know this
as certain that when one is born, one must die; and when one dies, one will
be born. O Lord of the Dānavas! What more to say than this, that high
mountains, vast oceans, and all the beings will die when time will come. O
Ruler of the earth! You are virtuous; therefore ask any other boon than this
immortality; I will grant that to you.
12-13. Mahisa said :-- O Grand Sire! Grant, then, that no Deva, Dānava, nor
human being of the male sex can cause my death. There is none among women
who can cause my death. Therefore, O Lotus-eyed! Let woman be the cause of
my death; how can women slay me! The are too weak to kill me!
14. Brahmā said :-- O Lord of the Dānavas! Your death will certainly occur,
at any time, through a woman; O Highly Fortunate One! No man will be able to
cause your death.
15. Vyāsa said :-- Thus granting him the boon, Brahmā went to his own abode;
the lord of the Dānavas, too, returned to his place, very glad.
16. The king said :-- O Bhagavān! Whose son was this powerful Mahisāsura;
how his birth took place? and why, too, did he get a body of a buffalo?
17-26. Vyāsa said :-- O king! Rambha and Karambha were the two sons of Danu;
these two Dānavas were far famed in this world for their pre-eminence. O
king! They had no issues; hence, desirous of issues, they went to the sacred
banks of the Indus (Pańcha Nada) and there performed severe asceticism for
long years. Karambha got himself submerged in water and thus began his
severe tapasyā; while the other, Rambha, had recourse to a juicy peepul tree
(haunted by Yakshinīs) and there began to worship Fire. Rambha remained,
engaged in worshipping the Five Fires; knowing this, Indra, the Lord of
S'achī, was pained and hurried thither, being very anxious. Going to Pańcha
Nada, Indra assumed the form of a crocodile and caught hold of the legs of
the wicked Karambha and killed him. Hearing of the death of his brother,
Rambha got very much enraged and wishing to offer his own head as an
oblation to the Fire, he wanted to cut off his own head; he, being
infuriated, held the hairs of his head by his left hand, and, catching hold
of a good axe, by his right hand, was on the point of cutting it, when the
Fire gave him knowledge, desisted him from this act and spoke thus :-- You
are stupid; why have you desired to cut off your own head; killing one's
ownself is a great sin; and there is no means of deliverance from this sin.
Why are you then ready to execute it? Do not seek your death now; what end
will that serve you? Rather ask boons from me; thus you will get your
welfare.
27-31. Vyāsa said :-- O king! Hearing thus the sweet words of Fire, Rambha
quitted the hold of his hairs and said :-- O Lord of the Devas! If thou art
pleased, grant my desired boon that a son be born unto me, who will destroy
the forces of my enemy and who will conquer the three worlds. And that son
be invincible in every way by the Devas, Dānavas and men, very powerful,
assuming forms at will, and respected by all. The Fire said :-- O highly
Fortunate! You will get your son, as you desire; therefore desist now from
your attempting suicide. O highly fortunate Rambha! With any female of
whichever species, you will co-habit, you will get a son, more powerful than
you; there is no doubt in this.
32-50. Vyāsa said :-- O king! Hearing thus the sweet words of the Fire as
desired, Rambha, the chief of the Dānavas, went, surrounded by Yaksas, to a
beautiful place, adorned with picturesque sceneries; when one lovely
she-buffalo, who was very maddened with passion, fell to the sight of Rambha.
And he desired to have sexual intercourse with her, in preference to other
women. The she-buffallo, too, gladly yielded to his purpose and Rambha had
sexual intercourse with her, impelled as it were by the destiny. The
she-buffalo became pregnant with his semen virile. The Dānava, too, carried
the she-buffalo, his dear wife, to Pātāla (the lower regions) for her
protection. On one occasion, another buffalo got excited and wanted to fall
upon the she-buffalo. The Dānava was also ready to kill him. The Dānava came
hurriedly and struck the buffalo for the safety of his wife; whereon the
excited buffalo attacked him with his horns. The buffalo struck him so
violently with his sharp horns that Rambha fell down senseless all on a
sudden and finally died. Seeing her husband dead, the she-buffalo quickly
fled away in distress and, with terror, she quickly went to the peepul tree
and took refuge under the Yaksas. But that buffalo, excited very much and
maddened with vigour, ran in pursuit of her, desiring intercourse with her.
On seeing the miserable plight of the weeping she-buffalo, distressed with
fear, and seeing the buffalo in pursuit of her, the Yaksas assembled to
protect her. A terrible fight ensued between the buffalo and the Yaksas,
when the buffalo, shot with arrows by them, fell down and died. Rambha was
very much liked by the Yaksas; so they cremated his dead body for its
purification. The she-buffalo, seeing her husband laid in the funeral pyre,
expressed her desire to enter also into that fire. The Yaksas resisted; but
that chaste wife quickly entered into the burning fire along with her
husband. When the she-buffalo died, the powerful Mahisa rose from his
mother's womb from the midst of the funeral pyre; Rambha, too, emerged from
the fire in another form out of his affection towards his son. Rambha was
known as Raktavīja after he had changed his form. His son was thus born as a
very powerful Dānava and became famous by the name of Mahisa. The chief
Dānavas installed Mahisa on the throne. O king! The very powerful Raktavīja
and the Dānava Mahisa, thus took their births and became invincible of the
Devas, Dānavas and human beings. O king! I have now described to you the
birth of the highsouled Dānava Mahisa and his getting the boon, all in
detail.
Here ends the Second Chapter of the Fifth Book on the birth of Mahisa Dānava
in the Devī Bhāgavatam, the Mahāpurānam composed of 18,000 verses by Maharsi
Veda Vyāsa.
Chapter III
On the Daitya armies getting ready
1-14. Vyāsa said :-- The very powerful Asura Mahisa, puffed up with vanity
on his getting the boon, obtained sovereignty and brought the whole world
under his control! He, being the paramount power, began to protect the
sea-girt earth acquired by the power of his own arms, over which he had the
sole sovereignty, there being no other rival king nor any cause of the
slightest fear. His Commander-in-Chief was then the very powerful Chiksura,
maddened with pride; and Tāmra was in charge of the Royal Treasury, guarded
by many soldiers. There were, then, many generals Asilomā, Vidāla, Udarka,
Vāskala, Trinetra, Kāla, Bandhaka and others, very proud, and each in charge
of his own corps respectively and occupying this sea-girt earth. O king! The
powerful kings that reigned before were made subservient and tributary; and
those, that fought valiantly befitting the Ksattriya line, were slain by
Mahisa. The Brāhmanas over the earth became subservient to Mahisa and gave
their Yajńa offerings to him. When that Mahisāsura got the sole sovereign
sway of this world, he, proud of his boons, desired to conquer the Heavens.
Then Mahisa, the Lord of the Daityas, desirous to send an envoy to Indra,
the Lord of S'achī, instantly called for the messenger and spoke to him thus
:-- Go, O hero! O valiant one! to Heaven. Act as my messenger and tell Indra
fearlessly thus :-- O thousand-eyed one! Quit the Heavens; go anywhere you
like, or offer your service to the high-souled Mahisa! He is the lord; and
if you take refuge unto him, he will certainly protect you. Therefore, O
Lord of S'achī, better seek the protection of Mahisa. If, O Balasūdana! Not
willing, wield your Vajra at once; we know your powers; you were, in days of
yore, conquered by our ancestors. O chief of the Sūras! You are the paramour
of Ahalyā; your strength is well known, give battle or go anywhere you
like.
15-21. Vyāsa said :-- Hearing the messenger's words, Indra became very
indignant and laughed and said :-- I did not know, O you stupid, that you
were maddened with vanity; I will shortly give medicines for your master's
disease. Now I will extirpate him by the roots; wise persons do not slay
messengers; I therefore let you go. Better go and tell him what I say :--
Son of a buffalo! If you are willing to fight, better come and do not
delay. O Enemy of horse! (Buffaloes and horses are always at war with each
other) Your strength is well known to me; you are a grass eater and your
appearance is stupid, idiotic; out of your horns I will make a good bow. You
depend on your horns for your strength;
that I well know. You are clever in striking with your horns; you don't know
anything about warfare; therefore I will out off your both the weapons and
render you powerless. You are very much puffed up with vanity due to that.
22. Vyāsa said :-- Indra having spoken thus, the messenger quickly returned
to his haughty master Mahisa and saluting, spoke :--
23-28. The messenger said :-- Indra counts you not even a fig, as he is
surrounded by his Deva forces and considers himself quite sufficient. It
ought one's servant to speak true and pleasant before one's master; how can
I utter the words before my master, that are spoken by that brute Indra.
Whereas the well known maxim reigns in my mind withal that I am your
well-wishing servant and I ought to speak truth before you, my master, and
that truth is to be pleasant to hear also. If pleasant words I speak only,
then I fail in my duty; at the same time, harsh words ought not to be spoken
by me, your sincere well-wisher. My Lord! The cruel poison-like words that
come from the mouth of an enemy, how can I, a servant of yours, utter those
harsh sayings! O Lord of the Earth! I will never be able to utter those rude
sayings that Indra has spoken.
29-53. Vyāsa said :-- Hearing the messenger's words full of meaning the
grass-eater Mahisa Dānava got very angry and, waggling his tail behind his
back, passed urine; then his eyes reddened with anger, he called the Dānavas
before him and said :--O Dānavas! The Lord of the Devas is firmly resolved
on battle; therefore collect your forces; we will have to conquer that
devil, the chief of the Sūras. Who can stand for him a my rival here! If
hundreds and thousands of warriors like Indra come I do not fear any of them
at all; O Dānavas, we will thoroughly put a end to him. His heroism is
before those only that are peaceful and quiet before the ascetics that have
become lean and thin by the penances; he is licentious and can only seduce
other's wives by craftiness and arts. He is a thorough rogue and hypocrite,
vicious and faultfinding; otherwise why does he put obstacles before others,
depending for his strength only on the beauties of the Apsarās or heavenly
prostitutes. He is treacherous to his very core; therefore he, being afraid
at the very outset, took oaths, and entered into agreement with the high-souled
Namuchi; afterwards, when his time turned favourable, that villain broke his
treaty and treacherously killed him. Again the powerful Visnu is a thorough
master of treachery and hypocrisy, the mine in taking oaths and can only
show his vanity and is expert in that. He can assume many forms at will by
his Magic power. For these very reasons Visnu had to take the form of a boar
and
kill Hiranyāksa; and again he had to take up a man-lion form to kill Hiranya
Kas'īpu. O Dānavas! Never shall I surrender myself to Visnu, for I never
place my trust in the words or deeds of Visnu and his Devas. What can Indra
or Visnu do against me, when the most powerful Rudra is not able to fight
against me in the battle-field! I will instantly defeat Indra, Varuna, Yama,
Kuvera, Fire, Sun and Moon and get possession of their Heavens. On our
conquering the Devas, we all shall get our share of Yajńas and we along with
other Dānavas drink the Soma juice and enjoy ourselves in Heaven. O Dānavas!
I have got the boon; what do I now care for the Devas. My death is not from
men too. What can a woman do to me? O my emissaries! Call without any delay
the chief Dānavas from the nether regions and the mountains and make them my
generals? O Dānavas! I can alone conquer all the Devas; only to make the war
arrangements look nice, that I am taking you to defeat them. There is no
fear of mine from the Devas, consequent on the boon conferred on me. I will
kill them by my hoofs and horns. I am not to be killed by Suras, Asuras, as
men; therefore get yourselves ready to conquer the Devas. O Dānavas! After
conquering the Heavens we will be garlanded with Pārijāta wreaths and we
will enjoy the Deva women in the Nandana Garden. We will drink the milk of
the heavenly milching cow (the cow that yields all desires) and, intoxicated
with the heavenly drinks, we will hear and see the music and singing the
dancing of the Gandarbhas there. You will all be served there with various
bottles of wine by Urvasī, Menakā, Rambhā, Ghritāchī, Tillottamā, Pramadvarā
Mahāsenā, Mira Kesī, Madotkatā, Viprachitti and others. Then be all ready at
once for this auspicious occasion to march to Heavens and fight there with
the Suras. And be pleased to call that pure-souled Muni S'ukrāchārya, the
son of Bhrigu and the Guru of the Daityas and worship him and tell him to
perform sacrificial ceremonies for the safety and victory of the Dānavas. O
king! Thus, ordering the chief Dānavas, the wicked Mahisa went to his abode,
with gladness.
Here ends the Third Chapter of the Fifth Book on the Daitya armies getting
ready in S'rī Mad Devī Bhāgavatam, the Mahāpurānam by Maharsi Vedavyāsa of
18,000 verses.
Chapter IV
On the war counsels given by Indra
1-17. Vyāsa said :-- O King! The messenger of the Dānavas having departed,
Indra, the lord of the Devas, Yama, Vāyu, Varuna, and Kuvera and other Devas,
called an assembly and addressed thus :-- O Devas! the most powerful Mahisa,
the son of Rambha, is now the king of the Dānavas; he is particularly expert
in hundreds of Māyās (magic) and has become haughty on the strength of his
boon. O Devas! Mahisa has sent his messenger; he wants to take possession of
the heaven; he came down to me and spoke thus :-- O Indra! Quit your this
heaven and go any where you like, or be ready to pay your homage to the
highsouled Mahisāsura, the Lord of the Dānavas. The Dānava Chief never
becomes angry with his opponent who becomes submissive like a servant; if
you surrender and serve him, he will, out of mercy, grant an allowance to
you. O Lord of the Devas! If this does not like you, then collect your
forces and be ready for fight; no sooner I return, the Lord of the Dānavas
will come here at once ready to give battle to you. Thus saying, the
messenger of that wicked Dānava departed. Now what are we to do? O Devas!
Think on that. O Devas! Even a weak enemy is not to be overlooked by a
powerful opponent, especially when the enemy is powerful by his own powers
and is ever energetic, never is he to be overlooked. It is always incumbent
on us to make our efforts, as best as we can, both by our body and mind as
far as lies in our power; the result, victory or defeat depends entirely on
Fate. It is useless to make treaty with a deceitful and dishonest person; we
therefore never should make treaty with this person; you are all honest;
that Dānava is dishonest; therefore ponder and ponder deeply and ponder
again; do you that which is proper. It is not advisable to go out at once
for fight when we are unaware of our enemy's strength; let us therefore send
spies truthful, honest, motiveless, quick, to ascertain their strength,
those who can easily enter amongst our enemies and yet who have no relation,
nor any interest with them. The arrangements of their forces, their
movements, their numbers, they will ascertain correctly who are their
generals, what is their number and what is their strength, they will
thoroughly examine and return here quickly. First, we will ascertain the
strength of the forces of our opposite party and then we will decide at once
whether we will start for battle or seek protection within forts. Wise
persons always consider before they act; any act done rashly leads in all
respects to many troubles, and anything done after mature prejudgments leads
to happiness; so the wise do. The Dānavas are all one in their heart and
mind; therefore it is not advisable, in any way to apply the principle of
Bheda (sowing principles of discord). Let our spies go there, ascertain
their strength, return and inform us; we will then judge what principle is
proper and apply to the expert Dānavas. Any act done contrary to policy and
expediency will undoubtedly produce effects contrary in every way just like
a medicine which we have not tried already.
18-22. Vyāsa said :-- O King! Thus counselling with the Devas; Indra sent
expert spies to ascertain the true state of affairs. The spies, too, went
into the abode of the Daityas, with no delay and made their searches
thoroughly into every nook and corner and returned and told Indra all the
strength of the Dānava forces. Indra was very much startled to know, then,
of their arrangements. He immediately bade all the Devas be ready for battle
and called for his High priest Brihaspati, expert in giving advices and
began to consult with him how to carry on the warfare with that indomitable
enemy, the Lord of the Asuras. On Bhihaspati, the best and famous of the
Angirā family, taking his excellent seat.
23-25. Indra thus said :-- O Guru of the Devas! O Learned! Please say what
are we to do now in this critical juncture? You are omniscient; to-day you
are our guide. The Demon Mahīsa has become very powerful, very haughty;
surrounded by Dānavas he is now coming to fight with us. You are expert in
mantras; find out the remedy for us. S'ukrāchārya is the remover of all
obstacles on their side; and that you are our safe guard is well known to
us.
26. Vyāsa said :-- Hearing these words of Indra, Brihaspati, who is always
ready to effect the Deva's purposes, thought intently on the subject, said
very shortly thus :--
27-51. Brihaspati spoke :-- O Lord of the Devas! O Venerable One! Be
peaceful; have patience; when a difficulty comes, one should not, all on a
sudden, lose one's patience. O Chief of the Immortals! Victory or defeat is
completely under the control of destiny: therefore intelligent ones should
always be patient. O S'atakratu! What will unavoidably be done must come to
pass; knowing this as certain, one would always be an enthusiast and exert
one's powers. Everything is guided by Fate. Knowing this, the Munis devote
themselves at all times solely filled with energy in their meditation and
Yoga practices for their final liberation. Therefore, to show one's energy,
according to the rules of the daily practices, ought to be indispensably
done; and one should not repel or feel pleasure on failure or success; for
that is under Fate. Success sometimes comes without the exercise of one's
own powers, as seen in cases of the lame and the blind; and that is not the
reason why one should be very glad. The embodied beings are all under Daiva
(Fate); therefore even if success be not attained, though one's own powers
are exercised thoroughly, no one is to blame for that. O Lord of the Suras!
What to say of forces, Mantras, or advices, what of chariots or weapons,
nothing to lead to success; It is Daiva, and only Daiva that makes one
successful. This whole universe is under Daiva; it is, therefore, that we
see powerful persons suffering pains, and weak ones getting happiness; the
intelligent ones sleeping without any food and fools enjoying merrily;
distressed persons getting victory and powerful ones suffering defeats; what
cares, then ought one to entertain in this. O Lord of the Suras! Whatever is
inevitable to come to pass, be it success or failure, one will lead one's
energies to that end; therefore one needs to consider beforehand whether
one's energies will be successful or not. In times of distress, one sees
distress too much and in times of pleasure, one seeks pleasure too much;
one's self, therefore one should not surrender to one's enemies, pleasure
and pain. Pain and suffering is not felt so much in patience as is felt when
impatient; therefore one must practise patience when pain or pleasure comes.
Indeed it is very difficult to bear oneself up in distress or happiness;
therefore wise persons try not to let these feelings crop up at all from the
very beginning. I am always full, undiminishable, I am beyond these
Prākritic qualities. Who is there to suffer? What is suffering? Thus one
ought to think at that moment. I am beyond the twenty-four Tattvas; what
pleasure or pain can, then, arise to me? Hunger and thirst are the Dharma of
Prāna; pain and insensibility is the Dharma of mind, age and death belong to
this physical body. I am free from these six diseases; I am Siva. Grief and
delusion are the qualities of this body what then do I care for them? I am
not the qualities of the body nor I am the soul pertaining to that. I am
beyond the seven transfigurations, changes, e. g., Mahat, etc., I am beyond
this Prakriti, Nature, and beyond the sixteen changes wrought out by
Prakriti; I am therefore eternally happy, I am beyond Prakriti and its
transformation, then why am I to suffer pain always? O Lord of the Suras!
Think on these and be without any passion. O S'atakratu! This attachment is
the root of all miseries and non-attachment is the source of all happiness;
non-attachment therefore, is the chief means of the extirpation of all your
troubles. Lord of S'achi! Nothing can be happier than contentment. In case
you find it difficult to practise dispassion, apply, then, discrimination
and think of Fate, that what comes inevitably to pass. O Lord of the Suras!
Actions already done cannot die out without their effects being enjoyed. O
Best of the Suras! Let all your intelligence be brought to action, let all
the Devas lend their helping hands to you; what is inevitable must come to
pass; what then can you care for your happiness or pain? O King! Happiness
is felt for the expiation of good deeds and pain is felt for the expiation
of bad deeds; therefore wise persons get thoroughly delighted when their
punya ends. O King! Judge and hold a council to-day; then try your best. But
what is unavoidable will come to pass, even if you try your best.
Here ends the Fourth Chapter of the Fifth Book on the counsels given by
Indra in the Māhā Purānam Srī Mad Devī Bhāgavatam of 18,000 verses by
Maharsi Veda Vyāsa.
Chapter V
On the defeat of the Dānava forces of Mahisa
1-6. Vyāsa said :-- The thousand eyed Indra, hearing this, again asked to
Brihaspati that he would make preparations for war against Mahisāsura.
Without effort kingdoms are not attained; no - nor happiness, nor fame, nor
anything; those who are weak, they extol effortlessness; but the powerful
never praise that. Knowledge is the ornament of the ascetics and contentment
is the ornament of the Brāhmanas; but those who desire lordship over powers,
effort and prowess to destroy one's enemies are their excellent ornaments. O
Muni! I will kill this Mahisāsura by my heroism as I had, of old, destroyed
Vritra, Namuchi and Balāsura. You are the Deva Guru; therefore you and my
thunderbolt are my strength. The immortal Hari and Hara also will help me in
this. O Guru! Preserver of my honour and prestige! Now recite the mantras
calculated to remove all the obstacles towards my victory. I, too, am making
preparations and raising up my own forces to wage up war against that Dānava
Mahisa.
7-13. Vyāsa said :-- On hearing Indra's words, Brihaspati smiled and said O
Lord of the Devas! I see you are bent on fight. I will neither stimulate you
to fight nor shall I make you desist from the purpose. The issue is
doubtful. There may be defeat or there may be victory. O Lord of S'achī! You
are not to blame at all in this matter; what is written in the Book of Fate
will come to pass, be it victory or defeat. I am not aware of the future in
this respect. O Child! You know already what an amount of suffering I had to
endure in times gone by when my wife had been stolen. O Destroyer of the
enemies! My wife had been stolen by Moon who turned out my enemy; living in
my stage of an householder I was put to all sort of miseries, deprived of
all my happiness. O Lord of the Suras! I am renowned in all the worlds as a
man of much wisdom and intelligence. Where then was my intelligence, when
Moon carried away, perforce, my wife. O Lord of the Suras! To my mind, the
success or failure depends entirely on destiny; yet intelligent ones should
always resort to efforts and be energetic.
14-17. Vyāsa said :-- O King! On hearing the words of Brihaspati, pregnant
with truth, Indra went with him to Brahmā, took his refuge and saluting him
said :-- O Grand Sire! The Dānava is collecting a big army, and wants to
conquer and take possession of the Heavens. All the other Dānavas have
enrolled themselves in the list of his army; they are eager to fight and
they are all very powerful and skilled in arts of warfare. I am therefore
very afraid and have come to you. You know everything; please help me in
this matter.
18-20. Brahmā said :-- We all will go today to the Mount Kailāsa and take
S'ankara with us and go to Visnu. There all the Devas, assembled, will hold
a council and consider the time and place, when it will be settled whether
it is proper or not to fight. For one who dares to do any act without
considering one's strength and without any judgment, certainly courts his
own downfall.
21-35. Vyāsa said :-- O King! Hearing this, Indra with the other Lokāpalas
and Devas, headed by Brahmā, went to Kailās'ā. Then they came to S'ankara
and sang vedic hymns to him. Mahes'vara became very much pleased and they
taking Him went to Vaikuntha, the abode of Visnu. Indra saluted Visnu and
sang hymns to him, and told him about his errand thus :-- Mahisa has become
very haughty on account of the favour bestowed on him and therefore we are
very afraid (and therefore ask your help to relieve us from this danger).
Visnu, then, hearing the cause of fear, told them :-- We all will fight and
kill that Demon. Vyāsa said :--O king! Thus settling the question, Brahmā,
Visnu, and Hari and Indra and the other Devas riding on their own Vāhanas
(means of conveyance) respectively dispersed. While Brahmā on his vehicle
Swan, Visnu on his Garuda, S'ankara on his Bull, Indra on his elephant
Airāvata, Kārtika on his peacock, and Yama, the god of death on his Vāhana,
the Buffalo, were on the point of going with the other Deva forces, the army
of the Dānava Mahisa met them on their way, all fully equipped with arms and
weapons. A dreadful fight then ensued between the Devas and the Dānavas.
Arrows, axes, Prāsas, Musalas (clubs), Paras'us (pick axes), Gadās (clubs),
Pattis'as, S'ūlas (tridents), chakras (discus) S'akti (weapons), Tomaras,
Mudgaras, Bhindipālas, Lāngalas, and various other deadly weapons appeared
on the scenes with which they fought against one another. The
Commander-in-Chief of Mahisa, the very powerful Chiksura, shot five sharp
arrows at Indra. The ever-ready and light-handed Indra too, with his arrows
cut off all of them and struck at his heart heavily with his Ardhachandra
(half moon) arrow. The Commander-in-Chief, struck by this arrow fell
senseless on the back of his elephant. Indra, then struck the trunk of the
elephant with his Vajra (thunderbolt); the elephant then severely struck
with the Vajra fled away into the Dānava's forces. The Lord of the Dānavas
seeing this, got very angry and addressed the general Vidāla O Hero! You
are very powerful; go then and kill first that haughty Indra; then kill
Varuna and other Devas and come back to me.
36-57. Vyāsa said :-- The very powerful Asura Vidāla, on receiving the order
came up at once to Indra, mounted on a very furious elephant. Seeing him
coming, Vāsava shot at him angrily with very terrible and most powerful
arrows that looked like deadly snakes. But the Demon, too, out off those
arrows at once with his excellent arrows and quickly shot at Vāsava fifty
arrows, sharpened on stones. Indra cut off all those and, being infuriated,
shot again sharp deadly serpent-like arrows at him, and cutting off again
all his enemies' arrows by arrows discharged from his bow, struck the
elephant's trunk with his Gadā (club). The elephant, being thus struck on
his head, cried aloud in a distressed tone and being afraid turned back,
thus killing the Dānava forces as he fled away. The general Vidāla, seeing
the elephant fleeing away from the battle-field, mounted on a beautiful
chariot and instantly appeared before the Devas to fight with them. Seeing
the Dānava coming again on a chariot, Indra shot at him sharp arrows after
arrows like venomous snakes. The powerful Dānava, too, infuriated hurled at
him terrible arrows; then a sharp conflict ensued between Vāsava and the
Dānava. Finding the Dānava powerful, Vāsava's senses were confounded with
anger; he then took his son Jayanta before him and began to fight. Jayanta
stretched his bow tight and shot at the breast of the Dānava swelled with
pride, five sharp arrows with his full strength. Thus shot at by the network
of arrows, the Dānava fell unconscious on the chariot; the charioteer then
fled away with his chariot from the battle-field. Thus on the Dānava Vidāla
becoming unconscious and being taken away from the field, the Dunduvis
(drums) of the Devas were resounded and great acclamations of Victory to
the Devas were heard. The Devas were very glad and sounded hymns before
Indra; the Gandarbhas began to sing and the Apsarās began to dance. O king!
Hearing the loud acclamations of victory to the Devas, Mahisa became very
angry and ordered the Dānava Tāmra, the destroyer of enemy's pride, to go to
the battle-field. Tāmra appeared in the battle, and, coming face to face
with many Deva warriors, hurled on them showers of arrows. Varuna appeared
with his Pās'a weapon and Yama, mounted on his buffalo, appeared with his
Danda (staff). A terrible fight then ensued between the Devas and Dānavas
and the weapons, arrows, axes, Musalas, S'aktis and Paras'us glittered in
the fields. Yama raising his Danda with his hands struck at Tāmra; but the
powerful Tāmra, though severely struck, was not at all moved and remained
firm in his place in the field. On the other hand Tāmra, violently drawing
his bow, hurled a mass of sharp arrows at Indra and the other Devas. The
Devas got angry and shot at the Dānava multitudes of divine arrows sharpened
on stone, and frequently called aloud Wait, wait. The Dānava Tāmra thus
shot at by the arrows of the Devas, fell unconscious in the battle-field;
the Dānava forces got afraid and a cry of universal consternation and
distress arose.
Here ends the Fifth Chapter of the Fifth Skandha on the defeat of the Dānava
forces of Mahisa in the Māhāpurānam Srī Mad Devī Bhāgavatam of 18,000
verses.
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