Durga Saptashati Chapter 2: The Birth of the Goddess and the Army of Mahishasura

The middle charitra begins with chapter 2; its goddess is Mahalakshmi. This is the famous episode in which the power of all the gods unites and appears as one Goddess.

Mahishasura's tyranny

Long ago gods and asuras fought for a full hundred years. Mahishasura, the buffalo demon, led the asuras, and Indra the gods. The gods were defeated, and Mahishasura took Indra's place in heaven. The defeated gods, led by Brahma, went to Shiva and Vishnu and told them everything: Mahishasura had seized the rights of the sun, Indra, Agni, Vayu, the moon, Yama, Varuna and all, and the gods wandered the earth like mortals.

The Goddess appears

Hearing this, Vishnu and Shiva grew very angry. A great radiance came from their faces and from Brahma's. Radiance came also from Indra and all the gods, and gathering in one place it looked like a mountain of flame. That radiance took the form of a woman whose light filled the three worlds.

• From Shiva's radiance came her face, from Yama's her hair, from Vishnu's her arms.
• From the moon's her breasts, from Indra's her waist, from Varuna's her thighs, from the earth's her hips.
• From Brahma's her feet, from the sun's her toes, from the Vasus' her fingers.
• From Kubera's her nose, from Prajapati's her teeth, from Agni's her three eyes, from the twilight's her brows, from Vayu's her ears.

The weapons of the gods

All the gods gave her the symbols of their power:

• Shiva drew a trident from his own, Vishnu a discus from his, Varuna gave a conch, Agni a spear, Vayu a bow and quivers full of arrows.
• Indra gave his thunderbolt and Airavata's bell, Yama the staff of death, Varuna a noose, Brahma a rosary and water pot.
• The sun gave his rays to her pores, Time a shining sword and shield, the ocean of milk a pure necklace and ageless garments, a divine crest jewel, earrings, bracelets and anklets.
• Vishvakarma gave an axe and many weapons and armour, the ocean a garland of unfading lotuses, the Himalaya a lion to ride and jewels, Kubera a cup of wine, and Shesha a serpent necklace set with gems.

The Goddess's roar and the battle

Adorned with weapons, the Goddess laughed aloud again and again; the sky echoed, the earth shook and the oceans heaved. The gods shouted "Victory!" and the sages praised her with devotion.

Seeing the three worlds in turmoil, the asuras rushed out in battle array. Mahishasura saw the Goddess lighting the three worlds with her radiance. His generals Chikshura, Chamara, Udagra, Mahahanu, Asiloma, Bashkala, Parivarita, Bidala and many others came with countless chariots, elephants, horses and foot soldiers.

As if in play the Goddess rained weapons and cut theirs to pieces. With every breath she drew, hundreds of thousands of attendants arose and fought the asuras. Her lion moved through the demon army like a forest fire. With trident, mace, spear, sword and arrows she destroyed the asuras, and in a short time Mahishasura's vast army was gone. The gods showered flowers from the sky.

What this chapter teaches

• When powers fail separately, they unite into one; unity is the greatest strength.
• The Goddess is made of the radiance of every god; every good power is a part of her.
• Feminine power protects the world; where the gods were defeated, the Goddess won.
• However great injustice is, its army cannot stand before the power of dharma.