Candishataka 9

9

sā durgā vaḥ śriye'stu . yasyāḥ pādaṃ hradaṃ sarovaramiva prāpya mahiṣaḥ
svastho nirvṛtaḥ svargasthaścābhūt . kiṃbhūtaḥ . haritahareḥ sūryasya śaṣpalobhādvāla-
tṛṇagārdhyādiva grastāśvaḥ . sūryasyāśvā haridvarṇāḥ santīti mahiṣeṇa haritako-
malatṛṇabuddhyā kavalīkṛtāḥ . punaḥ . aprasoḍhānaloṣmā asoḍhāgnitejāḥ . deva-
pakṣatayāgnestasya darpa na sahate . sthāṇau mahādeve kaṇḍūṃ vinīya śivena saha
samaraṃ kṛtvā madakaṇḍūtimapanīya . mahiṣo hi sthāṇau kīlake kaṇḍūtyapanayana karoti . punaḥ. pratimahiṣaruṣā mahiṣāntarakopenevāntakopāntavartī yamasa-
mīpagantā jātaḥ. punaḥ . kṛṣṇaṃ viṣṇuṃ kṛṣṇavarṇatvātpaṅkamivecchanmajjanāya jalā-
vagāhāyeva varuṇaṃ jalādhīśamupagataḥ. evaṃ bahuṣvapi haridaśvaprabhṛtisthāneṣu
bhrāmyansvāstho yo na babhūva, sa mahiṣaścaṇḍīpādamūle svasthatāṃ prāpa .
anyo-
'pi mahiṣo haritatṛṇalolupo bhavati, analoṣmāṇaṃ na sahate, sthāṇau kaṇḍū-
timapanayati, dvitīyaṃ mahiṣaṃ vilokya kopāviṣṭo bhavati, kṛṣṇavarṇakardame
luṭhanecchayā jalāśayaṃ gacchati, hradaṃ prāpya ca svastho bhavati ..
trailokyātaṅkaśāntyai praviśati vivaśe dhātari dhyānatandrī-
mindrādyeṣu dravatsu draviṇapatipayaḥpālakālānaleṣu .
ye sparśenaiva piṣṭvā mahiṣamatiruṣaṃ trātavantastrilokīṃ
pāntu tvāṃ pañca caṇḍyāścaraṇa khanibhenāpare lokapālāḥ..9..

May that Durgā be for your prosperity, reaching whose foot as if a lake, a pool of water, Mahiṣa found rest, became at ease, and took his abode in heaven. Of what sort? Having swallowed the horses of the Sun (haritahareḥ), as if out of longing for green tender sprouts, out of greed for young grass. The horses of the Sun are tawny-green (harid-varṇa); therefore, they were gulped down by Mahiṣa with the thought that they were green, soft grass. Again: unable to endure the heat of Fire, unenduring the fiery majesty of Agni. Because Agni took the side of the gods, he could not tolerate his arrogance. Scratching his itch against Sthāṇu, Mahādeva: having fought with Śiva, removing the itching of his rut. For a buffalo removes its itching against a post (sthāṇu). Again: standing close to Death, going near Yama, as if in fury against another buffalo, out of anger at a rival buffalo. Again: approaching Varuṇa, the lord of waters, to plunge in, for immersion in water, desiring the dark one (kṛṣṇa), Viṣṇu, like mud (paṅka), because of his dark color. Thus, though wandering about in many places such as that of the Sun and the rest, he did not find rest; but at the base of Caṇḍī's foot, that Mahiṣa attained rest.
An ordinary buffalo too is greedy for green grass, cannot bear the heat of fire, scratches its itch against a post, becomes enraged upon seeing a second buffalo, goes to a body of water desiring to wallow in dark mud, and, reaching a pool, finds rest.

While the Creator helplessly slipped into the stupor of meditation to calm the terror of the three worlds,
and Indra and the other gods—the Lord of Wealth, the Guardian of the Waters, Death, and Fire—were in flight,
those five other Guardians of the Worlds in the guise of Caṇḍī's foot-claws,
who protected the three worlds by crushing the violently enraged Mahiṣa with their mere touch, may they protect you! (9)