Navaratrapradipa 1_73

1_73

tathā ca rahasyabhūtā sarvatra vidyamānā'pi bahirmukhānāmagamyā dhruvā kṣayodayavarjitā ṣoḍaśī kalaivāmānām‍nī mahākalā
tad‍yuktaḥ kālo mahākālaḥ . sā ca mahākālī tadaṅgabhūtā eva
punaḥ punarbahirnigacchantyaḥ punaḥ punaścāntārnilīyamānāḥ pañcadaśa
kalāḥ pratipadādināmavyapadeśyāḥ tattaddivasavyavahāropayoginyo
bhavanti . tatra śuklapakṣe ekaikā kalā bahirnirgatya candramaṇḍalaṃ
pūrayati tāśca pratipadādayaḥ pūrṇimāntāḥ. kṛṣṇapakṣe ca krameṇaikaikā kalā līyate . tā api krameṇa pratipadādanāmabhājo bhavanti . ṣoḍaśī kalā tu "tasya rātrayaḥ pañcadaśa kalā dhruvaiṣā'sya ṣoḍaśī kalā” iti śrutipratipāditā nityaṃ sūrye eva
vartate . ata eva tithayaḥ pañcadaśaiva vyavahriyante . paurāṇikānāṃ
mate tāḥ pañcadaśa kalāḥ krameṇa kṛṣṇapakṣe vahn‍yādayaḥ prajāpatyantā devaḥ pibanti, śuklapakṣe codgirantīti krameṇa tāsāṃ tithīnāṃ pratipadādināmāni bhavanti . jyotiḥśāstre tvanyathaiva
pratipāditaṃ tadgranthāntarato'vaseyam . tattvatastu sarvamapyekameva .
+
evaṃ sati yatra hi mahākālamahākalyoḥ sāmarasyaṃ jāyate tādṛśayogayukta kālamamāviddhapratipadaṃ vihāya dvitīyāviddhāmeva pratipadaṃ devīpūjane'ṅgīkurvanti te kathaṃ jñāpayitavyāḥ . bhavatu . atrā'nyadapi rahasyatamaṃ vartate paraṃ tasya gurumukhaikasaṃvedyatvenā'tigopanīyatvena tallekhanamanucitamiti nā'tra tallikhyate .
jijñāsubhirgurumukhātsvā'nubhūtyā cā'vagantavyamityevālam .

And thus, the sixteenth digit, secret and existing everywhere yet inaccessible to outward-directed minds, constant, devoid of decrease and increase, is indeed the great digit named Amā. The time conjoined with that is Mahākāla, and she is Mahākālī. Her subordinate parts alone—repeatedly going outward and repeatedly dissolving inward—are the fifteen digits designated by the names pratipad and so forth, which serve the everyday activities of the respective days. Among them, in the bright fortnight, each single digit goes outward and fills the disc of the moon, and these [lunar days] begin with pratipad and end with the full moon day. In the dark fortnight, each single digit progressively dissolves; they also successively bear the names pratipad and so forth. But the sixteenth digit, established by the Śruti: "His nights are fifteen digits; this constant [digit] of his is the sixteenth digit," resides eternally in the sun alone. For this very reason, only fifteen lunar days are conventionally used. In the view of the Purāṇa authors, those fifteen digits are successively drunk in the dark fortnight by the gods beginning with Agni and ending with Prajāpati, and emitted in the bright fortnight; thus those lunar days progressively receive the names pratipad and so forth. In the astronomical treatise, however, it is explained differently; that should be gathered from another work. In reality, all is one and the same.
This being so, where the union of Mahākāla and Mahākālī occurs—leaving aside the time endowed with such an alignment, namely the pratipad conjoined with amā, how should those who accept in the worship of the Goddess only the pratipad conjoined with dvitīyā be instructed? Be that as it may. There is also another supreme secret here, but because it is to be known solely from the mouth of the guru and is extremely confidential, committing it to writing is improper, and hence it is not written here. It should be understood by seekers of truth from the mouth of the guru and through personal experience; enough has been said on this.