Skandapurana 6.3.15

6.3.15.p1

adhyāya 15

6.3.15.1

śrīmārkaṇḍeya uvāca -
tato mātṛsahasraiśca raudraiśca parivāritā .
kālarātrirjagatsarvaṃ harate dīptalocanā .. 15.1 ..

The venerable Mārkaṇḍeya said: / Then, surrounded by thousands of fierce mother-goddesses, / Kālarātri, with blazing eyes, destroyed the whole world. 15.1

6.3.15.2

tatastā mātaro ghorā brahmaviṣṇuśivātmikāḥ .
vāyvindrānalakauberā yamatoyeśaśaktayaḥ .. 15.2 ..

Then those dreadful Mothers, the embodiments of Brahmā, Viṣṇu, and Śiva, / the powers of Vāyu, Indra, Agni, Kubera, Yama, and Varuṇa, 15.2

6.3.15.3

skandakroḍanṛsiṃhānāṃ vicarantyo bhayānakāḥ .
cakraśūlagadākhaḍgavajraśaktyṛṣṭipaṭṭiśaiḥ .. 15.3 ..

and of Skanda, the Boar, and Narasiṃha, roamed frightfully / with discuses, tridents, maces, swords, thunderbolts, spears, javelins, and cleavers. 15.3

6.3.15.4

khaṭvāṅgairulmukairdīptairvyacaranmātaraḥ kṣaye .
umāsaṃnoditā sarvāḥ pradhāvantyo diśo daśa .. 15.4 ..

With khaṭvāṅgas and blazing firebrands, the Mothers roamed at the destruction; / urged on by Umā, they all rushed through the ten directions. 15.4

6.3.15.5

tāsāṃ caraṇavikṣepairhuṅkārodgāranisvanaiḥ .
trailokyametatsakalaṃ vipradagdhaṃ samantataḥ .. 15.5 ..

By the stamping of their feet and the sounds of their roaring cries, / this entire three worlds was thoroughly burned on all sides. 15.5

6.3.15.6

hāhāravākranditanisvanaiśca prabhinnarathyāgṛhagopuraiśca .
babhūva ghorā dharaṇī samantātkapālakośākulakarburāṅgī .. 15.6 ..

With wailing and shrieking sounds, and streets, houses, and gateway towers shattered, / the earth became frightful on all sides, variegated and covered with heaps of skulls. 15.6

6.3.15.7

yadetacchatasāhasraṃ jambūdvīpaṃ nigadyate .
sarvameva taducchannaṃ samādhṛṣya nṛpottama .. 15.7 ..

This Jambudvīpa, which is spoken of as one hundred thousand [yojanas], / was completely devastated, having been assaulted, O best of kings! 15.7

6.3.15.8

jambuṃ śākaṃ kuśaṃ krauñcaṃ gomedaṃ śālmalistathā .
puṣkaradvīpasahitā ye ca parvatavāsinaḥ .. 15.8 ..

Jambu, Śāka, Kuśa, Krauñca, Gomeda, and Śālmali, / together with Puṣkaradvīpa, and the mountain dwellers who were there, 15.8

6.3.15.9

te grastā mṛtyunā sarve bhūtairmātṛgaṇaistathā .
mahāsurakapālaiśca māṃsamedovasotkaṭaiḥ .. 15.9 ..

they were all swallowed by Death, by ghosts, and by hosts of Mothers, / with skulls of great asuras, brimming with flesh, fat, and marrow. 15.9

6.3.15.10

rudhirodgāraśoṇāṅgī mahāmāyā subhīṣaṇā .
pibantī rudhiraṃ tatra mahāmāṃsavasāpriyā .. 15.10 ..

Her limbs crimson from the spewing of blood, Mahāmāyā, exceedingly terrifying, / drinking blood there, delighted in human flesh and fat. 15.10

6.3.15.11

kapālahastā vikaṭā bhakṣayantī surāsurān .
nṛtyantī ca hasantī ca viparītā mahāravā .. 15.11 ..

Holding a skull-bowl in her hand, monstrous, devouring gods and demons, / dancing and laughing, inverted, raising a tremendous roar,

6.3.15.12

trailokyasaṃtrāsakarī vidyutsaṃsphoṭahāsinī .
saptadvīpasamudrāntāṃ bhakṣayitvā ca medinīm .. 15.12 ..

striking terror into the three worlds, laughing with the burst of lightning, / having devoured the earth as far as the oceans of the seven continents,

6.3.15.13

tataḥ svasthānamagamadyatra devo maheśvaraḥ .
narmadātīramāśrityāvasanmātṛgaṇaiḥ saha .. 15.13 ..

she then went to her own abode, where the god Maheśvara was. / Resorting to the bank of the Narmadā, she dwelt along with the host of Mothers.

6.3.15.14

amarāṇāṃ kaṭe tuṅge nṛtyantī hasitānanā .
amarā devatāḥ proktāḥ śarīraṃ kaṭamucyate .. 15.14 ..

Dancing on the lofty hips of the immortals, her face laughing— / the gods are called immortals (amarāḥ), and the body is called hips (kaṭaḥ).

6.3.15.15

taiḥ kaṭairāvṛto yasmātparvato'yaṃ nṛpottama .
chinnabhinnāsthinikarairvasāmedo'sraviplutaiḥ .. 15.15 ..

Because this mountain, O best of kings, was covered with those hips [of the dead], / with heaps of severed and shattered bones flooded with fat, marrow, and blood,

6.3.15.16

amaraṃkaṭa ityevaṃ tena prokto manīṣibhiḥ .
mahāpavitro lokeṣu śambhunā sa vinirmitaḥ .. 15.16 ..

therefore it is called Amarakaṇṭaka by the wise. / Extremely holy in the worlds, it was fashioned by Śambhu.

6.3.15.17

nityaṃ saṃnihitastatra śaṅkaro hyumayā saha .
tato'haṃ niyatastatra tasya pādāgrasaṃsthitaḥ .. 15.17 ..

There Śaṃkara is perpetually present indeed with Umā. / Then I, restrained, standing before his feet there,

6.3.15.18

prahvaḥ praṇatabhāvena staumi taṃ nīlalohitam .
tatastālakasampātairgaṇairmātṛgaṇaiḥ saha .. 15.18 ..

humble with a bowed disposition, praise him, the blue-and-red god. / Then, with beats of clapping, along with his attendants and the host of Mothers,

6.3.15.19

saṃpranṛtyati saṃhṛṣṭo mṛtyunā saha śaṅkaraḥ .
khaṭvāṅgairulmukaiścaiva paṭṭiśaiḥ parighaistathā .. 15.19 ..

Śaṃkara, greatly rejoicing, dances along with Death. / With khaṭvāṅgas, blazing firebrands, spears, and iron bludgeons,

6.3.15.20

māṃsamedovasāhastā hṛṣṭā nṛtyanti saṃghaśaḥ .
vāmanā jaṭilā muṇḍā lambagrīvoṣṭhamūrddhajāḥ .. 15.20 ..

holding meat, marrow, and fat in their hands, they dance exultantly in throngs— / dwarfs, matted-haired, bald, with long necks, lips, and hair,

6.3.15.21

mahāśiśnodarabhujā nṛtyanti ca hasanti ca .
vikṛtairānanairghorairarbhujolbaṇamukhādibhiḥ .. 15.21 ..

with huge phalluses, bellies, and arms, they dance and laugh, / with disfigured, dreadful faces, terrible mouths, and the like.

6.3.15.22

amaraṃ kaṇṭakaṃ cakruḥ prāpte kālaviparyaye .
teṣāṃ madhye mahāghoraṃ jagatsantrāsakāraṇam .. 15.22 ..

When the reversal of time arrived, they made the immortals into thorns (amaraṃ kaṇṭakam). / In their midst, causing immense terror to the world,

6.3.15.23

mṛtyuṃ paśyāmi nṛtyantaṃ taḍitpiṅgalamūrddhajam .
tasya pārśve sthitāṃ devīṃ vimalāmbarabhūṣitām .. 15.23 ..

I beheld Death dancing, his hair reddish-brown like lightning. / Beside him stood the goddess adorned with spotless garments,

6.3.15.24

kuṇḍalodghuṣṭagaṇḍāṃ tāṃ nāgayajñopavītinīm .
vicitrairupahāraiśca pūjayantīṃ maheśvaram .. 15.24 ..

her cheeks resounding with earrings, wearing a serpent as a sacred thread, / worshipping Maheśvara with manifold offerings.

6.3.15.25

apaśyaṃ narmadāṃ tatra mātaraṃ viśvavanditām .
nānātaraṅgāṃ sāvartāṃ suvelārṇavasaṃnibhām .. 15.25 ..

I saw there Narmadā, the mother praised by the entire universe, / having diverse waves and whirlpools, resembling the ocean at Suvela.

6.3.15.26

mahāsaraḥsaritpātairadṛśyāṃ dṛśyarūpiṇīm .
vandyamānāṃ suraiḥ siddhairmunisaṅghaiśca bhārata .. 15.26 ..

Invisible through the cascades of great lakes and rivers, yet possessing visible form, / being praised by gods, perfected ones, and hosts of sages, O descendant of Bharata.

6.3.15.27

etasminnantare ghorāṃ saptasaptakasaṃjñitām .
mahāvīcyaughaphenāḍhyāṃ kurvantīṃ sajalaṃ jagat .. 15.27 ..

In the meantime, [I saw her,] dreadful, called the forty-nine-fold, / rich in vast torrents of waves and foam, submerging the world in water;

6.3.15.28

dṛṣṭavānnarmadāṃ devīṃ mṛgakṛṣṇāmbarāṃ punaḥ .
sadhūmāśaninirhrādairvahantīṃ saptadhā tadā .. 15.28 ..

and again I saw the goddess Narmadā, clad in a black deerskin, / then flowing in seven divisions with smoky roars of thunderbolts.

6.3.15.29

iti saṃhāramatulaṃ dṛṣṭavānrājasattama .
naṣṭacandrārkakiraṇamabhūdetaccarācaram .. 15.29 ..

Having witnessed this peerless dissolution, O best of kings, / this universe of moving and unmoving beings was deprived of the rays of the moon and the sun,

6.3.15.30

mahotpātasamudbhūtaṃ naṣṭanakṣatramaṇḍalam .
alātacakravattūrṇamaśeṣaṃ bhrāmayaṃstataḥ .. 15.30 ..

arisen from a great portent, its circle of constellations vanished, / as he quickly whirled everything entirely like a firebrand's wheel.

6.3.15.31

vimānakoṭisaṃkīrṇaḥ sa kiṃnaramahoragaḥ .
mahāvātaḥ sanirghāto yenākampaccarācaram .. 15.31 ..

Teeming with millions of aerial chariots, along with Kinnaras and great serpents, / a mighty wind with lightning-strokes arose, by which moving and unmoving beings shook.

6.3.15.32

rudravaktrātsamudbhūtaḥ saṃvarto nāma viśrutaḥ .
vāyuḥ saṃśoṣayāmāsa vitatan saptasāgarān .. 15.32 ..

Arising from Rudra's mouth, celebrated under the name Saṃvarta, / that wind dried up the vast seven oceans.

6.3.15.33

uddhūlitāṅgaḥ kapilākṣamūrddhajo jaṭākalāpairavabaddhamūrddhajaḥ .
mahāravo dīptaviśālaśūladhṛksa pātu yuṣmāṃśca dine dine haraḥ .. 15.33 ..

His limbs smeared with ashes, his eyes and hair tawny, his hair bound in clusters of matted locks, / raising a tremendous roar, bearing a radiant, vast trident—may that Hara protect you day after day!

6.3.15.34

śūlī dhanuṣmānkavacī kirīṭī śmaśānabhasmokṣitasarvagātraḥ .
kapālamālākulakaṇṭhanālo mahāhisūtrairavabaddhamauliḥ .. 15.34 ..

Holding a trident, holding a bow, armored, crowned, with all limbs sprinkled with ashes from the cremation ground, / his throat encircled by a garland of skulls, his diadem bound with strings of great serpents,

6.3.15.35

sa gonasaughaiḥ pariveṣṭitāṅgo viṣāgnicandrāmarasindhumauliḥ .
pinākakhaṇṭūvāṅgakarālapāṇiḥ sa kṛttivāsā ḍamarupraṇādaḥ .. 15.35 ..

his body encircled by throngs of venomous serpents, his crown bearing poison, fire, the moon, and the heavenly river, / his terrifying hands holding the Pināka and the khaṭvāṅga, clad in animal skin, resounding with the ḍamaru,

6.3.15.36

sa saptalokāntaraniḥsṛtātmā mahabhujāveṣṭitasarvagātraḥ .
netreṇa sūryodayasannibhena pravālakāṅkūranibhodareṇa .. 15.36 ..

whose self extends through the seven worlds, whose entire body is enveloped by mighty arms, / with an eye resembling the sunrise, whose interior resembles a sprout of coral,

6.3.15.37

sandhyābhraraktotpalapadmarāgasindūravidyutprakarāruṇena .
tatena liṅgena ca locanena cikrīḍamānaḥ sa yugāntakāle .. 15.37 ..

ruddy like twilight clouds, red lotuses, rubies, vermilion, and flashes of lightning, / sporting at the end of the yuga with his extended liṅga and [third] eye,

6.3.15.38

hiraṇmayenaiva samutsṛjan sa daṇḍena yadvadbhagavān sameruḥ .
pādāgravikṣepaviśīrṇaśailaḥ kurvañjagatso'pi jagāma tatra .. 15.38 ..

releasing it like a golden staff, just as the blessed Meru mountain would, / the mountains shattered by the thrusts of his toes, transforming the world, he proceeded there.

6.3.15.39

saṃhartukāmastridivaṃ tvaśeṣaṃ pramuñcamāno vikṛtāṭṭahāsam .
jahāra sarvaṃ tridivaṃ mahātmā saṃkṣobhayanvai jagadīśa ekaḥ .. 15.39 ..

Desiring to destroy heaven completely, emitting a terrifying roar of laughter, / the great-souled sole Lord of the World destroyed the entire three heavens, convulsing them.

6.3.15.40

taṃ devamīśānamajaṃ vareṇyaṃ dṛṣṭvā jagatsaṃharaṇaṃ maheśam .
sā kālarātriḥ saha mātṛbhiśca gaṇāśca sarve śivamarcayanti .. 15.40 ..

Having seen that god, the unborn, excellent Lord Maheśa, who destroys the universe, / Kālarātri along with the Mothers, and all the attendants worship Śiva.

6.3.15.41

nandī ca bhṛṅgī ca gaṇādayaśca taṃ sarvabhūtaṃ praṇamanti devam .
jāgadvaraṃ sarvajanasya kāraṇaṃ haraṃ smarārātimaharniśaṃ te .. 15.41 ..

Nandin, Bhṛṅgin, and the attendants bow to that god who is all beings, / the best in the universe, the cause of all people, Hara, the enemy of Smara, day and night.

6.3.15.41_2

.. iti śrīskānde mahāpurāṇa ekāśītisāhasryāṃ pañcama āvantyakhaṇḍe revākhaṇḍe narmadāmāhātmye sṛṣṭisaṃharaṇasaṃrambhavarṇanaṃ nāma pañcadaśo'dhyāyaḥ ..

Thus ends the fifteenth chapter, titled 'Description of the Vehemence of Creation's Dissolution,' in the praise of the Narmadā, in the Revākhaṇḍa of the Āvantyakhaṇḍa, in the glorious Skanda Mahāpurāṇa of eighty-one thousand verses.