Skandapurana 1.4.60: adhyāyaḥ 62

Śaunaka said:

“O Sūta, formerly the origin of the lord of the gaṇas was heard by us;

tell us who are listening how the lord of the field was born.” (1)

Sūta said:

“When the dwellers of heaven were oppressed by the demon Dāruka,

they bowed down to Śiva seated with the goddess and spoke as follows: (2)

‘O God, by the dreadful demon, invincible to gods and asuras,

by Dāruka we are afflicted and displaced from our own abode! (3)

Not by Viṣṇu, nor by the Moon, nor by anyone else

is that wicked-souled one able to be slain, except by the Lord Who Is Half-Woman. (4)

Be our refuge, being oppressed by him!’

Having said this, the gods wept and said, ‘Save us, save us!’ (5)

Then Pārvatī, filled with extreme compassion, took the blackness

of Hara's throat and made a single, terrifying woman. (6)

Releasing her own power into her, the auspicious lady spoke these words:

‘Because you are exceedingly black, be Kālikā by name. (7)

And quickly destroy the enemy of the gods, the wicked-souled one, O beautiful woman!’

Thus addressed, Kālikā of the great roar reached him then; (8)

by her roar alone, she caused him to die along with his followers, their hearts burst open.

Then, dwelling in the cremation ground of Avantī, she uttered great roars, (9)

by which all three worlds were unhinged, as though dead.

Then the all-pervading Rudra, assuming the form of an infant for the sake of the universe, (10)

approached weeping near her in that abode of the dead.

Taking the crying child into her lap, filled with pity, (11)

Kālikā suckled him at her breast, murmuring, ‘Do not weep.’

Under the guise of breast milk, the child also drank the anger born of her body, (12)

which was very difficult to bear, arising from the poison in Hara's throat.

When the nature of her anger had been drunk, Kālikā then became gentle. (13)

The child too, having accomplished his task, wished to discard that infant form. (14)

Then the gods, fearing once more a danger from Kālikā,

said: ‘O child, do not abandon your childhood! Have mercy!’ (15)

The child said:

‘There is no need to fear Kālikā, since the goddess has been made gentle.

If you have fear, I will create other children.’

Having said this, he produced sixty-four guardians of the field from his mouth. (16)

Maheśvara in the form of a child spoke to them who were in the form of children:

‘For twenty-five of you [residence is] in the heavens, and for as many in the nether worlds; (17)

the residence of fourteen and also their protection shall be in the mortal realm.

This very dog dwelling in the cremation ground shall be your mount. (18)

Your food offering shall be royal beans mixed with grains of rice.

And whoever performs any rite without worshipping you,

that will prove fruitless for him, consumed by pretas and rākṣasas.”

Having spoken thus, the blessed Rudra vanished right there.

And the Kṣetrapālas took their stand, assigned to their respective places.

Thus the creation of the Kṣetrapālas has been told to you in brief.

I shall [now] declare the propitiation whereby they become pleased:

“Oṃ kṣāṃ, homage to the Kṣetrapāla.”

Such is the great mantra of nine syllables.

Having offered here sandalwood paste and the like with this [mantra], and having offered cakes made of a mixture of black gram and rice divided into sixty-four portions, as many lamps, as many betel leaves and areca nuts, and having bowed prostrate like a staff, one should recite this great hymn of praise:

“Oṃ. Those whose hair stands upright, who are deformed-eyed, who perpetually have terrible forms,

who have red eyes and tawny eyes—I bow to those Kṣetrapālas:

Ahvara, Āpakumbha, and likewise he who is Iḍācāra,

Indramūrti, Kolākṣa, Upapāda, Ṛtunsana,

Siddheya, Valika, Nīlapāda, Ekadaṃṣṭrika,

Irāpati, Aghahārī, Vighnahārī, and Antaka,

Ūrdhvapāda, Kambala, Khañjana, and Khara,

Gomukha, Jaṅghāla, Gaṇanātha, Vāraṇa,

Jaṭāla, and Ajaṭāla—I praise the guardians of the heavenly fields;

Ṛkāra, Haṭhakārī, Ṭaṅkapāṇi, and Khaṇi,

Ṭhaṃṭhaṅkaṇa, Jambara, Sphuliṅgāsya, Taḍidruci,

Dantura, Ghananāda, and another, Nandaka,

Phetkārakārī, Pañcāsya, Barbarī, Bhīmarūpavān,

Bhagnapakṣa, Kālamegha, Yuvāna, and Bhāskara,

Raurava, Lamboṣṭha, Vaṇij, Sujaṭālika,

Sugandha, and Huhuka—I praise the guardians of Pātāla;

Huṃkāra presiding over all liṅgas, Bhayāvaha over cremation grounds,

Mahālakṣa in the terrible forest, Jvālākṣa situated in settlements,

Ekavṛkṣa in trees, Karālavadana in the night,

Ghaṇṭārava, Guhāvāsī, Padmakhañja situated in water,

Durāroha at crossroads, Kuravas on the mountain,

Pravāha at waterfalls, and Māṇibhadra at treasures,

Rasādhyakṣa in alchemical fields, Koṭana at sacrificial enclosures—

to those who stand pervading the fourteen worlds, I bow thus.

Thus I go for refuge to the sixty-four Kṣetrapālas.

May they be pleased, may they be pleased, may they be satisfied by my worship!”

And whoever, being pure, thus worships the Kṣetrapālas in all undertakings,

the Kṣetrapālas are pleased with him and grant what is desired.

And knowing this ritual manual of the Kṣetrapālas, Vijaya likewise,

having worshipped Siddheya according to the prescribed rite, praised him.

Then, having bowed, he worshipped the goddess Vaṭayakṣiṇī.

Formerly, when brahmins were brought from the village of Kalāpa by Nārada,

together with them a brahmin woman named Sunandā,

having become a widow, came there to perform austerity on the bank of the Mahī.

Performing kṛcchra, parāka, and atikṛcchra penances,

she performed two three-night observances dedicated to Sāvitrī in Jyaiṣṭha and Bhādrapada.

The delighter of her family also [kept] a fast for a whole month in Kārttika;

having worshipped seven liṅgas, she continually performed worship of the goddess.

She also performed ritual ablution on the new moon day at the confluence of the Mahī and the ocean.

Through these and many other such regular observances of vows,

cleansed of sins, welcomed [there], she went to the world of Umā.

And by a portion [of herself], she was born on that bank as Vaṭayakṣiṇī.

Pleased with her, Hara, present in the Siddhaliṅga, granted a boon:

“Whoever performs my worship without worshipping her,

all of that will be fruitless for him; this is my word to be kept.

Therefore, one should continually worship Vaṭayakṣiṇī who resides in the banyan tree,

with flowers, incenses, and food offerings, with devotion, using this mantra:

‘O Sunandā, you are worthy of celebration; accept this worship of mine.

Be gracious to me at all times, O Vaṭayakṣiṇī!’

Having thus worshipped, bowed to, and asked forgiveness from Vaṭayakṣiṇī,

a man or a woman obtains all desires forever.”

And Vijaya, knowing this māhātmya, of great intellect,

worshipped with devotion the Vaṭayakṣiṇī who dwells in the banyan tree. // 1.2.62.50

Then, having praised Siddhāmbikā, he recited the Aparājitā,

the great Vaiṣṇava vidyā accompanied by its ritual practice. // 51

[That vidyā] by the mere recollection of which all suffering is destroyed,

that vidyā I shall proclaim; listen, best of brahmins! // 52

Oṃ, homage to the Blessed One, Vāsudeva! Homage to the Infinite One, the thousand-headed, who reclines on the ocean of milk, whose couch is the coils of Śeṣa, who rides upon Garuḍa, clad in yellow garments! Vāsudeva, Saṃkarṣaṇa, Pradyumna, Aniruddha, Horse-headed One, Boar, Man-Lion, Dwarf, Trivikrama, Rāma, Rāma, granter of boons, homage, homage be to you! Strike, strike, burn, burn, cook, cook, churn, churn, destroy, destroy, rout, rout the asuras, daityas, dānavas, yakṣas, rākṣasas, bhūtas, pretas, piśācas, kumbhāṇḍas, siddhayoginīs, ḍākinīs, the planets headed by Skanda, and other asterisms and planets! Reduce them to ashes with your conch, discus, thunderbolt, mace, pestle, and plough! O thousand-armed one, O one whose weapons are your thousand feet, conquer, conquer! Be victorious, be victorious! Unconquered one, unhindered one, thousand-eyed one, flame, flame, blaze forth, blaze forth! All-formed one, many-formed one, slayer of Madhu, Great Boar, Great Person, Vaikuṇṭha, Nārāyaṇa, Lotus-naveled One, Govinda, Dāmodara, Hṛṣīkeśa, extirpator of all asuras, subduer of all beings, breaker of all sorrows, destroyer of all mechanical devices, crusher of all serpents, Great Lord of all gods, deliverer from all bonds, crusher of all harm, destroyer of all fevers, averter of all planetary afflictions, pacifier of all sins, Janārdana, bringer of joy to people, homage be to you, svāhā! // 53

Whoever recites, reads, hears, remembers, wears, or proclaims this Aparājitā, the supreme Vaiṣṇava great vidyā, has no fear of wind, fire, thunderbolt, hailstones, lightning, or rain, nor fear of the ocean, nor fear of planets, nor fear of thieves, nor fear of wild beasts; // 54

nor shall there be for him anywhere fear of the darkness of night, women, royal courts, poison, secondary poison, poisoners, subjugation, sowing dissension, eradication, slaughter, or imprisonment, by these mantra words uttered, fixed in the heart, perfected, and worshipped. // 55

It is as follows:

Homage, homage be to you, O Fearless One, Sinless One, Unconquered One, Unterrified One, Immortal One, Aparājitā, accomplished through recitation, accomplished through recollection, Ekānaṃśā, Umā, Dhruvā, Arundhatī, Sāvitrī, Gāyatrī, Jātavedasī, Mānastokā, Sarasī, Sarasvatī, Dharaṇī, Dhāriṇī, Saudāminī, Aditi, Vinatā, Gaurī, Gāndhārī, Mātaṅgī, Kṛṣṇā, Yaśodā, speaker of truth, teacher of the Veda, Kālī, Kapālinī, who instantly assembles the limbs! Protect, protect the one on land, in water, or in the sky! Protect, protect from all dangers and afflictions of beings, svāhā! // 56

She whose menstrual flow is lost, or if her fetus falls,

she whose children die, and she who bears only a single child—

she should wear this vidyā; she is not tainted by these faults. // 57

In battle, in the royal court, and in gambling, victory shall always be his;

for she bears the weapon, holding the arrow in battle for them. // 58

Likewise, she is ever the destroyer of abdominal swellings, colic, and eye diseases,

and the destroyer of head ailments and fevers of all embodied beings. // 59

It is as follows:

Strike, strike, O Kālī! Move, move, O Kālī! Move, move, O Gaurī! Blow, blow, O Gaurī! Blow, blow, O Vidyā! Āle tāle māle gandhe vadhe! Cook, cook, O Vidyā! Destroy sin! Strike! Annihilate bad dreams, O destroyer of distress, Night, Twilight, One with the sound of a kettledrum, swift as thought, bearer of the conch, bearer of the discus, bearer of the thunderbolt, bearer of the trident, destroyer of untimely death, sovereign of the universe, Dravidian woman, South Indian woman, beloved of Keśava, worshipped by Paśupati, subduer of the unsubdued, Night, Kirāta woman, Mātaṅgī, oṃ hrāṃ hrīṃ hrūṃ hraiṃ krāṃ krīṃ krūṃ kraiṃ! Hasten, hasten! Tame, tame, crush, crush, scorch, scorch, bring down, bring down, wither, wither, uproot, uproot all those who hate me openly or in secret! Brahmāṇī, Māheśvarī, Vārāhī, Vināyakī, Aindrī, Āgneyī, Cāmuṇḍā, Vāruṇī, violently flashing lightning, sister of Indra and Upendra, victorious one, increaser of peace, auspiciousness, and prosperity, goad of desire, cow of plenty, granter of the boons of all desires, dweller in all beings, perform counter-sorcery, perform! Attractor, Enterer, garlanded with flames, Delighter, Charmer, Earth, Supporter, measurer of honor, protect, protect, O goddess of the north-west, garlanded with flames, Scorcher, Dryer, bearer of the blue flag, Mahāgaurī, Great Refuge, Mahāmayūrī, ray of the sun, Jāhnavī, bell of Yama, kiṇi kiṇi! Wish-fulfilling gem, Surabhi, born of the gods, cow of plenty! May my task be accomplished according to my wish, svāhā! Oṃ svāhā! Oṃ bhūḥ svāhā! Oṃ bhuvaḥ svāhā! Oṃ svaḥ svāhā! Oṃ bhūr bhuvaḥ svaḥ svāhā! Whence sin has come, let it return thither, svāhā! Oṃ Balā, Mahābalā, accomplisher of true accomplishments, svāhā! // 1.2.62.60

Thus did Vijaya master this Vaiṣṇava Aparājitā,

being self-controlled through concentration of mind and intellect. // 61

Whoever recites this daily, even without the elaborate practice,

all his obstacles are destroyed as well, O best of the twice-born. // 62

Thus ends the sixty-second chapter, entitled 'Description of the Practice of the Mahāvidyā' in the Barbarīka narrative of the Kaumārikākhaṇḍa of the first [section], the Māheśvarakhaṇḍa, in the glorious Skandamahāpurāṇa, a compendium of eighty-one thousand [verses]. // 62