Skandapurana 3.3.12

Ṛṣabha said:

Bowing to Mahādeva, the all-pervading Īśvara,

I shall declare the armour consisting of Śiva, which affords all protection to men.

Seated in a clean place, with a seat prepared according to rule,

with senses subdued and breath controlled, one should contemplate the imperishable Śiva.

Seated within the lotus of the heart, pervading the space of the sky with his own splendour,

beyond the senses, subtle, endless, primeval, full of supreme bliss—one should meditate on Maheśa.

With the bond of all action shaken off through meditation, mind long immersed in the bliss of consciousness,

with oneself concentrated through the placement of the six syllables, one should make protection with the Śaiva armour:

May the God, the self of all deities, protect me fallen into the deep pit of saṃsāra;

may his divine name, the root of excellent mantras, shake away all sin dwelling in my heart.

May the universal form, a mass of luminous bliss, the self of consciousness, protect me everywhere;

smaller than the smallest, of vast power, the one Īśvara—may he protect me from every fear.

He who supports the universe in the form of the earth—may that Giriśa of eightfold form protect [me] from the earth;

he who brings revival to men in the form of the waters—may he protect me from the waters.

He who dances with manifold play after burning all the worlds at the end of an eon—

may that Kālarudra protect me from forest fire, from the fear of cyclones and the like, and from all torment.

Radiant like blazing lightning and gold, holding knowledge, the boon, fearlessness, and an axe in his hands,

four-faced, three-eyed—may Tatpuruṣa, stationed in the east, protect me constantly.

Holding an axe, the Vedas, a goad, a noose, a trident, a skull, a drum, and a rosary,

four-faced, blue-hued, three-eyed—may Aghora protect [me] in the southern direction.

Shining like a jasmine flower, the moon, a conch, and crystal, marked with the Vedas, a rosary, boon-granting, and fearlessness,

three-eyed, four-faced, of vast majesty—may Sadyojāta protect me in the west.

With hands [holding] the boon, a rosary, fearlessness, and a chisel, having a colour like the filament of a lotus,

three-eyed, beautiful, four-faced—may Vāmadeva protect me in the northern direction.

Holding the Vedas, fearlessness, the wish, a goad, a chisel, a noose, a skull, a drum, a rosary, and a trident in hand,

white-complexioned, five-faced, of supreme radiance—may Īśāna protect me above.

May Candramauli protect my crown, and may the forehead-eyed [Śiva] protect my forehead;

may the remover of Bhaga's eyes protect my eyes; may Viśvanātha always protect my nose.

May he whose fame is sung in the Vedas protect my ears; may Kapālī always protect my cheek;

may the five-faced one always protect my mouth; may he whose tongue is the Veda always protect my tongue.

May Girīśa, the blue-necked one, protect my neck; may he who holds the Pināka protect both my hands;

may Dharmabāhu protect my armpits; may the destroyer of Dakṣa's sacrifice protect my chest.

May he whose bow is the king of mountains protect my belly; may the destroyer of Madana protect my waist.

May the father of Heramba protect my navel; may Dhūrjaṭi, my Īśvara, protect my hips.

May the friend of Kubera protect my two thighs; may the lord of the universe protect my two knees.

May he whose banner is the bull protect my two shanks; may he whose feet are worshipped by the gods protect my feet.

May Maheśvara protect me in the first watch of the day; may Vāmadeva protect me in the middle watch.

May Tryambaka protect me in the third watch; may he whose banner is the bull protect me in the final watch of the day.

May he who bears the crescent moon upon his crest protect me at the beginning of the night; may the bearer of Gaṅgā guard me at midnight.

May the lord of Gaurī protect me at the end of the night; may the conqueror of death protect me at all times.

May Śaṃkara protect me when standing within; may Sthāṇu always protect me when standing outside.

May the lord of cattle protect me in the space between; may Sadāśiva protect me on all sides.

May the sole master of the worlds protect me standing; may the sovereign lord of the pramathas protect me walking.

May he who is known through the Vedānta protect me seated; may the imperishable Śiva protect me lying down.

May Nīlakaṇṭha protect me on paths; may the enemy of the three cities protect me in impassable places such as mountains.

On great journeys such as living in the forest, may the hunter of beasts endowed with exalted power protect me.

Whose violent wrath is forceful at the swell of the end of the aeon, by whose distinct loud laugh the egg of the universe is shaken—

may Vīrabhadra protect me from the insurmountable, great fear of the dreadful ocean of enemy armies.

Terrifying with thousands, lakhs, tens of thousands, and crores of foot soldiers, horses, multitudes of elephants, and chariots,

may he, wielding [his weapons], sever the hundred akṣauhiṇīs of assailants with the edge of his dreadful battle-axe.

May the blazing trident of the destroyer of Tripura, flame of the dissolution fire, slay the robbers.

May Pināka, the bow of the Lord, terrify tigers, lions, bears, wolves, and other savage beasts.

May the sovereign of the worlds destroy my bad dreams, bad omens, misfortune, distress of mind, famine, evil vices, unbearable ill-repute, / portents, afflictions, fear of poison, afflictions from malevolent planets, and illnesses.

Oṃ, homage to the Blessed One, to Sadāśiva, whose self is all principles of reality, whose sport is all principles of reality, the sole creator of all worlds, the sole sustainer of all worlds, the sole destroyer of all worlds, the sole teacher of all worlds, the sole witness of all worlds, secret to all scriptures, giver of all boons, crusher of all afflictions caused by sins, granter of fearlessness to all the world, the sole bringer of welfare to all worlds, who bears the crescent moon upon his crest, whose radiance is eternal and inherent, devoid of qualities, beyond comparison, formless, without semblance, free from disease, devoid of cosmic manifoldness, stainless, beyond duality, unattached, pure, free from departure, possessing eternal power of form, of incomparable power, without support, eternal, pure, awakened, complete, existence-consciousness-bliss, non-dual, having the nature of supreme peaceful luminous light! / Hail, hail, O Mahārudra, of great fierceness, auspicious manifestation, tearer of the forest fire of grief, Mahābhairava, Kālabhairava, Bhairava of the aeon’s end, wearer of a garland of skulls, terrifying with a thousand hands holding weapons: the skull-topped staff, sword, shield, noose, goad, drum, trident, bow, arrows, mace, spear, bhindipāla, javelin, pestle, mallet, paṭṭiśa, axe, iron club, bhuśuṇḍi, śataghnī, discus, and others; dreadful with bared fangs in your mouth; who expands the sphere of the universe with violent loud laughter; wearing earrings of lordly serpents, a necklace of lordly serpents, bracelets of lordly serpents, clad in the hide of the king of serpents; conqueror of death, Tryambaka, destroyer of Tripura, Virūpākṣa, lord of the universe, universal form, whose mount is the bull, adorned with poison, facing every direction! Guard, guard me on all sides! Blaze, blaze! Destroy, destroy the fear of great death and untimely death! Uproot, uproot the fear of disease! Quell, quell the fear of venomous serpents! Kill, kill the fear of thieves! Drive away, drive away my enemies! Pierce, pierce with the trident! Break, break with the battle-axe! Cut, cut with the sword! Crush, crush with the skull-topped staff! Grind to powder, grind to powder with the pestle! Strike, strike with your arrows! Terrify, terrify the rākṣasas! Put the bhūtas to flight, put them to flight! Cause utter panic to kūṣmāṇḍas, vetālas, the host of Mārīs, and brahma-rākṣasas! Grant, grant me fearlessness! Reassure, reassure me who am terrified! Deliver, deliver me from the fear of hell! Revive, revive me! Nourish, nourish me who am afflicted by hunger and thirst! Delight, delight me who am tormented by sorrow! Clothe, clothe me with the armour of Śiva! O Tryambaka, O Sadāśiva, homage to you, homage to you, homage to you!

Ṛṣabha said:

Thus this boon-granting armour of Śiva has been proclaimed by me,

which pacifies all afflictions, a secret for all embodied beings.

Whatever mortal always bears this supreme armour of Śiva,

no fear arises for him anywhere, by the grace of Śambhu.

Even if his lifespan is exhausted, if he has met with death, or is struck down by severe illness,

he instantly attains well-being and finds a long life.

It dispels all poverty and increases auspicious blessings.

He who wears the armour of Śiva is worshipped even by the gods.

He is freed from hosts of great sins and from minor sins;

at the end of his body, he attains Śiva through the power of Śiva's armour.

You too, dear child, with faith, [wear] this supreme armour of Śiva.

Wear what has been given by me, and you will indeed attain immediate good.

Sūta said:

Having spoken thus, the yogi Ṛṣabha gave to that prince

a conch of mighty roar and a sword that slays enemies.

And then, consecrating ashes with mantras, he touched his limbs all over,

and gave [him] the strength of six thousand elephants doubled.

Having obtained strength, sovereignty, resolve, and memory through the power of the ashes,

the prince shone with splendour like the autumn sun.

The yogi spoke again to that prince whose hands were joined in reverence:

"This sword has been given by me through the power of austerity and mantras.

To whichever enemy you clearly show this sharp-edged sword,

he will die instantly, even if he were Death himself in person.

Those adversaries of yours who hear the sound of this conch—

they will fall fainting, with their weapons dropped, rendered senseless.

These two, the sword and the conch, are divine, destroyers of hostile armies.

increasing the heroism and splendour of one's own army and faction. (40)

And by the power of these two, and by the Śaiva armor,

and also by the great strength of twelve thousand elephants, (41)

by virtue of wearing sacred ash, you will conquer the enemy army.

Attaining your ancestral throne, you will protect this earth.” (42)

Having thus properly instructed Bhadrāyus together with his mother,

the ascetic, worshipped by the two of them, then went away according to his free will. (43)

Thus ends the twelfth chapter, named “The Proclamation of the Śiva Armor,” in the story of Bhadrāyus, in the Sīmantinīmāhātmya, in the third Brahmottara Section, in the Great Purāṇa of eighty-one thousand verses, the glorious Skandapurāṇa. (12)