Skandapurana 6.3.47

Chapter 47

The venerable Mārkaṇḍeya said:
"Then all the gods went to Brahmā for refuge, / on elephants resembling great mountains and horses resembling elephants,

on chariots shaped like cities, yoked with lions and tigers, / and others on tortoises, buffaloes, and makaras.

Having reached the world of Brahmā, the gods headed by Śakra / saw the lotus-born god and bowed down prostrate with all eight limbs.

The gods said:
'Victory, O god, who are worshipped by the universe! Victory, O maker of worldly existence! / O lotus-born one, foremost among the gods, we have come to you alone for refuge!'

Hearing the agitated speech of the gods, whose minds were distressed, / he spoke to the king of the gods in a voice deep like a thundercloud:

'Why have you come here, O gods, all of you drained of colour? / By whom have you all been insulted? Tell me quickly yourself.'

The gods said:
'A mighty great daitya named Andhaka, O lotus-born one, / has stripped all the hosts of gods of their wealth and jewels.

Having struck down the hosts of gods with swords, discs, and battle-axes, / that Dānava has also seized the wife of Śakra and departed by force.'

Hearing the words of the gods, Brahmā, the grandfather of the worlds, / deliberated, O king of kings, on the means for the slaying of that Dānava:

'The wicked Dānava cannot be slain by any of you gods.
He [Viṣṇu] is the protector of all the worlds; no other exists anywhere.'

Having been thus addressed by Brahmā, the gods immediately thereafter, / placing Brahmā at their head, went to where Keśava was.
Brahmā and the others praised the wielder of the disc with various hymns.

The gods said:
'Victory to you, O god of gods, who abide on Lakṣmī's breast! / O destroyer of asuras, O god of gods, we have come to you for refuge!'

Praised by all the gods, with Brahmā at their head, Janārdana / became exceedingly joyful in heart and spoke to the company of gods.

The venerable Vāsudeva said:
'Welcome to the gods and brahmins! The night has dawned auspiciously today.
State quickly what is to be done. Against whom are the gods enraged?

What is the sorrow, and what is the distress? From where has fear come?
Let the illustrious ones declare the cause that is in your minds.

He by whom this humiliation was done—let him go to Yama's abode today.'
Having been spoken to in this manner by Kṛṣṇa, they described it to him,

showing their bodies, ashamed and with faces cast down:
'Our sovereignty has been taken away by Andhaka, and we have been stripped of our splendour, O Lord!'

"Protect [us], O god, like a father his son; slay Indra's enemy along with his sons and grandsons!"
Addressed with "So be it" by [him] whose lotus feet are praised by gods and demons, who is seated on a lotus,

the Supreme Lord grasped his conch, discus, mace, and bow,
and then rose up from his serpent-couch before the gods.

The venerable Vāsudeva said:
"Whether he stays in Pātāla, or among mortals, or in heaven,
I will slay that wicked one by whom the gods have been tormented.

Let the gods go to their own abode, satisfied, their radiance restored."
Having heard those words of Viṣṇu, those gods, Brahmā and the rest, along with Indra,

bowed down to Hari and went to heaven in their own vehicles, pleased in heart.

Thus ends the forty-seventh chapter, entitled 'Description of the Gods' Departure to Heaven,' in the Revākhaṇḍa of the fifth section, the Āvantyakhaṇḍa, in the glorious Skanda Mahāpurāṇa, a collection of eighty-one thousand [verses].