Skandapurana 3.2.18
English (machine translation) 3.2.18
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Rudra said:
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Listen, O Skanda of great wisdom, to the wonder that was performed by me!
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In the Dharmāraṇya there was a very wicked daitya named Karṇāṭaka. (1)
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Coming secretly, he caused obstruction to married couples.
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Seeing him, out of fear of him, the people continuously fled. (2)
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Abandoning their dwelling, all merchants, brahmins, and others departed.
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Assuming the form of Mātaṅgī, by this Śrīmātā, O son, (3)
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was slain that rākṣasa named Karṇāṭaka, the murderer of brahmins.
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Then indeed all the brahmins were delighted by that deed. (4)
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Devoted to her worship, the merchants praised and worshipped her.
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Year after year, they perform the auspicious worship of Śrīmātā. (5)
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At the beginning of all auspicious rites, one should worship her first;
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he will experience no obstacle from that time onward, my son. (6)
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Yudhiṣṭhira said:
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Who was that wicked great daitya? In which lineage was he born?
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What did he do, dear father? Tell everything, O you of noble vows! (7)
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Vyāsa said:
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Listen, O king, I shall narrate the exploits of Karṇāṭaka,
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who was insufferable to gods and dānavas, arrogant with power, (8)
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of wicked deeds, of evil conduct, of vast dominion, mighty-armed,
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who conquered all the worlds and traversed freely throughout the three worlds. (9)
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Wherever there were gods and seers, having gone there, that great asura,
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either through deceit or by force, created obstruction, O king. (10)
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There was no recitation of the Vedas in the world because of fear of him;
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nor did the brahmins and gods perform their twilight prayers and other devotions. (11)
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No Vedic sacrifice took place there, nor the worship of gods,
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in country after country, everywhere, in village after village, and in city after city. (12)
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At every sacred ford and everywhere, the asura caused obstruction.
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However, he was not able to enter the Dharmāraṇya. (13)
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Then, agitated with fear of the power of Śrīmātā, that dānava,
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wondering, 'By what means can I go there?' (14)
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'How indeed shall I cause obstruction to the high-souled brahmins,
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who recite the Vedas and attend to sacrificial rites?' (15)
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Hearing the sound arising from the recitation of the Vedas from afar, that dānava,
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he was tormented, O king, like an elephant struck by a thunderbolt. (16)
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He released heavy breaths out of rage, grinding teeth with teeth,
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biting his lips, and wringing both his hands. (17)
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He wandered here and there like a madman, O noble one,
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just as a man becomes through the affliction of delirium. (18)
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Even so that dreadful dānava, approaching the vicinity of the Dharmāraṇya,
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wandered and burned [with fury] from afar, filled with fear. (19)
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Assuming the form of a twice-born at the time of weddings of brahmins,
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having arrived there, that unassailable one, having abducted an excellent married couple— (20)
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That lowest of asuras flew up from the surface of the earth into the sky.
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And that wicked one enjoyed himself, out of hatred, according to his demonic nature.
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Thus, repeatedly seizing married couples from Dharmāraṇya,
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he committed evil unbearable even to the gods.
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That wicked one constantly caused obstacle to married couples on earth,
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performing most dreadful deeds in that excellent city.
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Distressed by that, all the brahmins fled in the ten directions.
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All the brahmins departed, abandoning that delightful place.
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Wherever there was a great sacred ford, there the brahmins went.
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At that time, O best of kings, that city became desolate.
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No Vedic study took place there, nor was any sacrifice performed.
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Tormented by fear of Karṇāṭa, men did not stay there.
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Then, O king, all the brahmins and the illustrious merchants
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gathered together in one place to hold counsel as was fitting.
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The foremost brahmins deliberated on the means of killing Karṇāṭa.
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While they were deliberating, by divine destiny an incorporeal voice arose:
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"Worship Śrīmātā, the remover of all sorrow,
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the destroyer of all daityas, the destroyer of all afflictions."
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Hearing that, all the brahmins, their eyes agitated with joy,
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approached Śrīmātā, taking excellent offerings:
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honey, milk, curd, ghee, and sugar in a fivefold stream,
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incense, a lamp, as well as sandalwood and flowers.
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Taking various kinds of fruits, O king, the brahmins [brought]
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various grains, O king, boiled rice, and cakes soaked in ghee,
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boiled pulse and vaṭaka-cakes, and milk-rice mixed with ghee,
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sohālikā-pastries, and lamps, as well as vaṭakas soaked [in spices],
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smeared with mustard and having nine holes,
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and thin cakes resembling the disc of the moon were prepared there.
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Having performed her ceremonial bath with the five nectars and fragrant water,
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they propitiated the Goddess with incenses, lamps, and food offerings.
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With waving lights accompanied by camphor, with flowers, lamps, and fine sandalwood,
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Śrīmātā, the destroyer of all afflictions, was propitiated, O king.
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Śrīmātā, the Mother of the Universe, Brāhmī, gentle, giver of boons,
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assuming a threefold form, protects the three worlds.
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In the form of the three Vedas, O righteous one, she protects the abode of truth.
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Those excellent brahmins, having restrained their senses and conquered their minds, assembled;
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by all of them the Mother was worshipped and pleased with sandalwood and the rest.
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Then they began a hymn of praise through actions of speech, mind, and body,
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standing with single-minded devotion before the Daughter of Brahmā.
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The brahmins said:
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Praise be to you, O Daughter of Brahmā! Praise be to you, O celibate Goddess!
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Praise be to you, O Mother of the worlds! Praise be to you who are ever omnipresent!
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You are hunger, sleep, and thirst; you are anger, lassitude, and the like.
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You are peace, you are delight, you are Jayā and Vijayā.
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You have been taken refuge in by Brahmā, Viṣṇu, Maheśa, and the others, O Sovereign of the gods!
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You abide as Sāvitrī, Śrī, Umā, and as the Mother.
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Brahmā, Viṣṇu, and the lords of the gods rest upon your foundation.
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Praise to you, O Mother of the universe, whose nature is steadfastness and nourishment!
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[You are] pleasure, wrath, the Great Māyā, shadow, whose form is light;
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O Goddess who effect creation, preservation, and dissolution, ever bestowing cause and effect!
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You are the earth, fire, wind, water, and space itself.
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Praise be to you, O Great Knowledge, full of great wisdom, sinless one!
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You utter the syllable Hrīṃ, having the form of gods; you utter the syllable Klīṃ, O highly resplendent one!
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You are the beginning, the middle, and the end; save us from this great terror!
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Indeed, this evil-minded daitya of great sin oppresses us now.
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You alone are of the nature of protection, and our family deity.
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Save us, save us, O Great Goddess! Protect, protect us, O Great Sovereign!
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Slay, slay this wicked dānava, the tormentor of the twice-born!
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Thus praised at that time by the twice-born, the Goddess Mahāmāyā,
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for the slaughter of Karṇāṭa and for the welfare of the twice-born,
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She became manifest before their eyes there, and indeed said: "Name a boon."
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The glorious Mother said:
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"By whom indeed have the brahmins been terrified? By whom have you been agitated again?
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Enraged, O brahmins, I will bring him to Yama's abode.
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Know that man whose life-span is depleted, by whom you have been afflicted.
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I grant [a boon] to you twice-born; you ought to speak as you desire.
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Because of your devotion, O brahmins, I shall surely do it; there is no doubt about this."
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The twice-born said:
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"A dānava named Karṇāṭa, exceedingly terrible and arrogant with pride,
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constantly creates obstacles for the dwellers of Satyamandira.
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Against the brahmins of truthful conduct who are devoted to Vedic study,
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that hater always bears hatred out of malice, O intelligent one.
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He hates the Vedas and is wicked; slay him, O goddess of great splendour!"
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Vyāsa said:
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Having said "So be it," that goddess, the family deity, laughed gently,
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and considered the means of slaying him for the protection of her devotees.
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Then, O best of kings, the glorious Mother was seized with anger.
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Knitting her brow in wrath, with eyes reddened at their corners,
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she was overcome by tremendous fury, emitting fire, as it were;
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great flames came forth from her mouth, eyes, nose, and ears, O descendant of Bharata.
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From her fiery splendour arose Mātaṅgī, who assumes forms at will,
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Kālī of terrifying face, blazing with a terrible countenance,
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wearing red garlands and red garments, her eyes rolling with intoxication.
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Near the banyan tree, the glorious Mother took her stand at that time.
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She had eighteen arms, the auspicious and exquisitely beautiful Mother,
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a goddess holding bow and arrows, bearing a sword and a shield,
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carrying an axe, a dagger, a trident, and a drinking vessel,
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a mace, a serpent, an iron club, a bow, and a noose,
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holding a rosary of seeds, O king, accompanied by wine-pots,
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a spear, a formidable pestle, a pair of shears, a skull-cup,
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and holding a thorny jujube branch, she of vast face.
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There occurred a great battle, tumultuous and hair-raising,
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of Mātaṅgī with the dānava Karṇāṭa, O best of kings.
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Yudhiṣṭhira said:
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"How did the battle take place, and how did it proceed?
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By whom was victory won, O knower of righteousness? Tell that to me, revered sir."
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Vyāsa said:
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"Listen, O king of kings, to what once occurred in that clash with the daitya.
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I shall swiftly tell you all of that, exactly as it happened long ago.
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Those brahmins and merchants whose wives had perished, O descendant of Bharata,
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when the month of Caitra had arrived in Dharmāraṇya, O best of kings—
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those brahmins of firm vows married Gaurī,
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knowing it to be their own most auspicious place, and an exalted king among sacred fords.
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Performing weddings there, those excellent twice-born assembled together.
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A multitude of ten million maidens was gathered in one place in that great festival
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in Dharmāraṇya, O very wise one; truly, truly do I say this.
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On the fourth [night], in the latter part of the night, they established the fire inside;
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offering a seat to Brahmā and circumambulating the fire,
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and having prepared the sthālīpāka offering, they then constructed auspicious altars
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of four cubits, provided with water-pitchers and serpent-cords.
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Then, with bright Vedic mantras, the twice-born recited sacred formulas,
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distributing [offerings] as appropriate for the married couples as they went about.
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Along with the Brahman priest there, those brahmins were exceedingly joyful;
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they raised a loud roar of the Vedas, resounding with high-pitched voices.
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With that great sound, the entire sky was filled.
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Hearing that dreadful sound of the Vedas uttered by the twice-born,
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the dānava sprang up swiftly from his seat along with his army, beside himself with fury.
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To all his servants running about and to the others, he said:
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"Listen! Where has this sound of the brahmins arisen?"
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Hearing those words of his, the daityas set out in haste.
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With their minds bewildered, they all ran here and there.
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Some went to Dharmāraṇya, where they saw those brahmins,
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reciting the Vedas at the time of the wedding, O king.
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They reported everything to the evil-minded Karṇāṭa.
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Hearing that, his eyes blood-red and copper-colored, filled with rage, that enemy of brahmins,
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O fortunate one, ran towards the place where that married couple was, O king.
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Then, rising into the sky and employing demonic illusion, that rākṣasa
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carried off the married couple, O king, adorned with all their ornaments.
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Then all those brahmins assembled before Bhuvaneśvarī,
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raising an alarm of distress and crying, “Save us! Save us!”
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Hearing that, Mātaṅgī, Bhuvaneśvarī, the mother of the universe,
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letting out a lion’s roar, bearing an excellent trident,
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thereupon began the battle between the Goddess and Karṇāṭa,
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while the seers, merchants, and twice-born looked on there.
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As they watched, a tumultuous battle took place that made the hair stand on end.
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With her weapons Mātaṅgī cut down the enemy, who was overcome with frenzy.
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Then that daitya, too, [struck] her in the chest with a single arrow.
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He, too, struck by her trident, fell into a faint.
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That asura struck the Goddess with his fists as well,
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and he, too, was quickly bound by the Goddess with the serpent noose.
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Then that daitya discharged the Garuḍa weapon;
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she, in turn, aimed the Nārāyaṇa weapon that shot forth arrows.
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Thus grappling with each other, fighting with the desire for victory,
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the foremost among daityas then seized an iron club.
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Enraged, that slayer of enemy heroes struck at Mātaṅgī.
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The Goddess, furious, crushed the dānava with blows of her fists.
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From that blow of her fist, he swooned and fell down.
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Rising up suddenly, taking up a spear in his hand with joy,
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the dānava hurled a centuple-killer missile upon her.
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The Goddess Mātaṅgī, of beautiful countenance, cut through that spear;
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the fair-browed [Goddess] laughed aloud at the centuple-killer resembling a thunderbolt.
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Thus tormenting each other with hosts of weapons,
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he was struck in the heart with her trident and fell down.
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Casting off his faint and resorting to demonic illusion,
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the great asura became invisible as they watched there.
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Then the Goddess drank liquor and laughed, her eyes red:
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“Wherever you go in the three worlds, with its moving and unmoving beings,
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- Skandapurāṇa — Vyāsa, Sanskrit