Skandapurana 6.2.4
English (machine translation) 6.2.4
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The venerable Mahādeva said:
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The fourth god is renowned in Avantī as Ḍamarukeśvara,
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upon seeing whom, the Lord of the universe, sin comes to an end.
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Formerly, in the Vaivasvata kalpa, there was a great asura named Ruru.
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His son was named Vajra, long-armed and of great strength;
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he possessed a very gigantic body, sharp fangs, and was terrifying.
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By him, the gods were expelled from their office and from the abode of the thirty [gods].
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Then, their wealth was taken, and they went to Brahmā.
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Brahmā too became agitated with fear, his senses distressed.
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Knowing that [demon] of great strength to be invulnerable to all the gods together,
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and when they had fled, whichever brahmins were sacrificers or practitioners of austerities,
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that wicked-souled one slew them, as well as others who followed dharma.
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The surface of the earth then became devoid of Vedic study and the exclamation vaṣaṭ;
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its sacrificial festivities lost, O goddess, it was filled with cries of grief and rendered senseless.
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Then the gods, deeply distressed, and likewise all the great seers,
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assembled and held counsel for the slaying of that evil-minded one.
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Then, at that moment, a body suddenly appeared before them all,
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as they were deliberating, O goddess, enveloped in a mass of splendour.
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From it, a divine Kṛtyā arose, having lotus-like eyes,
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illuminating all the directions on every side with her own splendours.
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She said to all the thirty [gods]: “Why indeed have I been created, O gods?
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Whatever deed must be done by me, let that be announced quickly!”
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Then, having heard her auspicious words, all the thirty [gods]
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related to her all the deeds of Vajra at that time.
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Having heard this, that goddess laughed repeatedly with loud laughter.
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As she laughed, lotus-eyed maidens came forth [from her],
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holding nooses and goads, terrible, their faces surrounded by garlands of flames,
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shaking the moving and unmoving creation with their shrieks and roars.
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They all went, O great goddess, to where the great asura Vajra was.
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A tumultuous battle, terrifying to him, then took place with them.
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The intermediate space of the directions was pervaded by weapons and missiles discharged in many ways;
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with their entire army clad in armour, they fought intensely in battle.
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Then a battle began between that goddess and the enemies of the gods.
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Then, seeing the enraged troop of mothers crushing the great asuras,
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and seeing his army turned back, Vajra then released an illusion,
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named Tāmasī, difficult to overcome, by which the maidens were bewildered.
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When it had become darkness, that goddess, overwhelmed with fear,
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came along with them to the supreme Mahākālavana,
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where Hara, holding a skull, was stationed in the form of a liṅga.
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Having learned that the troop of mothers had fled due to the power of that illusion,
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and Vajra also knowing that the thirty [gods] were residing together with the goddess,
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he came to that place surrounded by his own army.
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In the divine Mahākālavana, surrounded by hundreds of millions of chariots,
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he, enraged, spoke these words on all sides of the forest, O goddess:
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“Today I will kill the gods along with that extremely wicked woman,
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who fled together with the maidens by the power of the illusion of darkness!”
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Meanwhile, Nārada, the best of sages,
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arrived full of eagerness at the beautiful cave on Mount Mandara.
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He told the Lord of the defeat of the gods by Vajra:
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“O God, the thirty [gods] have been struck down in the Mahākālavana, O Lord,
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by Vajra, the son of Ruru; therefore, go forth, O Maheśvara!”
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Having heard the words of Nārada, then I, O supreme goddess,
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came swiftly from Mandara, having assumed a most terrible form,
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surrounded by gaṇas, with flashing, extremely fierce and dreadful serpents.
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In front was seen the great army of the dānavas, terrifying to behold.
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Mahākālavana was besieged on all sides by the asura,
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by Vajra, the son of Ruru, who was irresistible, O renowned lady.
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Then arriving, by beating the dreadful ḍamaruka drum,
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the army of that wicked-souled Vajra was instantly stupefied by me.
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By the sound of the ḍamaruka, an excellent liṅga arose,
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cleaving the earth, O goddess, filled with garlands of flames at that time.
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And from that liṅga there issued forth a great flame,
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from one part [of it], O lady of beautiful hips, which pervaded the cosmic egg.
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From another part of the liṅga, a mighty wind arose.
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By the mass of blazing fire and driven on by the wind,
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that army, along with its chariots, was burnt and reduced to ashes.
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Then all the hosts of gods, their minds filled with overflowing joy,
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bowed down to that mighty son of Ruru.
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Because of the majesty of this god, the mighty Vajra was burnt
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along with his army; therefore, from that, this [god], Ḍamarukeśvara,
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will attain renown in this world, granting the fruits of all desires.
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Since he arose on the surface of the earth from the sound of the ḍamaruka drum,
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therefore he will be a most worshipful god, there is no doubt.
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Those who, having seen him, worship the god Ḍamarukeśvara,
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will all be freed from suffering, their afflictions gone.
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Whatever fruit comes from hundreds of cāndrāyaṇa fasts performed according to rule,
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that fruit one attains from the worship of Ḍamarukeśvara.
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If with devotion, even by chance, men dedicated to sin
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behold the liṅga Ḍamarukeśvara standing in this place,
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even they will surely go to the eternal world of Rudra.
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Devotees who praise the renowned liṅga Ḍamarukeśvara
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are freed from mental sins and will go to the supreme abode.
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The fruit of a thousand horse-sacrifices, a hundred Vājapeya sacrifices,
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and the fruit of a thousand cows—mortals will obtain it here upon beholding [it].
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The brave man who enters battle after beholding Ḍamarukeśvara
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conquers his foes, and in the end he is glorified in the world of Rudra.
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This power that destroys sin has been told to you, O goddess;
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when praised and celebrated, it grants the fruits of all desires.
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Thus ends the fourth chapter, titled 'Description of the Glory of Ḍamarukeśvara' in the Praise of the Eighty-Four Liṅgas in the Avantī Section of the Skandapurāṇa, the great Purāṇa in eighty-one thousand verses.
Linked texts (1)
- Skandapurāṇa — Vyāsa, Sanskrit