Mudgalapurana 8.25: māghamāsamāhātmye virocanavadho nāma pañcaviṃśo'dhyāyaḥ

Salutations to the glorious Gaṇeśa.

Śaunaka said: / Speak of the observance of the month of Māgha, which increases the favor of Gaṇeśa. / I am never sated hearing the story of Gaṇeśa, which bestows all perfections.

Sūta said: / Prahlāda had a very radiant son, the protector of the Daityas, / known as Virocana, the crest-jewel among the radiant.

Approaching Śukra and bowing down to that best of sages, / the leader of the asuras, afflicted with sorrow and sighing, spoke:

Virocana said: / 'O master, tormented by the gods, the Daityas dwell in the nether worlds, / filled with fear. Therefore, instruct me for their welfare, O lord!'

Śukra said: / 'Worship the Lord, the Sun, with the mantra beginning with *Ā kṛṣṇena*. / By that, you will indeed become the protector of the Dānavas.'

Bowing down to him, the mighty-armed and valiant Virocana / retreated to a delightful forest and performed supreme austerities.

Meditating especially on the Sun, he offered water libations; / intent upon standing worship, he constantly adored the Sun.

After a thousand divine years, pleased, the Sun, / of great radiance, went to Virocana's hermitage to grant a boon, O sage.

Seeing that he had arrived, Virocana bowed down; / having worshipped him, he praised the lord, the ruler of gods, with the Atharvaśiras.

Pleased, the Sun, who grants boons to his devotees, spoke these words: / 'O great Daitya, state the excellent boon desired in your mind.'

Virocana said: / 'O Lord, O Sun, let there be no death for me from all beings, / both moving and unmoving; and give me sovereignty over the three worlds.'

Astonished, the Sun gave him his own supreme crown. / The Lord of the universe, grave in sentiment, spoke these words:

The Sun said: / 'Wear this upon your head. By this, you will be free from death, / so long as another's hand does not fall upon your head.

If another's hand touches your head, O Daitya, you will die / when you are without the crown; therefore, be vigilant.

Sovereignty over the three worlds is now given to you by me. / Whatever you desire, that will be accomplished for you.'

Having spoken thus, the Sun, skilled in all purposes, vanished. / Virocana, with a joyful heart, then went to his own abode.

Then, consecrated by Śukra in the kingship, / the mighty one, surrounded by Daityas, conquered the earth.

Then, having vanquished Śeṣa, he went indeed to Amarāvatī. / Having brought the king of the gods under his control, he then went to Vaikuṇṭha.

A fierce battle took place between Viṣṇu and Virocana. / Having defeated Viṣṇu, the great Daitya became filled with joy.

Together with Viṣṇu, the gods fled, taking refuge in the forest. / All the Daityas were made enjoyers of heaven by that great-souled one.

Then, having installed the Daitya rulers in the stations of Vaikuṇṭha and the like, / he went to his own city, accompanied by the host of Daityas.

Then, together with the Daitya rulers, he enjoyed various supreme pleasures; / devoted to sin, he was greedy for women, meat, and the like.

Then, after much time had passed, that villain, urged on by the Daitya chiefs, / destroyed the duties of the castes and life-stages on the face of the earth.

He caused demonic actions to be performed by human beings everywhere. / Then, O sage, a cry of woe was raised by all the inhabitants of the three worlds.

When much time had passed in this manner, all the gods, fasting, / together with the sages, praised Keśava for the sake of his slaying.

[Section 8, Chapter 25, Page 56] Sighing, that lord of the gods reflected in his heart; / he found no way to destroy the Daitya, and he himself became dejected.

Then Viṣṇu remembered Vighneśvara for deliverance from sorrow. / By the grace of Gaṇeśa, the sage Devala arrived there.

Bowing down to him, all the immortals questioned him for the accomplishment of their purpose, / for the sake of slaying Virocana; delighted, he spoke to them:

'The month of Māgha, which bestows great merit, has now arrived near. / Engaging in bathing during it, worship the leader of the Gaṇas.'

Having spoken thus, the great yogi Devala explained the supreme / rite belonging to Māgha, entirely consisting of the fivefold worship of Gaṇeśa.

Having instructed them in the observance, the yogi Devala went away according to his own pleasure; / and Keśava and the others were devoted to the worship of Gaṇeśa.

They performed the observance of the month of Māgha, dedicated to Gaṇeśa, which bestows all perfections; / according to the rules in the scriptures, they worshipped supreme Vighneśa.

When that observance was completed, an ethereal voice spoke to them: / 'O Viṣṇu, assuming the disguise of a woman, slay the Daitya of mighty strength.

Remembering Gaṇeśa in your mind, go to that leader of the Daityas. / The great Daitya Virocana will come under your control.'

Hearing this, the exceedingly joyful gods praised the leader of the Gaṇas. / Then the illustrious ones respectfully urged Viṣṇu:

'Go, go, O Mahāviṣṇu! Slay the Daitya of mighty strength! / Make the moving and unmoving creation always filled with joy, O Janārdana!'

Saying 'So be it' to them, Viṣṇu then meditated on Gajānana; / taking the form of a woman, he went to where the ruler of the Daityas was.

He stood in a garden filled with flowering trees. / There the Daityas saw Nārāyaṇa in the form of a woman.

Enchanted, they approached her and asked with humility: / 'Who are you? Whose are you, O woman with thighs like plantain stems? For what purpose have you come? Speak!

Give your command, O noble lady! We are your servants, without doubt, / of your feet, O fair-eyed one! Look upon all of us, O sweetly smiling one!'

Hearing their words, she of beautiful form spoke to them, / endowed with gestures and feelings, Mohinī, the enchantress:

Mohinī said: / 'I act according to my own will, charming, unrestricted, going where I please; / renowned by all as Mohinī, I roam indeed without fear from any quarter.

Whoever is a mighty leader of the universe, / him alone will I choose as husband, O Daityas, none other. Go, do not delay!'

Hearing those words of hers, the Daityas and Dānavas were agitated. / Among them, some went to where Virocana was present in his assembly.

Having bowed to that great soul, they respectfully related the account.
Upon hearing it, he too was seized with great delusion that very moment.

Deluded by the māyā of Gaṇeśa, the great Daitya Virocana went
to that irreproachable woman, and surrounded [by attendants], he beheld her.

Seeing the great Daitya arrived, Viṣṇu rejoiced,
remembered Gaṇapa in his heart, and remained right there in meditation.

Then the Lord of Gaṇas himself, abiding in the hearts of both,
caused a disturbance of intellect, and so both of them became transformed.

Then Virocana, seeing the goddess, became filled with infatuation.
Full of joy, he approached her all alone.

The great Daitya, filled with humility, spoke to her,
folding his hands, O brāhmaṇa, utterly bewitched by the great māyā.

Virocana said:

Brahmā, Viṣṇu, Maheśa, Indra, and the rest, together with the moving and unmoving,
have been conquered by me, the lord of the universe—[yet] I am your servant, O beautiful lady.

I will remain constantly obedient to your command.
Become my wife and come to my home, my beloved!

Hearing his speech, the enchanting Mohinī said to him:
“If you go against my word, I shall abandon [you].”

Saying “So be it,” he took her and went to his splendid home;
devoted to her and intent on her, he stayed by her side.

Hari, in the form of Mohinī, deluded him
with manifold clever ways as that wicked one was eager to copulate.

The fortunate Mohinī, who enchants all, said to him:
“O lord of great intellect, receive an oil massage from my hands.

Afterward bathe and take your meal, O man of good vows;
then touch me, O Daitya king, who am forever subject to you.”

Deluded by Gaṇeśa's māyā, he said to her, “So be it,”
and prepared to undergo an oil massage with perfumed oil.

Taking the oil, Mohinī removed the splendid crown
from his head and, delighted, rubbed his crown with her hands.

At the mere touch of her hands, the Daitya's head
was shattered into a hundred pieces; Mohinī was rejoiced.

Saying “Victory to Lambodara!”, Mohinī vanished.
Seeing him dead, the Daityas entered Rasātala.

Then Viṣṇu, along with the divine seers, went to his own realm;
Mādhava caused all worlds to adhere to their respective dharmas.

Thus, through the Gāṇapatya observance of Māgha, Janārdana
slew that lord of Daityas who had conquered the three worlds.

Whatever living being hears this or recites it while remembering Gaṇapa
will be endowed with all happiness forever.

Om tat sat. Thus ends the twenty-fifth chapter, named “The Slaying of Virocana” in the praise of the month of Māgha, in the story of Dhūmravarṇa, in the eighth section of the glorious and supreme Mudgalapurāṇa, an Upaniṣad of the Purāṇas.