4.1 The seer said:
4.2 “When The Devī Had Struck Down the brave but wicked mahiṣāsura and his army of the Gods’ foes, Indra and the hosts of Gods lifted their voices to Her in praise, their heads bowed in reverence, their bodies made beautiful by the thrill of rapture.
4.3 ‘To The Devī, Who Spreads Out this world Through Her Own Power and Who Embodies Herself As All The Powers of the hosts of Gods;
to Ambikā, Who Is Worthy of worship by all the Gods and great seers, we bow down in devotion. May She Grant us that which is Auspicious.
4.4 May She Whose Unequalled Might and Splendor even the blessed Viṣṇu, Brahmā, and Śiva are powerless to describe,
May She, Caṇḍikā, Be Intent on Protecting all the world and on Destroying the fear of misfortune.
4.5 O Devī, we bow before You
Who Are Yourself Good Fortune in the dwellings of the virtuous and
Misfortune in the abodes of the wicked,
Intelligence in the hearts of the learned,
Faith in the hearts of the good, and
Modesty in the hearts of the high-born.
May You Protect the universe!
4.6 How can we describe This Form Of Yours, Which Surpasses thought?
And Your Abundant, Exceeding Valor That destroys evil?
And Your Deeds in battle, O Devī, among all the throngs of Gods and demons?
4.7 You Are The Cause of all the worlds.
Though Containing The triple forces of creation Within Yourself, You Are Untouched by any imperfection.
You Are Unfathomable even to Viṣṇu, Śiva, and the other Gods.
You Are The Resort of all.
You Are This Entire, Manifold World and You Are Primordial Matter, Supreme And Untransformed.
4.8 O Devī, You Are The Mantra Of Consecration
Whose Utterance in all sacrifices Brings Satisfaction to the whole assemblage of Gods, and
You Are The Mantra Which humans proclaim as The Cause Of Satisfaction to the hosts of ancestral spirits.
4.9 O Devī, Who Are The Cause of Liberation and Great, Inconceivable Austerities:
sages yearning for liberation contemplate You with senses restrained,
intent upon truth, with all faults cast off,
for You Are The Blessed, Supreme Knowledge.
4.10 With sound as Your Essence,
You Are The Treasury That Holds the taintless Vedic hymns, sung to resound joyfully with Your Holy Name.
You Are The Blessed Devī, Who Embodies The Three Vedas.
Intent On Conferring well-being, You Are The Supreme Destroyer of pain in all the worlds.
4.11 O Devī, You Are The Intelligence By Which the essence of all scriptures is understood.
You Are Durgā, The Vessel Free Of Attachments That Takes one across life’s difficult ocean.
You Are Srī, The Radiant Splendor That Abides in the heart of Viṣṇu.
You Are Gaurī, The Shining Goddess Who Abides with the moon-crowned Śiva.
4.12 Gently Smiling, Your Shining Face Resembles the full moon’s orb and Is As Pleasing as the lustre of the finest gold.
Beholding It, how could mahiṣāsura, even though enraged, be moved to strike it?
4.13 Still stranger was it, O Devī, that mahiṣa did not perish the instant he beheld Your Wrathful Face, Reddened like the rising moon and Scowling Frightfully.
For who can behold the Enraged Face Of Death and still live?
4.15 Those to whom You Are Bounteous are honored among peoples,
theirs are riches, theirs are glories, and their righteous acts know no limit.
They indeed are Blessed with devoted children, attendants, and partners.
4.16 One who is virtuous and ever mindful performs daily all righteous deeds, O Devī, and by Your Grace attains to heaven.
Are You not, then, The Giver of Rewards in all the three worlds?
4.17 Remembered in distress, You Remove fear from every creature.
Remembered by the untroubled, You Confer even greater serenity of mind.
Dispeller of poverty, suffering, and fear, Who other than You Is Ever Intent on Benevolence toward all?
4.18 The world attains happiness when You Slay its foes,
and though they may have committed enough evil to keep them long in torment, even as You Strike Down our enemies, O Devī, You Think, May They Reach Heaven Through Death In Battle With Me.
4.19 Why does Your Mere Glance not reduce all asuras to ashes?
Because when Assailed By Your Weapons and thus Purified,
even those adversaries may attain the higher worlds.
4.20 If the intense light flashing frightfully from Your Sword
or the glaring brilliance of Your Spearpoint did not blind the asuras’ eyes,
it was because You Made Them Behold
the Moonlike Radiance Beaming From Your Face.
4.21 Even toward them Your Intentions Are Most Gracious.
O Devī, Your Nature Is to Subdue the misconduct of the wicked.
Others cannot equal Your Inconceivable Grace,
for even while Your Might Destroys those who have wrested power from the Gods, You Show Compassion toward those very foes.
4.22 To what may Your Prowess be compared?
Where else is there Beauty So Ravishing, yet Striking Fear into enemies?
Where in the three worlds are Compassion In Heart and Resolve In Battle seen as They Are In You, O Beneficent Devī?
4.23 Destroying all foes, You Have Saved the three worlds.
Slaying Them at the battle-front,
You Led even those frenzied, hostile throngs to heaven,
even while Dispelling our fear of them. Salutations to You!
Śūlena Pāhi No Devi Pāhi Khaḍgena Cāmbike
Ghaṇṭāsvanena Naḥ Pāhi Cāpajyānissvanena Ca
4.24 Protect us with Your Spear, O Devī,
and Protect us with Your Sword, O Ambikā.
Protect us with the Clangor of Your Bell
and the Resonance of Your Bowstring.
4.25 Guard us in the east and in the west, O Caṇḍikā. Guard us in the south and also in the north, O Īśvarī, by Brandishing Your Spear.
Saumyāni Yāni Rūpāṇi Trailokye Vicaranti Te
Yāni cātyantaghorāṇi Tai Rakṣāsmāṁs tathā bhuvam
4.26 With Your Gentle Forms That Move Through the three worlds and With Your Surpassingly Terrible Ones, Protect us and also the earth.
4.27 O Ambikā, with Sword, Spear, Mace, and whatever other Weapons Your Tender Hands Have Touched, Protect us on all sides.’”
4.29 “In that way the Gods praised Her Who Supports the worlds, honoring Her with flowers that bloom in Indra’s paradise and anointing Her with perfumes.
4.24 Devotedly the assembled Gods offered heavenly incense to Her. Serene of countenance, She Spoke to all the Gods, who were bowed down in reverence.
4.32 ‘All You Gods, ask whatever You wish of Me. Well pleased with Your hymns, I Will Gladly Grant it.’
4.33 The Gods said:
4.34 ‘Since You, The Glorious One, have Slain our enemy, this mahiṣāsura, all has been Accomplished; nothing remains to be done.
4.35 But if You Are to Grant a Blessing, O Great Sovereign, May You Destroy our direst misfortunes whenever we remember You.
4.36 O You Of Spotless Countenance, May You Bring increased wealth, family, and success to whatever mortal shall praise You with these hymns.
4.37 Through Your Power Of Abundance, O Ambikā, Be Ever Gracious unto us!”’
4.38 The seer said:
4.39 “O king, thus propitiated by the Gods for the world’s sake and for their own, [Maa] Bhadrakālī Said, ‘So Let It Be,’ and Vanished from sight.
4.40 So is it told, O king, How She Came Forth long ago from the bodies of the Gods, The Devī Who Desires the wellbeing of the three worlds.
4.41 I shall relate further how, for the destruction of śumbha and niśumbha and other wicked daityas, She Appeared From The Body Of Gaurī,
4.42 The Benefactor of the Gods, for the Protection of the three worlds. Hear me tell it. I shall relate it to you as it happened.”