Chapter 9: The Slaying of Niśumbha

Rājovāca

9.1 The king said:

vicitram idam ākhyātaṁ bhagavan bhavatā mama
Devyāś caritamāhātmyaṁ raktabījavadhāśritam

9.2 “Wonderful is this, revered sir, that you have told me about The Devī’s Glorious Deed in slaying raktabīja.

bhūyaś cecchāmy ahaṁ śroturṁ raktabīje nipātite
cakāra śumbho yatkarma niśumbhaś cātikopanaḥ

9.3 I wish to hear more about what śumbha and the wrathful niśumbha did after raktabīja was killed.”

ṛṣir uvāca

9.4 The seer said:

cakāra kopām atulaṁ raktabīje nipātite
śumbhāsuro niśumbhaś ca hateṣv anyeṣu cāhave

9.5 “After raktabīja was killed and the others slain in battle, śumbha and niśumbha fell into unparalleled rage.

hanyamānaṁ mahāsainyaṁ vilokyāmarṣam udvahan
abhyadhāvan nisumbho ’tha mukhyayāsurasenayā

9.6 Seeing that his mighty army was being slaughtered, niśumba was overcome with fury and rushed forward with the best of his demon forces.

tasyāgratas tathā pṛṣṭhe pārśvayoś ca mahāsurāḥ
sandaṣṭauṣṭhapuṭāḥ kruddhā hantuṁ Devīm upāyayuḥ

9.7 In front of him, behind him, and on both sides, great asuras, their lips compressed in anger, advanced to slay The Devī.

ājagāma mahāvīryaḥ śumbho ’pi svabalair vṛtaḥ
nihantuṁ Caṇḍikāṁ kopāt kṛtvā yuddhaṁ tu mātṛbhiḥ

9.8 Having battled The Mothers, śumbha, mighty in valor and surrounded by his forces, came forward in fury to attack The Devī.

tato yuddham atīvāsīd Devyā śumbhaniśumbhayoḥ
śaravarṣam atīvograṁ meghayor iva varṣatoḥ

9.9 Fierce fighting erupted between them, and like two thunderclouds, śumbha and niśumbha rained down torrents of arrows on The Devī.

cicchedāstāñ charāṁs tābhyāṁ Caṇḍikā svaśarotkaraiḥ
tāḍayāmāsa cāṅgeṣu śastraughair asureśvarau

9.10 Caṇḍikā Intercepted them with Her Own volley of arrows and struck the demon chiefs in the limbs with a stream of weapons.

niśumbho niśitam khaḍgaṁ carma cādāya suprabham
atāḍayan mūrdhni simhaṁ Devyā Vāhanam uttamam

9.11 niśumbha, seizing his sharpened spear and shining shield, struck the lion, The Devī’s Magnificent Mount, on the head.

tāḍite vāhane Devī kṣurapreṇāsim Uttamam
niśumbhasyāśu ciccheda carma cāpyaṣṭacandrakam

9.12 Her lion assaulted, The Devī Swiftly Cut Through niśumbha’s superb sword with Her Razor-Sharp arrow and through his shield, emblazoned with eight moons.

chinne carmaṇi khaḍge ca śaktiṁ cikṣepa so ’suraḥ
tām apy asya dvidhā cakre cakreṇābhimukhāgatām

9.13 His shield and sword broken, the asura hurled his spear, and as it came toward Her, that, too, The Devī Cut In Half With Her Discus.

kopādhmāto niśumbho ’tha śūlam jagrāha dànavaḥ
āyāntaṁ muṣṭipātena Devī tac cāpy acūrṇayat

9.14 Blustering with rage, the dānava niśumbha seized his lance, and as it came flying, The Devī Crushed it with a Blow of Her Fist.

āvidhyātha gadām so ’pi cikṣepa Caṇḍikām prati
sāpi Devyā Triśūlena bhinnā bhasmatvam āgatā

9.15 Then swinging his club, niśumbha flung it at Caṇḍikā. The Devī’s Trident Reduced it to ashes.

tataḥ paraśuhastaṁ tam āyāntaṁ daityapuṅgavam
āhatya Devī bāṇaughair apātayata bhūtale

9.16 After wounding the onrushing demon chief with ax in hand, The Devī Forced him to the ground with a volley of Arrows.

tasmin nipātite bhūmau niśumbhe bhīmavikrame
bhrātary atīva samkruddhaḥ prayayau hantum Ambikām

9.17 When he saw niśumbha, his brother of fearsome strength, lying fallen on the ground, śumbha moved forward, greatly enraged, to slay Ambikā.

sa rathasthas tathāty uccair grhītaparamāyudhaiḥ
bhujair aṣṭābhir atulair vyāpyāśeṣaṁ babhau nabhaḥ

9.18 Standing in his chariot and holding aloft magnificent weapons, he shone forth and filled the entire sky with his eight incomparable arms

tam āyāntaṁ samālokya Devī Śankham avādayat
jyāśabdaṁ cāpi dhanuṣaś cakārātīva duḥsaham

9. 19 While She Watched him approach, The Devī Sounded Her Conch, Set Off an Unbearable Reverberation with Her Bowstring,

pūrayāmāsa kakubho nijaghaṇṭāsvanena ca
samastadaityasainyānām tejovadhavidhāyinā

9.20 and filled the firmament with the Ringing Of Her Bell, which Sapped the strength of the assembled demon armies.

tataḥ siṁho mahānādais tyājitebhamahāmadaiḥ
pūrayāmāsa gaganaṁ gāṁ tathopadiśo daśa

9.21 Then the Lion filled every direction with great roars that caused even the elephants’ mighty prowess to falter.

tataḥ Kālī samutpatya gaganaṁ kṣmām atāḍayat
karābhyāṁ tan ninādena prāksvanāste tirohitāḥ

9.22 Kālī Sprang skyward and Alighted, Pounding the earth with Her Two Hands. The Noise Drowned out all the previous sounds.

aṭṭāṭṭahāsam aśivam Śivadūtī cakāra ha
taiḥ śabdair asurās tresuḥ śumbhaḥ kopaṁ paraṁ yayau

9.23 Śivadūtī Laughed Loudly and Menacingly. When the asuras grew terrified at the sounds, śumbha flew into a monstrous rage.

durātmaṁs tiṣṭha tiṣṭheti vyājahārāmbikā yadā
tadā jayety abhihitaṁ devair ākāśasaṁsthitaiḥ

9.24 Ambikā Cried Out for him, that evil-natured one, to stop, and the Gods cheered Her on to victory from their positions in the sky.

śumbhenāgatya yā śaktir muktā jvālātibhīṣaṇā
āyāntl vahnikūṭābhā sā nirastā maholkayā

9.25 But śumbha approached and hurled a fearsome, flaming spear, an oncoming mass of fire that The Devī’s Own Firebrand Warded Off.

siṁhanādena śumbhasya vyāptaṁ lokatrayāntaram
nirghātaniḥsvano ghoro jitavān avanīpate

9.26 śumbha’s leonine roar pervaded the space between heaven, earth, and the netherworld, but The Devī’s Violent Thunderclap Drowned It Out, O king.

śumbhamuktāñ charān Devī śumbhas tatprahitān charān
ciccheda svaśarair ugraiḥ śataśo ’tha sahasraśaḥ

9.27 The Devī Split śumbha’s flying arrows with Sharp Arrows of Her Own, and likewise he split Hers, each discharging arrows by the hundreds and thousands.

tataḥ sā Caṇḍikā kruddhā śūlenābhijaghāna tam
sa tadābhihato bhūmau mūrcchito nipapāta ha

9.28 Then the Enraged Caṇḍikā pierced Śumbha with Her Lance. Wounded, he fainted and fell to the ground.

tato niśumbhah samprāpya cetanām āttakārmukaḥ
ājaghāna śarair Devīṁ Kālīṁ kesariṇaṁ tathā

9.29 Meanwhile niśumbha, regaining consciousness, seized his bow and shot arrows at The Devī, Kālī, and the Lion.

punaś ca kṛtvā bāhūnām ayutaṁ danujeśvaraḥ
cakrāyudhena ditijaś chādayāmāsa Caṇḍikām

9.30 And then, creating ten thousand arms for himself, the daitya chief, that son of diti, engulfed Caṇḍikā with ten thousand discuses.

tato Bhagavatī kruddhā Durgā Durgārtināśiṇī
ciccheda tāni cakrāṇi svaśaraiḥ sāyakāṁś ca tān

9.31 Thus Provoked, The Glorious Durgā, Who Destroys adversity and afflictions, Cut Through his discuses and missiles with Arrows of Her Own.

tato niśumbho vegena gadām ādāya Caṇḍikām
abhyadhāvata vai hantuṁ daityasenāsamāvṛtaḥ

9.32 niśumbha, surrounded by his demon army, swiftly seized his club and rushed at Caṇḍikā to kill Her.

tasyāpatata evāśu gadāṁ ciccheda Caṇḍikā
khaḍgena śitadhāreṇa sa ca śūlaṁ samādade

9.33 Instantly She Split the onrushing niśumbha’s club with Her keen-edged sword. He grasped his lance,

śūlahastaṁ samāyāntaṁ niśumbham amarārdanam
hṛdi vivyādha śūlena vegāviddhena Caṇḍikā

9.34 and as he approached with weapon in hand, Caṇḍikā Pierced him, the afflictor of the Gods, through the heart with a Swiftly Hurled Spear.

bhinnasya tasya śūlena hṛdayān niḥsṛto ’paraḥ
mahābalo mahāvīryas tiṣṭheti puruṣo vadan

9.35 From his heart’s gaping wound came forth another mighty and valorous being, who shouted for The Devī to stop.

tasya niṣkrāmato Devī prahasya svanavat tataḥ
śiraś ciccheda khaḍgena tato ’sāvapatad bhuvi

9.36 Bursting into derisive laughter, She Severed his head with Her Sword, and the figure who had thus emerged fell to the ground.

tataḥ siṁhaś cakhādogradaṁṣṭrākṣuṇṇaśirodharān
asurāṁs tāṁs tathā Kālī śivadūtī tathāparān

9.37 The Lion then devoured the asuras whose necks it had crushed with its fearsome fangs, while Kālī and Śivadūtī Devoured others.

Kaumārīśaktinirbhinnāḥ kecin neśur mahāsurāḥ
brahmāṇīmantrapūtena toyenānye nirākṛtāḥ

9.38 Great asuras perished, pierced through by Kaumārī’s Spear; others shrank away from the water sanctified by Brahmāṇī’s Mantras.

māheśvarītriśūlena bhinnāḥ petus tathāpare
Vārāhītuṇḍaghātena kecic cūrṇīkṛtā bhuvi

9.39 Others fell, Ripped open by Māheśvarī’s Trident; some lay on the ground, Smashed by the Blows of Vārāhī’s Snout.

khaṇḍaṁ khaṇḍaṁ ca cakreṇa vaiṣṇavyā dānavāḥ kṛtāḥ
vajreṇa caindrīhastāgravimuktena tathāpare

9.40 dānavas were cut to pieces, some by Vaiṣṇavī’s Discus and others by the Thunderbolt Discharged from Aindrī’s Fingertips.

kecid vineśur asurāḥ kecin naṣṭā mahāhavāt
bhakṣitāś cāpare Kālīśivadūtīmṛgādhipaiḥ

9.41 Some asuras perished, some fled from the great battle, and others were Devoured by Kālī, Śivadūtī, and the Lion.”