MAHĀKĀLI DHYANAM
Meditation on Mahākāli
From the Devī Mahātmyam [Mārkendeya Purana]
Om Namaś Chaṇḍikāyai.
Om khaḍgaṁ chakra-gadeṣu-chāpa-parighāñ
chūlaṃ bhuśuṇḍīṁ śiraḥ
śaṅkhaṁ saṃda-dhatīṁ karai-stri-nayanāṁ
sarvāṅga-bhūṣāvṛitām
Nīlāśma-dyutimāsya pāda-daśakāṁ
seve Mahākālikāṁ
yāmastaut-svapite harau kamalajo
hantuṁ madhuṁ kaiṭabham.
Om Namaś Chaṇḍikāyai.
Om, I bow to the Goddess Chaṇḍikā.
Om, holding a scimitar, disk, mace, arrows and bow, lance, club, a skull and a conch shell in Her ten hands. The three-eyed goddess, Her body covered with ornaments, Her countenance with the brilliance of blue diamonds, with ten limbs. We offer our service to Mahākāli, She who Brahma praised for protection from the demons Madhu and Kaitava, when Vishnu was in sleep.
Om, I bow to the Goddess Chaṇḍikā.
Book
4/Chapter 25/1:83
On the Devî’s Highest Supremacy
1. The King said :-- O Best of Munis! Hearing these sorrows of S’rî Krisna, the
part incarnate of Visnu Bhagavân, I am in doubt on your utterances.
2. Behold!
Bhagavân Vâsudeva is the part incarnate of Nârâyana; how could the Asura
S’ambara steal away His son from the lying-in-chamber!
3. The beautiful Dvârakâ city is specially
well-guarded; the lying-in-chamber is again within the centre of that; under
these circumstances, how was it that the Daitya could enter there and steal
away the child!
4. O Son of Satyavatî! How was it that Vâsudeva could not know that! This appears very strange to me!
5. O Brâhmana!
Please explain to me why was that child stolen away from the
lying-inchamber, though S’rî Krisna was staying there at the city; and how was
it that he was not able to know this beforehand!
6. Vyâsa said :-- O King! The Mâyâ called S’âmbhavî (Pârvatî's) is the
cause; it fascinates and
deludes the minds of human beings. Thus it is known to us. Who is
there in this world that is not deluded by this Mâyâ?
7. The Jîvas, no sooner they are born as human
beings, are immediately overcome with human qualities; the Deva or Asura
qualities or their natures do not then visibly exist.
8-9. O King!
Hunger, thirst, sleep, fear, lassitude, delusion, sorrow, doubt,
pleasure, egoism, old age, disease, death, non-knowledge, knowledge,
displeasure, envy, jealousy, pride and weariness; all these human qualities are
seen to exist in human embodiments.
10-11. Behold!
The night wanderer Râksasa Mâricha assumed, by his Mâyâ, the form of a
golden deer and came before S’rî Râmchandra; and Râmchandra was not the least aware
of it. Then the stealing away of Sîtâ, the death of
Jatâyu, Râma’s going to the forest on the very day of his installation to the
throne of Ayodhyâ; the death of his father due to his bereavement, all these
S’rî Râmchandra did not know a bit beforehand.
12. When Râvana stole away Jânakî and carried her
by force Râma did not know this before or after that event had happened. He
wandered from forest to forest in search of Her, like a quite ignorant man.
13. Afterwards He killed Bâli, the son of Indra
and with the help of the monkeys, erected a bridge
across the ocean, and, crossing it, went to Lankâ.
14. He sent the chief monkeys to all the quarters
in search of Sîtâ and had to undergo all the troubles of deadly battles in the
great battlefield.
15. The most powerful Raghunandana was tied down
by Nâgapâs’a (snakes) and was afterwards freed from it by Garuda.
16. Then, being furiously enraged, the great
Râghava slew Kumbhakarna, Nikumbha, Megha Nâda and Râvana.
17. The Janârdan Râmchandra was not aware of the
innocence of Sîtâ; and therefore He made her take an oath about the purity of
Her character and even made Her undergo an ordeal of fire.
18. Afterwards Râmachandra, the son of Das’aratha,
had to banish his dear blameless Sîtâ on the mere ground of bad name, imputed
to her by some ignorant person and that he would be thus blamed by the public.
19. He did not know that Kus’î and Lava were His
two sons, born in the forest.
Afterwards when the
Muni Vâlmikî told him, He came to know of them.
20. Behold
also Râmachandra could not know about the departure of Sîtâ to Pâtâla; getting
angry once He was about to kill his brother Laksmana even.
21. Râma, the slayer of the Râks’asa Khara did not
know that Kâla Purusa was coming to him.
He, incarnating in the human
body, did acts all becoming to a man.
Similarly S’rî Krisna, the descendant of Yadu,
taking human birth did acts all like a man.
What more discussion can there be
in this?
22. Lo! From
the very outset He fled, out of fear of Kamsa, to Gokula; afterwards he fled
out of fear of Jarâsandha to the Dwârkâ city.
23. Knowing all the rites and ceremonies of the
Sanâtan Dharma (the Eternal Religion) He stole away Rukminî who was chosen as
bride elect by S’is’upâla. This act was very unreligious of Him.
24. S’ambara Daitya stole away his newly born
child and Krisna lamented for this. Afterwards on coming to know of the real state
of things from the Goddess Bhagavatî, He was very glad. Therefore it can be easily seen from all these
circumstances that He had to yield to pleasures and to undergo remorse like
ordinary human beings.
25. Again, under the orders of his wife
Satyabhâmâ, He had to go to Heaven to bring the Pârijâta tree and He had to
fight with Indra. This shows clearly that He was under the
subjection of His wife.
26. In that battle Hari with disc in hand defeated
Indra; the Lord of the Devas, took away the Kalpa tree and retained the
prestige of His respected wife (whom He had offended).
27. Again Satyabhâmâ tied down Hari against a tree
and presented Him as a gift to Nârada; afterwards she, the passionate woman,
freed Krisna on paying an equivalent of gold coins.
28-29. On seeing Rukminî’s many sons, Pradyûmna and
others, all qualified with
diverse qualifications, His wife Jâmbavatî prayed to S’rî Krisna with humility, so that she may have also many beautiful sons. For her sake, Krisna firmly resolved to practice tapasyâ and went to the place where the great devotee of S’iva, Upamanyu, was staying.
diverse qualifications, His wife Jâmbavatî prayed to S’rî Krisna with humility, so that she may have also many beautiful sons. For her sake, Krisna firmly resolved to practice tapasyâ and went to the place where the great devotee of S’iva, Upamanyu, was staying.
30. Hari desiring to have sons engaged Upamanyu as
His spiritual guide and obtained from him the Mantram called Pâs’upata Mantra
and became a Dundee (holder of a staff) and shaved His head.
31-32. In the first month He subsisted on fruits only
and meditated on S’iva and repeated silently the
S’iva mantra. Thus He practised very severe austerities. In the
second month He subsisted on water only and stood on only one leg. In the
third month he lived on air only and stood on the end of His great toe.
33-36. Thus time passed away. In the
sixth month the God Rudra, holding Moon on His forehead, was pleased with His
asceticism and devotion and appeared before Him on that spot. The
God Mahâ Deva came on a bull; He was attended by Brahmâ and Visnu, Indra and
the other Devas, Yakshas and Gandarbhas and addressed thus :-- “O high minded
Krisna of Yadu’s descent; I am pleased with Your severe asceticism; now ask
Your desired boon; I will grant it just now.
I fulfil all the desires of all
my devotees; what desire, then, there can be that is not fulfilled, when I am
seen by the devotees!”
37-38. Vyâsa said :-- The son of Devakî was very glad
to see the God S’amkara and fell prostrate at His feet. Then
that eternal supreme God of the Devas began to recite hymns in praise of Him in
a tone as deep as the rumbling of a cloud.
39. Krisna said :-- O Deva of the Devas! O Lord of the world! You alone destroy the misfortunes and sorrows
of all the beings. O Destroyer of Asuras! You are the Cause and Creator of this
universe. I salute Thee.
40. O One having a blue throat! I bow down to Thee! O Holder of trident! I again and again salute Thee! O Lord of Pârvatî! You destroyed Daksa’s sacrifice. I
salute Thee.
41. I am blessed by Thy sight and think myself as
having discharged all my duties and satisfied.
O Virtuous One! My human birth is crowned with success by
saluting Thy feet.
42. O Lord of everything! O three-eyed!
I am tied down to this world by my attachment towards my
wives; now I take refuge unto Thee to free me from these bonds.
43. O Destroyer of sorrows! I am very much troubled on attaining this
human birth; O Bhava! I am afraid of
this world; and hence I take refuge unto Thee; now save me.
44-45. O Destroyer of cupidity! I experienced a good deal of troubles in the
womb; next out of fear to Kamsa I had to go to Gokula where I suffered much
pains; there I had to obey the orders of cow-herds; there I had to attend as
Nanda’s cow-herd, the pasturing of his cows and was constantly suffocated with
the awful dust thrown up by the cows; I had to wander constantly in the wild
forests of Brindâban.
46. O Omnipresent One! I had to leave my dear ancestral place, the
city of Mathurâ, a rare place to be found anywhere else, out of the great fear
of Kâla Yavana, the king of the Mlechchas and had to go to Dwârakâ city.
47-48. O Lord!
In order to preserve the cause of religion, I had to hand over the best prosperous
kingdom to Ugrasena, due to the curse of Yayâti. My
elders made him the king of the Yâdavas; following their examples, I gave him
the kingdom and am now serving him always like his servant.
49. O S’ambhu!
The householder’s life is exceedingly troublesome; it makes one subject to one’s wife
and go against his religion. There we are always dependent on others; and
no word is heard or dreamt even, how to free oneself from those bondages of the
world. Oh! What
an irony of Fate.
50. O Destroyer of cupid! My wife Jâmbavatî, on seeing the sons of my
wife Rukminî has urged me to practise this Tapasyâ so that she might get
excellent sons born to her also.
51. O Lord of the Devas! O Lord of the world! I am engaged in this asceticism with the desire
to get sons; O Deva! I feel shame in
asking you for the sons!
52. You are the lover of your devotees; You give
eternal freedom; You are the Lord of all the Devas. By
worshipping and satisfying You, who is so fool as to ask for this trivial and
transient thing!
53. O Omnipresent One! O S’ambhu!
O Lord of the world! Knowing You
as the giver of salvation, I, still deluded by Mâyâ, ask from You, being
requested by my wife, this happiness that sons be born to me of my wife.
54-55. O S’amkara!
This world and its concerns are the abode of all sorrows; it is the cause
that brings in all sorts of pains and troubles, and it is transient and will go
to destruction. I know all these; still my mind does not
desist from it.
56. Vyâsa said :-- O great and powerful king! The God of Gods, Mahâ Deva, thus praised and
adored by Govinda, the Destroyer of enemies, replied :-- You will get many sons.
57. You will get sixteen thousand one hundred
wives and no doubt you will get ten sons of each of them. These
sons will be very powerful and valorous.
58-60. The good-looking S’amkara saying these words
remained silent; then S’rî Krisna bowed down at
the feet of Girijâ, the wife of S’amkara.
Then the Goddess Pârvatî addressed
repeatedly to Vâsudeva and said :-- O mighty armed! O Krisna!
O best of human beings! You will
be the typical exemplary householder; (all people will try to follow you). When
one hundred years will pass away, your race will be extinct, due to the curse
of the Brâhmana and Gândhâri.
61. Your sons and the other Yâdavas will lose
their senses on drinking liquor; they will kill each other in the battle field
and thus will be extirpated.
Note: Here Visnis and
Andhkas are meant.
62. Then you and your elder brother Balabhadra
(Balarâma) will give up your bodies and will ascend to the Heavens; O Mighty
Person! Do not grieve in matters that
cannot be avoided.
63. You should know that there can be no remedy to
what will inevitably come to pass; therefore no one is to grieve for them; this
is all along my view.
64. O Madhusûdana!
After Your death, due to the curse of Astâvakra Muni, your wives will be
forcibly stolen away by indomitable robbers.
There is no doubt in this.
65. Vyâsa said :-- When Devî Pârvatî thus spoke,
S’ambhu, with the other gods disappeared; Krisna
too, bowed down to Upamanyu and went back to the city Dvârkâ.
66-67. Therefore, O King! Though Brahmâ and the other Devas are heard
to be the lords of the world, still they are all being tossed hither an thither
by the waves of the ocean of Mâyâ. They are all like wooden dolls subject to Mâyâ.
68. As their previous karmas, so their several
manifestations in the field of action, by the Great Mâyâ, the incarnate of Parâ
Brahmâ.
69. She has no differences nor any want of mercy;
That Goddess of the universe is always leading the Jîvas towards the Eternal
Freedom (freedom from Mâyâ).
70. Had She not created this world, moving and
unmoving and if She had not remained there as the Controller of the Jîvas in
the shape of unshakeable consciousness the Kûtasthya Chaitanya, this whole
world would have become devoid of any consciousness, like an insentient
substance and would have dissolved in the Tâmasî Mâyâ (sheer darkness). There
is no doubt in this.
71. Therefore that Goddess of the Universe has,
through Her mercy, created all these worlds and Jîvas, and resting incarnate in
each Jîva, is directing each and every of them according to his karmic merits
and demerits.
72. Therefore it is a matter not to be doubted
that Brahmâ and the other gods are all under this Mâyâ; the Suras and Asuras
are subject to Her.
73. Therefore, O king! Know this as certain that the Great Goddess
moves and enjoys freely according to Her will; She is not dependent on anybody. Therefore it is the duty of everyone to serve
and worship, with whole head and heart, that Devî.
74. In these three worlds there is nothing higher
or more excellent than Her. Therefore this birth cannot be crowned with
success in any other way than remembering that Highest Force, the Parâ S’akti
and Her place.
75-77. One should always think, without any
difference, that Eternal World Mother, thus “Let me not be born in that family
which has not that Supreme Goddess for its presiding Deity; I am that Goddess
Bhagavatî and no other; I am Brahmâ, untouched by sorrows. ” One should hear first from the mouth of
one’s Spiritual Guide; next by hearing Vedanta and other religious scriptures,
one should first form an idea of that Bhagavatî; and then if one daily
meditates on That Goddess, the Highest Self incarnate with one minded devotion,
one will get, within a short period, the Eternal Freedom; else there is not the
least chance, even if one performs lots of innumerable good works of becoming
free.
78. S’vetâs’vatara and other pure hearted Risis
obtained this freedom from the bondages of Mâyâ by
meditating, in their hearts, this Highest Self and nothing else.
79. Brahmâ, Visnu and the other Devas, Gaurî,
Laksmî and other goddesses, all worship This Supreme
Goddess, of Sachchidânanda Parâ Brahmânî.
80. O pure-hearted king! I answered all that you asked me, terrified
with the fears of this world; what more do you want to hear?
81-82. O king!
I have described this wonderful Purâna narrative, destructive of sins, productive
of virtue. He who daily listens to this Bhâgavatam equal
alike to Veda, becomes freed from all sorts of sins and goes to the region of
the Highest Goddess and passes his time in the midst of the Highest Glory. There
is no doubt in this.
83. Sûta said :-- “O Risis! This Srî Mad Bhâgavatam, called otherwise the
Fifth Purânam was recited,
in detail, in days of yore by Vyâsa. Whatsoever I heard from him, I have now told
exactly the same to you. ”
Here ends the 25th Chapter in the
Fourth Skandha of Srî Mad Devî Bhâgavatam, the Mahâ Purânam, of 18,000 verses,
by Maharsi Veda Vyâsa on the Devî’s Highest Supremacy.
Note :-- The best mantra is the
whole hearted devotion to one’s Guru, and devotion and surrender of one’s Self
to the Supreme Mother, doing works without attachment to the fruits thereof.
This will lead to dispassion and Renunciation. To one who is faithful in this,
all the other mantras will be duly revealed and all his desires will be found
to be true and fulfilled.
Source:
Translation of The Srimad Devi Bhagvatam by Swami Vijnanananda
