Mahishasura Mardini
Every question on the site tagged Mahishasura Mardini, each answered from a timestamped source rather than a summary written from memory.
The ten-armed form of Durga who slays the buffalo-demon Mahishasura — the form specifically worshipped during Shardiya Navratri, and a fierce, tantric idol not suited for casual home installation.
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How Chamunda emerged from Kaushiki's forehead and earned her name
The speaker says that when Chanda and Munda were sent next and came before Kaushiki, a devi emerged from her forehead — a body of nothing but bones, covered only by skin, thin and gaunt, huge, terribly fearsome, gnashing her teeth, tongue hanging from her mouth. She fell on Chanda and Munda's army at once and slew the danavas so fiercely that terror spread; she lifted whole chariots into her mouth and ate them, chewed elephants and horses outright, and the army was routed. When Chanda and Munda themselves came to fight, she bound them, cut off both heads and carried them, full of wrath, to Kaushiki: "accept the heads of these great beasts Chanda and Munda, and slay Shumbha and Nishumbha yourself." Pleased, Kaushiki told her that because she had slain Chanda and Munda, her name Chamunda would henceforth pervade and be famous everywhere — and that, he says, is the form worshipped in Sandhi Puja.
Fierce Devi forms a householder should not install at home
The speaker says an ordinary Grihastha should not install at home, as a vigraha, the Mahishasura Mardini form (the ten-armed Durga), or any form of Kali with no hand in Varada Mudra — especially Shamshan Kali or Bhadrakali — or a ten-headed, twenty-armed, twenty-legged Dasha Mahavidya-type form. These forms are extremely fierce, all of them are tantrokta, and if a mistake is made in their worship there is no remedy. He raises the subject, he says, not as superstition but so that anyone who has made this mistake, or inherited it from ancestors or elders, and is suffering kalah-klesh or anishta at home can correct it.
How the Mahishasura Mardini form is worshipped in Shardiya Navratri
The speaker says the Mahishasura Mardini form is worshipped especially in Shardiya Navratri. The Devi is awakened through Navapatrika pravesh, then the cloth tied over her eyes is opened, her Prana Pratishtha is done, and all the puja-path follows. Worship is done on Saptami, Ashtami and Navami; on Dashami, after Shami puja and Sindoor Khela with their own vidhi-vidhan, she is immersed.
A Mahishasura Mardini idol at home cannot be served by worshipping Durga alone
The speaker says that when the Mahishasura Mardini form is kept at home as a vigraha, the Devi's vahan Som Nandi, the great lion, is there with her in his fierce battlefield state, and so are two danavas, Mahisha and Mahishasura. Even counting the two as one, a negative energy is present that received the Devi's boon and attained sayujya with her — Jagadamba herself gave her word that "with me, you too will be worshipped". So if one worships only Durga, the puja gives no complete satisfaction and does not bear fruit; instead two kinds of shrap fall: one becomes the object of the Devi's anger, and the daitya's presence keeps widening the field of negative energy in the house. The Devi cannot help here either, he says, because this is not a matter of bhav or bhakti.
Requirements for keeping a Mahishasura Mardini idol at home
The speaker says that if one does install this form at home, one must be properly initiated (Diksha) and have received the dashakshari-mantra and so on of Bhagwati Mahishasura Mardini, and with that mantra do her Shodashopachara or Panchopachara puja, whichever one's Guru parampara follows. Along with this, two things are essential: every day a Bali bhog for the Devi's vahan, the lion, and a bali bhog for Mahishasura. Bali bhog for both must go, without fail.
Two Yoginis who stand beside Mahishasura Mardini
The speaker says that if a full Mandala is made the vidhan changes, but even when only the vigraha is kept, it is held that two sahacharis, two Yoginis of Bhagwati, are invisibly present on both sides of Jagadamba Mahishasura Mardini; two Nayikas are also accepted on her two sides. For both of these forms too a Bali bhog goes every day, according to one's capacity. Their names, he says, are received in the Guru parampara and cannot be made public. Bali bhog here does not mean the vama paddhati.
Five daily lemon offerings for a Mahishasura Mardini idol
The speaker says that in ordinary Bali bhog, even if given only symbolically, at least five lemons must be offered every day (Nimbu Bali) — this is a matter of Tantra. The first goes in the name of Jagadamba Mahishasura Mardini, who will sever Mahishasura's head; the second in the name of her vahan, the lion Som Nandi; the third and fourth in the names of her two Yoginis/Nayikas, whose names come only from the Guru parampara; the fifth in the name of Mahishasura. Whether these five bali are given as lemon, as clove and camphor, as nutmeg, or as a mixture of the three, he says, is for one's guru to tell — that stays in the guru parampara.
Three-lemon daily offering for a Mahishasura Mardini idol: the general guidance
For someone who has already kept this form and wishes to serve it daily, the speaker says one should learn its vidhi-vidhan; as general guidance through the video, he can only say this much: every day, inside the house, at least one lemon Bali in the name of Bhagwati, one in the name of her vahan the great lion Som Nandi, and a third lemon given outside the house, at some spot, in the name of Mahishasura. He adds that this does not carry his full support in any way — the subject is guru-gamya, it should be done only after taking the information from one's Guru, and any loss or gain is the practitioner's own responsibility. His part is only to inform how the thing should be; it is a matter of Tantra and has to be walked with responsibility.
The Kalika Purana on the boon given to Mahishasura
The speaker says that whoever studies the Puranas should take up the Kalika Purana, where Bali is discussed at length. There, he says, one reads why and how Bhagavati gave Mahishasura the blessing that he would be properly worshipped together with her, that he would be worshipped alongside her.
What is the significance of Vira Ganapati (16-armed)?
Associated with the 16-armed form of Mahishasuramardini Durga near the Chhinnamasta Rajrappa Kshetra, it was historically propitiated by Asuras through the guidance of Lord Brahma to attain formidable strength.
Why are there three places claiming the slaying of Chanda and Munda?
Bhagavati, he says, has in different kalpas assumed different swaroops and at different places slain Mahishasura, Raktabija, Chanda-Munda and Shumbha-Nishumbha. Of the Bhagavati Chamunda who slew Chanda and Munda you will find a sthan in three places; at all three she is renowned by the name of Bhagavati Chamundeshwari, Chamunda. Somewhere it is said that Chanda-Munda were slain on this mound, somewhere that they were slain at this place. It is not that it did not happen here — this has become a matter according to kalpa-bheda: that in this kalpa it was here.
Which Saptashati mantras are used in maran, uchchatan and sammohan?
There are, he says, a great many mantras in it whose use in maran and the like, in uchchatan, sammohan and the like, is made independently, and which are also used for samput. For the destruction of an enemy there is all the description of war in it — as in the second adhyaya the slaying of Mahishasura's army.
How is the second adhyaya of the Saptashati used against a group of enemies?
The passage in the second adhyaya by which the slaying of Mahishasura's army was done is recited independently for the destruction of a group of enemies — when many enemies act together against one. But he cautions that he does not know of it being written down in any scripture, stated separately and clearly, that it is to be done from this point to that point; a great deal of difference is found on this.
Where in the second adhyaya of the Saptashati does the war passage begin?
Taking that same thing forward, he says, once Bhagavati has manifested and everything has been obtained by her and she has assumed her direct svaroop, then thereafter the army equipped with astra and shastra has moved towards Bhagavati and the war has begun. He locates it around what should be the 40th shloka.
What is the third adhyaya of the Saptashati used for independently?
The third adhyaya is for the slaying of Mahisha entirely; so whenever a negative shakti goes into a house and becomes established there, then those shaktis are removed by using these mantras.
Should bhakti and tantra be mixed?
Do not ask such people, the speaker says, when you wish to walk by bhakti-bhav. He repeats again and again: do not mix bhakti and tantra together. Tantra is a kriyatmak subject; where it is, there it is.
Can a householder worship a photo showing Mahishasura Mardini with all ten Mahavidyas?
The speaker says he does not tell householders to worship all such forms together, because such a picture carries the presence of Bhagavati Dhumavati and the presence of Bhagavati Tripur Bhairavi. Forms of this kind are meant for initiated sadhaks and for those who have received a particular upadesh.
Where in the Saptashati does the Mahalakshmi identity become clear?
If you are offering to Bhagavati Durga then Mahalakshmi is present in any case — she is Mahalakshmi. Reading the second and third adhyayas of Mahishasura Mardini will show you this, and it becomes clear in the second, third and fourth adhyayas.
What does he say about Mahishasura and Shiva?
If you go by kalpa bhed there are many such difficult subjects that ordinary and new people will simply not be able to accept, he says. The subject goes as far as this: that Mahishasura, the son of Rambha, was obtained by the blessing of Shiva ji, and has been held to be a form of Shiva ji himself at one time — that Bhagavan Shiva alone saved him, and no one can make a renunciation like his. It is not possible for people to accept it, but if you study the Kalika Purana many subjects will become clear.
Did only Mahishasura receive the blessing of sayujya worship?
He asks: do you think the blessing of being worshipped along with Bhagavati Durga was obtained by Mahishasura alone, or has any other asura obtained it in sayujya form? When you read the Murti Rahasya of the Durga Saptashati, you read that the sayujya pujan of Mahish too should take place. In the avaran of the Devi, in the first avaran come Brahma, Vishnu, Mahesh and their chief Mahashaktis; in the bindu the Parashakti form of Jagadamba; and after that, in the same first avaran or at least by the second or third avaran, we worship the Devi's vahan the lion, and after that the Mahish.
Who is the Bhairav of Mahalakshmi of Kolhapur?
Asked about Kolhapur's Mahalakshmi Mata, the speaker begins from the Durga Saptashati: at the slaying of Mahishasura Bhagavati is shown as bearing eighteen arms, and she was present there in two swarups. At the slaying of the demon Kolhasura, from which Kolhapur is named, she is in the Mahalakshmi swarup, Mahishasura Mardini with eighteen arms; but when in another kalpa she slew Mahishasura, she is established in that same place in a ten-armed form as Tulja Bhavani.
Why will this Saturday sandhi puja be exceptionally divine?
Because on one side it is a krura day — a day of ugrata, a fierce vaar — and on the other the Ashtami tithi together with Navami, that is the sandhi time. The form of Jagadamba that manifests then, whose energy pervades the whole brahmand for those forty to forty-two minutes, is that of Bhagavati Chamunda.
How should the Sandhya episode be read?
It is not possible for an ordinary person to understand these things according to the Vedas, he says; Brahma, Sandhya and the Sapta Rishis are being explained through the Puranas in a symbolic way. Sandhya is not embodied at all. Just as the Earth has no form of her own, yet we read that Prithvi Mata took a form and fled to Kailash when Mahishasur troubled her greatly.
Can stotras be listened to on a speaker, and is path without a lamp improper?
Asked whether the Batuk Bhairav Stotram, Rudri path and Mahishasura Mardini may be heard on a speaker on waking in the morning, and whether doing only the path without a lamp is improper, he says you may listen on a speaker — people are listening in any case, and there is no dosha in listening. But for the Rudri path a speaker will not be proper.
Can a murti of Mahishasura Mardini be kept in the puja place if she is the kuldevi?
If Bhagavati's svarup is itself your kuldevi, then keep it — what is the matter, the speaker says. If your kuldevi is Chhinnamastika, then keep hers too and do her puja. But the vidhan of the pind ran formerly; in the pind, the pujan of Chhinnamastika used to be done, and the vidhan of the Shri Vigraha has not been there. So if the vidhan of the pind of Mahishasura Mardini too has run in your kul, has been running from before, then keep a chhaya chitra and keep a pind. Do not keep a Shri Vigraha — there is a reason behind it. And if a Shri Vigraha has been there from before, then keep it.
Why does Jagdamba say she will act as Vindhyavasini after Shumbh and Nishumbh are killed?
The questioner asks that the vadh of Shumbh and Nishumbh happened in the ninth — the tenth — adhyaya, so why in the eleventh adhyaya did Jagdamba say that she will do it in the Vindhyavasini swaroop. The answer, the speaker says, is according to kalpa, or a difference of kalpa: in one kalpa she remained in one form, in the next kalpa in another form. Just as Bhagavati performed the vadh of Mahishasura in different kalpas by taking on different swaroops — at some time she was eight-armed, at some time ten-armed, at some time eighteen-armed. That, he says, is kalpa bheda.
Is Durga merely the aggregate of the Devas' Shaktis?
No. She emerged from the assembly of all the divine Shaktis at the killing of Mahishasura — but the root principle in Durga ji is not merely the aggregate of all the Shaktis. She is the one who gives Shakti to all of them. This, the speaker says, is a thing to be understood.
Learn to do stuti, and learn to sing it
Now you are a sadhak, so how will you bring bhav of this kind — for this, he says again and again, learn to do stuti, learn to sing stuti. Listen to the stutis of Pandit Hiramath ji if you do the sadhana of Shiva ji; learn to sing the stuti. If you do Bhagavati's, then learn to sing Bhagavati's stuti, in whichever bhav you like, in whichever lay, in whichever sur and taal you like. If veer bhav is to your liking, do the Mahishasura Mardini in veer bhav; if you wish to do it in saumya bhav, then do it accordingly.
What if a Mahishasura Mardini vigraha has been installed by mistake?
Absolutely do the Durga puja, the speaker tells Shivam Bhattacharya; there is no such difficulty that it cannot be done. But if even a little ugrata begins to increase in your house, then look at the further matter. If bali is offered in your house, then there will not be that much difficulty.
Who are the ten Veer Bhairavs, and where are they worshipped?
The chief ten Veer Bhairavs come for such pujan when the pujan of the ten-armed Mahadurga takes place — the ten-armed Durga who is Mahishasura Mardini — whose distinctive pujan happens in the Sharadiya Navratri in the region of Bengal; there, those who perform tantrokta anushthan especially worship these ten Bhairavs. He names Srishti Veer Bhairav, Sthiti Veer Bhairav, Sanhar Veer Bhairav, Rakt Veer Bhairav, Yam Veer Bhairav, Mrityu Veer Bhairav and Bhadra Veer Bhairav; most of them are worshipped in the kshetra of the shamshaan, for veer and the like. Very few people worship them independently — either they are worshipped within the avaran, in the ten-armed pujan, or they are used when one is to be awakened or made siddha.
Atas Gram Devi near Mathura: the self-manifested Yogamaya vigraha where the Devi born from Yashoda took her ashtabhuja form
The speaker says the site is a Puranic tirtha in the Vrindavan–Mathura region, at Atas village, whose Devi is called Atas Devi. When Bhagavati Vindhyavasini appeared by her thousandth amsha from Yashoda's womb in Gokul and reached Kansa's prison, Kansa lifted her to dash her down; she rose into the sky in her ashtabhuja form and declared that his killer had already reached Gokul — and this, he says, is the very spot where she put on that divine form. Jagadamba is present here as Yogamaya in the form of Mahishasura Mardini; the vigraha was made by no one but is held to have appeared by itself in Puranic times, a natural vigraha where shakta sadhaks report divine wonders, and in the most ancient times a principal centre of shakta tantra sadhana in Mathura. It is a form of Vindhya Durga, present here in this form since Dwapar, before going to Vindhyachal; beside her, in red, is Bhagavati Mansa Devi.
How does Mahalakshmi's warrior iconography connect to the origin of Durga?
Beyond her role as goddess of wealth and harmony, Mahalakshmi is depicted as a mighty warrior brandishing weapons — the author states the gods combined their strengths into her form to vanquish the asura Mahishasura, with the widely worshipped form of Durga said to manifest, in essence, from Mahalakshmi herself.
Which stutis of Kali ji may be recited?
Whichever stuti of Kali ji you wish, the speaker says, you may do. Do the Mahishasura Mardini. Do the Sankata stuti. Do the Bhagavati Kalika Adya Kali stuti. There is the Bhadrakali stuti, do that. There is the Kalika Mahimna, do that.
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