Chapter 10 of the Devi Mahatmya has 27 verses in the Markandeya Purana numbering (chapter 90 of the Purana). It is the last battle of the book and also the chapter with its best known line, the goddess’s declaration ekaivaham jagatyatra, I am alone in this world. It is a short chapter, but it carries the main teaching of the Devi Mahatmya in a single verse.
The sage Medhas is still telling the story to King Suratha and the merchant Samadhi. In chapter 9 the goddess killed Nishumbha and the mother goddesses finished off the army, and Shumbha was left alone on the field. He now faces her himself.
What happens in this chapter
Shumbha sees his brother dead and his army being destroyed, and he says to the goddess: do not carry your pride so far, Durga; you are fighting relying on the strength of others (verses 1 and 2). It is an accusation, and a fair one on the story so far, because Kali, Shivaduti and the seven mothers have all fought beside her.
The goddess answers in verses 3 to 5: I am alone in this world. Who else is there beside me? Look, wicked one, these powers of mine are entering into me. Brahmani and the other goddesses melt into her body, and Ambika is left alone. She adds that she stood in many forms by her power, that she has drawn them back, and that she stands in the battle alone. Be steady.
The duel runs from verse 6 to verse 23. Each of them shoots and breaks the other’s missiles, and she cuts Shumbha’s bow, spear, sword and shield, kills his horses and driver, and breaks his club. He rushes at her with his fist and she strikes him on the chest with the palm of her hand. He rises, seizes her and flies into the sky, where she fights him with nothing to stand on, in a way that astonishes the perfected ones and sages (verses 18 and 19). After a long fight she lifts him, whirls him round and throws him down. He rushes at her again and she drives her spear through his chest. He falls lifeless and shakes the whole earth (verses 20 to 23).
Verses 24 to 27 are the aftermath. The world becomes bright and at ease, the sky clears, the bad omens end, the rivers return to their courses, and the gods rejoice. The Gandharvas sing, the Apsaras dance, and auspicious winds blow.
The goddess’s words
Verses 3 to 5 are the part of this chapter that is read and quoted on their own. They answer a question that the book has been raising since chapter 2, which is whether the goddess is one or many. In chapter 2 she was formed from the lights of many gods. In chapter 8 the powers of Brahma, Shiva, Skanda, Vishnu and Indra came out of their bodies and fought beside her. In chapter 8 verse 22 a power came out of her own body. Here she says that all of them were hers, that the many were her own manifestations (vibhuti), and that she takes them back.
Different traditions read the verse in different ways. Shakta devotees read it as a plain statement that the goddess is the one supreme reality and that every deity is her form. Others read it more narrowly, as the goddess explaining to a boastful enemy that he has not been fighting an army but a single power. The verse says only what it says, and we leave the philosophical reading to your own tradition.
The text also draws attention to the contrast in the fighting. Until now the goddess has been described mostly as someone who strikes from a distance with weapons. In this chapter she grapples with Shumbha hand to hand and in the air (verses 16 to 22), and the only things she uses at the end are her spear and her own strength. Many readers see this as the book’s way of saying that the final test is personal and cannot be handed to anyone else.
How to read it
For readers who know the Devi Mahatmya as a book that is read in sequence, this chapter is the end of the last battle, and the chapter that follows, the hymn to Narayani, is the gods’ praise for it. It is a good moment to go back to chapter 4, which is the gods’ praise for the first great victory, and compare them. Both hymns are addressed to the same goddess, but they are spoken in different circumstances.
This page gives each verse in Devanagari with a plain transliteration and a meaning in our own words.
The text, transliteration and meaning
निशुम्भं निहतं दृष्ट्वा भ्रातरं प्राणसंमितम्
हन्यमानं बलं चैव शुम्भः क्रुद्धोऽब्रवीद्वचः ॥ १०.१ ॥
Nishumbham nihatam drishtva bhrataram pranasammitam
Hanyamanam balam chaiva shumbhah kruddho'bravidvachah
MeaningThe sage says: Seeing his brother Nishumbha dead, dear to him as his own life, and his army being destroyed, Shumbha said in anger:
बलावलेपाद् दुष्टे त्वं मा दुर्गे गर्वमावह
अन्यासां बलमाश्रित्य युध्यसे चातिमानिनी ॥ १०.२ ॥
Balavalepad dushte tvam ma durge garvamavaha
Anyasam balamashritya yudhyase chatimanini
MeaningShumbha says: Wicked Durga, do not carry your pride in your own strength so far. You fight proudly, relying on the strength of others.
एकैवाहं जगत्यत्र द्वितीया का ममापरा
पश्यैता दुष्ट मय्येव विशन्त्यो मद्विभूतयः ॥ १०.३ ॥
Ekaivaham jagatyatra dvitiya ka mamapara
Pashyaita dushta mayyeva vishantyo madvibhutayah
MeaningThe goddess says: I am alone in this world. Who else is there beside me? Look, wicked one, these powers of mine are entering into me.
NoteThis is the best known verse of the chapter. The word translated as powers is vibhuti, which can also mean glories or manifestations. She is saying that the other goddesses were forms of herself.
ततः समस्तास्ता देव्यो ब्रह्माणीप्रमुखा लयम्
तस्या देव्यास्तनौ जग्मुरेकैवासीत्तदाम्बिका ॥ १०.४ ॥
Tatah samastasta devyo brahmanipramukha layam
Tasya devyastanau jagmurekaivasittadambika
MeaningThen all those goddesses, Brahmani and the rest, melted away into the body of the goddess, and Ambika alone remained.
NoteThe seven mothers and the others enter her body, one after another, and she is alone again. This is the text's own explanation of what the mothers were.
अहं विभूत्या बहुभिरिह रूपैर्यदास्थिता
तत्संहृतं मयैकैव तिष्ठाम्याजौ स्थिरो भव ॥ १०.५ ॥
Aham vibhutya bahubhiriha rupairyadasthita
Tatsamhritam mayaikaiva tishthamyajau sthiro bhava
MeaningThe goddess says: By my power I stood here in many forms. I have drawn them back into myself, and I stand alone in the battle. Be steady.
ततः प्रववृते युद्धं देव्याः शुम्भस्य चोभयोः
पश्यतां सर्वदेवानामसुराणां च दारुणम् ॥ १०.६ ॥
Tatah pravavrite yuddham devyah shumbhasya chobhayoh
Pashyatam sarvadevanamasuranam cha darunam
MeaningThen the battle began between the goddess and Shumbha, both of them, a terrible sight for all the gods and demons to watch.
शरवर्षैः शितैः शस्त्रैस्तथा चास्त्रैः सुदारुणैः
तयोर्युद्धमभूद् भूयः सर्वलोकभयङ्करम् ॥ १०.७ ॥
Sharavarshaih shitaih shastraistatha chastraih sudarunaih
Tayoryuddhamabhud bhuyah sarvalokabhayankaram
MeaningWith showers of sharp arrows, with weapons and with the most terrible missiles, a battle took place between the two once more, frightening to all the worlds.
दिव्यान्यस्त्राणि शतशो मुमुचे यान्यथाम्बिका
बभञ्ज तानि दैत्येन्द्रस्तत्प्रतीघातकर्तृभिः ॥ १०.८ ॥
Divyanyastrani shatasho mumuche yanyathambika
Babhanja tani daityendrastatpratighatakartribhih
MeaningThe heavenly missiles that Ambika let go in hundreds, the lord of the demons broke by countering them with missiles of his own.
मुक्तानि तेन चास्त्राणि दिव्यानि परमेश्वरी
बभञ्ज लीलयैवोग्रहुङ्कारोच्चारणादिभिः ॥ १०.९ ॥
Muktani tena chastrani divyani parameshvari
Babhanja lilayaivograhunkarochcharanadibhih
MeaningAnd the divine missiles that he let fly, the supreme goddess broke as if in play, with fierce shouts of hum and similar sounds.
ततः शरशतैर्देवीमाच्छादयत सोऽसुरः
सा च तत्कुपिता देवी धनुश्चिच्छेद चेषुभिः ॥ १०.१० ॥
Tatah sharashatairdevimachchhadayata so'surah
Sa cha tatkupita devi dhanushchichchheda cheshubhih
MeaningThen the demon covered the goddess with hundreds of arrows, and she, angry, cut his bow with her arrows.
छिन्ने धनुषि दैत्येन्द्रस्तथा शक्तिमथाददे
चिच्छेद देवी चक्रेण तामप्यस्य करे स्थिताम् ॥ १०.११ ॥
Chhinne dhanushi daityendrastatha shaktimathadade
Chichchheda devi chakrena tamapyasya kare sthitam
MeaningWhen his bow was cut, the lord of the demons took a spear, but the goddess cut that too with her discus as it lay in his hand.
ततः खड्गमुपादाय शतचन्द्रं च भानुमत्
अभ्यधावत्तां देवीं दैत्यानामधिपेश्वरः ॥ १०.१२ ॥
Tatah khadgamupadaya shatachandram cha bhanumat
Abhyadhavattam devim daityanamadhipeshvarah
MeaningThen the supreme lord of the demons took up a sword and a shield with a hundred moons on it, shining like the sun, and ran at the goddess.
तस्यापतत एवाशु खड्गं चिच्छेद चण्डिका
धनुर्मुक्तैः शितैर्बाणैश्चर्म चार्ककरामलम् ॥ १०.१३ ॥
Tasyapatata evashu khadgam chichchheda chandika
Dhanurmuktaih shitairbanaishcharma charkakaramalam
MeaningAs he came, Chandika quickly cut his sword with sharp arrows shot from her bow, and his shield as well, bright as the rays of the sun.
अश्वांश्च पातयामास रथं सारथिना सह
हताश्वः स तदा दैत्यश्छिन्नधन्वा विसारथिः
जग्राह मुद्गरं घोरमम्बिकानिधनोद्यतः ॥ १०.१४ ॥
Ashvamshcha patayamasa ratham sarathina saha
Hatashvah sa tada daityashchhinnadhanva visarathih
Jagraha mudgaram ghoramambikanidhanodyatah
MeaningShe brought down his horses and his chariot with its driver. Then that demon, his horses killed, his bow cut and his driver gone, took up a terrible club, intent on killing Ambika.
चिच्छेदापततस्तस्य मुद्गरं निशितैः शरैः
तथापि सोऽभ्यधावत्तां मुष्टिमुद्यम्य वेगवान् ॥ १०.१५ ॥
Chichchhedapatatastasya mudgaram nishitaih sharaih
Tathapi so'bhyadhavattam mushtimudyamya vegavan
MeaningAs he came on, she cut his club with sharp arrows, but he still ran at her, fast, raising his fist.
स मुष्टिं पातयामास हृदये दैत्यपुङ्गवः
देव्यास्तं चापि सा देवी तलेनोरस्यताडयत् ॥ १०.१६ ॥
Sa mushtim patayamasa hridaye daityapungavah
Devyastam chapi sa devi talenorasyatadayat
MeaningThe bull among demons drove his fist into the goddess's heart, and the goddess in turn struck him on the chest with the palm of her hand.
तलप्रहाराभिहतो निपपात महीतले
स दैत्यराजः सहसा पुनरेव तथोत्थितः ॥ १०.१७ ॥
Talapraharabhihato nipapata mahitale
Sa daityarajah sahasa punareva tathotthitah
MeaningStruck by the blow of her palm, the king of the demons fell to the ground, and then at once rose again.
उत्पत्य च प्रगृह्योच्चैर्देवीं गगनमास्थितः
तत्रापि सा निराधारा युयुधे तेन चण्डिका ॥ १०.१८ ॥
Utpatya cha pragrihyochchairdevim gaganamasthitah
Tatrapi sa niradhara yuyudhe tena chandika
MeaningHe leapt up, seized the goddess and flew high into the sky. There too, with nothing to stand on, Chandika fought him.
NoteFrom here the fight is in the air. The text says that even the perfected ones and the sages were amazed to see the two grappling in the sky with nothing to stand on.
नियुद्धं खे तदा दैत्यश्चण्डिका च परस्परम्
चक्रतुः प्रथमं सिद्धमुनिविस्मयकारकम् ॥ १०.१९ ॥
Niyuddham khe tada daityashchandika cha parasparam
Chakratuh prathamam siddhamunivismayakarakam
MeaningThen the demon and Chandika fought hand to hand in the sky, each against the other, in a way that astonished the perfected ones and the sages.
ततो नियुद्धं सुचिरं कृत्वा तेनाम्बिका सह
उत्पात्य भ्रामयामास चिक्षेप धरणीतले ॥ १०.२० ॥
Tato niyuddham suchiram kritva tenambika saha
Utpatya bhramayamasa chikshepa dharanitale
MeaningThen, after a very long hand-to-hand fight with him, Ambika lifted him, whirled him round and threw him to the ground.
स क्षिप्तो धरणीं प्राप्य मुष्टिमुद्यम्य वेगवान्
अभ्यधावत दुष्टात्मा चण्डिकानिधनेच्छया ॥ १०.२१ ॥
Sa kshipto dharanim prapya mushtimudyamya vegavan
Abhyadhavata dushtatma chandikanidhanechchhaya
MeaningThrown, he reached the earth and, raising his fist, rushed fast at Chandika, wicked-hearted, wishing to kill her.
तमायान्तं ततो देवी सर्वदैत्यजनेश्वरम्
जगत्यां पातयामास भित्त्वा शूलेन वक्षसि ॥ १०.२२ ॥
Tamayantam tato devi sarvadaityajaneshvaram
Jagatyam patayamasa bhittva shulena vakshasi
MeaningAs he came, the lord of all the demon people, the goddess drove her spear through his chest and brought him down on the earth.
NoteThe end of the last battle. The goddess ends Shumbha with her spear, as she ended Nishumbha in chapter 9.
स गतासुः पपातोर्व्यां देवीशूलाग्रविक्षतः
चालयन् सकलां पृथ्वीं साब्धिद्वीपां सपर्वताम् ॥ १०.२३ ॥
Sa gatasuh papatorvyam devishulagravikshatah
Chalayan sakalam prithvim sabdhidvipam saparvatam
MeaningLifeless, he fell to the ground, torn by the point of the goddess's spear, shaking the whole earth with its seas, islands and mountains.
ततः प्रसन्नमखिलं हते तस्मिन् दुरात्मनि
जगत्स्वास्थ्यमतीवाप निर्मलं चाभवन्नभः ॥ १०.२४ ॥
Tatah prasannamakhilam hate tasmin duratmani
Jagatsvasthyamativapa nirmalam chabhavannabhah
MeaningThen, with that wicked one dead, the whole world became bright. It gained great ease, and the sky became clear.
NoteThe calm that follows is described in the text as the world gaining ease, the sky clearing and the rivers returning to their courses. It is the text's way of saying that the disturbance in the world was caused by the demon.
उत्पातमेघाः सोल्का ये प्रागासंस्ते शमं ययुः
सरितो मार्गवाहिन्यस्तथासंस्तत्र पातिते ॥ १०.२५ ॥
Utpatameghah solka ye pragasamste shamam yayuh
Sarito margavahinyastathasamstatra patite
MeaningThe clouds that had been omens, and the meteors, which had been there before, ended. The rivers returned to their courses when he was struck down.
ततो देवगणाः सर्वे हर्षनिर्भरमानसाः
बभूवुर्निहते तस्मिन् गन्धर्वा ललितं जगुः ॥ १०.२६ ॥
Tato devaganah sarve harshanirbharamanasah
Babhuvurnihate tasmin gandharva lalitam jaguh
MeaningThen all the hosts of gods, their hearts overflowing with joy, rejoiced when he was killed, and the Gandharvas sang sweetly.
अवादयंस्तथैवान्ये ननृतुश्चाप्सरोगणाः
ववुः पुण्यास्तथा वाताः सुप्रभोऽभूद्दिवाकरः ॥ १०.२७ ॥
Avadayamstathaivanye nanritushchapsaroganah
Vavuh punyastatha vatah suprabho'bhuddivakarah
MeaningOthers played instruments, the troops of Apsaras danced, auspicious winds blew, and the sun shone brightly.
Chapter summary
Shumbha, seeing his brother dead, accuses the goddess of fighting with the strength of others. She answers that she is alone in the world and that the other goddesses are her own powers, which she draws back into herself. The two fight with weapons and then hand to hand, on the ground and in the sky.
After a long fight she whirls Shumbha round, throws him to the ground and drives her spear through his chest. He falls lifeless. The world becomes bright, the sky clears and the gods rejoice. Chapter 11 is their hymn of praise.
Where the other texts differ from the print
The Sanskrit above is the text of the Nirnaya Sagar print, which we read page by page against the page images. The GRETIL e-text of the Markandeya Purana (the Sansknet entry) and Sanskrit Wikisource are used here as witnesses only. This chapter has 27 verses in the Purana numbering.
In 4 verses (10.2, 10.12, 10.14, 10.21) the print reads differently from the GRETIL e-text in the words, or does not have the verse, beyond the small typing slips listed further down. In each case we follow the print. The other reading is given here so that you can see it. The GRETIL text is quoted with its typing slips already corrected.
- 10.2: the print has बलावलेपाद् दुष्टे त्वं मा दुर्गे गर्वमावह / अन्यासां बलमाश्रित्य युध्यसे चातिमानिनी. The GRETIL e-text has बलावलेपाद् दुष्टे त्वं मा दुर्गे गर्वमावह अन्यासां बलमाश्रित्य युध्यसे यातिमानिनी. Wikisource agrees with GRETIL.
- 10.12: the print has ततः खड्गमुपादाय शतचन्द्रं च भानुमत् / अभ्यधावत्तां देवीं दैत्यानामधिपेश्वरः. The GRETIL e-text has ततः खड्गमुपादाय शतचन्द्रं च भानुमत् अभ्यधावत्तदा देवीं दैत्यानामधिपेश्वरः. Wikisource agrees with GRETIL.
- 10.14: the print has अश्वांश्च पातयामास रथं सारथिना सह / हताश्वः स तदा दैत्यश्छिन्नधन्वा विसारथिः / जग्राह मुद्गरं घोरमम्बिकानिधनोद्यतः. The GRETIL e-text has अश्वांश्च पातयामास रथं सारथिना सह हताश्वः स तदा दैत्यश्छिन्नधान्वा विसारथिः जग्राह मुद्गरं घोरमम्बिकानिधनोद्यतः. Wikisource agrees with GRETIL.
- 10.21: the print has स क्षिप्तो धरणीं प्राप्य मुष्टिमुद्यम्य वेगवान् / अभ्यधावत दुष्टात्मा चण्डिकानिधनेच्छया. The GRETIL e-text has स क्षिप्तो धरणीं प्राप्य मुष्टिमुद्यम्य वेगितः अभ्यधावत दुष्टात्मा चण्डिकानिधनेच्छया. Wikisource agrees with GRETIL.
Typing slips in the GRETIL e-text, so that you can see exactly what was changed (the print has the corrected form in each):
- 10.4: the GRETIL e-text has जग्मुरेकावासीत्तदाम्बिका, a typing slip shared with Wikisource; the print has जग्मुरेकैवासीत्तदाम्बिका, which we print.
- 10.5: the GRETIL e-text has सत्संहृतं, a typing slip; the print has तत्संहृतं, which we print.
- 10.26: the GRETIL e-text has हर्षनिर्भमानसाः, a typing slip shared with Wikisource; the print has हर्षनिर्भरमानसाः, which we print.
Wikisource also has a speaker name or an editor’s note written into the verse text in 1 verse (10.3); these are not part of the text and are left out.
Source of the text on this page. The Sanskrit is the text of the Nirnaya Sagar Press edition of the Saptashati (Bombay, Shaka 1839, which is 1917 CE, edited by Vasudev Laxman Shastri Panshikar and published by Tukaram Javaji), read page by page from the scan on archive.org (identifier SaptashatiNirnayaSagarPress, scan pages 216 to 222 for this chapter). We follow the print's readings. We space the words and write the nasals in the usual style of this site, and we do not count that as a difference. The GRETIL e-text of the Markandeya Purana (where this chapter is chapter 90) and Sanskrit Wikisource are used as witnesses only: where they read differently from the print, their readings are listed under the heading above. The print numbers its speaker lines, and its own running count reaches 575 at the end of this chapter; this page keeps the Markandeya Purana numbering, so the verse numbers differ. The transliteration is a simple guide to sound and the meanings are our own wording. See the Devi Mahatmya hub for the full note on sources.