powerful that none of the gods can con-
quer him. One day, when the gods are
recounting their defeats at the demon’s
hands, each of the gods begin to give off
a great radiance. This radiance collects
into a single glowing mass, and from it
the figure of the Goddess emerges. This
myth portrays the Goddess as the con-
centrated essence of all the gods, and
thus superior to any one of them. This
motif is accentuated by each of the gods
giving her a copy of their weapons, so
that symbolically she wields all of their
divine powers. The Goddess takes up
arms against Mahishasura and his army,
and after a terrifying battle, slays him.
The third story also portrays the
Goddess as a warrior-queen. In this
episode, she fights and destroys the
demon armies of Shumbha and
Nishumbha, along with their minions
Chanda, Munda, and Raktabija. This
story is notable for the first appearance of
the fierce goddess Kali, who springs forth
from the forehead of the Goddess as her
anger personified. Kali helps the Goddess
to defeat the demon armies by stuffing
them into her mouth and consuming
them. Kali is also instrumental in destroy-
ing the demon Raktabija, who has been
granted the wish that whenever a drop of
his bloodfalls to the ground, it will be
transformed into another full-sized copy
of himself. This makes him impossible to
kill by conventional means. Kali is able to
thwart this special power by drinking
Raktabija’s blood before it reaches the
ground. As with the second book, this
story has extended descriptions of
battlefield carnage.
All of these stories describe the
Goddess as the supreme divine power,
far superior to the male gods in the pan-
theon. The frame story ends with an
extended hymn of praise to the
Goddess, and descriptions of the bene-
fits gained from her worship. Both the
king and the merchant begin to wor-
ship her, and after three years both are
granted their desires. The king asks for a
larger and unconquerable kingdom,
alluding to the Goddess’s power to
bestow worldly wishes. The merchant,
however, requests final liberation, show-
ing his awareness of her power over illu-
sion, and the ultimate spiritual goal. For
further information see Thomas B.
Coburn, Devi Mahatmya, 1984.Devotee
See bhakta.Devotthayan Ekadashi
Festival falling on the eleventh day
(ekadashi) of the bright (waxing) half of
the lunar monthof Kartik(October–
November). This is celebrated as the day
on which the god Vishnuawakens from
his four-month slumber, having fallen
asleep on Devshayani Ekadashi
(“eleventh day festival”) in Ashadh
( June–July). When Vishnu has arisen
from sleep, the ritually dangerous
chaturmas (“four-month”) period is
over, and auspicious life-cycle rites such
as weddings and the sacred thread cere-
mony (“adolescent initiation”) may be
performed again.Devshayani Ekadashi
Festival falling on the eleventh day
(ekadashi) of the bright (waxing) half of
the lunar monthof Ashadh( June-July).
This is celebrated as the day on which
the god Vishnufalls asleep on his ser-
pent couch Shesha, and remains sleep-
ing for four lunar months, waking up on
Devotthayan Ekadashi. This four-
month period (chaturmas) is consid-
ered unlucky and ritually dangerous,
since it is a period when the god is con-
sidered to be insensible. Weddings are
generally not performed during this
period, nor is any other life-cycle rite
that can be postponed. This festival
coincides with the advent of the rainy
season, and the ambivalence connected
with the rains can be seen here. On one
hand, the rains are essential to the
crops, and thus foster life and fertility.
On the other hand, the rains also bring
all too real dangers from snakes, scorpi-
ons, and gastrointestinal infections.Devshayani Ekadashi