Shloka 21
Adhyaya 83 — The Slaying of Mahishasura’s Armies and the Final Death of Mahishasura
एवं संक्षीयमाणे तु स्वसैन्ये महिषासुरः ।
माहिषेण स्वरूपेण त्रासयामास तान् गणान् ॥
evaṃ saṃkṣīyamāṇe tu svasainye mahiṣāsuraḥ | māhiṣeṇa svarūpeṇa trāsayāmāsa tān gaṇān ||
ولمّا كانت جيوشه تُباد على هذا النحو، اتخذ مهيشاسورا هيئة الجاموس وشرع يُرهب أولئك الغَنات.
FAQs
When adharma loses external supports (its ‘army’), it often resorts to raw intimidation. The verse captures a common ethical pattern: collapsing power structures intensify fear tactics.
Mythic narrative illustrating dharma’s conflict with adharma; not a pancalakṣaṇa catalog passage.
Mahishasura’s buffalo-form can symbolize tamas—heavy, obstructive inertia. As the aspirant’s inner ‘supporting habits’ weaken, tamas may surge as fear and dullness before being finally subdued.