गणसमागमः (Śiva Summons the Gaṇas for the Great Festival)
तैस्समेताग्रतश्चण्डी जगाम विकृतानना । कुतूहलान्विता प्रीता प्रीत्युपद्रव कारिणी
taissametāgrataścaṇḍī jagāma vikṛtānanā | kutūhalānvitā prītā prītyupadrava kāriṇī
Da zog Caṇḍī, mit wild verwandeltem Antlitz, an ihrer Spitze mit ihnen dahin—erfüllt von neugieriger Erwartung, voller Freude, und in spielerischer Wonne Unruhe stiftend.
Sūta Gosvāmin
Tattva Level: pati
Shiva Form: Umāpati
Sthala Purana: Not tied to a single Jyotirliṅga; Caṇḍī leading the gaṇas functions as a mythic template for śakti-sahita yātrā/procession motifs found in many sthala traditions.
Significance: Highlights Śiva-Śakti’s protective presence during yātrā; remembering Caṇḍī as gaṇa-nāyikā is said to remove fear and obstacles on pilgrimage routes.
Type: stotra
Shakti Form: Caṇḍikā
Role: destructive
It portrays Devī’s Saguna power as both fierce and benevolent—her intensity is not hatred, but a dharmic energy that protects and advances the divine purpose, even when it appears as “uproar” in play.
In Shaiva Siddhanta, Shiva (Pati) and Shakti are inseparable in function: devotion to Saguna Shiva is complete when one also recognizes the dynamic, protective force of Devī that supports Shiva’s divine work in the world.
A practical takeaway is to steady the mind amid intensity by japa of the Pañcākṣarī—“Om Namaḥ Śivāya”—and to cultivate devotion that sees divine power as protective, not merely fearsome.