Devi in the Skanda Purana

There stood the one Supreme Power, whose very nature is Brahma-vidyā (the knowledge of the Absolute). Gaṇeśa, filled with wonder, remained intent only on gazing upon Her.

Then Mahādeva, the mighty subduer of foes, was praised by the Supreme Śakti. And he said to that Parāśakti: “O auspicious one, choose a boon.”

Then Mahādeva was petitioned with the highest boon: “O God, this one whom you have slain is my son—of that there is no doubt.”

“This deluded one does not recognize you, for he has arisen from a portion of Prakṛti. Therefore, revive this son, for my satisfaction as well.”

She is Great Wisdom, Great Illusion, the very embodiment of supreme intelligence; she is Rudrakālī, and also Ambā—Satī, the transcendent Dākṣāyaṇī.

He—Himālaya—arrived there together with his wife and spoke to the great Satī: “O Mahādevī, do not grieve on account of this austerity, O radiant one.”

Seeking the sight of Pārvatī, and surrounded by his sons, he beheld the Great Goddess, who was surrounded by her companions.

“Who am I? Who are you? And whence are all these others—clinging to the Great Illusion? This worldly display is as meaningless as milk from the teat of a she-goat.”

“You are a devotee, O Mahādevī—best among the greatly fortunate. Let (that devotion) be diligently practiced and honored, for it has been earned by you through austerity.”

Kambala and Aśvatara—the two serpents made into ornaments by Maheśa—were taken away by Mahādevī, as she spoke in jest and laughed.

And (even) his loincloth covering—mocking him with playful words and laughter—she took away. Then the gaṇas and her companions were afflicted with embarrassment.

He employed many spell-reciters, physicians, and other remedies as well—(and) my parents too, their minds bound by great delusion, did the same.

And whoever abandons Rudra, the Father, and Ambikā, the Mother—he lives as one who has cast off his own sire, one who offers no piṇḍa to the ancestors. Of that Rudra, the supreme Śatarudrīya proclaims the greatness.

As the giver of birth to the Mother of the world, Vibhāvarī gradually entered the womb, and she enhanced the splendour of that Goddess—the future mother of Guha.

With Purāṇic hymns, with Sāman-chant melodies, with Vedic praises, and with the secret (mystic) names, we bow to You, O Mahādeva; again and again we bow to the Great Goddess (Mahādevī).

“Though Umā, the Great Goddess, is Your own spouse, we still came here (as if to compete). It is only fitting, then, that our sovereignty should be seized by the Asuras.”

“O Ambikā, he is regarded as a gatekeeper, a support of many wondrous qualities.” Devī said: “O Destroyer of Tripura, even for such a son as this, my longing is unrestrained.”

“This Yakṣa named Pāñcāla, attended by hundreds of thousands of Yakṣas, is given to you, O Devī, as a servant—endowed with hundreds of great magical powers.”

For him, success surely arises—provided it is not struck down by obstacles. For here abides Siddhāmbikā, the great Goddess, present in this very place.

Surely your understanding is small; your study of the Vedas has been in vain—since you do not acknowledge Ambikā, the Mother of all beings.