Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 52
हते सैन्य बले तस्मिन्निंद्राद्यास्त्रिदिवौकसः । तामूचुर्वचनं देवि दानवं हन्तुमर्हसि । नास्मिञ्जीवति नो राज्यं स्वर्गे देवि भविष्यति
hate sainya bale tasminniṃdrādyāstridivaukasaḥ | tāmūcurvacanaṃ devi dānavaṃ hantumarhasi | nāsmiñjīvati no rājyaṃ svarge devi bhaviṣyati
When that army and its might had been slain, Indra and the other dwellers of heaven said to her: “O Goddess, you must slay the Dānava. So long as he lives, O Devi, we shall have no kingdom in svarga.”
Pulastya (reporting the gods’ request)
Tirtha: Arbuda (Arbudācala)
Type: kshetra
Listener: Devī (addressed by Indra and the devas); King is the narrative addressee in the frame
Scene: Indra and the devas, humbled, address the Goddess with folded hands amid the aftermath of battle, pleading for the final act—slaying the dānava to restore heaven’s kingdom.
FAQs
Cosmic governance depends on dharma; even gods seek refuge in the Goddess when adharma blocks rightful order.
The request occurs within the Arbuda/Varaparvata sacred cycle narrated in Arbuda-khaṇḍa.
No explicit ritual is prescribed; the verse centers on supplication and divine protection.