Shloka 69
Adhyaya 85 — The Gods’ Hymn to the Goddess and the Emergence of Kaushiki; Shumbha Sends His Envoy
ऋषिरुवाच इत्युक्ता सा तदा देवी गम्भीरान्तःस्मिता जगौ ।
दुर्गा भगवती भद्रा ययेदं धार्यते जगत् ॥
ṛṣiruvāca ityuktā sā tadā devī gambhīrāntaḥ smitā jagau /
durgā bhagavatī bhadrā yayedaṃ dhāryate jagat
Le voyant dit : Ainsi interpellée, la Déesse parla alors avec un sourire profond, venu du dedans—Durgā, la Dame Bienheureuse, l’Auspicious, par qui ce monde est soutenu.
FAQs
Devi’s ‘inward smile’ signals composure and moral certainty. The ethical contrast is sharp: asuric agitation and bargaining versus divine steadiness that upholds the world-order (ṛta/dharma).
While not a pancalakshana catalog, it asserts a core Puranic theology: the sustaining principle of the cosmos is Devi. It supports the Purana’s broader dharma-teaching through theistic narration.
‘By whom the world is upheld’ points to Shakti as dhāraṇā-śakti (supporting power). The ‘inner smile’ hints at the transcendence of the Goddess beyond the play of opposites—battle occurs in her līlā, not from need.