Shloka 1
Adhyaya 89 — The Wrath of Shumbha and Nishumbha and the Fall of Nishumbha
इति श्रीमार्कण्डेयपुराणे सावर्णिके मन्वन्तरे देवीमाहात्म्ये रक्तबीजवधोनामाष्टाशीतितमोऽध्यायः ।
एकोननवतितमोऽध्यायः— ८९ ।
राजोवाच
विचित्रमिदमाख्यातं भगवन् भवता मम ।
देव्याश्चरितमाहात्म्यं रक्तबीजवधाश्रितम् ॥
iti śrīmārkaṇḍeyapurāṇe sāvarṇike manvantare devīmāhātmye raktabījavadhonāmāṣṭāśītitamo 'dhyāyaḥ | ekonanavatitamo 'dhyāyaḥ—89 | rājovāca vicitram idam ākhyātaṃ bhagavan bhavatā mama | devyāś caritam āhātmyaṃ raktabījavadhāśritam ||
Ainsi, dans le Śrī Mārkaṇḍeya Purāṇa, au sein du Sāvarṇika Manvantara, dans le Devī Māhātmya, s’achève le quatre-vingt-huitième chapitre intitulé « La mise à mort de Raktabīja ». Commence maintenant le quatre-vingt-neuvième chapitre. Le Roi dit : « Vénérable seigneur, vous m’avez raconté ce récit merveilleux — les actes glorieux de la Déesse, centrés sur la mise à mort de Raktabīja ».
FAQs
The king’s response models śraddhā and inquiry: sacred narration is not passive entertainment but prompts further questioning aimed at understanding the unfolding of dharma and divine agency.
The explicit ‘manvantara’ marker places the episode within Manvantara-lakṣaṇa. The colophon also reflects Purāṇic textual organization used to anchor sacred history in cosmic time.
The transition signals a movement from one conquered inner tendency (self-replicating negativity) to the next confrontation (Śumbha/Niśumbha: pride and possessiveness), mirroring progressive purification.