Narada Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 124

The Account of the Lalitā Hymn, the Protective Armor

Kavaca), and the Thousand Names (Sahasranāma

Devanagari script

अम्बिका वामदेवी च महामायास्वरूपिणी । विदारिका विश्वमयी विश्वा विश्वविभंजिता ॥ १२४ ॥

Transliteration

ambikā vāmadevī ca mahāmāyāsvarūpiṇī | vidārikā viśvamayī viśvā viśvavibhaṃjitā || 124 ||

Translation

Elle est Ambikā et Vāmadevī, l’incarnation même de Mahāmāyā ; elle est Vidārikā, qui pénètre l’univers entier ; elle est l’Univers lui‑même, et la puissance qui différencie et divise le cosmos en ses formes innombrables.

Word by Word

• अम्बिका: Ambikā (Mother)
• अम्बिका: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अम्बिका (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• वामदेवी: Vāmadevī
• वामदेवी: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वाम + देवी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; समासः कर्मधारयः (वामा देवी = the beautiful/left-sided goddess)

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय-अव्यय (conjunction)

• महामायास्वरूपिणी: having the form of great Māyā
• महामायास्वरूपिणी: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: महा + माया + स्वरूपिणी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; समासः तत्पुरुषः (महामायायाः स्वरूपिणी = having the form of great Māyā)

• विदारिका: the splitter / destroyer
• विदारिका: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: विदारिका (प्रातिपदिक; √दॄ/√दार् ‘to split’ से)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• विश्वमयी: universe-constituted
• विश्वमयी: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: विश्व + मयी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; समासः तत्पुरुषः (विश्वं मयी = consisting of the universe)

• विश्वा: universal / all
• विश्वा: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: विश्व (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• विश्वविभंजिता: universe-shattering
• विश्वविभंजिता: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: विश्व + विभंजित (√भञ्ज् धातोः क्त-कृदन्त)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; समासः तत्पुरुषः (विश्वं विभंजितम्/विभञ्जयति = breaker of the universe)

Speaker

Sanatkumara (in instruction to Narada, within the Purva Bhaga dialogue framework)

Vrata Kalpa

Vrata: none

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: adbhuta

Secondary Rasa: shanta

Characters & Entities

• Ambika
• Vamadevi
• Mahāmāyā (Devi)

FAQs

What is the spiritual significance of this verse in Narada Purana?

The verse presents Devī as both immanent and transcendent: she pervades the cosmos (viśvamayī) and also functions as the differentiating power (viśvavibhaṃjitā) by which the One appears as many—highlighting Shakti as the operative principle behind manifestation.

How does this verse explain the path of devotion (Bhakti)?

By naming the Goddess as Ambikā and Vāmadevī and affirming her universal presence, the verse supports bhakti through nāma-smaraṇa (remembrance of divine names) and seeing the Divine Mother in all beings and phenomena—turning ordinary perception into worship.

What practical Vedic knowledge (Vedanga) is highlighted here?

While not a procedural Vedāṅga rule, it reflects the Vedāṅga-style method of precise naming and definition: multiple epithets classify a single deity’s functions (pervasion, manifestation, differentiation), a technique aligned with nirukta-like semantic clarification used in scriptural study.