Shloka 1
Adhyaya 93 — The Goddess’s Boons to Suratha and the Merchant (Conclusion of the Devi Mahatmyam)
इति श्रीमार्कण्डेयपुराणे सावर्णिके मन्वन्तरे देवीमाहात्म्ये देवीवाक्यं नाम द्विनवतितमोऽध्यायः त्रिनवतितमोऽध्यायः- ९३ ।
ऋषिरुवाच एतत्ते कथितं भूूप देवीमाहात्म्यमुत्तमम् ।
एवंप्रभावा सा देवी ययेदं धार्यते जगत् ॥
iti śrīmārkaṇḍeya-purāṇe sāvarṇike manvantare devī-māhātmye devī-vākyaṃ nāma dvinavatitamo 'dhyāyaḥ trinavatitamo 'dhyāyaḥ—93 / ṛṣir uvāca etat te kathitaṃ bhūpa devī-māhātmyam uttamam / evaṃ-prabhāvā sā devī yayedaṃ dhāryate jagat
Demikianlah dalam Śrī Mārkaṇḍeya Purāṇa, pada Sāvarṇika Manvantara, dalam Devī Māhātmya, bagian bernama ‘Devī-vākya’—selesailah bab ke-92. Bab ke-93 pun dimulai. Sang Ṛṣi berkata: “Wahai Raja, Devī Māhātmya yang tertinggi ini telah disampaikan kepadamu. Demikianlah daya Sang Dewi, oleh kekuatan-Nya dunia ini ditopang.”
FAQs
The frame emphasizes that the hymn-narrative is not entertainment but a teaching on the sustaining principle of reality: devotion and remembrance of Devī align one with the power that ‘upholds the world.’
The colophon anchors the narrative within Manvantara (one of the five marks). The statement ‘by whom the world is upheld’ also signals Sthiti as Devī’s governing function.
Calling the section ‘Devī-vākya’ underscores revelation-through-speech: sacred narrative itself is treated as a vehicle of śakti, sustaining order in the listener’s inner world.