Shloka 3

Adhyaya 93 — The Goddess’s Boons to Suratha and the Merchant (Conclusion of the Devi Mahatmyam)

Sanskrit

तामुपैहि महाराज शरणं परमेश्वरीम् ।

आराधिता सैव नृणां भोगस्वर्गापवर्गदा ॥

Transliteration

tām upaihi mahārāja śaraṇaṃ parameśvarīm /

ārādhitā saiva nṛṇāṃ bhoga-svargāpavarga-dā

Translation

ഹേ മഹാരാജാ! ആ പരമദേവിയുടെ ശരണം പ്രാപിക്കൂ. അവളെ ആരാധിച്ചാൽ മനുഷ്യർക്കു ഇഹലോകസുഖവും സ്വർഗ്ഗവും മോക്ഷവും അവളേ നൽകുന്നു.

Speakers

• Medhas Ṛṣi instructing King Suratha (within Markandeya’s narration)

Verse Rasa

{ "primaryRasa": "shanta", "secondaryRasa": "bhakti", "rasaIntensity": 0, "emotionalArcPosition": "", "moodDescriptors": [] }

Primary Deities

• Devī (Supreme Goddess)

Shakti Aspects

• Parameśvarī (Supreme Goddess)

Key Themes

• Shaktism
• Śaraṇāgati (refuge)
• Bhukti and Mukti
• Devī-upāsanā

FAQs

What is the philosophical or ethical takeaway?

The verse asserts Devī as the comprehensive goal and refuge: she grants both worldly well-being (bhoga), post-mortem merit (svarga), and the highest end (apavarga/mokṣa). Ethically, it redirects a distressed ruler from mere political recovery toward surrender and disciplined worship.

How does this fit the Pancalakshana (5 characteristics)?

This passage is not primarily sarga/pratisarga/vaṃśa/manvantara/vaṃśānucarita; it functions as upadeśa (instruction) within vaṃśānucarita-like narrative framing (the king’s story). It is best treated as theological-ethical teaching embedded in narrative rather than a pancalakṣaṇa datum.

What is the esoteric significance?

‘Bhoga–svarga–apavarga’ maps a graded ascent: outer fulfillment, subtle reward, and final release—suggesting Devī as both immanent provider and transcendent liberator, unifying dharma-artha-kāma with mokṣa under one śakti-principle.