Vamana Purana — Slaying of Raktabija, Shloka 67
The Slaying of Raktabīja and Niśumbha–Śumbha; the Manifestation of the Mātṛkās and the Devas’ Hymn
देव्युवाच/ भूयो भविष्याम्यसृगुक्षितानना हराननस्वेदजलोद्भवा सुराः अन्धासुरस्याप्रतिपोषणे रता नाम्ना प्रसिद्धा भुवनेषु चर्चिका
devyuvāca/ bhūyo bhaviṣyāmyasṛgukṣitānanā harānanasvedajalodbhavā surāḥ andhāsurasyāpratipoṣaṇe ratā nāmnā prasiddhā bhuvaneṣu carcikā
devī: the Goddess (a divine female figure; here unnamed); adhārayat: bore, held, sustained; śārva: belonging to Śarva (Śiva); tejas: fiery radiance, potency, divine energy; apūpuṣat: she increased, nourished, made grow; hutāśana: ‘eater of offerings’, Agni; bhagavān: venerable lord; kāmacārī: moving according to one’s will; paribhraman: roaming, wandering.
{ "primaryRasa": "adbhuta", "secondaryRasa": "raudra", "rasaIntensity": 0, "emotionalArcPosition": "", "moodDescriptors": [] }
FAQs
It encodes intimate Śaiva-Śākta theology: Śakti is not external to Śiva but emerges from him as his power made manifest. The ‘sweat-water’ motif also conveys immediacy—Devī appears as a direct, embodied response to cosmic crisis.
Literally ‘devoted to non-nourishing’: it means Devī acts to prevent Andhaka’s increase—checking his strength, proliferation, or regenerative advantage—rather than allowing him to be ‘fed’ by boons, blood, or battlefield conditions.
Here it is a deity-epithet: Devī declares she will be known as Carcikā. The verse functions as a name-etymology/manifestation notice, not as sacred geography.