Markandeya Purana — Adhyaya 90, Shloka 23

Adhyaya 90 — The Slaying of Shumbha and the Reabsorption of the Goddesses into Ambika

Sanskrit

स गतासुः पपातोर्व्यां देवीशूलाग्रविक्षतः ।

चालयन् सकलां पृथ्वीं साब्धिद्वीपां स पर्वताम् ॥

Transliteration

sa gatāsuḥ papātorvyāṃ devī-śūlāgra-vikṣataḥ /

cālayan sakalāṃ pṛthvīṃ sābdhidvīpāṃ sa-parvatām

Translation

Bị mũi giáo của Nữ Thần đâm trọng thương, hắn ngã xuống bất động trên mặt đất, làm rung chuyển toàn thế giới—cả biển cả, đảo và núi non.

Speakers

• Narrative voice within Devī Māhātmyam

Primary Deities

• Devī

Shakti Aspects

• Devī as world-shaking sovereign power (Caṇḍikā/Ambikā)

Key Themes

• Cosmic resonance of divine action
• End of oppression
• World-stabilization through removal of adharma

FAQs

What is the philosophical or ethical takeaway?

Great wrongdoing has world-scale consequences; likewise, its removal brings universal relief—depicted here by the physical trembling that marks a turning point for all beings.

How does this fit the Pancalakṣaṇa (5 characteristics)?

Not sarga/pratisarga but dharma-episode within manvantaric narration; it supports the Purāṇic function of illustrating cosmic governance across ages.

What is the esoteric significance?

The ‘shaking of earth’ mirrors the deep rearrangement of one’s inner world when a core affliction (āsuric tendency) is finally uprooted.