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The Ninth Book. Chapter 22

The Ninth Book

Chapter Xxii

On The Fight Between The Devas And Sankhachda

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1-75.
Sr Nryana spoke :-- Then the King of the Dnavas, very powerful, bowed down to Mahdeva and ascended on the chariot with his ministers. Mahdeva gave orders to His army to be ready at once. So Sankhachda did. Terrible fight then ensued between Mahendra and Vrisaparv, Bhskara and Viprachitti, Niskara and Dambha, between Kla and Klesvara, between Fire and Gokarna, Kuvera and Klakeya, between Visvakarm and My, between Mrityu and Bhayamkar, between Yama and Samhra, between Varuna and Vikamka, between Budha and Dhritapristha, between Sani and Raktksa, Jayanta and Ratnasra, between the Vasus and Varchasas, between the two Asvin Kumras and Dptimn, between Nalakbara and Dhmra, between Dharma and Dhurandhara, between Mangala and Usksa, Bhnu and Sovkara, between Kandarpa and Pthara, between the eleven dityas and Godhmukha, Chrna and Khadgadhvaja, Kachmukha and Pinda, Dhmra and Nand, between Visva and Palsa, between the eleven Rudras and the eleven Bhayamkaras, between Ugrachand and the other Mahmrs and Nandsvara and the other Dnavas. The battlefield, then, assumed a grim aspect, as if the time of Dissolution had come. Bhagavn Mahdeva sat under the Vata (peepul) tree with Krtikeya and Bhadrakl. Sankhachda, decked with his jewel ornaments, sat on the jewel throne, surrounded by kotis and kotis of Dnavas. The Sankaras army got defeated at the hands of the Dnavas. The Devas, with cuts and wounds on

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their bodies, fled from the battlefield, terrified. Krtikeya gave words "Don't fear" to the Devas and excited them. Only Skanda resisted the Dnava forces. In one moment he slew one hundred Aksauhin Dnava forces. The lotus eyed Kl also engaged in killing the Asuras. She became very angry and no sooner did She slay the Asura forces, than She began to drink their blood. She easily slew with Her one hand and at every time put into Her mouth ten lakhs, and hundred lakhs and Kotis and Kotis of elephants. Thousands and thousands of headless bodies (Kavandhas) came to be witnessed in the field. The bodies of the Dnavas were all cut and wounded by the arrows of Krtikeya. They were all terrified and fled away. Only Vrisaparv, Viprachitti, Dambha, and Vikamkanah remained fighting with Skanda with an heroic valour. Mahmr, too, did not shew his back and he fought out vigorously. By and by they all became very much confused and distressed; but they did not turn their backs. Seeing this terrible fight of Skanda, the Devas began to shower flowers. The killing of the Dnavas looked like a Prakritik Dissolution. Sankhachda, then, began to shoot arrows from his chariot.

The shooting of arrows by the king seemed as if rains were being poured in by the clouds. Everything became pitch dark. Fires only were seen emitting their golden tongues. The Devas, Nandsvara and others, fled away, terrified. Only Krtikeya remained in the battlefield. Then Sankhachda began to throw terribly showers and showers of mountains, snakes, stones, and trees. So much so, that Krtikeya was covered by them as the Sun becomes obscured by fog. The Demon King cut off the weighty quiver and the pedestal of Skanda and broke His chariot. By the divine weapons of the Dnava, the peacock (the vehicle) of Krtikeya became exhausted. Krtikeya threw one Sakti (weapon) on the breast of the Dnava; but before it fell, the Dnava cut off that, lustrous like the Sun and, in return, darted his Sakti. By that stroke, Krtikeya became stunned for a moment; but he immediately regained his consciousness. He then took up the quiver that Bhagavn Visnu gave him before and many other weapons; and ascending on another chariot, built of jewels, began to fight out violently and valiantly. Getting angry, he resisted all those showers of snakes, mountains and trees by his divine weapons. He resisted fire by his watery (Pryannya) weapon. Then He cut off easily Sankhachdas chariot, bow, armour, charioteer, and his bright crown and he threw on his breast one blazing Sakti of white colour. The Dnavendra fell unconscious; but, at the next moment, he regained his consciousness quickly, mounted on another chariot and took a fresh quiver. The Dnava was the foremost in his magic powers. He, by his power of My, made a shower of arrows so much so that

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Krtikeya became completely covered by that multitude of arrows. Then the Dnava took one invincible Sakti, lustrous like one hundred Suns. It seemed that flames of fire were licking high as if the Dissolution Time had come aright. Inflamed by anger, the Dnava threw that Sakti on Krtikeya. It seemed, then, that a burning mass of fire fell on him. The powerful Krtikeya became senseless. Bhadrakl immediately took Him on Her lap and carried him before Siva. Siva easily restored him to his life by his knowledge-power and gave him the indomitable strength. He then got up in full vigour. Bhadrakl went to the field to see the Krtikeyas forces. Nandsvara and other heroes, the Devas, Gandharbas, Yaksas, Rksasas and Kinnaras followed Her. Hundreds of war drums were sounded and hundreds of persons carried Madhu (wine). Going to the battle-ground, She gave a war-cry. The Dnava forces got fainted by that cry. Bhadrakl shouted aloud inauspicious peals after peals of laughter. Then She drank Madhu and danced in the battlefield. Ugra Damstr, Ugrachand, Kotav, the Yogins, Dkins, and the Devas all drank Madhu (wine). Seeing Kl in the battlefield, Sankhachda came up again and imparted the spirit of Fearlessness to the Daityas, trembling with fear. Bhadrakl projected, then, the Fire weapon, flaming like the Great Dissolution Fire; but the king quickly put out that by the Watery weapon. Kl then projected the very violent and wonderful Varunstra. The Dnava cut off that easily with Gandharbstra. Kl then threw the flame-like Mahesvarstra. The king made it futile by the Vaisnavstra. Then the Dev purifying the Nryanstra with the mantra, threw it on the king. At this the king instantly alighted from his chariot and bowed down to it. The Nryanstra rose high up like the Dissolution Fire. Sankhachda fell prostrate on the ground with devotion. The Dev threw, then, the Brahmstra, purifying it with Mantra. But it was rendered futile by the Dnavas Brahmstra. The Dev again shot the divine weapons purifying them with mantras; but they also were nullified by the divine weapons of the Dnava. Then Bhadrakl threw one Sakti extending to one Yojana. The Daitya cut it to pieces by his divine weapon. The Dev, then, being very much enraged, became ready to throw Psupata stra, when the Incorporeal Voice was heard from the Heavens, prohibiting Her, and saying, "O Dev! The high-souled Dnava would not be killed by the Psupata weapon. For Brahm granted him this boon that until the Visnus Kavacha will remain on his neck and until his wifes chastity be not violated, old age and death will not be able to touch him." Hearing this Celestial Voice, the Dev at once desisted. But She, out of hunger, devoured hundreds and lakhs of Dnavas. The terrible Dev Kl, then, went with great speed to devour Sankhachda but the Dnava resisted Her by his sharp

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divine weapons. The Dev then threw on him a powerful axe, lustrous like a summer Sun; but the Dnava cut it to pieces by his divine weapon. The Dev seeing this, became very angry and proceeded to devour him; but the Dnava King, the Lord of all Siddhis, expanded his body. At this, Kl became violently angry and assuming a terrific appearance, went quickly and with the blow of one fist, broke his chariot and dropped down the charioteer. Then she hurled on the Asura one Sla weapon, blazing like a Pralaya Fire. Sankhachda easily held that by his left hand. The Dev became angry and struck the Dnava with Her fist; the Daityas head reeled, and, rolling, he fell unconscious for a moment. Next moment regaining his consciousness he got up. But he did not fight hand to hand with the Dev. Rather he bowed down to Her. The weapons that the Dev threw afterwards were partly cut down by the Dnava and partly taken up by him and absorbed in him and thus rendered futile. Then Bhadrakl caught bold of the Dnava and whirling him round and round threw him aloft. Then the powerful Sankhachda fell down on the ground from high with great force; he immediately

got up and bowed down to Her. He then gladly ascended on his beautiful chariot, built of excellent jewels. He did not feel any fatigue with the war and went on fighting. Then the Dev Bhadrakl, feeling hungry began to drink the blood of the Dnavas and ate the fat and flesh. She came before Mahdeva and described to Him the whole history of the warfare from beginning to end. Hearing the killing of the Dnavas, Mahdeva began to laugh. She went on saying, "The Dnavas that get out of my mouth while I was chewing them, are the only ones that are living. This number will be about one lakh. And when I took up the Psupata weapon to kill the Dnava, the Incorporeal Celestial Voice spoke :-- He is invulnerable by you. But the very powerful Dnava did no more fling any weapon on Me. He simply cut to pieces those that I threw on him."

Here ends the Twenty-Second Chapter in the Ninth Book on the fight between the Devas and Sankhachda in the Mahpurnam Sr Mad Dev Bhgavatam of 18,000 verses by Maharsi Veda Vysa.
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