Durgā Saptaśatī Narratives
The Pratisarga Parva of the Bhavishya Mahā Purāṇa, in its second khaṇḍa (section), chapters 33 to 35, gives three narratives. Each one shows the greatness (māhātmya) of one of the three sections of the Durgā Saptaśatī, the hymn of 700 verses to Devī Durgā. The three sections are the Ādi-carita (first), the Madhyama-carita (middle) and the Uttara-carita (last).
In the first narrative Annapūrṇā gives knowledge of the Ṛgveda. In the second, Mahālakshmī is worshipped by King Mahānanda through the Madhyama-carita. In the third, Sarasvatī gives Patañjali Muni knowledge of everything.
The Ādi-carita: the grace of Annapūrṇā (chapter 33)
A brāhmaṇa’s son among hunters
In the reign of Vikramāditya in Ujjayanī, a brāhmaṇa used to travel to a nearby village to recite the Durgā Saptaśatī. One time, while he was away, his wife Kāminī strayed from her vow of faithfulness to her husband (pātivratya). Her name suited her.
The son born of this union grew up among the Nishādas (hunters). He learned their ways: archery, life in the forest, and activities far from the dharma of a brāhmaṇa.
The pūjā of Devī Durgā
But the grace of Devī Durgā works in unexpected ways. One day, by divine arrangement (daiva-yoga), the young man came upon a pūjā of Devī Durgā. He saw her image and was struck to the heart.
He found the Annapūrṇā stotra (hymn of praise). With his eyes closed he chanted this verse 108 times, as a mantra:
Nityānanda-karī-parābhaya-karī saundarya-ratnākarī |
Nirdhūtākhila-pāpa-pāvana-karī Kāśī-purādhīśvarī ||
Nānāloka-karī mahābhaya-harī viśvambharī sundarī |
Vidyāṃ dehi kṛpāvalambanakārī mātānnapūrṇeśvarī ||
The verse praises Annapūrṇā as the giver of lasting joy and fearlessness, a mine of beauty, the one who removes all pāpa (sin) and makes pure, and the ruler of Kāśī. It calls her the maker of many worlds, the remover of great fear, the supporter of the universe, and asks her, the Mother who is the queen of food, to give knowledge (vidyā) in her kindness.
The dream and the Ṛgveda
While he was in this state of japa (repeating a mantra), he fell asleep. Annapūrṇā, the consort of Bhagavān Śiva, appeared to him in a dream. She gave him complete knowledge (jñāna) of the Ṛgveda.
When he woke he was a changed man. The knowledge of a whole Veda filled his mind. The brāhmaṇa’s son, born from a wrong union, became a great scholar through the grace of the Devī.
The narrative shows the greatness of the Ādi-carita of the Saptaśatī. Chanting it, even without long ritual and without being born into the right to study the Veda, can awaken the highest knowledge of the Veda.
The Madhyama-carita: Mahānanda and Vararuci (chapter 34)
Bhīmavarman
In Ujjayanī there lived a kshatriya (warrior) named Bhīmavarman. He was fond of violence, wine and meat. He lived against dharma in every way. He died young of a severe disease (tīvra-vyādhi), as the result of his great harm to living beings (hiṃsā) and his wrong conduct. After his death he went through the fruit of his deeds in naraka (hell).
King Mahānanda’s pūjā
At the same time King Mahānanda, a righteous ruler, did his daily pūjā to Mahālakshmī with kasturī (musk) and candana (sandalwood). He recited the Madhyama-carita of the Durgā Saptaśatī every day as his mantra. He kept up this sādhanā (spiritual practice) for twelve full years without a break.
Vararuci returns
After twelve years the scholar and devotee Vararuci, also called Kātyāyana, came back to Mahānanda’s court.
The Uttara-carita: Patañjali and omniscience (chapter 35)
Patañjali’s prayer
The great scholar Patañjali Muni lived on the Citrakūṭa mountain. He was a devotee of Vishṇu, a knower of the Gītā, a man who spoke only the truth (satya-vacana), and the author of the Mahābhāshya, the great commentary on Pāṇini’s grammar. He wanted to know all the śāstras in full and to win every debate.
He prayed to Devī Sarasvatī:
Namo devyai mahāmūrtyai sarvamūrtyai namo namaḥ |
Śivāyai sarva-māṅgalyai vishṇu-māye ca te namaḥ ||
Tvam eva śraddhā buddhis tvaṃ medhā vidyā śivaṃkarī |
Śāntir vāṇī tvam evāsi Nārāyaṇi namo namaḥ ||
The verse bows again and again to the Devī of great form who is every form, the auspicious one who brings all good, and to her as the māyā of Vishṇu. It says: you alone are faith, understanding, wisdom and learning, you bring good, you are peace and speech; Nārāyaṇī, we bow to you.
The voice of Sarasvatī
Pleased with this prayer, Devī Sarasvatī spoke in a voice without a body (aśarīra-vāṇī). She said: “O best of vipras! Recite my Uttara-carita, the third section of the Durgā Saptaśatī, with a one-pointed mind. By its power you will gain omniscience (sarvajñatva).”
Patañjali’s recitation
Patañjali obeyed. He went to the temple of Devī Vindhyavāsinī. There he recited the Uttara-carita of the Durgā Saptaśatī with full devotion, day after day, until the grace of Sarasvatī came down on him completely. He became all-knowing.
After that, in the great debates on the śāstras of that time, Patañjali defeated the scholar Kātyāyana completely.
What the three narratives show
The three narratives together show the threefold grace of the Durgā Saptaśatī.
- Ādi-carita: the grace of Devī as Mahākālī. It awakens knowledge of the Veda even in a person born outside the tradition.
- Madhyama-carita: the grace of Devī as Mahālakshmī. It brings puṇya (merit) that frees and makes good conditions for others.
- Uttara-carita: the grace of Devī as Mahāsarasvatī. It gives knowledge of everything and mastery of the śāstras.
Sources
- Bhavishya Mahā Purāṇa, Pratisarga Parva, Khaṇḍa 2, chapter 33 (the Ādi-carita narrative)
- Bhavishya Mahā Purāṇa, Pratisarga Parva, Khaṇḍa 2, chapter 34 (the Madhyama-carita narrative)
- Bhavishya Mahā Purāṇa, Pratisarga Parva, Khaṇḍa 2, chapter 35 (the Uttara-carita narrative)
- The Durgā Saptaśatī (the three sections, Ādi-carita, Madhyama-carita and Uttara-carita)