Welcome To The Devi Mahatmya Temple
Welcome to the Digital Temple dedicated to The worship of
The Divine Mother, Divine Forms Maa Maha Kaali, Maa Durga, Maha Devi
The Divine Mother Is Known By Many Names, And Forms. It is the limitation of the devotees to Limit The Divine Mother To Any Specific Form. The Divine Mother Is Ever Abiding As All Forms, But Is NOT Limited To Any Form. Hence, The Divine Mother Is Most Popularly Referred To As Maa Aadi ParaShakti – The Most Ancient Source Of All Source. ๐๐๐๐๐
Learn more about The Divine Mother through the Texts of The Devi Mahatmya and more.
About "The Devi Mahatmya" book, part of the markandeya purana (also known as "Durga Saptashati" and "Chandi")
Traditionally the โDevi Mahatmyamโ is a portion of the Markandeya Mahapurana. The Devi Mahatmya is variously known as Sri Durga Saptashati, Sri Chandi or Saptashati. It is referred to as Saptashati asItcomprisesofsevenhundredmantras. The Devi Mahatmya is considered to be as important a scripture as theย Bhagavad Gitaย by the Shakta Hindus.[19][20]
โDevi Mahatmyamโ literally means โGlory of The Goddessโ. Simply put the word โDeviโ means โGoddessโ. While the word โDeviโ may be used to refer to any Goddess, here it is used to denote the Supreme Goddess adored as The Divine Mother of the entire universe. It is more popularly known as Chandi because it describes The Glory of The Goddess as Chandika,TheTerrible.
Whilst Its stories can be taken as metaphors relating to our own psycho-spiritual landscape as well the challenges we face in life, there isnโt a single approach to The Devi Mahatmyam or the Chandi. The various hymns to The Goddess in The Devi Mahatmyam inspire us to devotion for The Personal Forms of God as Mother while โits deeper, philosophical and esoteric interpretation leads us to the realization of God as the impersonal supreme realityโ.
“The Devi Mahatmya” as MAHAMANTRA
โ๐ง๐ต๐ฒ ๐๐ฒ๐๐ถ ๐ ๐ฎ๐ต๐ฎ๐๐บ๐๐ฎ ๐ฎ๐ ๐ ๐ ๐ฎ๐ต๐ฎ๐ ๐ฎ๐ป๐๐ฟ๐ฎ ๐ป๐ผ๐ ๐ผ๐ป๐น๐ ๐ฝ๐ฟ๐ผ๐๐ถ๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ ๐๐ถ๐๐ฑ๐ผ๐บ ๐ฏ๐๐ ๐ถ๐บ๐ฝ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐๐ ๐๐ต๐ฟ๐ผ๐๐ด๐ต ๐๐ถ๐๐ถ๐ป๐ฒ ๐ฉ๐ถ๐ฏ๐ฟ๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ปโ
Though the Devi Mahatmyam constitutes chapters 81-93 in the Markandeya Purana, it is not merely treated as a part of a purana. Unlike the Purana that has the status of being an auxiliary limb (upanga) of the Veda, Devi Mahatmyam has attained the status of sruti, the very status accorded to the Veda. It has an intrinsic independent status by itself. It does not derive its significance from its Puranic background. It is a full-fledged scripture by itself. On one hand it is like a synthesis of many myths from many sources, skillfully integrated into a single narrative and thus incorporates the best of the puranic approach.
Part narrative and part hymn, The Devi Mahatmyam combines the strengths of both the oral and written traditions. On the other hand, it also displays the bardic style of the vedic approach, that combines the best of preliterate and literate strengths of expression, in so far as the hymns are concerned.
The Katyayani tantra considers each verse of The Devi Mahatmyam as A Mantra. Others consider everywordofTheTextisAMantra.
The whole text is treated like One Maha Mantra. Though three-fourths of the scripture deals with description of battles and their associated narratives, even these contents are considered to be mantras.
The actual number of verses in the text is only 518, not 700 as stated by some modern writers. The number 700 is thus not related to the number of verses, but indicates the total number of mantras in the Devi Mahatmyam. There are 537 sloka mantras (full slokas), 38 ardha-sloka mantras (half slokas), 66 khanda mantras (part of a sloka), 57 uvacha mantras and 2 punarukta mantras, thus totalling 700 altogether. The details of the break-up of the mantras are important for for Chandi Homa, Japa and Archana. Apart from these 700 mantras, there are other covert mantras within the text. At times mantras are encoded into the narrative.
ย Exploring the encoded mantras is possible only through an exclusive commentary written with the aim of exploring The Devi Mahatmyam as A Great Mantramaya Text.
“The Devi Mahatmya” contains Occult Knowledge
The Devi Mahatmyam is a highly occult text. โOnly those who have inner eyes will perceive the hidden truths; others know notโ. It is held that Markandeya the seer of this myth had seen the ever- existent glory of The Goddess with the inner eye. Sri Bhaskararaya named his commentary on the Devi Mahatmyam as โGuptavatiโ thus denoting the hidden and highly occult nature of Devi Mahatmyam.
Sixteen centuries after its composition, The Devฤซ Mฤhฤtmya still shines as a beacon from a primordial age when men and women, enchanted by natureโs beauty and abundance, yet terrified by its fierce, destructive power, honored The Source of Creation as The Great Mother.
Devi Mahatmya enshrines many an ancient memory in the resounding cadences of its verses and continues to sing Her Glory.
At the same time, as the last open expressions of Goddess-centered religion were vanishing from the Western world, The Devฤซ Mฤhฤtmya took shape on the more tolerant soil of India, where the religion of The Divine Mother flourished and continues to flourish.
Even today, The Great Hymn of praise that is The Devฤซ Mฤhฤtmya reveals an all-embracing vision of harmony between The Mahฤ Deviโs Abiding Earthly Presence and the transcendental unity as proclaimed by Sanatana traditions’ seers.
