Rudra-saṃhitā (4): Kumāra-khaṇḍa

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. I salute Śiva who is satisfied with salutation, who loves great devotion, who bestows affection, who makes others too perfect and complete and who is the abode of all fortune and achievements. I salute Śiva who is eulogised by Viṣṇu and Brahmā, who urged by His sympathy assumes visible forms, who bestows truth, who loves truth, whose assets are the threefold truths and who is identical with truth. 2. O Brahmā, after marrying Pārvatī and returning to His mountain what did Śiva the benefactor of the worlds do? Please narrate it to me. 3. Who was the son born to Śiva, the great soul, for which purpose the lord, though He rests and revels in Himself, married Pārvatī? 4. O Brahmā, the benefactor of the gods, how was Tāraka slain? Please have pity on me and narrate all this in full. 5. On hearing these words of Nārada, Prajāpati was highly delighted and he replied after thinking on Śiva. 6. O Nārada, listen to the tale of Śiva, the moon-crested lord. I shall narrate the story of Guha ’s birth and the slaying of the demon Tāraka. 7. Let it be heard. I shall tell you the story that destroys all sins, on hearing which a man is freed from all sins. 8. This narrative is sinless. It is a wonderful secret. It dispels the distress caused by sin and wards off all obstacles. 9. It bestows everything auspicious. It is the essence of the Vedas and is pleasing to the ears. It is conducive to happiness. It is the cause of liberation and cuts off the roots of all actions. 10. Returning to Kailāsa after marrying Pārvatī, Śiva attained added lustre. He thought over the task of the gods and the pain of the people involved in the fulfilment of that task. 11. When Śiva returned to Kailāsa, the joyful Gaṇas made all arrangements for His happiness. 12. When Śiva returned to Kailāsa, there was great jubilation there. The gods returned to their realms with their minds full of joy. 13. Then taking Pārvatī, the daughter of the mountain, with Him, Śiva, the great Lord, went to a delightful brilliant isolated place. 14-15. Making a wonderful bed conducive to good sexual pleasure, rendered smooth and fragrant with flowers and sandal paste and auspiciously supplemented with objects of enjoyment, lord ‘Śiva’ the bestower of honour, indulged in dalliance with Pārvatī for a thousand years of god. 16. In that divine sport at the mere contact with Pārvatī, Śiva lapsed in unconsciousness. She too lapsed into unconsciousness due to the contact with Śiva. She neither knew the day nor the night. 17. When Śiva following the worldly way began his enjoyment of pleasures, O sinless one, a great length of time passed by as though it was a mere moment in their awareness. 18. Then, O dear, Indra and the gods gathered together on the mountain Meru and began their mutual discussion. 19. It is for the fulfilment of our task that Lord Śiva, the leader of Yogins, free from aberrations, the unsullied, revelling and resting in his own Self, has married. 20. No son is born to Him. We do not know the reason. How is it that the lord of gods is delaying the action? 21. In the meantime, from Nārada who has the divine vision the gods came to know of the extent of the enjoyment of the couple engaged in dalliance. 22. Realising that their enjoyment had extended over a long time, the gods became worried. Making me Brahmā as their leader they approached Viṣṇu Nārāyaṇa. 23. After bowing to him I narrated to him all the details we desired to convey. The gods stood steady and silent like dolls painted in a picture. 24. For a thousand years according to the calculation of the gods, Śiva the Yogin has been engaged in sexual dalliance. He does not desist from it. 25. O creator of the universe, there is nothing to worry about. Everything will be well. O lord of gods, seek refuge in the great lord Śiva. 26. O lord of subjects, the people who dedicate their minds to and seek refuge in Him joyously and devoutly have nothing to fear from any quarter. 27. The interruption to amorous dalliance will take place at the proper time, not now, O Brahmā. Any task carried out at the proper time shall be crowned with success, not otherwise. 28. If the enjoyment is desired by Śiva who can check it? When another thousand years are completed He will desist from it, out of his own will. 29. If any one separates the copulated pair by a tricky expedient, he will have the pangs of separation from his wife and sons in every birth. 30. He will fall from perfect wisdom. His glory will be destroyed. He will lose his fortune. That sinner after his death will suffer the tortures of the hell Kālasūtra for a hundred thousand years. 31. The sage Durvāsas separated Indra in copulation with Rambhā and the sage got separation from his wife as a result thereof. 32. He took another woman as his wife and thus put an end to the pangs of separation lasting for a thousand years of the gods. 33. Bṛhaspati hindered Kāma in copulation with Ghṛtācī but within six months the moon abducted his wife. 34. He then propitiated Śiva, fought a battle over Tārā, enjoyed her even as she was pregnant and tried to dispel his pangs of separation. 35. The sage Gautama forced the moon in the company of Rohiṇī to desist from sexual dalliance and he suffered the pangs of separation from his wife. 36-37. Hariścandra expelled a ploughman in copulation with a Śūdra woman, to wander in a lonely forest. Listen to the effect thereof. He lost his wife, son and kingdom. He was tarmented by Viśvāmitra. It was only after propitiating Śiva that he could get released from that sin. 38. Though Ajāmila, a noble brahmin, was in copulation with a Śūdra woman, gods did not interfere due to this fear. 39. Everything can be achieved through the discharge of the semen. O Brahmā, the process of discharge is very effective. The discharge that is fruitful none can withhold. 40-41. O gods, Śiva’s act of enjoyment will extend to a thousand years of celestial calculation. After that period is over, you can go there and do such things as will necessitate the fall of the semen on the ground. The son of the lord named Skanda will be born of that. 42. O Brahmā, return to your abode along with the gods. Let Śiva carry on enjoyment in the isolated place m the company of Pārvatī. 43. After saying this, the lord of Lakṣmī immediately returned to his harem. O great sage, the gods too returned to their abodes along with me. 44. On account of the dalliance of Śiva and Pārvatī, the earth quaked with the weight along with Śeṣa (the serpent) and Kacchapa (the tortoise). 45. By the weight of Kacchapa, the cosmic air, the support of everything, was stunned and the three worlds became terrified and agitated. 46. Then the gods along with me sought refuge in Viṣṇu and in our depression intimated to him the news. 47. O Viṣṇu, the lord of the gods, O lord and protector of all, save us who have sought refuge in you and whose minds are acutely terrified. 48. The vital air of the three worlds is stunned. We do not know wherefore. The three worlds including the mobile and immobile as well as the gods and the sages are excited. 49. After saying this, O great sage, all the depressed gods, stood silent along with me in front of Viṣṇu with great misery. 50. On hearing those words, Viṣṇu took us all immediately to the mountain Kailāsa, the favourite haunt of Śiva. 51. After going there in the company of the gods and me, the favourite deity of the gods went to the excellent resort of Śiva with a desire to see Śiva. 52. Unable to see Him there, Viṣṇu and the gods became surprised. With humility he asked the Gaṇas of Śiva who were there. 53. O Gaṇas of Śiva, where has Śiva, the lord of all gone? Sympathetically intimate this to us who are depressed. 54. On hearing these words of Viṣṇu in the company of the gods, the Gaṇas of Śiva lovingly replied to Viṣṇu. 55. O Viṣṇu, please listen along with Brahmā and the gods, we shall tell you the truth and the details out of love for Śiva. 56. Śiva, the lord of all, had gone into the apartment: of Pārvatī after stationing us here with love. He is an expert in indulging in divine sports. 57. O lord of Lakṣmī, many years have gone by. We do not know what Śiva, the great lord, is doing within her apartment. 58. On hearing their words, O excellent sage, Viṣṇu, the gods and I were perplexed and went to the doorway of Śiva’s apartment. 59. After going there along with me and the gods, Viṣṇu, the favourite deity of the gods, spoke in dejection but with joy in the heart. 60. O excellent sage, standing there, along with me and the gods, he eulogised Śiva, the lord of all the worlds with great pleasure. 61. O great lord, what are you doing there inside? Save us who are harassed by Tāraka and who have sought refuge in you. 62. O great sage, praising and pleading like this to Śiva, Viṣṇu wept bitterly along with the gods harassed by Tāraka. 63. O great sage, the tumultuous cry of the heaven-dwellers distressed by the demon got mingled with the sound of eulogy to Śiva.

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. On hearing that, the great lord, an expert in Yogic theory, though free from lust, did not emit the semen, fearing to offend Pārvatī. 2. He came to the door, near the gods distressed by the demon. Śiva is the benefactor favourably disposed to His devotees. 3. On seeing lord Śiva, favourably disposed to His devotees, the gods including me and Viṣṇu became extremely happy. 4. O sage, bowing down with stooping shoulders the gods along with me and Viṣṇu eulogised Śiva with great pleasure. 5. “O great God, O lord of gods, O ocean of mercy, O Śiva, you are the immanent soul of all. You know everything. 6. O lord, carry out the task of the gods. O great lord, save the gods. Slay Tāraka and other demons and take pity on us.” 7. On hearing these words of the gods, lord Śiva agitated in soul and dispirited in the mind, replied. 8. “O Viṣṇu, O Brahmā, O gods, you are the goal of everybody’s mind. What should happen necessarily must happen. There is none to stop it. 9-11. What has happened has already happened. Now O gods, listen to what is relevant to the context. Let him who will, take up this discharged semen”. After saying this He let it fall on the ground. Urged by the gods Agni became a dove and swallowed it with his beak. O sage, in the meantime Pārvatī came there. 12. When Śiva took a long time to return, she hastened there and saw the gods. On coming to know of the incident she became very furious. 13. She told Viṣṇu and the gods as follows. 14. Hi Hi, O gods, you are wicked and particularly selfish and for that purpose you give pain to others. 15. O gods, for the sake of realising your self-interests you all propitiated the lord and spoilt my dalliance. I have become a barren woman therefore. 16. O gods, after offending me none can be happy. Hence O wicked heaven-dwellers, you will remain unhappy. 17. After saying these words Pārvatī, the daughter of the king of mountains, blazing with fury cursed Viṣṇu and all other gods. 18. From now onwards let the wives of the gods be utterly barren and let the gods who offended me be unhappy. 19. Cursing Viṣṇu and other gods, Pārvatī furiously told Agni who had swallowed Śiva’s semen. 20. O Agni, be the devourer of everything and let your soul be afflicted. You are a fool. You do not know Śiva’s fundamental principles. You have come forward to carry out the task of the gods. 21. It is neither proper nor beneficent to you to have eaten up Śiva’s semen. You are a rogue, a wretched vile, paying heed to the wicked counsel of the wicked. 22. After cursing the fire thus, O sage, Pārvatī, the daughter of the mountain, immediately returned to her apartment along with Śiva, dissatisfied that she was. 23. O great sage, after returning she persistently pleaded with Śiva and bore a son named Gaṇeśa. 24. O sage, the details of that story I shall narrate to you later on. Now listen to the story of the birth of Guha which I am going to narrate. 25. The gods are wont to partake of the offerings of food etc. consigned to the fire in accordance with the Vedic text. Hence the gods became pregnant. 26. Unable to endure the force of the semen they became afflicted. Viṣṇu and other gods had already lost their sense at the curse of Pārvatī. 27. Then Viṣṇu and other gods were overwhelmed and scorched. In this state they sought refuge in Śiva. 28. After reaching the threshold of Śivā ’s apartment, the gods humbly eulogised Pārvatī and Śiva with pleasure and with palms joined in reverence. 29. O lord of gods, O great lord, consort of Pārvatī, what has happened now? Your magical power is incapable of being transgressed. 30. We have become pregnant and also scorched by your semen. O Śiva, take pity on us. Remove our miserable plight. 31. O sage, on hearing the eulogy of the gods, Śiva, the lord of Pārvatī came immediately to the threshold where the gods stood waiting. 32. The gods including Viṣṇu bowed humbly with great devotion and eulogised Śiva who is favourably disposed to His devotees, who came near the entrance. 33. O Śiva, O great lord, we bow to you particularly, save us seeking refuge in you on being scorched by your semen. 34. O Śiva, please remove our misery. We will certainly die otherwise. Save you, none can remove the misery of the gods. 35. On hearing these piteous words, the lord of the gods laughingly replied to the gods with his usual sympathy towards his devotees. 36. O Viṣṇu, O Brahmā, O gods, all of you listen to my words with attention. You will be happy. Be careful. 37. At my behest you shall vomit this semen virile of mine. You will be happy thereby. 38. Accepting this command with bent head Viṣṇu and the other gods immediately vomitted it out after duly remembering Śiva the imperishable. 39. The semen of Śiva lustrous and golden in colour falling on the ground seemed to touch the heaven as it was as huge as a mountain. 40. Viṣṇu and other gods became relieved and they eulogised the great lord Śiva who is favourably disposed to His devotees. 41. O great sage, only Agni did not become happy. Śiva, the great lord, gave a separate hint to him. 42. Then the distressed fire, O sage, eulogised Śiva with palms joined in reverence and piteously spoke these words. 43-44. O lord of gods, I am a stupid and deluded servant of yours. Forgive me my fault. Please remove my burning sensation. O lord, you are the benefactor and sympathetic to the distressed. 45. On hearing the words of Agni, Śiva the great lord spoke delightedly to Agni. He is favourably disposed to His devotees. 46. An improper action has been committed by you in swallowing my semen. Hence your sin has become formidable at my bidding and the burning sensation has not been cured. 47. Now that you have sought refuge in me you are sure to be happy. I am pleased with you. All your misery will be dissolved. 48. Deposit carefully that semen in the womb of some good woman. You will become happy and particularly relieved of the burning sensation. 49. On hearing these words of Śiva, Agni replied to Śiva, the benefactor of the devotees with pleasure and bowing down with palms joined in reverence. 50. “O lord Śiva, this splendour of yours is inaccessible and unbearable. There is no woman in the three worlds except Pārvatī to hold it in her womb.” 51. O excellent sage, when fire said like this, you, urged by Śiva, said thus in order to help Agni. 52. “O Agni, listen to my words that will dispel your burning sensation. It will yield great pleasure and ward off your pains. 53. O Agni, taking recourse to the following expedient you will be relieved of the burning sensation and be happy. O dear, this has been explained by me well at the will of Śiva. 54. O Agni, you shall deposit this semen of Śiva in the bodies of the ladies who take their morning baths in the month of Māgha.” 55. O sage, meanwhile the wives of the seven celestial sages came there desirous of taking their early morning bath in the month of Māgha with other observances of rites. 56. After the bath, six of them were distressed by the chillness and were desirous of going near the flame of fire. 57. Arundhatī of good conduct and perfect knowledge saw them deluded and dissuaded them at the behest of Śiva. 58. O sage, the six ladies stubbornly insisted on going there to ward off their chillness because they were deluded by Śiva’s magical art. 59. Immediately the particles of the semen entered their bodies through the pores of hairs, O sage. The fire was relieved of their burning sensation. 60. Vanishing immediately from the scene, Agni in the form of a flame, went back happily to his region, mentally remembering you and Śiva. 61. O saintly one, the women became pregnant and were distressed by the burning sensation. They went home. O dear, Arundhatī was displeased with fire. 62. O dear, the husbands on seeing the plight of their wives became furious. They consulted one another and discarded them. 63. O dear, on seeing their own state the six ladies felt very miserable and distressed. 64. The wives of the sages cast off their semen in the form of a foetus at the top of Himavat. They felt then relieved of their burning sensation. 65. Unable to bear that semen of Śiva and trembling much, Himavat became scorched by it and hurled it in the Gaṅgā. 66. O great sage, the intolerable semen of lord Śiva was deposited by Gaṅgā in the forest of Śara grass by means of its waves. 67. The semen that fell was turned in a handsome good-featured boy, full of glory and splendour. He increased everyone’s pleasure. 68. O great sage, on the sixth day of the bright half of the lunar month of Mārgaśīrṣa, the son of Śiva was born in the world. 69. At that time, O Brahmin, on their mountain, Pārvatī the daughter of Himavat and Śiva became very happy. 70. Out of joy, milk exuded from the breasts of Pārvatī. On reaching the spot everyone felt very happy. 71. O dear, there was auspiciousness in the three worlds, pleasing to the good. There occurred obstacles to the wicked and particularly to the demons. 72. O Nārada, there was a mysterious sound of Dundubhi drum in the sky. Showers of flowers fell on the boy. 73. O excellent sage, there was great delight to Viṣṇu and the gods. There was great jubilation everywhere. Article published on 11 October, 2018

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. O lord of subjects, O Brahmin, O creator, what happened thereafter? Please tell me the same. 2. O dear, then the powerful sage Viśvāmitra, urged by Brahmā, came there casually and was delighted. 3. On seeing the unearthly splendour of that brilliant boy, he became very delighted. He bowed to the boy. 4. With a delighted mind he eulogised him with the words prompted by Brahmā. Viśvāmitra realised his power. 5. The boy too was delighted and became the source of great enjoyment. Laughingly he spoke to Viśvāmitra. It was very surprising. 6. “O great one of perfect wisdom, it is due to the will of Śiva that you have come here by chance. O dear, perform my purificatory rites in accordance with Vedic injunctions. 7. From now onwards you remain my priest conferring your love on me. It is certain that you will become the object of worship of all.” 8. On hearing his words, Gādhi ’s son (Viśvāmitra) was highly delighted and surprised. He spoke to him in a tone, by no means highly accented. 9. Listen, O dear, I am not a brahmin. I am a Kṣatriya, son of Gādhi, famous as Viśvāmitra and a servant of brahmins. 10. O excellent boy, I have thus narrated my life to you. Who are you? Now mention everything about your life to me who am surprised. 11. On hearing his words the boy told him about his life. The divine boy, the cause of great enjoyment and protection, said to Gādhi’s son with great pleasure. 12. O Viśvāmitra, thanks to my favour, you now become a brahminical sage. Vasiṣṭha and others will for ever regard you with respect. 13. Hence, at my behest you shall perform my purificatory rites. Keep this as a great secret. You shall not mention it anywhere. 14. O celestial sage, in the manner laid down in the Vedas he performed the purificatory rites for the son of Śiva. 15. Śiva’s son, the cause of great enjoyment and protection, was glad and conferred divine wisdom on the sage. 16. The son of Agni made Viśvāmitra his priest. Form that time onwards he became a great brahmin and an expert in divine sports of various sorts. 17. O sage, the very first sport that he performed thus has been narrated to you by me. O dear, listen to another sport of his with wonder. I shall narrate it to you. 18-19. At that time he was known as white in colour. Agni went there and seeing his son who was divine and very holy called him “O dear son.” Agni embraced and kissed him too. He gave him a miraculous weapon, spear. 20 Guha took the spear and ascended the peak. He hit the peak with his spear and the peak fell down. 21. Ten thousand billions of heroic demons came there to attack him but were killed on being hit with the spear. 22. There was great hue and cry. The Earth, the mountains and the three worlds quaked. Indra the lord of gods came there. 23. With his thunderbolt he hit on his right side. A person named “ Śākha ” of great strength came out of that side. 24. Śakra struck him again with his thunderbolt on his left side. Another strong person named Viśākha came out of that side. 25. Then Indra struck his heart with his thunderbolt. Another person very powerful like him named Naigama came out. 26. Then the four of great heroic strength including Skanda rushed to attack Indra. I offered my protection to Indra. 27. Afraid of Guha, Indra with all the gods went away to his region agitatedly. O sage, he did not know his secret. 28. That boy remained there itself as fearless as before. O dear, he was highly pleased and continued his divine sports of various sorts. 29. Meanwhile the six ladies named Kṛttikās came there for bath and they saw the lordly boy. 30. All of them desired to take and fondle him O sage, as a result of their simultaneous desire for taking and fondling the boy, a dispute arose. 31. In order to quell their mutual dispute, the boy assumed six faces and drank milk off their breasts. O sage, they were all satisfied. 32-33. Realising his desire, the Kṛttikās, O sage, took him to their region joyously. Feeding him with their breast milk they nursed and nurtured Śiva’s son who was more refulgent than the sun. 34. They never let him go out of their sight. He became the object of their love, dearer to them than their own lives. Verily he who nurses and nurtures the child has the right of possession over the son. 35. With great love they gave him the rarest garments and excellent ornaments in the three worlds. 36. Feeding him specially on the choicest delicacies day by day they brought up the boy prodigy. 37. O dear, once that son of the Krttikās went to the celestial assembly and showed wonderful feats. 38. The boy of wonderful miracles showed his rare splendour to the gods including Viṣṇu. 39-40. On seeing him, the gods and sages including Viṣṇu became surprised and asked the boy “Pray, who ar e you?” On hearing it he did not say anything in reply. He returned to his abode and remained concealed as before.

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. O lord of people, O Brahmā, O lord of gods, what happened after that? Narrate it to me kindly besides the description of Śiva ’s sports. 2. O sage, after the son of Śiva had been taken over by the Krttikās some time elapsed but the daughter of Himavat had no knowledge of the same. 3. Meanwhile Pārvatī beaming with her lotus like face told her husband Śiva, the lord of the gods. 4. O lord of the gods, listen to my auspicious words. O lord, you have been attained by me, thanks to my previous merits. 5. Although you are the most excellent among the Yogins, O lord, you became desirous of dalliance. But my dalliance with you was interrupted in the middle by the gods. 6. O lord, your semen fell on the ground and not in my womb. Where did it go? Among the gods by whom could it have been concealed? 7. O lord, infallible is your semen, how can it be fruitless? Or has it developed into a child somewhere? 8. O great sage, on hearing the words of Pārvatī, the lord of the universe called the gods and the sages and laughingly said to them. 9. O gods, listen to my words. Has Pārvatī’s statement been heard by you? Where has my unfailing semen gone? By whom has it been concealed? 10. If he, out of fear, falls at my feet quickly he may not be punished. If a king, competent enough, does not rule firmly he will be harrassed by the subjects. He cannot be a protector. 11. On hearing the words of Śiva and after consulting one another they replied one by one. They were so afraid of the great lord. 12. Let those who have concealed your semen incur the sins of those who utter lies, of those who outrage the modesty of preceptor’s wife, and of those who are engaged in insulting the preceptor always. 13. Let him who has concealed your semen anywhere in the holy centres of Bhārata be debarred from the privilege of serving or worshipping you. 14. Let him who has concealed your semen suffer continuously from the pang as a result of that sinful action. 15. Let him who has concealed your semen incur the sin of that stupid person who does not fulfil the promise he himself has made. 16. Let her who has concealed your semen be deprived of mother and kinsmen and incur the sin of those base women who hate their husband and carry on an affair with another man. 11. On hearing the words of the gods, Śiva the lord of the gods threatened Dharma and others the cosmic witnesses of all activities. 18. The infallible semen of mine, has not been concealed by the gods. By whom could it then have been concealed? 19. All of you are the witnesses of all actions always. Has it been concealed by you? Have you come to know of it? Please narrate. 20. On hearing the words of Śiva they nervously looked at one another and spoke before the lord one by one. 21. The infallible semen of Śiva, infuriated at the intervention in the course of his sexual dalliance, fell on the ground. This was observed by me. 22. I was unable to bear the terrible semen. Hence I dropped it into the fire. O lord, please forgive me. 23. O Śiva, assuming the form of a dove I gulped the semen but could not bear the terrible thing. Hence I immediately dropped it on the mountain Kailasa. 24. O lord of the worlds, I too was unable to bear the terrible thing. O lord, I dropped it in the Gaṅgā. 25. O lord of the worlds, I too was unable to bear your terrible semen. O lord, completely exhausted, I dropped it in the grove of Sara plants. 26. O Śiva, the semen that fell among the Śara plants immediately became a very beautiful boy on the holy banks of the celestial river. 27. On seeing the crying boy, O lord, I went to the western mountain, urged by the revolving wheel of time, being unable to stay there at night. 28. Taking the crying boy, the Kṛttikās returned to their abode. O Śiva, they went to Badarikā hermitage. 29. O lord, taking the crying child with them and feeding him with their own breast milk they nurtured your son, as refulgent as the sun. 30. Now, he is the nursling son of the Kṛttikās in the forest. In their eagerness they named him Kārttikeya lovingly. 31. They never let the boy go out of their sight. He is the object of their love, dearer to them than their own lives. Verily he who nurtures, possesses the son. 32. They fed him on the choicest delicacies. They gave him the rarest garments and excellent ornaments. 33. On hearing their words, the destroyer of Pura became glad. In his joy he gave monetary gifts to the brahmins. 34. On receiving the news of her son, Pārvatī was delighted. She distributed a crore of gems and much wealth among the brahmins. 35. Lakṣmī, Sarasvatī, Menā, Sāvitrī and all other women, Viṣṇu and all other gods gave much wealth to the brahmins. 36. Urged by the gods, sages and mountains, the lord sent his Gaṇas as his emissaries to the place where his son was staying. 37-39. O Nārada, he sent Vīrabhadra, Viśālākṣa, Śaṅkukarṇa, Parākrama, Nandīśvara, Mahākāla, Vajradaṃṣṭra, Mahonmada, Gokarṇāsya, Dadhimukha who was comparable to the blazing flame of fire, a hundred thousand Kṣetrapālas, three hundred thousand Bhūtas, Rudras, Bhairavas, and innumerable others of the same exploit as that of Śiva and of hideous features. 40. All the emissaries of Śiva went and haughtily encircled the abode of the Kṛttikās with various miraculous weapons in their hands. 41. On seeing them the Kṛttikās were extremely terrified. They spoke to Kārttikeya blazing with divine splendour. 42. Dear boy, innumerable soldiers have encircled the house. What shall be done? Where are we to gc. A great danger has beset us. 43. O good women, O mothers, cast off your fear. When I am here what fear need you have? Although I am a boy I am invincible. Who can thwart me? 44. In the meantime, Nandīśvara the commander -inchief sat in front of Kārttikeya and said. 45. O brother, O mothers, listen to my auspicious mission. I have been commissioned by lord Śiva, the annihilator. 46. O dear, all the gods, Brahmā, Viṣṇu, Śiva and others are holding a jubilant conference at Kailāsa. 47. At that time Pārvatī addressed Śiva the benefactor of all, in that assembly urging a search for you. 48. Śiva asked the assembly severally about you in order to get you back. They too replied in a suitable manner. 49. They said to Śiva that you were here in the abode of Kṛttikās. Dharma and others who are the cosmic witnesses of all righteous and unrighteous activities revealed your whereabouts. 50. Formerly Pārvatī and Śiva indulged in their secret sexual dalliance. The semen of Śiva seen by the gods fell on the ground. 51. The earth dropped it into the fire, the fire on the mountain, the mountain in the Gaṅgā and the Gaṅgā transmitted it to the grove of Sara plants by her following currents and waves. 52. There you developed into a boy, the lord with the mission of fulfilling the task of the gods. There you were picked up by the Kṛttikas. Now you shall come down to the Earth. 53. Śiva will be crowning you in the company of the gods. You will get miraculous weapons and will slay the demon Tāraka. 54. You are the son of the annihilator of the universe and these (Kṛttikas) are impatient to gain possession of you as the dry tree tries to conceal fire within its hollow though it is incapable of holding it. 55. You are brilliant enough to illuminate the universe. You do not fit in well in this abode just as a majestic elephant fallen in a deep well does not retain splendour. 56. You can shed splendour if your brilliance is not hidden just as the sun illuminates the world only when it is not hidden by the cloud. 57. In the matter of omnipresence in the universe you alone are Viṣṇu, O Śiva’s son. The all-pervading sky is not pervaded by anything else. 58. A Yogin is not entangled in the activities of nurturing himself. The soul is not involved in the physical activities. 59. You are the creator of the universe, you are the lord. Your place is not among these. You are a mass of attributes and splendour as the soul of a Yogin. 60. O brother, those who do not know you are of damned intellect. Although the toads and lotuses are in the same pond toads are not honoured. 61. O brother, you know everything. You are perfectly wise possessing the knowledge of the past, present and future, since you are an attendant of Śiva. Hence no praise of yours is specially called for. 62. O brother, people get reconciled to whatever form of species of life they are born. Their own actions are responsible for their birth and they are satisfied. 63. The Kṛttikās are wise women of Yogic practice. They are the digits of Prakṛti. They have helped in nurturing me with their own breast milk. 64. I am their fostered son. They are my own part and parcel. I am born of Prakṛti and the semen of the lord of Prakṛti. 65. O Nandikeśvara, I am not severed from the daughter of the lord of mountains who is virtually my mother just as these ladies on the basis of virtuous rites. 66. You have been sent by Śiva. You are like a son unto Śiva. I am coming with you. I shall see the gods. 67. After saying so and hurriedly taking leave of the Kṛttikās, Kārttikeya started along with the attendants of Śiva.

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1-2. In the meantime he saw an excellent, lustrous and wonderful chariot, made by Viśvakarman. It was a commodious with a hundred wheels. It was beautiful and had the quickness of the mind. It had been sent by Pārvatī and was surrounded by the excellent attendants of Śiva. 3. With an aching heart, Kārttikeya, born of the semen of lord Śiva, the perfectly wise and endless Being, got into it. 4. At the same time, the distressed grief -stricken Kṛttikās approached him with dishevelled hair and began to speak like mad women. 5. O ocean of mercy, how is it that you ruthlessly leave us and go? This is not a virtuous thing for a fostered son to forsake his mothers. 6. You have been brought up by us affectionately. Hence you are our son in virtue of that. What shall we do? Where shall we go? What can we do? 7. After saying this and closely embracing Kārttikeya, the Kṛttikās fell into a swoon due to the imminent separation from their son. 8. Restoring them to consciousness and instructing them with spiritual utterances, O sage, he got into the chariot along with them and the Pārṣadas too. 9. Seeing and hearing various auspicious and pleasing things Kumāra went to the palace of his father along with the Pārṣadas. 10. Kumāra reached the foot of a Nyagrodha tree at Kailāsa in the fast chariot along with Nandin seated to his right. 11. There Kumāra, the son of Śiva, an expert in various divine sports, waited along with the Kṛttikās and the chief of Pārṣadas, in great delight. 12. Then all the gods, sages, Siddhas, Cāraṇas, Viṣṇu and Brahmā announced his arrival. 13. Then in order to see him Śiva, along with Viṣṇu, Brahmā, the gods, sages and others went there. 14. Many conches, Bherīs and Tūryas were sounded. There was great jubilation among the delighted gods. 15. Vīrabhadra and other Gaṇas followed them with different chiming cymbols beating the time and sporting about. 16. Eulogising and being eulogised they sang songs of praise. 17. Shouting cries of “ Victory ” and “Obeisance” the delighted people went to see the excellent son of Śiva born in the grove of Śara plants. 18. Pārvatī caused the entire outskirts of the city fully decorated with Padmarāga and other gems. The main highway was rendered beautiful and auspicious. 19. The thirty goddesses Lakṣmī and others stood in front, along with chaste ladies whose husbands and sons were alive and Pārvatī stood ahead of them. 20. At the bidding of Pārvatī, the smiling celestial damsels, Rambhā and others, dressed gorgeously, were engaged in singing and dancing. 21. Those who looked at Kumāra resembling Śiva saw a great halo pervading the three worlds. 22. Immediately they saluted Kumāra who was enveloped by the brilliant halo, the lustre of molten gold and the refulgence of the sun. 23. With shoulders stooping down and eagerly engaged in shouting the cry of “Obeisance” they flanked him to the right and left and stood by. 24. Viṣṇu, Indra and I as well as the gods prostrated on the ground and went round Kumāra. 25. In the meantime Śiva, and Pārvatī highly delighted and jubilant came there and saw their son. 26. On seeing his son, the great lord Śiva, the sole kinsman of the universe along with the great goddess Pārvatī was filled with pleasure and love —the lord who wore snakes on his body and was surrounded by the Pramathas. 27. On seeing Pārvatī and Śiva, Kārttikeya got down from the chariot immediately and saluted them. 28. Embracing him with love, Śiva kissed Kumāra on the head. He, the cause of great affection, was highly delighted. 29. Embracing him in great excitement and melting with love, Pārvatī suckled him at her breasts. 30. The Nīrājana rite was performed by the delighted gods in the company of their wives. 31. The sages adored Kumāra with the Vedic chants, the musicians by singing songs, and others by playing upon musical instruments. 32. Placing Kumāra shining with brilliant lustre on his lap Pārvatī shone with glory as the greatest among women who carried sons. 33. At the bidding of Śiva, Kumāra in the company of his Gaṇas came to Śiva’s abode. He felt very happy in the company of jubilant gods. 34. The couple shone simultaneously being saluted by the sages and surrounded by the important gods. 35. Kumāra delightedly played about in the lap of Śiva. He teased Vāsuki round Śiva’s neck with his hands. 36. Seeing that sportive act with his merciful vision, lord Śiva spoke about it to Pārvatī laughingly. 37. Seeing the gentle smile of Kumāra, lord Śiva and Pārvatī attained great joy. The lord, the sole ruler of the worlds and kinsman of the universe uttered nothing with his throat choked through affection. 38. Then Śiva, the lord of the universe, following the worldly convention delightedly placed Kārttikeya on a beautiful gemset throne. 39. With hundreds of gemset pots filled with the waters of holy centres sanctified by Vedic mantras he performed his ceremonial ablution joyously. 40. Viṣṇu gave him a crown, a coronet and bracelets moulded and set in gems, his own necklace Vaijayanti and the discus. 41. Śiva gave him the trident, the bow Pināka, the axe, the arrow Paśupata, the weapon of destruction and the greatest lore. 42. I gave him the holy thread, the Vedas, the mantra Gāyatrī, the vessel Kamaṇḍalu, the arrow Brahmāstra and the lore that destroys the enemy. 43. Then Indra gave him a lordly elephant and a thunderbolt. The lord of the waters, Varuṇa, gave him a white umbrella and a necklace of gems to wear. 44. The sun gave him a chariot as fast as the mind and a coat of mail with great equipments; Yama his own staff: the moon a vessel full of nectar. 45. Agni lovingly gave him a spear; Nirṛti his own weapon and the wind his own weapon. 46. Kubera gave him a mace; Śiva a spear; the gods different kinds of weapons and implements. 47. The delighted lord of Kāma gave him the weapon of love, a club and his own lore with great pleasure. 48. The ocean of milk gave him valuable gems and a splendid anklet set with gems. Himavat gave him divine ornaments and garments. 49. Garuḍa gave him his own son Citrabarhaṇa; Aruṇa a powerful cock Tāmracūḍa. 50. Pārvatī gave him power and prosperity smilingly and joyously. She gave him longevity too with great pleasure. 51. Lakṣmī gave him divine wealth and a great and beautiful necklace. Sāvitrī gave him the entire Siddhavidyā with joy. 52. O sage, the other goddesses too who had come there gave him their respective presents. The Kṛttikās too did the same. 53. O excellent sage, there was great jubilation there. Everyone was delighted, especially Pārvatī and Śiva. 54. In the meantime, O sage, the powerful Śiva, spoke to Brahmā and to other gods laughingly and joyously. 55. “O Viṣṇu, O Brahmā, O gods, you listen to my words. I am delighted in all respects. Please choose the boons you wish.” 56. O sage, on hearing those words of Śiva, Viṣṇu and other gods spoke to Śiva with faces beaming with pleasure. 57. “O lord, Tāraka will certainly be killed by Kumāra. It is for that purpose that he is born. 58. Hence in our effort to kill him we shall start this very day. Please give your directions to Kumāra. Let him slay Tāraka for our happiness. 59. Thinking that it shall be so, lord Śiva entrusted his son to the gods in order to kill Tāraka, urged by his mercy that he was. 60. At the bidding of Śiva, Brahmā, Viṣṇu and other gods jointly started from the mountain keeping Kumāra in front. 61. After coming out of Kailasa, at the behest of Viṣṇu, Tvaṣṭṛ built a wonderfully fine city very near the mountain. 62. There he built a divine, exquisite and wonderfully brilliant house for Kumāra. Tvaṣṭṛ set up an excellent throne there. 63. The intelligent Viṣṇu performed the auspicious ceremony of crowning Kārttikeya in the company of the gods by means of waters from all holy centres. 64. He bedecked Kārttikeya in every manner and dressed him gorgeously. He went through the ceremony in brief and made everyone celebrate the event with pleasure. 65. Viṣṇu joyously gave him the suzerainty of the universe. He applied the Tilaka mark and worshipped him along with the gods. 66. Bowing to Kārttikeya with pleasure along with the gods and sages he eulogised the eternal form of Śiva with various hymns. 67. Karttikeya seated in the excellent throne and assuming the lordship and protectorate of the universe shone extremely well.

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. There Kumāra showed a miraculous feat. O Nārada, listen to it that bestows devotion. 2. Then a certain brahmin Nārada came there, seeking refuge in Kumāra. He was glorious and had been performing a sacrifice. 3. Approaching Kumāra, bowing to and eulogising him with auspicious hymns the delighted brahmin related his tale. 4. O lord, listen to my words. Relieve my distress. You are the lord of the universe. I seek refuge in you. 5. I began a goat sacrifice. The goat got loosened and strayed away from my house. 6. I do not know where it has gone. I have searched for it here and there but have not found it. Hence this will cause a serious default in my sacrifice. 7. While you are the lord, how can there be an obstacle to my sacrifice? O lord, after pondering over this matter please fulfil my task. 8. O lord, O son of Śiva, who else can I approach except you, who are worthy of being resorted to, who are the lord of the entire universe and are served by all the gods. 9-10. You are the kinsman of the distressed. You are worthy of being served well. You are favourably disposed to your devotees. You are the great lord eulogised by Viṣṇu, Brahmā and other gods. You are Skanda the delighter of Pārvatī, the sole destroyer of enemies, the great soul, the lord who bestows his own self upon the good seeking refuge in him. 11. O lord of the distressed, O great lord, O son of Śiva, O lord of the three worlds, O master of magical art, I have to seek refuge in you. O favourite of the brahmins, save me. You are the lord of all. You are eulogised by Brahmā and other gods who bow to you. You have assumed forms through magical art. You are the bestower of happiness to your devotees. You are eager to protect. You wield power of deluding others. 12. You love devotees as your own vital air. You are the receptacle of all attributes. You are beyond three attributes. You are the beloved of Śiva. You are Śiva Himself. You confer welfare. You are the bestower of happiness with delight. You are the great Existent and cosmic consciousness. You are the son of Śiva, the omniscient who ḍestroyed the three cities of Asuras. You are always subservient to great and pious love. You have six faces. You love the saintly persons who kneel to you. You are the lord of all people and their benefactor. You destroy those, who harass the good. You are the preceptor of even Śiva. You are the lord of the entire universe. Your feet are served by all the gods. O lover of service, save me. 13. O Skanda, terrible to the enemies, the benefactor of the devotees, I bow to your lotus -like feet. You are the refuge of people and source of their happiness. Please hear my submission through your ears. Please instil into the heart of everyone the feelings of devotion to you. 14. If you are the protector with efficient honour what harm can an opponent do even if he be strong and efficient and protected on either side? What harm can even Takṣaka or even a carnivorous animal do unto him. 15. Even the preceptor of the gods cannot eulogise you adequately. Then tell me, how can I a foolish and wretched creature? O Skanda, pure or impure, noble or ignoble, of whatever nature I be, I pray unto the dust of your lotus-like feet. 16. O lord of all, ocean of mercy, favourably disposed to devotees, I am your own servant. May even a hundred sins of your own servant or a leader of the Gaṇas be forgiven. O lord, you know even the slightest act of devotion done anywhere. You are the destroyer of the distress of your servants. O lord, there is no other protector save you and no other wretched vulgar person than I. 17. O lord, you are the cause of welfare, the destroyer of the sins of Kali age and a friend of Kubera. Your heart melts with pity. You have twelve eyes and you shine with six faces. Please make my sacrifice complete and perfect. 18. You are the protector of the three worlds, favourite of those who seek refuge in you. You are the performer and sustainer of sacrifices. You remove those who bring in obstacles. 19. O warder of obstacles, the cause of the creation of the good in every respect, O son of Īśāna, please make my sacrifices complete. Obeisance be to you, 20. O Skanda, you are the protector of all, the knower of all and the lord of all and Īśāna. By your penetration you protect all. 21. You alone are the knower of music, the great lord and knower of the Vedas. You are all-in-all, the creator, the lord of the gods and the goal of the good. 22. You are the joy of Pārvatī, the son of Śiva. You are the perfect wisdom, the self-ruler, the meditator and the object of meditation. You are the father of the fathers and the source of origin of good souls. 23. On hearing his words, Śiva’s son, the emperor of the gods, sent his attendant Vīrabāhu on that mission. 24. At his bidding, the great hero Vīrabāhu who bowed to his master with devotion started in search of it. 25. He searched throughout the universe but nowhere did he find the goat (although) he heard about the havoc done by it. 26. Then he went to Vaikuṇṭha where he saw the powerful goat working havoc with the sacrificial stake tied to its neck. 27. The hero dragged it catching hold of its horns and brought it quickly before his lord even as it was bleating loudly. 28. On seeing it, lord Kārttikeya who could carry the weighty universe, and the worker of great miracles, quickly rode on it. 29. Within a Muhūrta, O sage, the goat walked round the universe and without exhaustion returned to the same place. 30. Then the lord got down and resumed his seat. The goat stood there itself. Then the brahmin Nārada told the lord. 31. Obeisance to you, O lord of gods, O storehouse of mercy, give the goat to me. Let me perform the sacrifice with pleasure. Please assist me as my friend. 32. O brahmin Nārada, this goat does not deserve to be killed. Return home. May your sacrifice be complete. It has been so ordained by my favour. 33. On hearing the words of the lord, the brahmin was delighted. He returned home after bestowing his excellent blessings.

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. On seeing that miraculous feat of Kumāra, Viṣṇu and other gods became delighted. They were convinced of his prowess. 2. Keeping Kumāra at the head, shouting and roaring, purified by Śiva ’s splendour they started to attack Tāraka. 3. When he heard about the preparation of the gods, the powerful Tāraka rushed to fight back the gods with a great army. 4. On seeing the great army of Tāraka approaching, the gods were surprised but roared like lions. 5. Then a celestial voice, prompted by Śiva addressed Viṣṇu and all other gods. 6. O gods, keeping Kumāra at the head you have entered the lists. Defeating the Asuras in the battle, you will be victorious. 7. On hearing the celestial voice, the gods became enthusiastic. Fearlessly they roared like heroes. 8. With their fear subsided, and keeping Kumāra ahead, the gods went to the confluence of the river Mahī and the ocean desirous of fighting. 9. Immediately Tāraka, along with a great army, came to the place where the gods stood and was surrounded by them in a body. 10. Battle drums were sounded as loud as the rumbling sound of the clouds at the dissolution of the world. The harsh musical instruments were also played when he came. 11. The Asuras in the company of Tāraka roared and shook the ground with their thudding footsteps, leapings and bouncings. 12. Undaunted by that terrible noise, the gods simultaneously rose up to fight Tāraka. 13. Accompanied by the great army of the gods and the guardians of the quarters, lord Indra seated Kumāra on an elephant and rushed forward. 14. Great war-drums, Dundubhis, Bherīs and Tūryas, lutes, flutes and Mṛdaṅgas were sounded and the Gandharvas sang war songs. 15. Leaving the elephant to lord Indra, Kumāra got in an aerial chariot of wonderful build and studded with different sets of gems. 16. Seated in the aerial chariot, the son of Śiva endowed with good qualities and of great renown shone with great splendour. He was being fanned with lustrous chowries. 17. The lustrous umbrella presented by Varuṇa, shining with various gems was held aloft over his head. Beams of light as though of infinite moons shed great lustre around. 18. Indra and other gods of great strength, desirous of fighting, joined him with their own divisions of the army. 19. The gods and the demons stood in their arrays on the ground with a vast army ready to start the battle. 20. With the bards singing their songs of praise, the armies of the gods and the Asuras shone in their eagerness to pounce on and crush each other. 21. The two armies as vast as a wild jungle roared. They were terrific to the coward and pleasing to the brave. 22. In the meantime the rank and file of the Asuras and the gods, haughty of their strength and blazing with fury came together in a mutual clash. 23. A terrific tumultuous fight between the gods and the Asuras ensued. Within a moment the place was littered with severed heads and headless trunks. 24. Wounded and killed by great weapons, hundreds and thousands of heroic soldiers fell on the ground. 25. The arms of some were cut off by terrible blows from swords. Others lost their thighs in the battle of those honourable, heroic people. 26. The entire body of some was smashed by the maces; the chests and hearts of some were pounded by iron clubs; some were felled to the ground by spears and dragged with nooses. 27. The backs of some were torn with javelins and goads. Several heads chopped off by double-edged swords fell on the ground. 28. Hundreds of headless, limbless trunks were seen dancing and bouncing with arrows sticking to their hands. 29. Blood flowed like streams in hundreds of places. Hundreds of ghosts and goblins flocked there. 30. Jackals and vixens began eating the flesh. Numbers of vultures, kites, crows and carnivorous birds devoured the flesh of those falling down. 31. In the meantime Tāraka, the demon of great strength, came there with a huge army to fight with the gods. 32. On seeing the haughty warrior rushing on them, Indra and others, turned against him. Then a tumultuous sound arose from both the armies. 33. Duels were fought by the gods and the Asuras crushing each other, on seeing which heroes were delighted and cowards were terrified. 34. The Asura Tāraka of great strength fought with Indra, Saṃhrāda with Agni and Yama with Jambha. 35. Lord Varuṇa fought with Nairṛta and Bala. Suvīra, the king of Guhyas, fought with Vāyu. 36. Śambhu fought with Īśāna. Śumbha an expert in battle fought with Śeṣa. Kumbha the Asura fought with the Moon. 37. Kuñjara of great strength and exploit, an expert in different kinds of battles, fought with Mihira, using great weapons. 38. Thus the gods and the Asuras, fought duels using their full strength with resolution. 39. O sage, desiring to gain the upper hand and vying with each other, the powerful gods and the Asuras were equally invincible in the battle. 40. The fight between the gods and the Asuras desirous of victory over each other was very tumultuous. It was pleasing to the brave and terrible to the others. 41. The battle ground became impassable and awful with the corpses of the gods and Asuras lying there in thousands but it was very pleasing to the brave.

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. O Nārada, O dear, thus I have described to you the fight between the rank and file of both the armies of the gods and Asuras. The fight was very tumultuous. Now listen to the fight between the two leaders on either side. 2-3. In the tumultuous fight that ensued reducing the numbers of the gods and the demons, lord Indra struck by the great spear fell from his elephant and became unconscious. The thunderbolt-bearing lord of gods attained great depression of spirits and swooned. 4. In the same manner, O dear, the guardians of the quarters, though powerful, were defeated in battle by the Asuras, great experts in warfare. 5. The other gods too were fought and defeated by the Asuras. Unable to bear their ferocity they took to flight. 6. The victorious Asuras, their effort having been successful, roared like lions and raised shouts of jubilation. 7. In the meantime Vīrabhadra reached the place furiously along with his heroic Gaṇas and approached Tāraka who professed to be a great hero. 8. The leader of the Gaṇas, the strong one born of the anger of Śiva, kept the gods in the rear and faced Tāraka desirous of fighting him. 9. Then the Pramathas and the jubilant Asuras, fond of great battle, fought one another. 10. Skilled adepts in warfare they hit and smashed one another with tridents, double-edged swords, nooses, axes and sharp-edged spikes. 11. Immediately after being hit hard with a trident by Vīrabhadra, Tāraka fell unconscious on the ground. 12. Regaining consciousness quickly Tāraka the excellent Asura got up and forcefully hit Vīrabhadra with his spear. 13. In the same manner, the heroic Vīrabhadra of great brilliance hit Tāraka with his sharp terrible trident. 14. The powerful king of the Asuras, the heroic Tāraka, hit Vīrabhadra again with spear. 15. Fighting each other thus they hit each other with various weapons and missiles both being equally skilful in the art of warfare. 16. Even as others stood gazing, the two of great energy continued their duel causing hair to stand on ends, with tumultuous noise. 17. Then various military bands and drums like Bherīs, Mṛdaṅgas, Paṭahas, Āṇakas and Gomukhas were sounded by the soldiers terrifying those who happened to hear. 18. Both of them were severely wounded by the mutual hits and thrusts but still they continued their fight with added vigour like Mercury and Mars. 19. On seeing the fight between him and Vīrabhadra, you, the favourite of Śiva went there and said to Vīrabhadra, 20. “O Vīrabhadra, of great heroism, you are the leader of the Gaṇas. Please desist from this fight. Your killing him does not fit in properly”. 21. On hearing your words, the leader of the Gaṇas Vīrabhadra became furious but spoke to you with palms joined in reverence. 22. O excellent sage, of great wisdom, listen to my weighty words. I will kill Tāraka. See my exploit today. 23. The soldiers who bring their masters to the battlefield are sinners. They are no better than eunuchs. They are doomed in the battle. 24. They will go the way of the wicked. Hell is definitely in store for them. Vīrabhadra should never be considered by you as such a despicable person. 25. Those whose bodies are rent and split with weapons and missiles, but who still fight fearlessly shall be praised here and hereafter. They derive wonderful happiness. 26. Let Viṣṇu and other gods listen to my words—I shall make the earth freed of Tāraka today even without bringing my master here. 27. Saying thus and taking up his trident, Vīrabhadra mentally meditated on Śiva and fought with Tāraka, accompanied by Pramathas. 28. With many heroic soldiers riding on bulls, wielding the tridents and possessing three eyes he shone well in the midst of that battle. 29. Keeping Vīrabhadra at their head, and shouting fearlessly jubilantly, hundreds of the Gaṇas fought with the Asuras. 30. The Asuras too, the dependants of the demon Tāraka, all equally strong and heroic, began to smash the Gaṇas furiously. 31. The terrific mutual fights between the demons and the Gaṇas happened again and again. Ultimately the Gaṇas, experts in the use of great missiles, came out victorious and were jubilant. 32. Defeated by the Gaṇas of great strength, the Asuras turned their faces and began to flee. They were distressed and agitated. 33. On seeing his army vanishing thus in flight, their protector, the Asura Tāraka, furiously rushed at the gods and the Gaṇas. 34. He assumed ten thousand hands and rode on a lion. In the battle that followed he felled the gods and the Gaṇas quickly. 35-36. On seeing such a perpetration of Tāraka, Vīrabhadra, the leader of the Gaṇas, became very furious. In order to kill him he took up his trident after remembering the lotuslike feet of Śiva. His brilliance then brightly illuminated all the quarters and the sky. 37. In the meantime, the master stopped the war. He prevented Vīrabāhu and others immediately in order to show his own might. 38. At his bidding Vīrabhadra returned from the battle. The heroic leader of the Asuras, Tāraka, was still in his unabated fury. 39. Then the Asura showered arrows on the gods and put them to distress. He was skilful in the use of various missiles in the war. 40. After causing a great havoc, Tāraka, the protector of Asuras, the most excellent among the brave, seemed invincible to the gods. 41. On seeing the gods terrified and slaughtered, Viṣṇu became furious and got ready to fight. 42. Taking discus Sudarśana, the bow Śārṅga and other weapons with him, lord Viṣṇu rushed to meet the great Asura in the battle. 43. O sage, a great fight ensued between Viṣṇu and Tāraka. It was very fierce. It caused horripilation to the onlookers. 44. Lifting up his club, Viṣṇu hit the Asura with great force but the powerful Asura split it with his trident. 45. The infuriated lord offering shelter to the gods hit the leader of the Asuras by arrows discharged from his bow. 46. The heroic Asura Tāraka, the slayer of enemies, immediately split the arrows of the gods by his own sharp arrows. 47. The Asura Tāraka then quickly hit Viṣṇu with his spear. On being hit thus, Viṣṇu fell unconscious on the ground. 48. In a trice, Viṣṇu got up and in rage seized his discus that was blazing with flames and he roared like a lion. 49. Viṣṇu hit the king of Asuras with it. Overwhelmed by the forceful hit he fell on the ground. 50. Getting up again, the foremost among Asuras and their leader, Tāraka using all his strength immediately split the discus with his spear. 51. Again he struck Viṣṇu the favourite of the gods with that great spear. The heroic Viṣṇu hit him back with Nandaka. 52. O sage, both Viṣṇu and the Asura, equally powerful, hit each other in the battle with unabated strength.

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. O Guha, O lord of gods, O son of Śiva and Pārvatī, the fight between Viṣṇu and Tāraka is not proper. It is futile. 2. Tāraka the powerful cannot be killed by Viṣṇu. He has been granted such a boon by me. It is truth. I am telling you the truth. 3. O son of Pārvatī, none except you can be the slayer of this sinner. O great lord, my words shall be carried out by you. 4. O scorcher of enemies, please get ready to slay him. O son of Pārvatī you are born of Śiva for killing that demon. 5. O great hero, save the gods distressed in the battle. You are neither a boy nor a youth but the lord of all. 6. See Indra and Viṣṇu. They are agitated and distressed, So also the gods and the Gaṇas. Slay this great demon. Make the three worlds happy. 7. Formerly Indra and the guardians of the quarters had been conquered by him. Due to the power of his penance, the heroic Viṣṇu too has been threatened by him. 8. The entire universe of the three worlds has been defeated by this wicked Asura. Now, because of your presence, they have fought again. 9. Hence, O son of Śiva, this sinful being Tāraka shall be killed by you. Due to the boon granted by me he cannot be slain by any one else.” 10. On hearing these words of mine, Kumāra, son of Śiva, was delighted and he laughed. “So be it”, said he. 11. Resolving to kill the Asura, the great lord, son of Śiva got down from the aerial chariot and stood on the ground. 12. Running on foot, seizing his lustrous spear blazing like a meteor, the powerful warrior Kumāra born of Śiva shone well. 13. On seeing the incomprehensible six-headed deity coming forward, fierce and unagitated, the Asura spoke to the gods derisively—“O this child indeed will slay the enemies!” 14. I will fight with him single-handed. I will kill the soldiers, the Gaṇas and the guardians of the quarters led by Viṣṇu. 15. Saying thus, the powerful Asura rushed at Kumāra to fight with him. Tāraka seized his wonderful spear and spoke to the gods. 16. “How is it that you all kept Kumāra face to face with me? You gods are shameless especially Indra and Viṣṇu. 17. Formerly, both of them had acted in violation of the Vedic path. Listen. I shall describe the same. 18. Viṣṇu is deceptive, defective and indiscreet. It was by him that Bali was formerly bound by taking recourse to deception with sinful intention. 19. The Asuras Madhu and Kaiṭabha were beheaded by his roguishness. He forsook the Vedic path. 20. When the gods and Asuras sat for drinking the nectar it was he who violated the sanctity of the vows when he assumed the form of an enchantress. Thus he slighted the Vedic path. 21. Taking birth as Rama he killed a woman ( Tāḍakā ). Bālī ’s death was brought about by him with a vile trick. A brahmin descendant of Viśravas was killed by him. Thus he violated the injunction of the Śruti. 22. Sinful that he was, he forsook his own innocent wife. There too, he violated the path of Śruti for achieving his selfish end. 23. In his sixth incarnation (as Paraśurāma ) he cut off the head of his own mother. This wicked man insulted his own preceptor’s son. 24. Incarnating as Kṛṣṇa he defiled the wives of others and forced them to violate the traditional virtues of the family. He contracted his marriages without any reference to the Vedic path. 25. Again in his ninth incarnation he slighted the Vedic path and contrary to its principles, preached and established the atheistic philosophy called Buddhism. 26. How can he be considered an excellent, virtuous man, how can he be victorious in battle who has committed sin without caring for Vedic cult? 27. Indra, his elder brother, is a greater sinner. He has committed many sins for his self-interest. 28. To gain his selfish end, by him Diti ’s foetus was destroyed; the modesty of Gautama ’s wife was outraged, Vṛtra, the son of a brahmin, was killed. 29. He beheaded the brahmin Viśvarūpa, the nephew of Bṛhaspati. Thus he transgressed the Vedic path. 30. Doing such sinful acts frequently Viṣṇu and Śiva are already deficient in splendour and their prowess is spent out. 31. You will never gain victory in the battle by relying on them. Why then did you foolishly come here to lose your lives? 32. These two, always seeking selfish ends, do not know what is virtue. O gods, without virtue every rite becomes futile. 33. These two impudent fellows are presumptuous enough to place a child in front of me. Why? I will kill the child too. They too will have it. 34. But let the child leave from here and save his life.” After saying this, hinting at Indra and Viṣṇu he turned to Vīrabhadra and said. 35. “Formerly in the sacrifice of Dakṣa, many brahmins had been killed by you, O sinless one, I shall show you the fruit thereof.” 36. Saying this and dispossessing himself of his own merit by that act of censure, Tāraka the foremost among war-mongers seized his wonderful spear. 37. Indra who was going ahead of Kumāra hit the demon Tāraka forcibly with his thunderbolt as he was approaching the boy. 38. Tāraka was shattered and split by that blow of the thunderbolt, his power being sapped up already by the act of censure. He fell on the ground. 39. Though he fell down, he got up immediately and furiously hit Indra who was seated on an elephant, with his spear and felled him to the ground. 40. When Indra fell down there was a great hue and cry. On seeing it a great pain entered the army of the gods. 41. Know from me the vile action that Tāraka has committed against virtue which is sure to bring about his own ruin. 42. He stamped on Indra with his foot after he fell down and seized his thunderbolt with which he hit him with great force. 43. Seeing Indra thus insulted, the powerful lord Viṣṇu lifted his discus and hit Tāraka. 44. Hit by the discus he fell on the ground. Getting up again, the lord of the Asuras hit Viṣṇu with his spear. 45. On being hit by the spear Viṣṇu fell on the ground. There was a great uproar. The gods lamented much. 46-47. Within a moment Viṣṇu got up but by that time Vīrabhadra came near the demon and dexterously raised his trident. The powerful Vīrabhadra hit him with all his force. 48. Hit by the trident he fell on the ground. Though he fell down, Tāraka of mighty splendour got up again. 49. The great hero, the leader of the entire host of Asuras hit Vīrabhadra in his chest with his great spear. 50. Vīrabhadra, hit by the spear furiously in his chest, fell unconscious on the ground. 51. The gods, the Gaṇas, Gandharvas, Serpents and Rākṣasas lamented frequently with cries of “Alas” “Alas.” 52. Within a moment, the powerful Vīrabhadra, the slayer of enemies, got up lifting his trident aloft, that had the lustre of lightning and was blazing forth. 53. The trident had a halo around, like that of the sun, the moon and the fire. It illuminated the quarters by means of its brilliance; caused terror even in the hearts of the brave. It had a deadly splendour and blazed well. 54. When the powerful Vīrabhadra was about to hit the Asura with his trident, he was prevented by Kumāra.

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. After preventing Vīrabhadra, Kumāra, the slayer of enemies, desired the destruction of Tāraka after remembering the lotuslike feet of Śiva. 2. Then the powerful Kārttikeya of great splendour roared. Angrily he got ready for the fight. He was surrounded by a vast army. 3. Shouts of victory were raised by the gods and the Gaṇas. He was eulogised by the celestial sages with pleasing words. 4. The fight between Tāraka and Kumāra was terrific and unbearable. All the living beings were afraid. 5. O sage, even as all the persons stood gazing wonderingly, both of them fought each other with spears in their hands. 6. Each was wounded in the heart by the other with the spear. Each tried to escape from the other’s. thrust. Both were equally strong like two lions. Both were fully equipped for the fight. 7. They fought and hit each other’s spear taking recourse to the mantras Vaitālika, Khecaraka, Prāptika etc. 8. With these mantras they were possessed of magical properties. They wonderfully fought each other using their full strength and exploits. 9. They were equally good adepts in fighting. Each wanted to kill the other. They utilised all their power. With the edges of spears they hit each other. 10. They hit or cut each other’s head, neck, thighs, knees, hips, heart, chest and the back. 11. They continued the fight swaggering and vaunting with heroic words. They were experts in different tactics of warfare. They were equally strong. They desired to kill each other. 12. All the gods Gandharvas and Kinnaras stood as mere onlookers. “Who will win this battle?” they asked each other. 13. Then a celestial voice rose appeasing the gods—“In this battle Kumāra will kill the Asura Tāraka. 14. None of the gods need be anxious. All shall rest assured. For your welfare Śiva Himself is standing here in the form of His son.” 15. On hearing the auspicious words uttered by the celestial voice, Kumāra became happy. He was surrounded by the Pramathas. He resolved to kill Tāraka, the king of Asuras. 16. The infuriated Kumāra of powerful arms used his full strength and hit Asura Tāraka in between his nipples. 17. Slighting that blow, the leading demon Tāraka, hit Kumāra angrily with his spear. 18. At the blow of the spear, the son of Śiva became unconscious. He regained his consciousness in a few minutes. He was eulogised by the great sages. 19. Kumāra became furious like a maddened lion and was desirous of killing the Asura. The powerful Kumāra hit Tāraka with his spear. 20. Thus both Kumāra and Tāraka equally inflamed and equally well versed in the battle of spears fought each other. 21. Both appeared to possess plenty of practice. Both had the desire to gain the upper hand. Both fought on foot, had wonderful forms and features and were equally courageous. 22. With massive heaps of fatal missiles they hit each other. They had various ways of attack. They roared. They exhibited their all exploits. 23. The onlookers, the gods, the Gandharvas and the Kinnaras were much surprised. They did not speak anything there. 24. The wind did not blow. The sun became dim. The earth quaked along with mountains and forests. 25. In the meantime Himālaya and other mountains anxious to see Kumāra out of affection came there. 26. On seeing the mountains extremely terrified, Kumāra the son of Śiva and Pārvatī spoke enlightening them thereby. 27. O mountains, O fortunate sirs, do not be vexed, or worried. Even as you stand looking on I will kill this sinner. 28. Consoling the mountains, the gods and the Gaṇas thus, and bowing to Śiva and Pārvatī he took up his brilliant spear. 29. The heroic Kumāra, son of Śiva the great lord, with the spear in his hand shone in his resolve to kill Tāraka. 30. Possessing the brilliance of Śiva, Kumāra with his spear struck Tāraka who had harrassed the worlds. 31. Immediately the Asura Tāraka the ruler of the hosts of Asuras, although very heroic, fell on the ground with all his limbs shattered. 32. The great warrior Tāraka was slain by Kumāra. O sage, even as all were looking on, he passed away. 33. On seeing the powerful Asura fallen dead in the battle, the hero did not go and attack him again. 34. When the powerful Asura was slain, other Asuras were killed by gods and Gaṇas. 35. Some of the Asuras who were afraid joined their palms in reverence. In the battle the limbs of many Asuras were chopped off and severed. Thousands were killed too. 36. Some of the Asuras shrieking “O save O save” with palms joined in reverence sought refuge in Kumāra. 37. Numberless Asuras were killed. Many fled. The fleeing Asuras were beaten and harassed by the gods and the Gaṇas. 38. Thousands of them fled to Pātāla for their life. Those who tried to flee were disappointed and put to distress. 39. O great sage, thus the entire army of the Asuras disappeared. None dared to remain there for fear of the gods and the Gaṇas. 40. When the wicked Asura was killed, the whole universe became freed of thorns, freed from the danger and nuisance of the Asuras. Indra and other gods became happy. 41. Thus when Kumāra came out victorious the gods were happy. The three worlds attained great pleasure. 42. On knowing about the victory of Kārttikeya, Śiva came there joyously with his beloved and the Gaṇas. 43. He took his son on his lap and fondled him with pleasure. Pārvatī in her flutter of affection took Kumāra, resplendent as the sun, on her lap and fondled him with pleasure. 44. Then Himavat came there along with his sons, kinsmen and servants. He eulogised Śiva and Guha. 45. The delighted gods, Gaṇas and sages, Siddhas and Cāraṇas eulogised Pārvatī, Śiva and the son of Śiva. 46. The secondary gods poured a great shower of flowers. The chiefs of Gandharvas sang. The celestial damsels danced. 47. The musical instruments were played sweetly then. Frequent loud shouts of “Victory” and “Obeisance” were raised. 48. Viṣṇu too in my company was very glad. He respectfully eulogised Śiva, Pārvatī and Kumāra. 49. Keeping Kumāra in front, Brahmā, Indra and other gods performed the rite of Nirājana lovingly. Other sages too did likewise. 50. Then there was great jubilation with vocal and instrumental music and chantings of the Vedas. Hymns too were sung. 51. The lord of the universe was eulogised, O sage, by the delighted gods and Gaṇas by means of vocal and instrumental music. 52. Then eulogised by all, lord Śiva along with Pārvatī the mother of the universe, went to his mountain surrounded by the Gaṇas.

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. O sage, in the meantime the mountain Krauñca, harassed by Bāṇa came there and sought refuge in Kumāra. 2. This Bāṇa had been fleeing from the previous battle, unable to bear the brilliance of the lord. He with the army of ten thousand persons, inflicted pain on Krauñca with the tip of his missiles. 3. The mountain Krauñca devoutly bowed at the lotuslike feet of Kumāra and eulogised him with reverence with words full of love. 4. O Kumāra, O Skanda, O lord of gods, O slayer of the Asura Tāraka protect me who have sought refuge in you. I am harassed by the Asura Bāṇa. 5. O Mahāsena, O lord, O merciful one, routed and uprooted from the battle with you he came and harassed me. 6. Afflicted by him I have run from him and sought refuge in you. O lord of gods, born amongst the reeds, be merciful. 7. O lord, please slay the Asura Bāṇa. Make me happy. You are the slayer of Asuras and a special saviour of the gods. You are a self-ruler. 8. Skanda who was thus eulogised by Krauñca became delighted. He, the saviour of the devotees, took up his matchless spear and remembered Śiva. 9. The son of Śiva hurled the spear aiming at Bāṇa. It gave loud report, blazing forth the quarters and the sky. 10. O sage, reducing the Asuras to ashes along with his army in a trice, the great spear returned to Kumāra. 11. The lord Kumāra told Krauñca, the chief of the mountains, “Go home fearlessly. That Asura has been slain along with his army.” 12. On hearing the words of the lord, the delighted lord of the mountains eulogised Kumāra the slayer of his enemy and went back to his abode. 13. O sage, with great pleasure and observing the rules Skanda installed three phallic emblems of Śiva that quell all sins. 14. The first is called Pratijñeśvara, the second Kapāleśvara and the last Kumāreśvara. The three are capable of conferring all the achievements. 15. Thereafter Kumāra, the lord of all, joyously installed the phallic image Stambheśvara, near the column of victory. 16. Then Viṣṇu and other gods joyously installed the phallic emblem of Śiva, the lord of the gods. 17. The glory of the phallic emblems of Śiva was marvellous, conferring all cherished desires and salvation to the devotees. 18. Then the delighted Viṣṇu and the gods desired to go to the chief of mountains joyously putting Bṛhaspati ahead. 19. Then Kumuda the son of Śeṣa who was harassed by the Asuras came and sought refuge in Kumāra. 20. Another follower of Tāraka— Pralamba who had fled from the previous battle wrought great havoc with full force. 21. Kumuda, the great son of Śeṣa the lord of serpents, sought refuge in Kumāra the son of Pārvatī and eulogised him. 22. O excellent son of great lord, lord of the gods, O great chief, I am afflicted by Pralamba and am seeking refuge in you. 23. O Kumāra, O Skanda, O lord of the gods, O great lord, O slayer of Tāraka, save me harassed by the Asura Pralamba and seeking refuge in you. 24. You are the kinsman of the distressed, the ocean of mercy, favourably disposed to the devotees, the slayer of the wicked, worthy of refuge and the goal of the good. 25. Eulogised thus by Kumuda and requested to slay the demon Pralamba, the lord took up his spear after remembering the lotus-like feet of Śiva. 26. The son of Pārvatī hurled the spear at Pralamba. It made a loud report. The quarters and the sky blazed. 27. Reducing that powerful Asura to ashes in a trice the spear carried out the job without strain and returned to Kumāra. 28. Then Kumāra told the Nāga child Kumuda—“Go home fearlessly. That Asura has been slain along with his army.” 29. On hearing the words of Guha, Kumuda, the son of the Nāga chief eulogised and bowed to Kumāra and went to Pātāla in great delight. 30. Thus the story of the victory of Kumāra, including the wonderful way in which Tāraka was slain, has been narrated by me, O noble sage. 31. It is the divine story that removes all sins. It bestows all desires on men. It is conducive to the increase of wealth, glory and longevity. It confers worldly pleasures and salvation on the good. 32. Those who recite this divine story of Kumāra and glorify him are infinitely fortunate and attain Śivaloka. 33. Those who listen to his glory with devotion and faith will attain divine salvation hereafter after enjoying great happiness here.

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. On seeing Tāraka killed, Viṣṇu and other gods, with faces refulgent with pleasure, eulogised Kārttikeya with devotion. 2. Obeisance to you of good features, obeisance to you who confer auspiciousness on the universe, O kinsman of the universe, obeisance be to you. Obeisance to you, O purifier of the universe. 3. Obeisance to you, the slayer of the chief of the Asuras. O lord, obeisance to the slayer of the Asura Bāṇa. Obeisance to the destroyer of Pralamba. Obeisance to you of holy features. Obeisance to you, O son of Śiva. 4. You alone are the creator, sustainer and annihilator of the universe. You, born of firegod, be pleased. Your cosmic image is identical with the universe. O son of Śiva, kinsman of the distressed, be pleased. 5. O lord, protector of the gods, O lord, save us always. O merciful one, protector of gods, be pleased. 6. After killing the Asura Tāraka along with his followers, O great lord, the gods have been freed from adversities by you. 7. O sage, thus eulogised by Viṣṇu and the other gods, lord Kumāra granted them fresh boons in order. 8. On seeing the mountains eulogising, the son of Śiva became very glad and spoke to them after granting boons. 9. All of you mountains will become worthy of being worshipped by the sages and resorted to by persons following the paths of action and knowledge. 10. O mountains, at my word you will be assuming the forms of phallic emblems, the special forms of Śiva. There is no doubt about it. 11. My maternal grandfather, the excellent mountain Himavat, will become the fortunate bestower of fruits to ascetics. The gods said:— 12. By killing Tāraka the lord of Asuras, and by granting boons thus, all of us including the mobile and immobile beings have been made happy by you. 13. Now, it behoves you to go to Kailāsa with great pleasure, to the abode of Śiva in order to see your mother and father Śiva and Pārvatī. 14. After saying thus and obtaining his permission, Viṣṇu and other gods went jubilantly to that mountain along with Kumāra. 15. When the lord Kumāra started to Kailāsa, the abode of Śiva, sounds of “Victory” arose indicating great auspiciousness. 16. Kumāra got in the richly decorated aerial chariot that shone above all the things. 17. O sage, with great pleasure, Viṣṇu and I held the chowries aloft above the head of the lord with alertness. 18. Indra and other gods, rendering suitable service to Kumāra went ahead joyously flanking him on all sides. 19. They reached Śiva’s mountain crying shouts of victory to Śiva. They entered the precincts with delight. Auspicious sounds arose. 20. On seeing Śiva and Pārvatī, Viṣṇu and other gods bowed to Śiva with devotion and stood there humbly with palms joined in reverence. 21. Kumāra descended from the aerial chariot in all humility and bowed joyously to Śiva and Pārvatī seated on a throne. 22. O Nārada, on seeing their beloved son Kumāra, the lordly couple Śiva and Pārvatī rejoiced much. 23. The great lord got up, kissed him on the head with joy, stroked him with the hand and placed him on his lap. 24. With great affection, the highly delighted Śiva kissed the face of Kumāra, the great lord and the slayer of Tāraka. 25. Pārvatī, too got up and placed him on her lap. Keeping him close to her head with great affection she kissed his lotus-like face. 26. O dear Nārada, the joy of the couple—Śiva and Pārvatī who followed the worldly conventions, increased very much. 27. There was great jubilation in the abode of Śiva. Everywhere the sound of shouts “Victory” and “Obeisance” rose up. 28. O sage, then Viṣṇu, other gods and the sages bowed joyously to Śiva. They eulogised Him. 29. O lord of the gods, O bestower of protection to your devotees, Obeisance, Obeisance to you many times, O merciful lord Śiva. 30. Wonderful indeed, O great lord, is your divine sport, conferring happiness to all good men, O Śiva, kinsman to the distressed, O lord. 31. We are deluded in our intellects. We are ignorant of the procedure of your worship, O eternal one. We do not know your invocation nor your wonderful course, O lord. 32. Obeisance to you, the support of the waters of the Gaṅgā, to the deity possessed of the attributes, obeisance to the lord of the gods, obeisance to Śiva. 33. Obeisance to the bull-bannered lord Śiva, obeisance to the lord of Gaṇas; Obeisance to the lord of all. Obeisance to the lord of the three worlds. 34. O lord, obeisance to you, the annihilator, the sustainer and creator of the worlds. O lord of gods, obeisance to you, the lord of three attributes and the eternal. 35. Obeisance to the lord free from attachment; obeisance to Śiva the great soul. Obeisance to the pure beyond the world of matter, obeisance to the great, the unwasting. 36. Obeisance to you the god of death holding the staff of punishment and noose in the hand. Obeisance to the chief of the deities invoked by Vedic mantras. Obeisance to you the hundred-tongued deity. 37. O lord, everything has come out of your body whether past, present or future, whether mobile or immobile. 38. O lord, protect us always. O supreme lord, we have sought refuge in you in every respect. 39. Obeisance to you, the blue-necked Rudra, of the form of offering. Obeisance to you both possessed and devoid of forms, the multiformed one. 40. Obeisance to Śiva, the blue-necked, the wearer of ashes on the limbs from the funeral pyre. Obeisance to you Śrīkaṇṭha and Nīlaśikhaṇḍa. 41. Obeisance to you saluted by all, saluted by the Yogins. Obeisance to you, the great lord, whose feet are worshipped by all. 42. You are Brahmā among all the gods, you are Nīlalohita among Rudras; you are the soul in all living beings; you are the Puruṣa of Sāṅkhya system. 43. You are Sumeru among mountains, you are the moon among the stars. You are Vasiṣṭha among the sages and you are Indra among the gods. 44. You are Oṃkāra among all Vedic passages; O great lord, be our protector. For the benefit of the worlds you nourish the Beings. 45. O great lord, O fortunate one, O scrutinizer of the good and evil, O lord of gods, make us flourish as those who carry out your instructions. 46. In your millions and millions of forms we are unable to realize your true self. O lord of gods, obeisance be to you. 47. After eulogising thus and bowing to him frequently, Viṣṇu and other gods stood before him after placing Skanda ahead. 48. On hearing the eulogy of the gods, Śiva, the lord of all, the self-ruler was delighted. The compassionate lord then laughed. 49. Śiva the great Īśāna, the kinsman of the distressed, the goal of the good, became delighted and spoke to Viṣṇu and other important gods. 50. O Viṣṇu, O Brahmā, O gods, listen to my words with attention. I am merciful. I shall by all means protect you, the gods. 51. The lord of the three worlds is a slayer of the wicked. He is favourably disposed to his devotees. He is the creator, sustainer and annihilator of all yet free from aberrations. 52. O excellent gods, whenever you are faced with misery you shall worship me for your happiness. 53-54. O sage, thus ordered, Viṣṇu, the other gods and the sages bowed to Śiva, Pārvatī, and Kumāra joyously, and returned to their abodes in great delight singing the pleasant glory of Śiva, Pārvatī and their son. 55. Śiva stayed on the mountain joyously along with Pārvatī, the Gaṇas and Kumāra. Lord Śiva was much pleased. 56. Thus O sage, the divine and pleasant story of Kumāra and Śiva has been narrated to you. What else do you wish to hear? Article published on 14 October, 2018

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. On hearing the marvellously excellent story of the slayer of Tāraka thus, Nārada was highly delighted and he lovingly asked Brahmā. 2. O lord of gods and people, O storehouse of Śiva ’s cult, the excellent story of Kārttikeya, far better than nectar, has been heard by me. 3. Now I wish to hear the excellent story of Gaṇeśa, the details of his divine nativity, auspicious of the auspicious. 4. On hearing the words of Nārada the great sage, Brahmā became delighted and replied to him remembering Śiva. 5. Due to the difference of Kalpas, the story of the birth of Gaṇeśa is told in different ways. According to one account he is born of the great lord. His head looked at by Śani was cut off and an elephant’s head was put on him. 6. Now we narrate the story of the birth of Gaṇeśa in Śvetakalpa when his head was cut off by the merciful Śiva. 7. No suspicion need be entertained, O sage. Śiva is certainly the cause of enjoyment and protection. He is the lord of all. Śiva is possessed as well as devoid of attributes. 8. It is by His divine sport that the entire universe is created, sustained and annihilated. O excellent sage, listen to what is relevant to the context, with attention. 9. A long time had lapsed after the marriage of Śiva and His return to Kailāsa that Gaṇeśa was born. 10. Once the friends Jayā and Vijayā conferred with Pārvatī and discussed. 11. All the Gaṇas of Rudra carry out the orders of Śiva. They all, Nandin, Bhṛṅgin and others are in a way our own. 12. Pramathas are numerous. But none of them can be called our own. They all stand at the portals, subservient to Śiva’s behests. 13. They also may be called our own but our mind is not in unison with them. Hence, O sinless lady, one, our own must be created. 14. Goddess Pārvatī to whom this charming suggestion was made by the two friends considered it wholesome and resolved to carry it out. 15. Once when Pārvatī was taking her bath, Sadāśiva rebuked Nandin and came into the inner apartment. 16. The mother of the universe, seeing the untimely arrival of Śiva in the midst of her bath and toilet stood up. The beautiful lady was very shy then. 17. The goddess decided that her friend’s suggestion would be conducive to her good and was so enthusiastic. 18. At the time when the incident occurred, Pārvatī, the great Māyā, the great goddess, thought as follows. 19. “There must be a servant of my own who will be expert in his duties. He must not stray from my behest even a speck.” 20. Thinking thus the goddess created a person with all the characteristics, out of the dirt from her body. 21. He was spotless and handsome in every part of his body. He was huge in size and had all brilliance, strength and valour. 22-23. She gave him various clothes and ornaments. She blessed him with benediction and said—“You are my son. You are my own. I have none else to call my own”. Thus addressed the person bowed to her and said:— 24. “What is your order? I shall accomplish what you command.” Thus addressed, Pārvatī replied to her son. 25. “O dear, listen to my words. Work as my gatekeeper from today. You are my son. You are my own. It is not otherwise. There is none-else who belongs to me. 26. O good son, without my permission, no one, by any means, shall intrude my apartment. I tell you the fact.” 27. O sage, saying this, she gave him a hard stick. On seeing his handsome features she was delighted. 28. Out of love and mercy she embraced and kissed him. She placed him armed with a staff at her entrance as the gatekeeper. 29. Then the son of the goddess, of great heroic power, stayed at the doorway armed with a staff with a desire to do what was good to her. 30. Thus placing her son at the doorway, Pārvatī began to take bath with her friends, unworried. 31. O excellent sage, at this very moment Śiva who is eagerly indulgent and an expert in various divine sports came near the door. 32. Not knowing that he was lord Śiva, the consort of Pārvatī, Gaṇeśa said—“O sir, without my mother’s permission you shall not go in now. 33. My mother has entered the bath. Where are you going now? Go away” saying thus, he took up his staff to ward him off. 34. On seeing him Śiva said “O foolish fellow, whom are you forbidding? O wicked knave, don’t you know me? I Śiva, none else”. 35. Thereupon Gaṇeśa beat Śiva with the staff. Śiva expert in various sports became infuriated and spoke to his son thus. 36. “You are a fool, You do not know that I am Śiva, the husband of Pārvatī. O boy, I go in my own house. Why do you forbid me?” 37. When lord Śiva tried to enter the house, Gaṇeśa became infuriated, O brahmin, and struck him with his staff once again. 38. Then Śiva too became furious. He commanded his own Gaṇas—“Who is this fellow here? What is he doing? O Gaṇas, enquire.” 39. After saying this, the furious Śiva stood outside the house. The lord, following the worldly conventions, is capable of various wonderful sports.

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. The infuriated Gaṇas of Śiva at his bidding went there and questioned the son of Pārvatī who stood at the gate. 2. “Who are you? Whence do you come? What do you propose to do? If you have a desire to remain alive go away from here.” 3. On hearing their words, the son of Pārvatī who was armed with the staff spoke to the Gaṇas as follows:— 4. O “handsome fellows, who are you? Whence have you come? Go away. Why have you come here and why do you stand in opposition to me?” 5. On hearing his words, Śiva’s Gaṇas of great heroism and arrogance laughingly spoke to one another. 6. After conferring with one another, the infuriated Pārṣadas of Śiva replied to Gaṇeśa, the doorkeeper. 7. “Listen. We are the excellent Gaṇas of Śiva. We are his doorkeepers. We have come here to throw you out at the bidding of lord Śiva. 8. Considering you too, as one of the Gaṇas, we are not going to kill you. Otherwise you would have been killed. Better stay away yourself. Why do you court death?” 9. Though warned thus, Gaṇeśa, the son of Pārvatī, stood fearless. He did not leave his post at the door. He rebuked Śiva’s Gaṇas. 10. After hearing his words, the Gaṇas of Śiva went back and informed Śiva about his stand. 11. O sage, on hearing their words, lord Śiva of wonderful divine sports, following the worldly conventions rebuked his Gaṇas. 12. “Who is this fellow? What does he say? He is standing there haughtily as though he is our enemy. What will that wicked knave do? Certainly he wants to die. 13. Why? Are you dastardly eunuchs to stand here helplessly and complain to me about him. Let this new doorkeeper be thrown out.” 14. Thus commanded by lord Śiva of wonderful sports the Gaṇas returned to the place and spoke to the doorkeeper. 15. O gatekeeper, who are you standing here? Why have you been stationed here? Why don’t you care for us. How can you thus remain alive? 16. We are here the duly appointed doorkeepers. What are you saying? A jackal sitting on a lion’s seat wishes for happiness. 17. O fool, you will roar only as long as you do not feel the brunt of our attack. Erelong you will fall by feeling the same.” 18. Thus taunted by them, Gaṇeśa became furious and took the staff with his hands and struck the Gaṇas even as they continued to speak harsh words. 19. Then the fearless Gaṇeśa, son of Pārvatī rebuked the heroic Gaṇas of Śiva and spoke as follows:— 20. “Get away. Get away. Or I shall give you a foretaste of my fierce valour. You will be the laughing-stock of all.” 21. On hearing these words of Geṇeśa, the Gaṇas of Śiva spoke to one another. 22. What shall be done? Where shall we go? Why shall we not act? Bounds of decency are observed by us. He would not have acted thus, otherwise. 23. Then the Gaṇas of Śiva went to Śiva who was standing at the distance of a Krośa from Kailāsa and spoke to him. 24. Śiva ridiculed them all. The trident-armed great lord of fierce temperament spoke to his Gaṇas who professed to be heroes. 25. “Hello, Gaṇas, impotent wretches, you profess to be heroic but are never so. You are unfit to stand before me and speak. If he is only taunted he will speak in similar tone again. 26. Go and beat him. Some one among you may be competent to do so. Why should I speak more? He must be driven away.” 27. O great sage, when rebuked thus by lord Śiva, the excellent Gaṇas went back and spoke to him. 28. Hello you boy there, listen. Why do you speak so arrogantly? You go away from here. If not, your death is certain. 29. On hearing the words of Śiva’s servants the son of Pārvatī became unhappy and thought “What shall I do?” 30. In the meantime, the goddess heard the noise of this wrangle between the Gaṇas and the doorkeeper, then looked at her friend and spoke. “Go and see.” 31. The friend came to the door and saw them for a moment. She understood the whole matter. She was delighted and returned to Pārvatī. 32. O sage, coming back she reported the matter to Pārvatī as it had occurred. 33. O great Goddess, the heroic Gaṇas of Śiva arc taunting and rebuking our own Gaṇa who is standing at the door. 34. How do these Gaṇas and Śiva enter your apartment suddenly without looking to your convenience? This is not good for you. 35. Even after undergoing the misery of rebuke etc. he, our Gaṇa, has done well in not allowing anyone in. 36. What is more? They are arguing too. When the argument has started, they cannot come in happily. 37. Now that they have started the argument let them conquer him and enter victoriously. Not otherwise, my dear friend. 38. When this man belonging to us is taunted, it amounts to our being taunted. Hence, O gentle lady, you shall not abandon your prestige of high order. 39. Śiva always squeezes you like a crab, O Satī. What will he do now? His pride will take a favourable turn for us. 40. Alas, being subservient to Śiva’s wish, Pārvatī stood there for a moment. 41. Then taking up a haughty mood she spoke to herself. 42. “Alas, he did not wait for a moment. Why should he force his way in? What shall be done now? Or shall I adopt a humble attitude. 43. What is to happen happens. What is done cannot be altered?” After saying this, Pārvatī sent her again lovingly. 44. The friend came to the door and told Gaṇeśa what Pārvatī had said with affection. 45. O gentle sir, well done. Let them not enter forcibly. What are these Gaṇas before you? Can they win a person like you? 46. Whether good or bad let your duty be done. If you are conquered there will be no further enmity at all. 47. On hearing the words of the friend and his mother Gaṇeśvara became highly delighted, strengthened and lifted up. 48. Girting up his loins, tying his turban firmly and clapping his calves and thighs, he spoke fearlessly to all the Gaṇas. 49. I am the son of Pārvatī. You are the Gaṇas of Śiva. Both of us are thus equal. Let your duty be done, now. 50. You are all doorkeepers. How is it that I am not? You are standing there and I am standing here. This is certain. 51. When it is certain that you are standing here, you must carry out the directions of Śiva. 52. O heroes, now I have to carry out the orders of Pārvatī faithfully. I have decided what is proper. 53. Hence, O Gaṇas of Śiva, you shall listen with attention. You shall not enter the apartment either forcibly or humbly. 54. The Gaṇas when decisively told by Gaṇeśa became ashamed. They went to Śiva. After bowing to him they stood in front of him. 55. Then they acquainted him with that news of wonderful nature. They joined their palms, stooped their shoulders, eulogised Śiva and stood in front of him. 56. On hearing the detailed news mentioned by his Gaṇas, Śiva replied following the worldly conventions. 57. O Gaṇas, hear you all. A battle may not be a proper course. You are all my own. He is Pārvatī’s Gaṇa. 58. But if we are going to be humble, there is likely to be a rumour: “Śiva is subservient to his wife.” O Gaṇas, this is certainly derogatory to me. 59. The policy of meeting an action with another (Tit for tat) is a weighty one. That single-handed Gaṇa is a mere boy. What valour can be expected of him? 60. O Gaṇas, you are all experts in warfare and reputed to be so in the world. You are my own men. How can you forsake war and demean yourselves? 61. How can a woman be obdurate especially with her husband? Pārvatī will certainly derive the fruit of what she has done. 62. Hence, my heroic men, listen to my words with attention. This war has to be fought by all means. Let what is in store happen.” 63. O excellent sage, O brahmin, after saying thus, Śiva an adept in various divine sports became silent observing the ways of the world. Article published on 15 October, 2018

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. When Śiva told them thus, they came to a decisive resolution. They got ready and went to Śiva’s palace. 2. On seeing the excellent Gaṇas, fully equipped for war, coming, Gaṇeśa spoke thus to them. 3. Welcome to the leaders of Gaṇas, carrying out the behests of Śiva. I am only one and that too a mere boy carrying out the directions of Pārvatī. 4. Yet let the goddess see the strength of her son. Let Śiva see the strength of his Gaṇas too. 5. The fight between the parties of Pārvatī and Śiva is the one between a strong army and a boy. You are all experts in warfare and have fought in many a battle. 6. I have never fought in a battle before. I am a mere boy. I am going to fight now. Still if you are put to shame, it will be shameful to Śiva and Pārvatī. 7. But that will not happen to me. If I am put to shame, the contrary will happen to me. Pārvatī and Śiva will be put to shame but not I. 8. O leader of the Gaṇas, the war shall be fought after realising this. You shall look up to your lord and I to my mother. 9. What sort of a fight shall be fought? Let what is destined to occur, occur. No one in the three worlds can ward it off. 10. When thus taunted and rebuked they rushed towards him with big batons, decorating their arms and taking up different kinds of weapons. 11. Gnashing their teeth, grunting and bellowing and calling out “See, See”, the Gaṇas rushed at him. 12. Nandin came first and caught hold of his leg. He pulled at it. Bhṛṅgin then rushed at him and caught hold of his other leg. 13. Before the Gaṇas of Śiva had time to pull his legs Gaṇeśa struck a blow at their hands and got his legs free. 14. Then seizing a big iron club and standing at the doorway he smashed the gaṇas. 15. Some got their hands broken, others got their backs smothered. The heads of others were shattered and the foreheads of some were crushed. 16. The knees of some were fractured, the shoulders of others were blasted. Those who came in front were hit in the chest. 17. Some fell on the ground, some fled in various directions, some got their legs broken and some fled to Śiva. 18-19. Now none among them stood face to face. Just as deer flee to any direction on seeing a lion, the Gaṇas, who were thousands in number fled in that manner. Then Gaṇeśa returned to doorway and stood there. 20. He was seen as the annihilator of all in the manner of Yama, the terrible god of death at the end of a Kalpa. 21. At this time, urged by Nārada, all the gods including Viṣṇu and Indra came there. 22. Standing in front of Śiva and bowing to him with a desire to secure good for him they said—“O lord, be pleased to command us. 23. You are the great Brahman, the lord of all, the creator, the sustainer and the annihilator of all created things. All are your servants. 24. You are intrinsically devoid of attributes but by means of your sports you assume Rājasika, Sāttvika and Tāmasika forms. O lord, what sort of sport you are indulging in, now?” 25. O excellent sage, on hearing their words and seeing the Gaṇas completely shattered, lord Śiva told them everything. 26. O excellent sage, Śiva, the lord of all, the consort of Pārvatī, then laughingly told me, Brahmā. 27. O Brahmā, listen. A boy is standing at the entrance to my house. He is very strong. He has a staff in his hand. He prevents me from entering the house. 28. He strikes very dexterously. He has destroyed many of my Pārṣadas. He has forcefully defeated my Gaṇas. 29. O Brahmā, you alone should go there. This strong boy shall be propitiated. O Brahmā, you shall do everything to bring him under control. 30. On hearing the words of the lord and unable to know the reality, being deluded by ignorance, O dear, I went near Gaṇeśa accompanied by the sages. 31. On seeing me approaching, the powerful Gaṇeśa came to me very furiously and plucked my moustache and beard. 32. “Forgive me. Forgive me, O lord. I have not come for fighting. I am a brahmin and shall be blessed. I have come to make peace and I will cause no harm.” 33. While I said thus, O brahmin, the heroic Gaṇeśa, the boy of great valour uncommon to the boys took up the iron club. 34. On seeing the powerful Gaṇeśa seizing the iron club I began to run away immediately. 35. The others too who were shouting “Go, Go” were struck down with the iron club. Some fell themselves and some were felled by him. 36. Some of them fled to Śiva in a trice and intimated to him the details of the incident. 37. On seeing them in that plight and on hearing the news, Śiva, an adept in sports became very angry. 38. He issued directives to Indra and other gods, to the Gaṇas led by the six-faced Kumāra and to goblins, ghosts and spirits. 39. At the bidding of Śiva they all desired to kill Gaṇeśa. Lifting up their weapons in a suitable manner they came there from all directions. 40. Whatever weapon they had was hurled on Gaṇeśa with force. 41. There was a great hue and cry in all the three worlds consisting of the mobile and immobile. The inhabitants of the worlds were in a great fix and uncertainty. 42. “ Brahma ’s life span is not over, but the whole universe is undergoing untimely destruction. Certainly it is due to Śiva’s wish. 43. The sixfaced deity and the other gods who came there failed to use their weapons effectively. They were very much surprised. 44. In the meantime, goddess, the mother of the universe, of special knowledge, came to know of the entire incident and was very furious. 45. O great sage, the goddess created two Śaktis then and there for the assistance of her own Gaṇa. 46. O great sage, one Śakti assumed a very fierce form and stood there opening her mouth as wide as the cavern of a dark mountain. 47. The other assumed the form of lightning. She wore many arms. She was a huge and terrible goddess ready to punish the wicked. 48. The weapons hurled by the gods and the Gaṇas were caught in the mouth and hurled back at them. 49. None of the weapons of the gods was seen anywhere around the iron club of Gaṇeśa. This wonderful feat was performed by them. 50. A single boy stirred and churned the vast impassable army in the same manner as great mountain churned the ocean of milk formerly. 51. Indra and other gods were struck by him, singlehanded. The Gaṇas of Śiva became agitated and distressed then. 52. Gasping frequently for their breath, being utterly shaken by his blows they gathered together and spoke to one another. 53. “What shall be done? Where should we go? The ten directions have become visible. He is whirling the iron club right and left.” 54-55. In the meantime the excellent nymphs came there with flowers and sandal paste in their hands. You and other gods who were eager to witness the fight came there. O excellent sage, the excellent pathway of the firmament was entirely filled by them. 56. Seeing the battle they were much surprised. Such a battle had never been witnessed by them before. 57. The earth with all the oceans quaked. As a result of the violent battle even mountains fell down. 58. The sky whirled with the planets and the stars. Everything was agitated. The gods fled. The Gaṇas too did likewise. 59. The valorous sixfaced deity alone did not flee. The great warrior stopped everyone and stood in front. 60. But the Gaṇas fought in vain with the two Śaktis. The weapons of the gods and the Gaṇas were broken and hence withdrawn by them. 61. Those that tarried went to Śiva. All the gods and Gaṇas fled. 62. Those who went in a body to Śiva bowed to him again and again and asked Śiva immediately “O lord who is that excellent Gaṇa?” 63. We have heard that battles used to be fought formerly. Even now many battles are being fought. But never was such a battle seen or heard. 64. O lord, let this be pondered over a little. Otherwise no victory is possible. O lord, you alone are the saviour of the universe. There is no doubt about it.” 65. On hearing their words, the furious Rudra became more furious and went there along with his Gaṇas. 66. The entire army of the gods along with the discusbearing Viṣṇu shouted in jubilation and followed Śiva. 67. In the meantime, bowing to Śiva, the lord of the gods with palms joined in reverence, O Nārada, you spoke as follows. 68. “O lord of the gods, please listen to my words. You are the all-pervading lord and expert in various sports. 69. By indulging in a great sport, the arrogance of the Gaṇas has been removed by you. O Śaṅkara, the impudence of the gods too has been removed by giving this (Gaṇeśa) much strength. 70. O lord Śiva, your own wonderful strength has been known to the worlds, you who independently remove the haughtiness of everyone. 71. O lord who are favourably disposed to your devotees, do not indulge in that sport. Please honour your own Gaṇas and the gods suitably and make them flourish. 72. O bestower of the region of Brahman, please do not treat him leisurely but kill him in your play now.” O Nārada, after saying this, you vanished from the place.

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. O Nārada, on hearing your words, the great lord who grants benediction to his devotees became desirous of fighting with the boy. 2. He called Viṣṇu and consulted him. Then with a great army and the gods, He, the three-eyed lord, stood face to face with him. 3. After remembering the lotuslike feet of Śiva, the gods possessing great strength, kindly glanced at by Śiva and highly jubilant, fought with him. 4. Viṣṇu of great strength, valour and skill and possessing great divine weapons and Śiva’s form fought with him. 5. Gaṇeśa hit all the chief gods with his staff. He hit Viṣṇu too, all of a sudden. The hero had been conferred great strength by the Śaktis. 6. O sage, all the gods including Viṣṇu were hit by him with the stick. They were turned back with their strength sapped. 7. O sage, after fighting for a long time along with the army and seeing him terrific, even Śiva was greatly surprised. 8. Thinking within himself “He has to be killed only by deception and not otherwise” he stayed in the midst of the army. 9-10. When lord Śiva who though devoid of attributes had assumed the attributive form was seen in the battle, when Viṣṇu too had come thither, the gods and Gaṇas of Śiva were highly delighted. They joined together and became jubilant. 11. Then Gaṇeśa the heroic son of Śakti following the course of heroes, at first worshipped (i.e struck) Viṣṇu with his staff, Viṣṇu who confers happiness to all. 12-13. “I shall cause him delusion. Then let him be killed by you, O lord. Without deception he cannot be killed. He is of Tāmasika nature and inaccessible.” Thinking thus and consulting Śiva, Viṣṇu secured Śiva’s permission and was engaged in the activities of delusion. 14. O sage, on seeing Viṣṇu in that manner, the two Śaktis handed over their power to Gaṇeśa and became submerged. 15. When the two Śaktis became submerged, Gaṇeśa with more strength infused in him hurled the iron club in the place where Viṣṇu stood. 16. Viṣṇu strenuously dodged the same after remembering Śiva, the great lord, favourably disposed towards His devotees. 17. Seeing his face on a side, the infuriated Śiva took up his trident with a desire to fight and came there. 18. Pārvatī ’s son of great strength and heroism, saw Śiva arrived there with desire to fight him to a finish, the great lord with the trident in his hand. 19. Gaṇeśa, the great hero, who had been rendered more powerful by Pārvatī and the Śaktis remembered the lotuslike feet of his mother and struck him in his hand with his Śakti. 20. Thereupon the trident fell from the hand of Śiva of supreme soul. Seeing this, Śiva the source of great enjoyment and protection took up his bow Pināka. 21. Gaṇeśa felled that to the ground by means of his iron club. Five of his hands too were struck. He took up the trident with the other five hands. 22. “Alas, this has been more distressing even to me. What may not happen to the Gaṇas? Śiva who followed the worldly conventions cried out like this. 23. In the meantime the heroic Gaṇeśa endowed with the surplus power bestowed by the Śaktis struck the gods and the Gaṇas with his iron club. 24. The gods and the Gaṇas smothered by that wonderful striker with the iron club went away to the ten directions. None of them remained in the battlefield. 25-27. On seeing Gaṇeśa, Viṣṇu said—“He is blessed. He is a great hero of great strength. He is valorous and fond of battle. Many gods, Danavas, Daityas, Yakṣas, Gandharvas, and Rakṣasas I have seen. In the entire extent of the three worlds, none of them can equal Gaṇeśa in regard to brilliance, form, features, valour and other qualities.” 28. Gaṇeśa, son of the Śaktis whirled the iron club and hurled it at Viṣṇu even as he was saying so. 29. After remembering the lotus -like feet of Śiva, Viṣṇu took up his discus and split the iron club by means of discus. 30. Gaṇeśa hurled the piece of iron club at Viṣṇu which was caught by the bird Garuḍa and rendered futile. 31. Thus for a long time the two heroes Viṣṇu and Gaṇeśa fought with each other. 32. Again the foremost among heroes, the son of Pārvatī took up his staff of unrivalled power remembering Śiva and struck Viṣṇu with it. 33. Struck with that unbearable blow he fell on the ground. But he got up, quickly and fought with Pārvatī’s son. 34. Securing this opportunity, the Trident-bearing deity came there and cut off his head with his trident. 35. O Nārada, when the head of Gaṇeśa was cut off, the armies of the gods and the Gaṇas stood still. 36. You, Nārada, then came and acquainted Pārvatī with the matter—“O proud woman, listen. You shall not cast off your pride and prestige.” 37. O Nārada, saying this, you, fond of quarrels, vanished from there. You are the unchanging sage and a follower of the inclinations of Śiva. Article published on 15 October, 2018

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. O Brahmā, of great intellect, please narrate. When the entire news was heard what did the great goddess Pārvatī do? I wish to hear all in fact. 2. O foremost among sages, listen. I shall mention the story of the mother of the universe in the manner that it happened afterwards. 3. When Gaṇeśa was killed, the Gaṇas were very jubilant. They played on Mṛdaṅgas and Paṭahas. 4. After cutting off the head of Gaṇeśa even as Śiva became sorry, goddess Pārvatī became furious, O great sage. 5. “O what shall I do? Where shall I go? Alas, great misery has befallen me. How can this misery, this great misery be dispelled now? 6. “My son has been killed by all the gods and the Gaṇas. I shall destroy them all or create a deluge.” 7. Lamenting thus, the great goddess of all the worlds angrily created in a moment hundreds and thousands of Śaktis. 8. Śaktis who were thus created, bowed to Pārvatī, the mother of the universe and blazing brilliantly spoke—“O mother, be pleased to command.” 9. O great sage, on hearing that, Pārvatī, the Śakti of Śiva, the Prakṛti, the great Māyā, spoke to them all in great fury. 10. O Śaktis, O goddesses, now a great deluge shall be created by you at my bidding. You need not hesitate in this regard. 11. “O friends, devour forcibly all these sages, gods, Yakṣas, Rākṣasas belonging to us and others.” 12. On being commanded by her, the infuriated Śaktis got ready to destroy the gods and others. 13. Just as the fire consumes dry grass so also these Śaktis attempted to destroy. 14-15. Leaders of Gaṇas or Viṣṇu, Brahmā or Śiva, Indra or Kubera, Skanda or the Sun—Śaktis began to destroy them. Wherever one looked, Śaktis were present. 16. Karālīs (the Terrific), Kubjakās (the humpbacked), Khañjās (the lame), Lambaśīrṣās (the tall-headed) the innumerable Śaktis took up the gods with their hands and threw them in their own mouths. 17-18. On seeing that Śiva, Brahmā, Viṣṇu, Indra, the other gods, Gaṇas and the sages began to doubt what the Goddess Pārvatī would be doing, whether she would create an untimely dissolution. Their hopes and aspirations for life were quelled. 19. They all gathered together and discussed—“What shall be done now? Let us ponder.” Discussing thus they spoke to one another. 20. “Only when the goddess Pārvatī is pleased can there be a relief; not otherwise, even with our maximum efforts. 21. Even Śiva who is an expert in different sports and is deluding us all, seems distressed like an ordinary man. 22. When the hips of all the gods are broken and Pārvatī is fiery in rage, none of them dare stand before her. 23-24. Whether a person belonging to her or to others, whether a god, a demon, a Gaṇa, a guardian of the quarters, a Yakṣa, a Kinnara, a Sage, Brahmā, Viṣṇu or even lord Śiva himself, none could stand before Śiva. 25. On seeing her dazzling brilliance, burning all round, all of them were frightened and they stayed far away. 26. In the meantime, O sage Nārada, you of divine vision came there for the happiness of the gods and Gaṇas. 27. After bowing to me, Brahmā, Viṣṇu and Śiva and discussing jointly, he said—“Let us think and act together.” 28. The gods then discussed with you of noble soul “How could our misery be quelled.” They then said. 29. As long as the goddess Pārvatī does not favour us there will be no happiness. No suspicion need be entertained in this matter. 30. You and other sages went to Pārvatī in order to appease her anger. They then propitiated her. 31. They bowed to her again and again. They eulogised her with many hymns. They tried to please her with devotion and at the behest of the gods and Gaṇas spoke thus. 32. O Mother of the universe, obeisance to you. Obeisance to you, O Śivā. Obeisance to you. O Caṇḍikā. Obeisance to you, Kalyāṇī. 33. O mother, you alone are the primordial Śakti. You are the eternal cause of creation. You alone are the sustaining power. You alone are the cause of dissolution. 34. O goddess, be pleased. Spread peace. Obeisance be to you. O goddess, the three worlds are agitated by your fury. 35. The great goddess Pārvatī thus eulogised by you and other sages glanced at them furiously. She did not say anything. 36. Then the sages bowed at her lotus like feet and spoke to her in low voice with devotion joining their palms in reverence. 37. O goddess, forgive, forgive. The final dissolution seems near at hand. Your lord is standing here. O mother, you see him. 38. What are we, the gods, Viṣṇu, Brahmā and others? We are only your subjects. We stand here with palms joined in reverence. 39. O great goddess, our guilts shall be forgiven. We are agitated and distressed. O Pārvatī give us peace. 40. After saying this, the agitated and distressed sages stood in front of her with palms joined in reverence. 41. On hearing their words Pārvatī was pleased and she replied to the sages with her mind full of compassion. 42-43. If my son regains life there may not be further annihilation. If you can arrange for him an honourable status and position among you as the chief presiding officer, there may be peace in the world. Otherwise you will never be happy. 44. Thus warned, you and other sages returned and intimated to all the gods everything in detail. 45. On hearing that, Indra and other gods joined their palms in reverence and piteously intimated to Śiva what had transpired there. 46. On hearing what the gods said, Śiva spoke thus—“It shall be done accordingly so that there may be peace over all the worlds.” 47. “You shall go to the northern direction and whatever person you meet at first you cut off his head and fit it to this body.” 48. Then they carried out Śiva’s behests and acted accordingly. They brought the headless body of Gaṇeśa and washed it well. 49. They paid homage to it and started towards the north. It was a single-tusked elephant that they met. 50-51. They took the head and fitted it to the body. After joining it, the gods bowed to Śiva, Viṣṇu and Brahmā and spoke—“What has been ordered by you has been carried out by us. Let the task left incomplete be performed now.” 52. Then the Pārṣadas shone happily. After hearing those words they awaited eagerly what Śiva would say. 53. Then Brahmā, Viṣṇu and other gods spoke after bowing to lord Śiva who is free from the ill effects of the attributes. 54. They said:—“Since we all are born out of your brilliant Energy let that Energy come into it by the recitation of the Vedic mantras. 55. Saying so, they jointly sprinkled the holy water, invoked by the mantras on that body after remembering Śiva. 56. Immediately after the contact of the holy water the boy was resuscitated to life and joined with consciousness. As Śiva willed, the boy woke up as from a sleep. 57. He was handsome, extremely comely. He had the face of an elephant. He was red-complexioned. He was delighted with face beaming. He was brilliant and had fine features. 58. O great sage, on seeing the son of Pārvatī resuscitated to life, they all rejoiced and their miseries came to an end. 59. They showed him delightfully to the goddess. On seeing her restored to life, the goddess was greatly delighted. Article published on 15 October, 2018

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. O lord of subjects, when the son of Pārvatī was resuscitated and seen by.the goddess, what happened then? Please narrate to me now. 2. O great sage, when the son of Pārvatī was resuscitated and seen by the goddess, listen to what happened there. I shall narrate the jubilation that ensued. 3. O sage, that son of Pārvatī was resuscitated. He was free from distress and perturbation. Then he was crowned by the gods and the leaders of Gaṇas. 4. On seeing her son, Pārvatī was highly delighted. Taking him up with both her hands she embraced him joyously. 5. She then lovingly gave him different clothes and ornaments. 6. He was honoured by the goddess who bestowed all Siddhis on him and touched him with her hand that removes all distress. 7. After worshipping her son, and kissing his face, she granted him boons with affection and said—“You have had great distress since your very birth. 8. You are blessed and contented now. You will receive worship before all the gods. You will be free from distress. 9. Vermillion is visible on your face now. Hence you will be worshipped with vermillion by all men always. 10-12. All achievements certainly accrue to him who performs your worship with flowers, sandal paste, scents, auspicious food offerings Nīrājana rites, betel leaves, charitable gifts, circumambulations and obeisance. All kinds of obstacles will certainly perish. 13. After saying this, she worshipped her good son with various articles, once again. 14. O Brahmin, then with the graceful blessings of Pārvatī, instantly peace reigned upon gods and particularly on the Gaṇas. 15. In the meantime, Indra and other gods eulogised and propitiated Śiva joyously and brought him devoutly near Pārvatī. 16. After pleasing her they placed the boy in her lap for the happiness of the three worlds. 17. Placing his lotus-like hand on his head, Śiva told the gods. “This is another son of mine.” 18-19. Getting up and bowing to Śiva, Pārvatī, Viṣṇu and me, Gaṇeśa stood in front of Nārada and other sages and said—“My guilt shall be forgiven. Arrogance is the characteristic of Man’s nature.” 20. We three Śiva, Viṣṇu and I said to the gods simultaneously with pleasure, after granting him excellent boons 21. “O great gods, just as we three are worshipped in all the three worlds, so also he shall be worshipped by all of you.” 22. We are the offsprings of primordial nature. He is also the same and hence worthy of worship. He is the remover of all obstacles and the bestower of the fruits of all rites. 23. He shall be worshipped first and we shall be worshipped afterwards. If he is not worshipped, we too are not worshipped. 24. If the other deities are worshipped when he is not worshipped, the fruit of that rite will be lost. There is no doubt in this matter. 25-26. After saying this we worshipped him. Śiva worshipped Gaṇeśa with various articles of worship. Viṣṇu worshipped him afterwards. I, Brahmā, and Pārvatī too worshipped him. He was then worshipped by all the gods and Gaṇas with great joy. 27. In order to gratify Pārvatī, Gaṇeśa was proclaimed as the presiding officer by all, Brahmā, Viṣṇu, Śiva and others. 28. Again, with a joyful mind, several boons were granted by Pārvatī to him, always favourable to all in the world. 29. “O son of Pārvatī, I am pleased, there is no doubt about it. When I am pleased the entire universe is pleased. None will be against the same. 30. Since, even as a boy you showed great valour as Pārvatī’s son, you will remain brilliant and happy always. 31. Let your name be the most auspicious in the matter of quelling obstacles. Be the presiding officer of all my Gaṇas and worthy of worship now.” 32. After saying this, Śiva laid down several modes of worship and granted benedictions instantaneously. 33. The gods, the Gaṇas and the celestial damsels sang songs joyously, danced and played on instruments. 34. Another boon was granted to Gaṇeśa by the delighted Śiva of great soul. 35-37. O Gaṇeśa, you are born in the first Prahara on the fourth day in the dark half of the Bhādra mouth at the auspicious hour of the moonrise. Since your form manifested itself from the good mind of Pārvatī, your excellent Vrata shall be performed on that Tithi itself or beginning from that day. It will be very auspicious and conducive to the achievement of all Siddhis. 38. At the bidding of us both the Vrata shall be performed till the fourth day at the end of a year. 39. Let those who yearn for unequalled happiness in the world worship you devoutly in various ways on the fourth day in accordance with the rules. 40. On the fourth day of Lakṣmī in the month of Mārgaśīrṣa he shall perform early morning ablution and entrust the Vrata to the brahmins. 41. He shall perform worship with the Dūrvā grass and observe fast. After a Prahara has elapsed in the night the devotee shall take bath and worship. 42-43. The idol shall be made of metal, coral, white Arka flowers or clay. It shall be installed and worshipped by the devotee with all purity, with scents of various kinds, divine sandal paste and flowers. 44-45. A handful of Dūrvā grass having three knots and without roots shall be used for worship. The shoots shall be hundred and one in number. With twentyone the idol shall be worshipped. Gaṇeśa shall be adored with incense, lamps and different kinds of food-offerings. 46. After worshipping you with various articles of worship like betel etc. and eulogising you with hymns, the devotee shall worship the crescent moon. 47. Afterwards, he shall feed the brahmins joyously with sweets with due honour. He himself shall take sweets and avoid salt. 48. Then the rites shall formally be dismissed. Then he shall remember Gaṇeśa. Thus the Vrata shall be concluded auspiciously. 49. When thus the Vrata is duly completed in a year, the devotee shall perform the rite of formal dismissal for the completion of the Vrata. 50. At my bidding twelve brahmins shall be fed. After placing a jar your image shall be worshipped. 51. After making the eight-petalled lotus diagram on the ground in accordance with Vedic injunctions a sacrifice shall be performed by the liberal people who have no disinclination to spend money. 52. Two women and two students shall be worshipped and fed in front of the idol duly. 53. The devotee shall keep awake at night and perform worship in the morning. After that the rites of formal dismissal with the mantra “Kṣemāya Punarāgamanāya Ca.” (For welfare and return again) shall be performed. 54. The benediction as well as good wishes shall be received from the boy. In order to make the Vrata complete, handfuls of flowers shall be offered. 55. After prostrations, various routines shall be carried on. He who performs Vratas like this can secure the desired fruits. 56. O Gaṇeśa, he who performs your worship upto his ability, with faith, shall derive the fruit of all desires. 57. The devotee shall worship you, the lord of Gaṇas with vermillion, sandal paste, raw rice grains and Ketaka flowers as well as with other services. 58. They who devoutly worship you with acts of service will achieve success. Their obstacles will be quelled. 59. These Vratas shall be performed by the people of all castes, particularly by women as well as kings aiming and beginning to be prosperous and flourishing. 60. He will certainly derive whatever he desires. Hence you shall always be served by him whoever he is who desires fruits. 61-62. When this was mentioned by Śiva to Gaṇeśa of great soul, O sage, the gods, the sages and the Gaṇas, favourites of Śiva said “So be it” and worshipped Gaṇeśa according to prescribed rules. 63. All the Gaṇas, particularly bowed to Gaṇeśa and adored him respectfully with various articles. 64. O great sage, how can I describe even with my four mouths the indescribable delight of Pārvatī. 65. The divine drums were sounded. The celestial damsels danced. The Gandharva chiefs sang. Flowers were showered upon him. 66. When Gaṇeśa was installed, the whole universe attained peace and normalcy. There was great jubilation. All miseries ended. 67. O Nārada, Pārvatī and Śiva rejoiced in particular. Good and plentiful auspiciousness was conducive to happiness everywhere. 68-69. The gods and the sages, who had come there, returned at the bidding of Śiva praising Pārvatī and Gaṇeśa again and again, eulogising Śiva and saying “O what a battle!” 70. When Pārvatī became free from fury, Śiva and Pārvatī behaved as before. 71. With a desire for the welfare of the worlds, the great deity relaxing in his own soul and engaged in the activities of the devotees conferred different kinds of happiness. 72. Both Viṣṇu and I took leave of Śiva and after paying homage to both Pārvatī and Śiva returned to our abodes. 73. O holy sage Nārada, after singing the glory of Pārvatī and Śiva and taking leave of them you too returned to your abode. 74. Thus requested by you, I have narrated the glorious story of Pārvatī and Śiva along with that of Gaṇeśa with great reverence. 75. Whoever hears this narrative auspiciously with pure mind shall have everything auspicious and be the abode of auspiciousness. 76. The childless will get a son, the indigent wealth; the seeker of a wife will get a wife and the seeker of issues will get children. 77. The sick will regain health; the miserable will have good fortune. The sonless, impoverished, banished wife will be reunited with her husband. 78-79. The sorrowing will be relieved of sorrow, undoubtedly. The house that contains this story shall certainly be auspicious. He who listens to this narrative at the time of travel or on holy occasions, with a pure mind shall get all desires, thanks to the grace of lord Gaṇeśa. Article published on 15 October, 2018

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. O dear father, the excellent story of the nativity and the divine conduct embellished by valour, of Gaṇeśa has been heard well. 2. O dear father, O lord of gods, what happened thereafter? Please narrate it. The great glory of Pārvatī and Śiva confers great delight. 3. O excellent sage, you have asked well with a sympathetic mind. Listen attentively, O excellent sage, I shall narrate. 4. O excellent brahmin, seeing frequently the divine sports of both the sons, Pārvatī and Śiva had their love increased. 5. The happiness of the parents knew no bounds. The son too used to sport in joy and love. 6. O great sage, the sons rendered great service to their parents with great devotion. 7. The love and affection of the parents towards the six-faced lord and Gaṇeśa increased to a great extent like the moon in the bright half of the month. 8. O celestial sage, once the loving parents Pārvatī and Śiva held a secret talk and discussion. 9. They thought that the two sons had attained to marriageable age and how best their marriage should be celebrated now. I 0. The sixfaced lord Kārttikeya was their great beloved son. Gaṇeśa too was likewise. Thinking thus they were worried as well as delighted. 11. O sage, coming to know of their parents’ opinion, the sons too were eager to get married. 12. “I shall marry, I shall marry” saying thus to each other they always quarrelled with each other. 13. The couple, the rulers of the worlds, on hearing their words, were very much surprised, following the worldly conventions. 14. A wonderful expedient was devised by them after thinking about the course to be followed in the celebration of their marriage. 15. Once they called the sons to them and spoke as follows. 16. O good sons, we have framed the rules conducive to your happiness. Listen lovingly. We shall tell you the truth. 17. Both of you are good sons and equal in our eyes. There is no difference. Hence a condition that is beneficial to both of you has been made. 18. The auspicious marriage will be celebrated of that boy who comes here first after going round the entire earth. 19. On hearing their words, the powerful Kumāra started immediately from the fixed point in order to go round the earth. 20. Gaṇeśa of excellent intellect stood there itself after pondering in his mind frequently with his keen intellect. 21. “What shall be done? Where am I to go? I cannot cross the earth. At best it may be possible to go a Krośa. I cannot go beyond it. 22. What avails that happiness which is achieved after going round the earth?” Please listen to what Gaṇeśa did after thinking thus. 23. He performed the ceremonial ablution and returned, home. He then spoke to his father and mother. 24. For your worship two seats have I placed here. Please be seated, dear parents. Let my desire be fulfilled. 25. On hearing his words, Pārvatī and Śiva sat on the seats for receiving worship. 26. They were worshipped by him and circumambulated seven times and bowed too seven times. 27. Joining his palms in reverence and eulogising his parents agitated by love and affection, many times, Gaṇeśa the ocean of intelligence, spoke thus. 28. “O mother, O father, you please listen to my weighty words. My auspicious marriage shall be celebrated quickly.” 29. On hearing the words of the noble-minded Gaṇeśa, the parents spoke to him, the storehouse of great intellect. 30. You shall circumambulate the earth with all its forests. Kumāra has already gone. You too start and return first. 31. On hearing the words of his parents, Gaṇeśa spoke immediately and furiously but with some restraint. 32. O mother, O father, you two are intelligent and embodied virtue. Hence O excellent ones, you may be pleased to hear my virtuous words. 33. The earth has been circumambulated by me frequently, for seven times. Why then, my parents should say thus? 34. On hearing his words, the sportively inclined parents, following the worldly conventions spoke to him thus— 35. “O son, when was the great earth circumambulated by you, the earth consisting of seven continents extending to the oceans and consisting of vast jungles? 36. O sage, on hearing the words of Pārvatī and Śiva, Gaṇeśa, the storehouse of great intellect spoke thus. 37. By worshipping you, Pārvatī and Śiva, I have intelligently circumambulated the earth extending to the oceans. 38. Is it not the verdict of the Vedas or the Śāstras or any other sacred code? Is it true or otherwise? 39. “He who worships his parents and circumambulates them, will certainly derive the fruit and merit of circumambulating the earth. 40. He who leaves his parents at home and goes on a pilgrimage incurs the sin of their murder. 41. The holy centre of a son consists of the lotus-like feet of his parents. The other holy centres can be reached only after going a long distance. 42. This holy centre is near at hand, easily accessible and a means of virtue. For a son and wife, the auspicious holy centre is in the house itself.” 43. These things are mentioned frequently in the Śāstras and the Vedas. Now, are they going to be falsified by you? 44. If so, your very forms will come false. Even the Vedas will become false. There is no doubt about it. 45. Let my auspicious marriage be celebrated and that too very quickly. Otherwise let the Vedas and Śāstras be declared false. 46. Of the two alternatives whatever is excellent shall be followed, O parents, embodied virtues! 47. Saying thus, Gāṇeśa of excellent intellect, of great wisdom and foremost among intelligent persons assumed silence. 48. On hearing his words, Pārvatī and Śiva, the rulers of the universe, were very much surprised. 49. Then, Śiva and Pārvatī praised their son who was clever and intelligent and spoke to him who had spoken the truth. 50. O son, you are a supreme soul and your thoughts are pure. What you have said is true and not otherwise. 51. When misfortune comes, if a person is keenly intelligent, his misfortunes perish even as darkness perishes when the sun rises. 52. He who has intelligence possesses strength as well. How can he who is devoid of intellect have strength? The proud lion was drowned in a well with a trick by a little hare. 53. Whatever has been mentioned in the Vedas, Śāstras and Purāṇas for a boy, all that has been performed by you, namely, the observance of virtue. 54. What has been executed by you shall be done by anyone. We have honoured it. It will not be altered now. 55. After saying this and appeasing Gaṇeśa, the ocean of intelligence, they resolved to perform his marriage.

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. In the meantime Prajāpati Viśvarūpa became delighted and happy on knowing their intention. 2. Prajāpati Viśvarūpa had two daughters of divine features. They were famous as Siddhi and Buddhi. They were exquisite in every part of their body. 3. The lord Śiva and Pārvatī, jubilantly celebrated the marriage of Gaṇeśa with them. 4. The delighted gods attended their marriage as desired by Śiva and Pārvatī. 5. Viśvakarman made all arrangements for the marriage. The sages and the gods were full of great joy. 6. The happiness that Gaṇeśa derived by virtue of this marriage, O sage, cannot be adequately described. 7. After some time, the noble Gaṇeśa begot two sons, one each of his wives. They were endowed with divine features. 8. The son Kṣema was born to Siddhi. The highly brilliant son Lābha was born to Buddhi. 9. While Gāṇeśa was enjoying the inconceivable happiness, the second son returned after circumambulating the earth. 10. Thereupon he was addressed by Nārada, the great soul. “I speaking the truth, no lies. I am not actuated by deception or rivalry. 11. What has been done by Śiva and Pārvatī your parents, no other person in the world will ever do. Truth. It is the truth I am speaking. 12. After driving you out under the pretext of circumambulating the earth, they have celebrated the excellent and auspicious marriage of Gaṇeśa. 13. By this marriage that was celebrated, Gaṇeśa has obtained two wives joyously. They are the excellent daughters of Prajāpati Viśvarūpa. 14. He has begot of his two wives of auspicious body two sons, Kṣema of Siddhi and Lābha of Buddhi. They bestow happiness on every one. 15. Begetting two sons of auspicious features of his wives Gaṇeśa is continuously enjoying happiness as conceived by your parents. 16. The entire earth consisting of oceans and jungles has been traversed by you due to their deceptive behest. O dear, this is the result of that. 17. O dear, consider. If parents begin to deceive or particularly if our masters begin to deceive, won’t others also begin to deceive. 18. Your parents have not done well. Just ponder over it. I don’t think their action has been good. 19. If mother were to poison her son, if father were to sell his son, if the king were to confiscate the assets of his subjects what can be said and to whom? 20. O dear, an intelligent peace-loving person shall never look at the face of the person who has committed this harmful deed. 21. This policy has been mentioned in the Vedas, Smṛtis and sacred texts. It has been intimated to you now. Do as you wish.” 22. O Nārada, following the mental process of lord Śiva, you spoke these words to Kumāra and then kept quiet. 23. After bowing to his father, the infuriated Skanda went to the Krauñca mountain though forbidden by his parents. 24. “Even when forbidden by us why do you go?” Although he was prevented by saying this, he went away saying “No”. 25. “O parents, I shall not stay here even a moment when deception has been practised on me eschewing affection towards me.” 26. O sage, he went away saying so. Even today he is staying there removing the sin of all by his very vision. 27. Ever since that day, O celestial sage, the son of Śiva, Kārttikeya remains a bachelor. 28. His name bestows auspiciousness in the world. It is famous in the three worlds. It dispels all sins, is meritorious and confers the sanctity of celibacy. 29. In the month of Kārttika, the gods, the holy sages and great ascetics go there to see Kumāra. 30. He who has the vision of the lord in the Kṛttikā Nakṣatra in the month of Kārttika is divested of all sins. He derives all desired fruits. 31. Pārvatī became grief-stricken by separation from Skanda. She piteously told her lord. “O lord, let us go there.” 32. Śiva went to that mountain partially for her happiness. He assumed the pleasing form of Jyotirliṅga named Mallikārjuna. 33. Even now Śiva is seen there with Pārvatī satisfying the desires of his devotees. He is the goal of the good. 34. On coming to know that Śiva had come there with Pārvatī, Kumāra became unattached and was eager to go elsewhere. 35. On being requested by the gods and sages he stayed in a place three Yojanas away. 36. O Nārada, on the full and new moon days, Pārvatī and Śiva are excited by love towards their son and they go there to see him. 37. On new moon days, Śiva himself goes there. On full moon days, Pārvatī goes there certainly. 38. O great sage, whatever you had asked in regard to Kārttikeya and Gaṇeśa has been narrated by me. 39. On hearing this, an intelligent man becomes free from all sins. He achieves all desired fruits of auspicious nature. 40. Whoever reads, teaches, listens or narrates this story derives all desires. No doubt need be entertained in this respect. 41. A brahmin derives brahminical splendour, a Kṣatriya becomes victorious, a Vaiśya prosperous and a Śūdra attains equality with the good. 42. A sick man becomes free from sickness; a frightened man becomes free from fear; no man is harassed by the visitation of goblins, ghosts etc. 43. This narrative is sinless, conducive to glory and enhancer of happiness. It is conducive to longevity and attainment of heaven. It is unequalled and bestows sons and grandsons. 44. It confers salvation and reveals Śiva’s principles. It is pleasing to Pārvatī and Śiva and increases devotion to Śiva. 45. This shall always be heard by devotees and by those who seek liberation and are free from worldly desires. It confers identity with Śiva. It is conducive to welfare and is identical with Śiva himself.