Dharma Katha · Season 2: Navratri · Episode 95

At the very end of the war, the demon king looks at the Goddess and sneers. You are proud, Durga, he says. But you are a cheat. You do not fight by your own strength. You fight with all these others around you. Kali, the Mothers, Shiva's messenger, your lion. Where is your pride now? And the Goddess answers him with one of the most famous lines in the whole Devi Mahatmya. And then, as he watches, every one of those other goddesses walks into her body and disappears.

Missed the previous story? Listen to Episode 91 first.

Source note. Label: Purana, with quotations. The story is the Devi Mahatmya, chapters nine and ten, retold from the text and translation on devimahatmyam.aurobharati.in: the king's question; the brothers' attack; the duel with Nishumbha and his weapons; Shumbha's eight arms; the conch, bow, bell, Kali and Shivaduti; Shumbha's swoon; Nishumbha's ten thousand arms; the being from his heart; the Mothers' slaughter of the army; Shumbha's taunt; the Goddess's reply and the goddesses entering her; the duel, the fight in the sky, and Shumbha's death; and the world restored. The verses quoted are chapter nine, verse thirty-five, and chapter ten, verse five, as numbered there. Speeches are shortened and paraphrased. The reflection on Ashtami is my own. A Sanskrit reader should confirm the verses.

Note: this episode is narrated with an AI voice and the script was written with AI assistance. Sanskrit verses are checked against published editions; corrections are welcome.