Chapter 3 · Tṛtīyo’dhyāyaḥ (Third Chapter)
Verse 41
ततः सोऽपि पदाऽऽक्रान्तस्तया निजमुखात्ततः। अर्धनिष्क्रान्त एवासीद् देव्या वीर्येण संवृतः ॥ ४१ ॥
tataḥ sō’pi padā’’krāntastayā nijamukhāttataḥ | ardhaniṣkrānta ēvāsīd dēvyā vīryēṇa saṁvṛtaḥ || 41 ||
Translation
'Then, he, pressed down by her foot, was half-emerged from his own mouth, overcome by the Goddess's power.'
Word by word
- tataḥ
- then
- saḥ
- he
- api
- also
- padākrāntaḥ
- pressed down by the foot
- tayā
- by her
- nijamukhāt
- from his own mouth
- ardhaniṣkrāntaḥ
- half-emerged
- eva
- indeed
- āsīt
- was
- devyā
- by the Goddess's
- vīryeṇa
- with power, energy
- saṁvṛtaḥ
- enveloped, overcome
Meaning
This verse describes a miraculous event. Under the immense spiritual force (vīrya) of the Goddess, Mahishasura is forced out of his own buffalo body. He is shown half-emerged from the buffalo's mouth, a powerful image representing the expulsion of the demonic spirit from the form it had possessed. The Goddess's energy is literally pushing his true essence out.