Durga Saptashati · Chandi Path
The Devi Mahatmya
The Glory of the Goddess: 700 verses from the Markandeya Purana, composed around the 5th or 6th century CE and recited at every Navratri. Here in full, Sanskrit beside English, chapter by chapter.
Three episodes, three forms
The first episode
Chapter 1
Presided over by Mahakali
Vishnu sleeps on the cosmic ocean. Two demons, Madhu and Kaitabha, threaten Brahma, and the Goddess as the power of sleep releases Vishnu to fight them.
The middle episode
Chapters 2 to 4
Presided over by Mahalakshmi
The gods pool their radiance into one blazing Goddess, who defeats the buffalo demon Mahishasura. The gods praise her.
The last episode
Chapters 5 to 13
Presided over by Mahasaraswati
The brothers Shumbha and Nishumbha seize heaven. The Goddess, with Kali, Chamunda and the Mothers, defeats their armies and generals, then grants boons to a king and a merchant.
The thirteen chapters
The slaughter of Madhu and Kaitabha in the account of the Savarnika Manv-antara
104 verses
Slaughter of the army of the Asura Mahisha
69 verses
The slaying of the Asura Mahisha
44 verses
The slaying of the Asura Mahisha concluded
42 verses
The goddess' conversation with the Asura's messenger
129 verses
The slaying of Sumbha and Nisumbha's general Dhumra-loc'ana
24 verses
The slaying of C'anda and Munda
27 verses
The slaying of Rakta-vija
63 verses
The slaying of Nisumbha
41 verses
The slaying of Sumbha
32 verses
The Eulogy of the Goddess
55 verses
The slaying of Sumbha and Nisumbha concluded
41 verses
The Devi-mahatmya (concluded)
29 verses
Sanskrit: Sanskrit Wikisource contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0. English: F. E. Pargiter, The Markandeya Purana (1904), public domain. Details on each chapter page.