The Story of Goddess Durga: The War Goddess of the Universe's Last Hope
Tells the story of the beginning of the embodiment of Goddess Durga as a form of the last weapon when the gods could not defeat a giant who could only be defeated by a woman. Dewi Durga has a beautiful and charming face but behind all that Dewi Durga has a very powerful power.
Illustration of Mahishasura's asceticism responded by Brahman (source: personal collection)
To gain that power he prayed with one foot to Lord Brahma, without food or water, for many years. He prayed so hard, so long, that news of his penance spread far and wide. Even Lord Brahma sensed the prayers, as they grew stronger with time. One day, Brahma appeared before Mahishasura. He asked what blessings Mahishasura wanted. Mahishasura replied that he wanted immortality. Brahma rejected the request explaining that it was impossible. Every living being is born to die, then reborn. That is the law of nature. Mahishasura changed his request, he wanted to be invincible. No god, demon, or magical being can kill me. If I must die, I will die at the hands of a woman. Mahishasura was so sure he would never be defeated by a woman.
Mahishasura's wish was granted by Brahma, by emitting a bright shining blessing light now mahishasura got the blessing he wanted. At the first opportunity he got, mahishasura immediately gathered an army of asuras and began to torment the people of earth and heaven. Mahishasura became very arrogant and intended to rule the 3 worlds by invading with his army.
Illustration of the gods descending to stop Mahishasura (source: personal collection)
The gods were getting anxious because they were unable to defeat Mahishasura. then the gods left their kingdom. However, Lord Vishnu, Shiva, Indra, and Brahma fought against Mahishasura for a long time. But Mahishasura's strength plus the grace of Lord Brahma, made him impossible to defeat. Their only hope was a woman strong enough to defeat Mahishasura. There was no one as strong as her, in the entire world. So the gods decided to unite all their powers and bring a woman to life, a goddess who had the power of all the gods together.
Once her form was almost ready, Lord Vishnu gave her a chakra similar to his, Lord Shiva a trident, Lord Agni a sadagni, and Lord Brahma a kamandal filled with holy water. They named her Durga or Mahadevi. She is invincible. The only one who could defeat Mahishasura. Goddess Durga set out with her harima to Amravati, to fight the evil Mahishasura.
When Mahishasura heard about the woman on the tiger, he was hardly intimidated. His army was sufficient to defeat her, he thought. He sent his best troops and minions to fight the woman. Goddess Durga managed to defeat all the troops sent by Mahishasura. Then Goddess Durga continued to move closer to Mahishasura. Mahishasura was not silent, he continued to send troops to stop the woman. However, Goddess Durga always managed to defeat them.
The battle between Goddess Durga and Mahishasura was no ordinary battle. It was a battle that lasted for nine days and nights. Each day, Mahishasura transformed into a different creature to trick Durga. However, with his magic, Durga always managed to deal with him. On the first day, Mahishasura transformed into a ferocious lion. The Second Day, Mahishasura turned into a giant elephant. The Third Day, Mahishasura transformed into a strong bull. However, Durga remained steadfast and managed to defeat all forms of Mahishasura. The following days, Mahishasura continued to transform into various terrible creatures, such as multi-headed giants, dragons, and even very handsome humans to seduce Durga. However, Durga remained firm in her stance and was not swayed by any of Mahishasura's tricks.
Illustration of goddess Durga defeating Mahishasura (source: personal collection)
On the tenth day, after a long battle, Goddess Durga finally managed to find Mahishasura's weak point. Mahishasura returned to his original form. With her flaming trident, Durga stabbed Mahishasura right in the chest. Mahishasura was killed instantly. Goddess Durga's victory over Mahishasura was certain. With Mahishasura's death, the balance of the universe was restored and freed from Mahishasura's terror. The gods and heavenly beings held a massive celebration to celebrate Goddess Durga's victory over Mahishasura. This celebration later evolved into the Durga Puja celebration which is still celebrated today.
