STRUGGLE BETWEEN GOOD AND EVIL

[Jungee]

STRUGGLE BETWEEN GOOD AND EVIL - THE MYTHICAL STORY OF GODDESS CHANDI.

The story of Goddess Chandi and Var Bhagauti Ji Ki in Sri

Dasam Granth Sahib are mythical, where the human

Instincts and Passions have been personified as Demons,

goddess Chandi as God’s Light (JOT) in all, verily God

abiding in all as SatGuru, and Human Self as gods.

Who is Goddess Chandi? Guru Gobind Singh in the

Introduction to the description of 'Twenty Four Avtars of

Vedic conception, translated from the Purans, states:

"God is the Father of this Universe, in that all activity of

creatures (both visible and invisible) is verily His Potential.

The Energy or Light that emanated from Him is called the

Primeval Force (Bhavani, or Chandi, or Durga or

Jagdumbay, etc). This Energy is instrumental in the creation

of the Universes."

"pritham kal sab jag ko tata, tahan tai bhio tej bikhiata. so hi

bhavani nam kahai, jin sagri yeh sarist upahi."

Many spurious stories of worship of goddess Chandi have

been coined by ignorant writers, who did not understand

what this goddess Chandi stands for. We give below one of

the story appearing in the book, "A History of the Sikh

People" by Dr. Gopal Singh:

One day, a Brahmin of great repute, Kesho Das by name,

came from Banares to visit the Guru. He claimed that if he

were helped with the wherewithals for a 'homa' (sacrificial

fire), he would make visible the goddess of power, Chandi

or Durga, also known as Kali. He said it was through

extreme austerities and tapas that the goddess would appear,

and only if a man like him were to be the master of

ceremonies. He harangued the followers of the Guru also on

the great blessings that the goddess would bestow on

whosoever could invoke her grace. Such a one could never

be defeated in war. He attributed the successes of ancient

Hindu heroes like Bhim and Arjun to their being the

votaries of Durga.

The Sikhs were much impressed with his talk and supported

his request to the Guru. The Guru replied: "Even gods and

goddesses are subject to the Will and the Authority of One

God, Who is supreme over all creation. He, it is from

Whom we should seek all boons and benedictions. He gives

man the power to make and unmake his destiny if man

surrenders himself to Him and fights only for his causes."

But, it appears ever though the devout Sikhs were

convinced with these arguments, not so the hillfolk in

whose midst the Guru now lived and who were only

grudgingly being drawn towards his instruction, which were

wholly opposed to their age-old traditional beliefs. So, as

Dr. Gokal Chand Narang rightly points out (Transformation

of Sikhism, pages 85- 86), in order to convince them of the

futility of their beliefs, "the Guru ordered a great sacrifice

(homa) to be performed with the ostensible object of

making the goddess appear. The ceremony is said to have

lasted for a year. At the end of that time, when Duga

Ashatmi came round again, the Guru asked the presiding

priest when the goddess would make her appearance. The

Pandit said that the goddess would reveal herself only if a

pure and holy man of noble lineage sacrificed himself at the

altar, and had his head flung into the fire. The Guru was

apparently pleased, and said to the Pandit with a smile of

sarcasm on his lips, 'Where shall we find, revered sir, a

holier man than yourself whose head could form a fitting

offering to the goddess.' The Pandit was struck dumb and

decamped on a false pretext. The Guru flung all the

remaining material into the fire and came out from behind

the screens with a drawn sword flashing in his hand. The

large quantity of the homa material thrown in a lump into

the fire blazed forth in a large flame which being on a lofty

hill was seen for miles around, and was taken as a sign of

the propitiation and appearance of the goddess.

The Guru then, walked down the hill of the Nainadevi, a

drawn sword in his hand, and said to the crowd waiting

breathlessly for his vision: "This is the true manifestation of

the goddess of Power, the shining steel with which evil is

punished and virtue protected and rewarded. He, who is

willing to taste its baptism for a righteous cause invokes

indeed the blessings of God."

The "Purans", Hindu religious books are the mythical

stories. The events in the stories are described in the

Symbolic Language, and cannot be taken literally. The

'Purans" are 18 in number, and Markandya Puran, which

contains the story of Goddess Chandi, is one of them. Guru

Gobind Singh made three translations of this Puran with

certain modifications. He made two translations in Brij

Bhasha (Sanskritized Hindi) called "Chandi Chritras", and

one in Punjabi Language, called "Chandi Ki Var". The word

"Chritra" means description or illustration. At the end of the

first Chandi Chritra, the Guru states the objective of his

making translation of the Puran. The Guru says:

"I have merely narrated the story, which is the human

drama. This has been completed and whosoever reads it will

obtain the objective."

The phenomenon of life is dependent on the existence of the

vital Energy in an organism. The main phases of life are

growth toward maturation and finally decline toward death.

During life the Vital Energy in us makes it possible to

further incorporate the energy from the environments the

energy we take in the form of food, the substances are partly

retained and partly eliminated. In the young ones more

environmental energy taken in is retained than eliminated,

hence the young ones grow. When the necessary growth is

attained, a new phenomenon appears - tendency to

reproduce with a psychological orientation to love other in

the mature sense. The surplus energies, which can no longer

be used for growth, create a tension, which is resolved in the

form of reproduction. The display of this energy in its

various forms has been described as "Goddess Chandi" -

God's Light or the Vital Energy or the Life Principle.

The Vital Force in us (God’s Light - Jot, called SOUL)

manifests Itself through our nervous system. Brain is the

main controlling center, while spinal column (back bone) is

the center of all our reflex actions. All actions, which are

performed as a matter of course, without any thinking, as a

result of our habits, are effected through the back bone.

Goddess Chandi has been described as the daughter of

Himalayan Mountains, that is, the Spinal Column or the

Back Bone.The Guru first salutes God as the Creator of all

and every thing in the Universe. He created living beings

and endowed them with the instinctual drives, thus creating

eternal conflicts in them and also with other fellow beings.

This has given rise to major conflicts in the world between

good and evil and the causes of enmity. He alone is the

Author of all this, but He keeps Himself aloof from all these

conflicts and witnesses all these conflicts. His Light

manifests Itself in His creation, It shines, glares and glitters

in annihilation of the evil.

"O God, Thou art the Savior of the people and Destroyer of

the demons. Thou art the Creator of Shiva, Brahma,

Lakshmi, the Daughter of the Himalayan Mountains

(Chandi) and that Thou art All Preserving"

"taran lok udharan bhoomai, daint sangharan chand tu hihai.

karam eis kala kamla har adhar suta jeh dekho ohi hai".

Chandi is only His Light, the Creative and the Destructive

Power of God, verily God Himself.

In all cultures the symbolic meaning of Sword is Tongue,

which signifies Speech, Intellect, Wisdom, Reason, etc. The

Speech (Vak or Shabad) represents thought, idea, reason,

etc. Speech has the direct bearing on Vital Energy (Heat or

Agni), which represents all the Five Elements constituting

our body. This is the Creative Power of God. Chandi,

therefore, represents the metaphysical principle of God, for

sustaining all life, both in Vedas and the Purans. In Vedas it

is described as the Universal Power called, the VAK or

Shabad or Speech. In Rig Veda this Power of God is called

the "The Great Mother". She is the mother of gods

identified as "Aditi", Universal Nature or Infinity (Rig

Veda). "Speech is Thouself. O The Indestructible and the

Eternal One. Thou art the Immortal, A-U-M in eternal

Akasha, Braham." (Markandaya Puran 1.54).The Conflicts

in Man between the Divine Powers of Truth, Light and

Immortality on the one hand and the instinctual drives

leading to darkness, untruth and death, on the other, is the

theme of Chandi Chritra. The Victory of the Divine element

over the irrational impulses has been glorified. The demons

represent the lower part of the mind, the gods Vishnu, Indra,

etc. represent the real self in man. We learn from this

treatise that the Animal in Man is Very Powerful, and the

Animal Power has to be Reckoned With. The Animal

Forces invariably vanquish the gods (our real self), who in

turn looks to the Supreme Power for help in restoration of

the lost authority. In most of the Hindu mythical stories,

severe conflict is depicted between the beast in man and his

real self, and the latter not being equal in strength loses the

battle and the supplication for the Divine Support, is made,

and then the animal forces are eliminated restoring the right

place of the real self in man. These three layers in man's

thinking are accepted in the Sikh Teachings. Sikhs daily

make supplication to God to establish the Spiritual and

mental harmony in them so that they may subordinate their

instinctual desires to the dictates of the ntellect, which in

turn be guided by the Divine Power. One must know his

real Self, must seek enlightenment through knowledge,

integrity and activity by identifying with the highest ethical

values. The Sikhs daily pray - sikhan da mun nivan, mat

oochi, mat pat ka rakha akal purkh Wahiguru.

The story of Goddess Chandi has been divided into the

following three parts:

(1) Conflict with Madh and Kitab.

(2) Conflict with Mahkhasar.

(3) Conflict with Sumbh and Nisumb and the following

subsidiary demons:

(a) Dhoomar Lochan

( Chand and Mund, and

© Rakat Bij.

We may study each of the above mentioned Conflicts in

brief. Reference to these conflicts are given in Sri Guru

Nanak Dev Jee’s Astpadies in angs 226 - 227 of Sri Guru

Granth Sahib Jee.

(1) CONFLICT OF MADH AND KITABM

When there was no creation, God alone was there and lying

asleep (latent state) on the cushion of Hydra Serpent in a

vast frightful ocean. God first created Brahma (the Creative

Power in the Universe) from His navel. He then created the

demons from His ear wax. He named the two demons (one

man and one woman) as Madh and Kitab. The demons

developed their bodies in huge dimensions. Brahma was

terrified on seeing them and prayed for the help of the

Divine Mother (Chandi or God's Light). God was then

awakened from sleep and hastened to make the war

preparations in order that the demons could be eliminated

and the rule of gods (righteousness) be established. God

then engaged Himself in fighting battle with the two

demons but could not do away with them, as they were very

powerful. (judh kio tin so bhagwant na mar sakain aat daint

balie hai). In this way, they went on fighting for five

thousand years and none of them felt tired. The demons

were greatly power intoxicated and told their Creator to ask

for a boon from them. God asked for their heads. He then

cut their heads with the Disc Wheel by placing them on His

knees and thighs, and incorporated their light within

Himself. In this way, God established the rule of gods by

killing the demons, and handed over the Kingdom of the

Earth to gods, and Himself took the way to homeward in

Heaven. (devan thapio raj, Madh Kitab ko mar kai, dino

sakal samaj, baikunth gami har bhai.")

According to the myth, the Universe was in the state of

dissolution, or in a state of rest. God alone was there. His

Powers of Creation were in the latent state or in the form of

seed, away from the soil. God then lay Himself in the

Cosmic Womb. He then brought into Being His Inner most

Self, the Immaculate Lotus of Pure Consciousness from

which is born all Wisdom and Knowledge. In Vedic

literature, God is said to have created from His navel, the

thousand petalled Lotus Flower, depicting this Universe,

and Brahma (the Creative Power of God was at the center of

all existence.) Brahma, the part of the Creative Power of

God felt that the instinctual powers in man were too great

and had apprehensions of that it may not lead to his total

destruction. Brahma is said to have prayed to "Chandi", the

Light of God or the Life Force, to annihilate the forces of

darkness, which hindered the creative process. This Vital

Energy or the Creative Force or Chandi is identified with

God. It is God's Light and is God, just as there is no

difference between the qualities of the Sun and its rays of

light. It is God, Who came to the rescue of man and

harnessed the Creative Energy from the Animal Power in

man. The Beast in Man is indeed very Powerful (aat daint

balie hai). God in order to control the wildness of Man

directed his surplus energies toward the process of

procreation. He is said to have caused the killing of Madh

and Kitab, i.e. engaged Man and Woman in sexual union,

thus removing the wildness in them. After thus establishing

Peace, God in the Myth is stated to have made His Way

homeward toward Heaven. In Symbolic Language, the

Killing signifies involvement in a sexual inter-course of

man and woman in all cultures. Placing of a person on

thighs is universally accepted symbolism of coitus. God

thus removed the chaos in Man, which was shattering his

peace. He harnessed man's surplus energies into creative

channels and evolved something sublime out of this slush

perpetuating the creative process in him. Guru Arjun in one

of his verses said that

"countless Brahmas are being engaged in the creation of this

Universe."

(kehi kot brahmain jag sajan lagai)

There is the Brahma in every living being - God's Creative

Force. The sex potential in humans is the Divine

endowment. Its sacredness or its offensive and sinful nature

leading to destruction, entirely depends upon observance of

the Laws of God.

It is of great importance to note that in this myth, the

Supreme Creative Power, the Light of God or the Vital

Force, called Goddess Chandi and God are completely

identified. In Sikh Scriptures God's Light in Man is

completely identified with Him and is called "Sat Guru",

verily God Himself. It is quite clear to us that Chandi, God's

Light is Sat Guru, Who is being defined in this myth.

(2) CONFLICT WITH MAHKHASAR

Mahkhasar means a buffalo-headed. In the first part, the

fight is between the sex instinct in Man and his Real Self

(Devas), in which the latter are completely routed. In Vedic

Symbolism, white bull represents "Sun" (Heat) identified

with God, while buffalo symbolizes dark regions of 'Varuna'

or the water element. The Bull loves Heat and the Buffalo

loves water. The Heat in Buffalo is to be extinguished or

consumed by the water, which means a craving for sex

desire. The vanquished gods or devas (Real Self) seek the

support of Shiva or God for Moral Strength. The Self

surrenders to the Divine Power in us (God's Light in us) and

tries to live upto His dictates, and thus gains strength.

According to the Markandya Puran, "from the forces of

God, Brahma and Shiva sprang forth Fierce Heat, and from

the bodies of other devas also, headed by Indra issued forth

a resplendent luster. All this light became unified into one.

The devas saw in front of them a pile of light blazing like a

mountain whose flame filled the whole space. Then that

matchless light born from the bodies of all gods gathered

into a single corpus and turned into a woman enveloping the

three worlds by her luster." (Small wonders, the originators

of the fallacious story that Guru Gobind Singh performed

the yajna and poured into the fire pit all the combustible

material in one lot thus causing a pile of light blazing like a

mountain, must have got the inspiration from the above

account given in the Markandya Puran. Needless to say that

the Sikh history has been written by half wits, totally biased

persons, who had no sense whatsoever what they were

writing about. They could not decipher the myth, but gave

the literal meaning of the myth only.)

Chandi then appeared on Kailash Mountain, the Abode of

Shiva to whom she was wedded. Shiva is considered to be

the Supreme mythical god of Justice. Chandi was seen by

the vanquished gods, while she was going for a bath. The

devas worshipped the goddess and told her of their woeful

story of their defeat from demon Mahkhasar. On hearing

this account she became full of anger, departed toward the

battlefield to kill the demons. She directed the devas (Real

Self) to stay on at Kailash Mountain with Shiva (God).

Chandi then got possession of a conch (war bugle), a lion to

ride and various types of weapons including Sword. The

Guru has described in great detail how this battle was

fought by Chandi with demon Mahkhasar, his numerous

commanders and men. Be it remembered this Life Force has

been personified as Chandi, and the powerful sex instinct as

Mahkhasar and his men. As a result of the fierce fighting by

the men of Mahkhasar with Chandi, the former were

defeated. A man then rushed to report to Mahkhasar about

the complete devastation of his army by Chandi. Mahkhasar

was then greatly enraged and came to fight with Chandi.

Mahkhasar was then killed along with all of his men. The

devas (Real Self) then again became supreme in their region

and began to praise the Goddess in all humility.

NOTE:

Mahkhasar stands for sex instinct, Chandi is God's Light or

the Life Force. Taking bath, fighting and killing, means

channelling the sex instinct in a socially acceptable way

based on ethical principles. This is how man attains victory

over his Self (instincts or the animal forces within him) in

union with God. This is the way how character is build up.

(3) CONFLICT WITH SUMBH AND NISUMBH

After killing of demon Mehkhaser (Wildness of Sex

Instinct), the glory of gods (Higher Self in Man) increased,

and thus peace was established. Thereafter two more most

powerful demons appeared. They were called Sumbh

(Pride) and Nisumbh (Anger). Sumbh (pride or Homain) is

the Basic Human Malady, the root Cause of all disorders in

character traits. Sumbh is therefore described as the King of

all demons. Next to Sumbh, demon Nisumbh (Anger) has

been described as the Brother to Sumbh (Pride or Homain).

Both the demons, Sumbh and Nisumbh made a most

powerful invasion on the territory of Indra (Conscious Self).

The devas led by Indra gave a stiff resistance to the titans

but to no avail. A lengthy account of this fighting between

Sumbh (Pride or Homain) and his brother Nisumbh (Anger)

on one side and gods led by Indra (Our Higher Self) has

been decribed. The devas were expelled from their territory

and the demons took possession of all the three regions.

Devas (Real Self) again went to the domain of Shiva at

Kailash Mountain (Meaning at the top of the body, HEAD,

where abides God in all) for restoration of their Kingdom.

Chandi again heard the story of the Devas (Higher Self in

Man) and promised to help them. She then engaged herself

in a war with the demons. All of a sudden Chandi's forehead

burst open and from there another goddess, black in

color, sprang up, who was named Kali or Kalika. She is the

symbolic of Wisdom coming out of head of Chandi (Life

Force). According to the Greek Mythology, goddess Athene

(Wisdom) was born from the head of god Zeus. On Chandi's

direction, the daughter goddess Kali incorporated herself

back into her mother's body. “Looking at Kali, Chandi

spoke these words to her:

"O my daughter, Kalika! You may merge into me."

(Verse76) For full details please read Verses 74 - 77.

Chandi appeared full of youth and beauty, climbing down

the hill. A demon came to that place on some purpose. On

seeing Chandi, the demon became unconscious, and on

regaining consciousness he saw the perfect beauty of

Chandi. Then with folded hands he told her that he was a

brother to the great King Sumbh, who was then the Supreme

Sovereign of three worlds and that she should marry him.

Chandi replied that she would marry Sumbh, provided the

demon defeated her in a battle.(Verses 81 – 84) The demon,

on hearing this, went to Sumbh and told him that there was

a surprisingly beautiful woman, a jewel among women,

whom he should marry as he had everything in his house

except a wife. Sumbh was greatly allured and became

impassioned to conquer her. The brother described the

beauty of Chandi to Sumbh as an exceptionally beautiful

woman. A beautiful description of Chandi’s beauty is given

in verses 85 – 89, which are matchless in poetry, which only

the Guru could do.

Sumbh despatched a demon, called "Dhoomar Lochan"

(Cloudy Vision) toward Chandi. Dhoomar Lochan was to

persuade Chandi to accept the proposal and to bring her to

him. If Chandi were to resist and insist on a fight, then she

should be captured forcibly and brought to him. Dhoomar

Lochan advanced toward Chandi with his army, and on

reaching at the foot of the mountains shouted at her to either

marry Sumbh or to fight with him. On hearing this, Chandi

climbed down, rode on her tiger and rushed toward

Dhoomar Lochan. (In Mrkande Puran it is Dhoomar

Lochan, and not Dhoomar Nain as stated by Tharam Singh.

It was in Chandi di Var, the Guru translated it as Dhoomar

Nain. However, both mean the same thing, Cloudy Vision).

After a long fight, the demon was killed along with his

army. (Verses 91 – 100 refer).

End of Chapter 3.

Sumbh on hearing this sad news of the death of Dhoomar

Lochan, sent forth Chand (Greed) and Mund (Attachment)

to fight with the goddess. Chand and Mund have also been

described as "wavering mind and infatuation respectively".

A good deal of fighting with these demons took place. In

verse 112, it is stated, Mund took sword in hand, made

another blow at the tiger Chandi was riding, then wounded

the goddess also. As he demon was about to retract after

injuring the goddess, she pulled out an arrow of her quiver.

She shot the arrow and killed many. Then she cornered

Mund and slayed his head. With the same spear she also cut

off the head of Chand.

End of 4th Chapter.

Sumbh and Nisumbh became greatly concerned over the

losses and decided to send demon "Rakat Bij" (rumors and

also hearing ill of others) along with selected army to fight

with Chandi. Guru Gobind Singh has further elucidated

"Rakat Bij" by describing the demon as "Sarnvat Bij". The

word "Sarnvat" means, hearing.

Sarnvat Bij along with his army fought heroically with

Chandi and her army. The demon's most of the army was

killed and the remaining took to flight. The demon again

assembled his men and brought them back to the field. A

dreadful battle was then fought. Sarnvat Bij felt unconscious

but again stood up on regaining the consciousness and

resumed fighting. There was now an unusual phenomenon,

which was that on falling of blood drops of Sarnvat Bij on

the ground a number of demons began to rise up to fight

with the goddess. As the demons began to multiply in this

way, they all the more felt more proud of their might. This

refers to the auto-plastic action of the human mind to

fabricate stories, imagine things and spread rumors. Rumor

is a queer belief which is passed along from person to

person without any evidence of the happening whatsoever.

The rumors spread on account of importance of the thing

and their ambiguity. At each stage the rumors are fabricated

on the basis of one's prejudices. The rumors create wrong

beliefs and more often unnecessary conflicts. The weakness

can be overcome by acquiring knowledge and wisdom.

Chandi then again from her fore-head produced Black

goddess Kali (Wisdom) carrying skull topped staff. Mow

Chandi began to kill the demons and Kali began to drink

their blood and did not allow any drop of blood to fall on

the ground. In this way Sarnvat Bij and his army was

routed. Those who could save their lives went to Sumbh and

told him of their fate.

End of Chapter 5.

Sumbh and Nisumbh were then filled with exceeding rage.

Giving vent to their indignation they rushed forward with

their army, by reassembling those who had fled from the

field earlier, to fight with Chandi and Kali. The fighting was

most dreadful. God then considered of providing more

strength to Chandi, hence all other powers were merged in

her. After forceful fighting, the entire army of demons fled

away from the field.

Fighting with Nisumbh.

Sumbh then told Nisumbh to go forth with his army and

fight with the goddess.

The demons regrouped their forces and took up positions.

Most of the army of Nisumbh got killed. Then began a duel

between Nisumbh and Chandi. Chandi pierced a spear

through the forehead of Nisumbh. The demon pulled out the

spear and thrust it at Chandi, hitting her face. After killing

many powerful demons, Chandi again attacked Nisumbh

with her Sword and severed his head from the body.

End of Chapter 6.

FIGHTING WITH SUMBH (PRIDE).

On hearing the death of Nisumbh (Anger), Sumbh (Pride)

came to the battlefield with his army in great rage. This was

the most devastating battle ever fought. Chandi at the end

thrust her Sword on Sumbh, who was seriously injured and

weakened. She sprang forward, seized him, lifted him up

and threw him down with great force. Sumbh then like a

bird went high up in the sky and Chandi followed him there

and fought with him. The goddess with the lightening stroke

of her Sword cut Sumbh into twain and the parts of his body

fell on the ground. Sumbh, the Pride hath its fall.

End of Chapter 7.

Thus after attaining Victory over all the demons, she blew

her conch (war bugle). The remaining demon forces took to

their heels. Then all the gods assembled there and

worshipped the goddess. Indra thus fully regained his lost

Kingdom.

The third phase of the battle of Chandi, with Sumbh,

Nisumbh, Dhoomar Lochan, Chand and Mund and Sarnvat

Bij represent the psychological complex of confusion,

muddled thinking and delusion. Dhoomar Lochan beheld

the beautiful goddess with lustful eyes, Sumbh (Pride) heard

the account of the woman from his brother and was greatly

attracted and wanted to have possession of her and sent

Chand and Mund to capture her. Sumbh (Pride) and

Nisumbh (Anger) are the root causes of the human sickness.

The story is an excellent exposition of the unending strife in

man between his instincts on one hand and social

acceptability and morality on the other. Man in respect of

his body and psychological functions, belong to the Animal

Kingdom. The functioning of the Animal is determined by

his instincts. Self awareness, reason and imagination make

him to transcend his animal nature and make him a rational

being. There is always the conflict between the Animal in

Man and his reason, which disrupts the internal harmony. In

this story the instinct versus the Self and the instincts versus

Morality Conflicts have been represented as the conflicts

between two persons, or a struggle, a battle, a quarrel. Man

is required to solve the problem of his existence - to evolve

a rational use of his Animal Power in relation to fellow men

and himself. This in nutshell is the purport of the story.

The story could not have remained unnoticed by Guru

Gobind Singh, who evolved a system for the creation of

Guilt Free Conscience in Man. The Guru appears to have

made some modifications to this story from the Markandya

Puran. At places the Guru elucidated the symbolic meaning

of certain characters, for example, he clarified the character

of Rakat Bij by using the word Sarnvat Bij. In Markandya

Puran, Rakat Bij is only used for rumor mongering. The

Guru has purposely ignored the portions of the Markandya

Puran dealing with offering of sacrifices to the goddess. It is

most unfortunate that a very insignificant number of people

who have the true knowledge of the Real Meaning of this

Story of Goddess Chandi, and drive inspiration from it.

Hindus blindly worship the goddess, offer human and

animal sacrifices to the images of the goddess for

performance of magical rites, etc.

The Guru at the end of the story gives his famous Swaiya

praying to God to bless us to ever remember Him and thus

keep us ever engaged in the incessant fight with the Animal

in us for character building, which is the purport of the story

and also the aim of the Guru. The Guru prays:

"O God, grant me this boon, that I may never be deterred

from doing good deeds.

the above artlcle was obtained from BOSS

does anyone have any opinions on this aricle and translation of chandi

[Guest]

Awesome stuff veer.. keep it coming

[Guest]

If anyone doesnt know what chandee di var is.. here is the breif introduction to it...

Introduction

Guru Gobind Singh was a great warrior, saint and poet. He was in all senses, the ideal man. Guru Ji wrote on a number of secular and non-secular issues, all which were collected upon the instance of Mata Sundaree Ji by Bhai Manee Singh Ji. The collection of the various hymns took place approximately two decades after Guru Gobind Singh's passing. Guru Ji, in his writings, wrote about his beloved Lord's glory and also completed many academic works. Compositions such as Krishan Avtaar and Chaubis Avtaar were more academic. These translations were performed so that lay people could have access to these previously exclusive Hindu texts: not because Guru Ji wished them to be a spiritual guide for his Sikhs. Gyanee Sher Singh explains the exposition of Hindu mythology in the Dasam Granth as such, "The Adi Granth contains many allusions and references which, before Guru Gobind Singh's work, could only be learnt from Sanskrit books....The inclusion of such discussions in the Dasam Granth should not make us think that the author accepted and thus relapsed into Hinduism...It is purely an academic interest to have some comparative insight into the teachings of other faiths" (Sher Singh, 59).

In the beginning of Krishan Avtaar, Guru Ji writes that he had composed over a thousand verses at Anandpur, before leaving for Paonta. According to Trilochan Singh, Guru Ji completed Jaap Sahib between the ages of 16 and 18. Trilochan Singh is correct in saying that, "[t]he Dasam Granth is not one book, and the whole of it is not a religious scripture and should not be treated as such. It is a compilation of philosophical, historical and other secular writings of Guru Gobind Singh compiled in one volume by farsighted contemporary apostles of the Master..."

C^DI dI vAr (Chandee Dee Vaar) is a composition of Guru Gobind Singh which describes the war between the goddess Durga and the demons. Chandee Dee Vaar is based upon the Markanday Ka Puraan (a Hindu text). Guru Gobind Singh wrote three separate compositions based upon this story, each in a different language. Chandee Chritra 1, Chandee Chritra 2 and Chandee Dee Vaar. Chandee Dee Vaar is the shortest of the three and the only one in Punjabi.

Guru Gobind Singh sets the scene in Chandee Dee Vaar by describing how Akaal Purakh (God) first created nature and the gods and then to crush to pride of the gods, how the demons were created. The demons are able to conquer Indarpuree or heaven which is the domain of the gods. The gods then approach Durga, the wife of Shiva the destroyer to help them win back their kingdom. Durga takes on two forms, the kind and beautiful Parvatee who is beneficent and the goddess of blessings and that of Durga. Durga or Bhavanee, Chandee etc., takes on a horrifying appearance, and has a different weapon in her eight hands. Durga agrees to aid the gods in their struggle.

The effect of Chandee Dee Vaar on the Sikhs' beliefs is disputed. While some may argue that it was a great composition of Guru Gobind Singh, but one amongst many others, and had no real effect, others suggest it reshaped the Sikhs' views on God. Harjot Oberoi, a controversial scholar of Sikhism, believes the implications of Chandee Dee Vaar are immense. He posits: "In early Sikh tradition God was almost exclusively conceived in masculine terms (Akal Purakh, Karta Purakh) and metaphors (the devotee as a bride yearning for God the bridegroom). The goddess myths in the Dasam Granth transpose the early tradition and add a new maternal dimension to the Sikh understanding of Ultimate Reality." (Oberoi, 97).

The use of the term Bhagautee leads to discussions on this choice as a name for the All Mighty and what is implied by it. Bhai Gurdas first used the word "Bhagautee" in reference to the sword: "Naau bhagautee lohu gharayaa." This is translated: iron (a lowly metal) when properly wrought becomes a (powerful) sword (Neki, Singh, 319). In Sri Guru Granth Sahib, the word Bhagautee is also used as the name of a devotee of God. If it were to be argued that Bhagautee was used as a reference and in devotion of Durga, the second Pourhee of Chandee Dee Vaar provides ample rebuttal. Guru Gobind Singh writes "Taihee Durgaa saajkai daitaa(n) daa naas karaayaa." This is translated, You (God), created Durga and through her you destroyed the demons. This obviously shows that Guru Gobind Singh did not hold Durga as the creator or as the Supreme Being. So the next question is why Guru Ji used the sword to symbolise God. The sword is the "symbol of Transcendental Knowledge, the brahamajnana, which destroys the illusion of temporalia..." (Kapur Singh, 107). The sword is also the symbol of justice, truth and all prevailing power; all divine powers and virtues. Therefore, the use of the sword (Bhagautee) is a suitable name for God.

Chandee Dee Vaar has slowly become less and less read over the years. It is said that the Khalsa Dal and Singhs of yore were great devotees of this composition due to its "beer ras" or power to incite the warrior spirit in the individual. For this same reason, Sikh soldiers in the British army recited this composition as a daily exercise. Unfortunately, Chandee Dee Vaar has become somewhat obscured and forgotten. Today, rarely is it recited outside of select circles i.e. Nihangs, etc.

Many may clam that Chandee Dee Vaar is a Hindu myth and to this statement I will say yes, it is based upon Hindu characters and Hindu mythology. However, Guru Gobind Singh did not intend for this to be read as support of these Hindu myths. It was written to highlight acts of extreme daring and bravery on the battlefield and to show a battle between the forces of good and evil. Let us read this composition as a part of Sikh history and also remember it as an example of the great poetic prowess of Guru Gobind Singh.