Sri Argala Stotram (Selected Verses) / Show Me Love

Om Namaś Chaṇḍikāyai
Om, I bow to the Goddess Chaṇḍikā
Jayanti Maṅgalā Kālī Bhadrakālī Kapālinī
Durgā Kṣamā Śivā Dhātrī Svāhā Svadhā namo’stu te

She Who Conquers Over All. All-Auspicious, the remover of Darkness, the Excellent One Beyond Time, the bearer of the Skulls of Impure thought the reliever of difficulties, loving forgiveness, supporter of the Universe, you are the One who truly receives the offerings made to the Gods and the Ancestors. I bow to you.

Jaya tvaṁ Devi chāmuṇḍe jaya bhūtārti-hāriṇi
Jaya sarvagate Devi kāla-rātrī namo’stu te

Victory to you, Oh Goddess. You are the Supreme Conqueror and the slayer of passion and anger! You relieve the troubles of all existence! Oh Goddess who pervades everything. You are the One who destroys all darkness and negativity and always does good for us. I bow to you.

Madhu-Kaiṭabha-vidrāvi vidhātṛ varade namaḥ
To you who defeated the negative qualities (demons) of “Too Little” and “Too Much”, Giver of the blessings of the creativity, I bow to you.
Rūpaṃ dehi jayaṃ dehi yaśo dehi dviṣo jahi*
Grant us your form (Liberation), Grant us victory, Grant us welfare, remove all hostility (negativity).
* this phrase repeats throughout the prayer

Mahiṣāsura-nirṇāśi bhaktānāṁ sukhade namaḥ
To you who caused the destruction of the Demon of “Great Ego”, Giver of happiness to devotees. I bow to you.

Śumbhasyaiva niśumbhasya Dhūmrākṣasya ca mardini
Slayer of the Demons Shumbha (self-conceit), Nishumbha (self-deprecation) and Dhumalocana (ignorance).

Natebhyaḥ sarvadā bhaktya Caṇḍike duritāpahe
O Chandike! For those who bow to you with devotion, you remove all distress
Dehi saubhāgyam-ārogyaṃ dehi me paramaṃ sukham
Grant good fortune, freedom from disease, grant us supreme happiness

Vidhehi Devi kalyāṇaṁ vidhehi paramāṃ śriyaṃ
Oh Goddess, grant us liberation and supreme prosperity

Himācala-sutā-nāthasaṁstute Parameśvari
Oh Supreme Goddess, the Lord of the Daughter of the Himalayas (Shiva) always sings your praise

Indrāni-pati-sadbhāvapūjite Parameśvari
You who are worshipped by the husband of Indrani (Indra) with devotion

Devi pracaṇḍa-dordaṇḍadaitya-darpa-vināśini
With your great staff you have destroyed the demons of egotism and thought

Patnīṁ manoramāṁ dehi manovṛttā-nusāriṇīm
Tārinīṁ durga-saṁsāra Sāgarasya kulodhbhavām
Oh Goddess, grant me a wife who will lead the family across this terrible ocean of life and death

I wanna know what Love is
I want you to show me
I wanna feel what Love is
I know (that) you can show me

The Argala Stotram is a prayer to the Goddess Durga by the Rishi Markandeya. It is usually chanted before the complete Durga Saptasati (or Devi Mahatmayam-Greatness of the Goddess). The Devotees are praising the Mother and asking her to bless us with “roopam” which means “form” essentially asking the Goddess to give us Herself as well as prosperity, fame and victory. As usual with all these types of prayers, they can be interpreted in the microcosm (Inner reality) or macrocosm, (outside world.) When I was younger I always looked down at asking the Divine for outer things. But as I grow older I see that it is important to have a healthy inner AND outer life. When I lived in India and didn’t have more than some books and an ektara to my name secretly felt somehow superior to people who were engrossed in and, I thought, “lost” in the world. Now I see how immature I was. In those days I was waiting for the moment to come when “BOOM”, Maharaj-ji would ZAP me and I would go to God knows where! Maybe some other planet! But now that I am still here on earth I realize the importance of having the things you need to live a good life and be a good human being… one who cares for others and can share ones life and path with others. As Maharaj-ji said, “You can’t talk to a hungry person about God. Feed them first.”So one isn’t really asking the Goddess for worldly “stuff”. It is Her nature to give and provide for us…we are just recognizing the graciousness and merciful nature of her Being.