To call on God as Mother is a characteristic featuer of Hinduism. Devi-Mahatmyam or Durga-Saptasati, also popularly known as Chandi, is one of the sacred texts chanted during the worship of The Divine Mother. This book presents to the readers the English edition of Chandi. This will make the chanting possible for those who have no access to Sanskrit. The original text has been transliterated in English accopanied by a lucid English translation. Footnotes have been added wherever necessary. Chandi is divided into 13 chapters and consists of 700 mantras and hence it is called the Saptasati. Three aspects of the Divine Mother have been depicted in the book and they are (1) Mahakali (Chapter I), (2) Mahalaksmi (Chapters II to IV) and (3)Mahasarasvati (Chapters V to XIII) and meditation on each of them has been added with English translation. The whole of Devi-Mahatmyam is chanted on sacred occasions, especially during the Durga-Puja (Navaratri).
What the world wants is character. The world is in need of those whose life is one burning love--selfless. That love will make every word tell like a thunderbolt. Awake, awake, great souls! The world is burning in misery. Can you sleep? Work unto death--I am with you, and when I am gone, my spirit will work with you. This life comes and goes--wealth, fame, enjoyments are only of a few days. It is better, far better, to die on the field of duty, preaching the truth than to die like a worldly worm. Advance! - Swami Vivekananda