Chandi Chritras

CHANDI CHARITRA, title of two compositions by Guru Gobind Singh in his Dasam Granth, the Book of the Tenth Master, describing in Braj verse the exploits of goddess Chandi or Durga. One of these compositions is known as Chandi Charitra Ukti Bilas whereas the second has no qualifying extension to its title except in the manuscript of the DASAM GRANTH preserved in the toshakhana at Takht Sri Harimandar Sahib at Patna, which is designated Chandi Charitra Trambi Mahatam. The former work is divided into eight cantos, the last one being incomplete, and comprises 233 couplets and quatrains, employing seven different metres, with Savaiyya and Dohara predominating. The latter, also of eight cantos, contains 262 couplets and quatrains, mostly employing Bhujang prayat and Rasaval measures. In the former, the source of the story mentioned is Satsaf or Durga Saptasati which is a portion of Markandeya purana, from chapters 81 to 94. There is no internal evidence to confirm the source of the story in the latter work, and although some attribute it to Devi Bhagavat Purana (skandh 5, chapters 2 to 35), a closer study of the two texts points towards one source, i.e. Markandeyapurana. Both the works were composed at Anandpur Sahib, sometime before AD 1698, the year when the Bachitra Natak was completed. The concluding lines of the last canto of Chandi Charitra Ukti Bilas as included in the Dasam Granth manuscript preserved at Patna, however, mention 1752 Bk / AD 1695 as the year of the composition of this work. 
The Reality Of Chandi Charitars
In these compositions, Chandi, the goddess of Markandeya purana, takes on a more dynamic character. Guru Gobind Singh reoriented the old story imparting to the exploits of Chandi a contemporary relevance. The Chandi Charitra Ukti Bilas describes, in a forceful style, the battles of goddess Chandi with a number of demon leaders, such as Kaitabha, Mahikhasur (Mahisasur), Dhumra and Lochana. The valiant Chandi slays all of them and emerges victorious. The battle scenes are portrayed with a wealth of poetic imagery. The last incomplete canto contains an invocation to God addressed as Siva. The second Chandi Charitra treats of the same events and battles, though in minuter detail and in a somewhat different mode of expression. The main point of these works, along with their more popular Punjabi counterpart Var Sri Bhagauti Ji Ki, commonly known as Chandi di Var, lies in their virile temper evoked by a succession of powerful and eloquent similes and by a dignified echoic music of the richest timbre. These poems were designed by Guru Gobind Singh to create among the people a spirit of chivalry and dignity. This is the name given to the fourth Bani in the second holy scriptures of the Sikhs called the Dasam Granth. This text spans from page 175 to page 297 of the 1478 pages of this holy book of the Sikhs. (Original text is over 1428 pages).
The summary of this Bani is narrated by Gobin Sadan at:
The aim of these ballads (1st one has 233 verses, the 2nd has 266 verses, the 3rd has 55 verses) is to inspire warriors to stand up for truth and righteousness in the face of tyranny and oppression. On a deeper level they deal with the internal struggle to control basic animal instincts. All 3 ballads are extremely metaphorical and deeply narrative in nature, and describe the battles of Durga (also known as Chandi, Bhawani, Kalika) against many demon warlords (such as Sumbh, Nisumbh, Chandh, Mundh, Domar Lochan and Rakt Beej). Based on the tales of Durga in Markandey Puraan, these ballads also weave in the intricacies of the higher power (Akal) that controls creation, yet is also within it. The 3rd ballad, Chandi Di Vaar is also the source of the 'Ardas' (an invocation read daily by all Sikhs).
==References==
* Ashta, Dharam Pal, The Poetry of the Dasam Granth. Delhi, 1959
* Loehlin, C.H., The Granth of Guru Gobind Singh and the KHALSA Brotherhood. Lucknow, 1971
* Jaggi, Ratan Singh, Dasam Granth Parichaya. -Delhi, 1990
Category:Dasam Granth