THE GODDESS & HER SONG:- The Devi Gita, or Song of the Goddess, presents a grand vision of the universe created, pervaded, & protedcted by a supremely powerful, all-knowing, & wholly compassionate divine female. She is Maha-Devi or the Great Goddess, known to her most devoted followers as the auspicious Mother-of-the-world (jagad-ambika,jagan-matr). Unlike the ferocious & horrific Hindu goddesses such as Kali & Durga, the World-Mother of the Devi Gita is benign & beautiful, though some of her lesser manifestaions may take on terrifying forms. And unlike other beneficent female divinities such as Parvate & Laksmi, she is subject to no male consort. This World-Mother is formally addressed as Bhuvanesvari, the “Ruler of the Universe.” She resides in her celestial paradise known as Manidvipa, the Jeweled Island, situated at the topmost point of the universe. From there, ever wakeful & alert, she observes the troubles of the world, eager to intevene on behalf of her devotees. THE HISTORICAL, RELIGIOUS, & LITERARY BACKGROUND OF THE DEVI GITA:- The Devi Gita ,like the Bhahav-ad Gita, is part of a much larger work but freq uently circulates as an independent text. The Devi Gita is a brief section (507 verses) of the rather lengthy Devi-Bhagavata Purana (ca. 18,000 verses), constituting the last ten chapters (31-40) of its seventh book. The bulk of the Devi-Bhagavata may have been common Era, though a later date cannot be ruled out. Whether or not the Devi Gita was part of the original compositionof the Devi- Bhagavata or a later interpolation is difficult to say. Given the specific philosophical ideas & literary works with it is familiar (see below), it is difficult to place the Devi Gita earlier than the thieteenth century, & it may be as late as the sixteenth. THE DEVI GITA & THE DEVI-BHAGAVATA PURANA:-In formal terms, the Devi Gita is part of an ongoing conversa-tion between a despondent king, Janamejaya, & his spiritual counselor, the venerable sage Vyasa. This conversation constutes the great bulk of the Devi Bhagavata as a whole, & is intended to console Janamejaya following the untimely death of his father, king Pariksit. The latter, the grandsom of the great epic hero Arjuna, was mortally wounded by snak-ebite shortly after ascending the throne, & was immediately succeeded by his son Janamejaya. According to the Devi-Bhagavata,when Janamejaya’s father met his untimely demise, he descended into hell. Upon learning of his father’s mi-serable fate, the son was left disconsolate. Even after hearing the whole of the Mahabharata, a common therapy for depressed souls in those days, Janamejaya remained grief stricken & inquired of Vyasa what he should do. Vyasa is thoroughly qualified to act as spiritual adviser to the king for he is well versed in mystical lore, being credited with composing not only the Mahabharata, but also most of the major Puranas. (INDIAN.BOOKS)