Shakti Peethas

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The Shakti Peethas (places of strength) are places of worship consecrated to the goddess 'Shakti', the female principal of Hinduism and the main deity of the Shakta sect. They are sprinkled throughout the Indian subcontinent [1].

This goddess is often associated both with Gowrī/Parvati, the goddess of marital felicity and longevity, and with Durga, goddess of strength and valour.

Contents

[edit] Legend

According to legend, at some time in the Satya Yuga, Daksha performed a yagna (named Vrihaspati) with a desire of taking revenge on Lord Shiva. Daksha was angry because his daughter Sati had married the 'yogi' God Shiva against his wishes. Daksha invited all the deities to the yagna except for Shiva and Sati. The fact that she was not invited did not deter Sati from attending the yagna. She had expressed her desire to attend to Shiva who had tried his best to dissuade her from going. Shiva eventually allowed her to go escorted by his ganas (followers).

But Sati, being an uninvited guest, was not given any respect. Furthermore, Daksha insulted Shiva. Sati was unable to bear her father's insults toward her husband, so she committed suicide by jumping into the pyre.

Enraged at the insult and the injury, Shiva destroyed Daksha's sacrifice, cut off Daksha's head, and replaced it with that of a goat as he restored him to life. Still crazed with grief, he picked up the remains of Sati's body, and danced the dance of destruction through the Universe. The other gods intervened to stop this dance, and the Vishnu's disk, or Sudarshan Chakram, cut through the corpse of Sati. The various parts of the body fell at several spots all through the Indian subcontinent and formed sites which are known as Shakti Peethas today.

At all Shakti Peethas, the Goddess Shakti is accompanied by Lord Bhairava (a manifestation of Lord Shiva).

[edit] Historical Notes

According to the manuscript old manuscript Mahapithapurana (circa 1690-1720 CE), there are 51 such places. Among them, 23 are located in the Bengal region. 14 of these are located in what is now West Bengal, India, while 7 are in what is now Bangladesh.

Preserving the mortal relics of famous and respected individuals was a common practice in ancient India - seen in the Buddhist stupas which preserve the relics of Gautama Buddha. It is believed by some that these 51 peethas preserve the remains of some ancient female sage from whom the legend of Kali could have emerged and then merged with the Purusha- Prakriti (Shiva Shakti) model of Hindu thought.

[edit] Locations

The modern cities or towns that correspond to these 51 locations can be a matter of dispute, but there are a few that are totally unambiguous - for example, Kalighat in Kolkata/Calcutta and Kamakhya in Assam. According to the Pithanirnaya Tantra the 51 peethas are scattered all over India, Sri Lanka(Ceylon), Bangladesh, Nepal, Tibet and Pakistan. The Shivacharita besides listing 51 maha-peethas, speaks about 26 more upa-peethas. The Bengali almanac, Vishuddha Siddhanta Panjika too describes the 51 peethas including the present modified addresses. A few of the several accepted listings are given below.[2]. One of the few in South India, Srisailam in Andhra Pradesh became the site for a 2nd century temple. [3]

In the listings:

  • "Shakti" refers to the Goddess woshipped (invaribly, in this case, a manifestation of Dakshayani/Parvati/Durga);
  • "Bhairava" refers to her consort, a manifestation of Shiva;
  • "Organ or Ornament" refers to the body part or piece of jewellery that fell to earth, at the location on which the respective temple is built.

[edit] The 51 Shakti Peethas

Sr. No. Place Organ or Ornament Shakti Bhairava
1 Sri Lanka(Ceylon) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jaffna_District Nainativu Sri Nai Nai Nagapooshani(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bhuvanesvari Bhuvaneswari) Ambigai Maha http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shaktism http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sakthi Shakti Peetha(The great temple of the naga race people (Hindu-Tamils)). Nainativu is said to be where the almighty mother Sri Nagaposhani Ambigai (Mother who is worshiped by the nagas) (Hindu-Tamils) embraced the almighty http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siva Siva http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linga Lingam under a mango tree, under the five headed nagam (snake). It is said king cobras bring lilys here to worship in fact this festival is celebrated grandly in mid June-July. The legend has it that Lord Indra made and worshiped the beautiful idol in person, thats one of the reasons why one of her 1008 divine names is Indrakshi / Indrani (Mother worshiped by http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indra Indra / goddess created by Indra) This Sakthi who grants children to those who are unable to have children in a simple 1008 conch puja to the almighty five headed king cobra. Some people offer cribs made of gold and sliver others over bady clothes, if they are successful in having a baby. Om Maha Sakthi Namo Nagapooshani Ambigai Om! Anklets Indrakshi / Nagapooshani / Bhuvaneswari Rakshaseshwar
2 Sharkrare, a little distance from Sukkur Station from Karachi, Pakistan Eyes Mahishmardini Krodhish
3 Sugandha, about 20 km from Barisal, Bangladesh at Shikarpur on banks of Sondh river Nose Sunanda Trayambak
4 Amarnath in Kashmir, India from Srinagar through Pahalgam 94 km by Bus, Chandanwari 16 km by walk Throat Mahamaya Trisandhyeshwar
5 Jwalamukhi, Kangra, India from Pathankot alight at Jwalamukhi Road Station from there 20 km Tongue Siddhida (Ambika) Unmatta Bhairav
6 Jalandhar, India from Jalandhar Cantonment Station to Devi Talab Left Breast Tripurmalini Bhishan
7 Baidyanathdham, at Deoghar, Jharkhand, India Heart Jaya Durga Baidyanath
8 Nepal, near Pashupatinath Temple at Gujyeshwari Temple Both Knees Mahashira Kapali
9 Manas, under Tibet at the feet of Mount Kailash in Lake Mansarovar, a piece of Stone Right Hand Dakshayani Amar
10 Biraja in Utkal present Orissa, India Navel Vimla Jagannath
11 Gandaki from Pokhara, Nepal about 125 km on the banks of Gandaki river where Muktinath temple is situated Temple Gandaki Chandi Chakrapani
12 Bahula, on the banks of Ajay river, at Ketugram 8 km from Katua, Burdwan, West Bengal, India Left Arm Goddess Bahula Bhiruk
13 Ujaani, 16 km from Guskura Station under Burdwan district of West Bengal, India Right Wrist Mangal Chandika Kapilambar
14 Udaipur, Tripura, at the top of the hills known as Tripura Sundari temple near Radhakishorepur village, a little distance away from Udaipur town of Tripura, India Right Leg Tripura Sundari Tripuresh
15 Chatral or Chôţţogram at the top of Chandranath hills near Sitakunda station of Chittagong district, Bangladesh Right Arm Bhawani Chandrashekhar
16 Trisrota, at Salbari village under Boda division of Jalpaiguri district, West Bengal, India Left Leg Bhraamari Ambar
17 Kamgiri, Kamakhya, at the Neelachal hills near Guwahati, capital of Assam, India Genital Organ Kamakhya Umanand
18 Jugaadya at Khirgram under Burdwan district, West Bengal, India Great Toe (Right) Jugaadya Ksheer Khandak
19 Kalipeeth, (Kalighat, Kolkata), India Right Toe Kalika Nakuleesh
20 Prayag near Sangam at Allahabad, Uttar Pradesh, India Finger (Hand) Lalita Bhava
21 Jayanti at Kalajore Bourbhog village of Khasi hills under Jayantia Parganas of Sylhet district, Bangladesh Left Thigh Jayanti Kramadishwar
22 Kireet at Kireetkona village, 3 km from Lalbag Court Road station under district Murshidabad, West Bengal, India Crown Vimla Sanwart
23 Varanasi at Manikarnika Ghat on banks of Ganga at Kashi, Uttar Pradesh, India Earring Vishalakshi & Manikarni Kalbhairav
24 Kanyashram, Kanyakumari the Bhadrakali temple within the precincts of Kumari temple, Tamil Nadu, India Back Sarvani Nimish
25 Present day Kurukshetra town or Thanesar ancient Sthaneshwar, at Haryana, India Ankle Bone Savitri Sthanu
26 Manibandh, at Gayatri hills near Pushkar 11 km towards north-west from Ajmer, Rajasthan, India Two Bracelets Gayatri Sarvanand
27 Shri Shail, at Jainpur village towards north-east 3 km from Sylhet town, Bangladesh Neck Mahalaxmi Sambaranand
28 Kankalitala, on the banks of Kopai river 10 km towards north-east from Bolpur station of district Birbhum, Devi locally known as KankaleshwariWest Bengal, India Bone Devgarbha Ruru
29 Kalmadhav on the banks of Shon river in a cave over hills near to Amarkantak, Madhya Pradesh, India Buttock (Left) Kali Asitang
30 Shondesh, at the source point of Narmada river in Amarkantak, Madhya Pradesh, India Buttock (Right) Narmada Bhadrasen
31 Ramgiri, at Chitrakuta on the Jhansi Manikpur Railway line in Uttar Pradesh, India Right Breast Shivani Chanda
32 Vrindavan, near new bus stand on Bhuteshwar road within Bhuteshwar Mahadev Temple, Vrindavan, Uttar Pradesh, India Ringlets of Hair Uma Bhutesh
33 Shuchi, in a Shiva temple at Shuchitirtham 11 km on Kanyakumari Trivandrum road, Tamil Nadu, India Teeth (Upper Jaw) Narayani Sanhar
34 Panchsagar place not known Teeth (Lower Jaw) Varahi Maharudra
35 Kartoyatat, at Bhawanipur village 28 km distance from interior Serpur. Alight at Bagura station under district Bagura, Bangladesh Left Anklet (Ornament) Arpana Vaman
36 Shri Parvat, near Ladak, Kashmir, India. Another belief: at Srisailam in Shriparvat hills under Karnool district, Andhra Pradesh, India Right Anklet (Ornament) Shrisundari Sundaranand
37 Vibhash, at Tamluk under district Purba Medinipur, West Bengal, India Left Ankle Kapalini (Bhimarupa) Sarvanand
38 Prabhas, 4 km distance from Veraval station near Somnath temple in Junagadh district of Gujarat, India Stomach Chandrabhaga Vakratund
39 Bhairavparvat, at Bhairav hills on the banks of Shipra river a little distance from Ujjaini town, Madhya Pradesh, India Upper Lips Avanti Lambkarna
40 Jansthan, at Godavari river valley near Nasik, Maharasthra, India Chin (Two Parts) Bhramari Vikritaksh
41 Sarvashail or Godavaritir, at Kotilingeswar temple on the banks of Godavari river near Rajamundry, Andhra Pradesh, India Cheeks Rakini or Vishweshwari Vatsnabh or Dandpani
42 Birat, near Bharatpur, Rajasthan, India Left Feet Fingers Ambika Amriteshwar
43 Ratnavali, on the banks of Ratnakar river at Khanakul-Krishnanagar, district Hooghly, West Bengal, India Right Shoulder Kumari Shiva
44 Mithila, near Janakpur Railway station on the boarder of India-Nepal Left Shoulder Uma Mahodar
45 Nalhati,Known as "Nalateshwari Temple" from Nalhati station of Birbhum district by Rickshaw, West Bengal, India Tubular Bones of the Feet Kalika Devi Yogesh
46 Karnat place not known Both Ears Jayadurga Abhiru
47 Vakreshwar, on the banks of Paaphara river, 24 km distance from Siuri Town, district Birbhum,7km from Dubrajpur Rly. Station West Bengal, India Portion between the eyebrows Mahishmardini Vakranath
48 Yashor, at Ishwaripur, district Khulna, Bangladesh Hands & Feet Yashoreshwari Chanda
49 Attahas [Village:Dakshindihi,Dt:Burdwan]].From Katwa Rly. Station by bus to "NIROL"(Approx 40Minutes).From there by Van rickshaw around 20 minutes to Attahas, West Bengal, India Lips Phullara Vishvesh
50 SAINTHIA. Locally Known as "Nandikeshwari" temple.Earlier Nandipur/Now in Sainthia Town. only 1.5 km from Railway Station under a Banyan tree within a boundary wall , district Birbhum, West Bengal, India Necklace Nandini Nandikeshwar
51 Hingula (Or Hinglaj), southern Baluchistan a few hours North-east of Gawadar and about 125 km towards North-west from Karachi, Pakistan Bramharandhra (Part of the head) Kottari Bhimlochan

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ Article, from Banglapedia.
  2. ^ 51 Pithas of Parvati - From Hindunet
  3. ^ Shakti Pitha sites in India.

[edit] External links

  • Temple Net "[1]"

Know More About *Gayatri Shaktipeeth

[edit] Further reading

  • Hindu Goddesses: Vision of the Divine Feminine in the Hindu Religious Traditions (ISBN 81-208-0379-5) by David Kinsley


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