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- 1. BA III sem ShaktaCult By Prachi Virag Sontakke
- 2. Devi worship • Traditionof worship of Devi in many forms. • Antiquity of worship of females goes back to Prehistoric times. • But mere worship of female god does not constitute Shakta cult.
- 3. Evidence of Deviworship Archaeological evidence • Durga Temple at Aihole. • 64 Yogini temples at Bhedaghat • 64 Yogini temples at Khajuraho. • 64 Yogini temples at Hirapur, Odisha. • Kamakhya devi temple, Assam. • Saptamatrika panels & Shakti peeths • Inscription of Gurjar Pratihar king Mahendrapal. Literary evidence • Vedic period: Prithvi, Saraswati, Aditi • Mahabharata: Durga, kali, Chandi, Uma. • Harivamsa & Vishnu Purana: Yoganidra • Markandeya Purana:Mahishasur Mardini • Durgasaptshati: Mahakali, MahaLaxshmi, MahaSaraswati. • Matsya Purana: Sapt Matrukas- Brahmani, Kaumari, Maheshwari, Vaishnavi,Indrani, Varahi, Chamunda.
- 9. Forms of Deviin General • . Humble form Fierce form Sensuous form Worship of Devi in association with a male God. Worship of Devi as an Independent personality Worship of sensuous form of Devi Worshipped as his power & consort Durga, Chandi, Kali Anand Bhairavi, Tripur Sundari, Lalita. Is benevolent & kind Decorated with weapons Also worshiped by kapalikas.
- 10. Shakta cult • Shaktacult is the cult which worships the sensuous form of Devi • Shaktas approach the Devi in many forms; however, they are all considered to be but diverse aspects of the one supreme Goddess • Devi presented as offering her grace and blessings in a profound and beatific state of divine ecstasy that She ceaselessly lives in. • Sources: Tantrasahitya, Prapanchsaartantra, Tripur rahasya, Kali tantra, Devi Mahatmya. • One of the sub tradition of Tantra worship. • Developed after the decline of Buddhism
- 11. Shakta dieties: Sensuousforms of Devi • Tripursundari : Lalita, Shodashi • Matangi • Anandabhairavi • Tripurbhairavi
- 12. Tripursundari • Foremost ofthe Mahavidyas, the highest aspect of Mahadevi. • Dazzling beauty,very young but self-emergent • Appears as power of intuitive and perceptive knowledge and less as a knowledge issued from analysis and reasoning. • Tripura Upanishad : She is the ultimate Shakti (energy, power) of the universe. • Described as the supreme consciousness, ruling from above Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva • Tripura sundari also created Ganesha • Temples dedicated to her
- 13. Depiction of Tripursundari • Isusually naked in representations. • wears only wonderful jewels, bracelets on her hands and ankles, earrings, rings, necklaces, and so on • Often depicted as seated on a lotus that rests on the supine body of Sadashiva, which in turn lies on a throne whose legs are the gods Brahma, Visnu, Isvara, and Rudra. • The noose she holds in her third hand signifies her ability of attracting her sincere and devoted worshipers through her dazzling beauty.
- 14. Depiction of Tripursundari •The hook held in her hand represents the means through which she cuts off any attachment for the illusions of the outside world. • Lalita Sahasranama: Sits on a throne like a queen, wears jewels having auspicious marks of a married woman & has heavy breasts and a thin waist. Crescent moon adorns her forehead, her smile overwhelms Kameshwara.
- 15. Kamakshi Temple, Kanchi (dedicatedto Kamakshi the ultimate Goddess Lalita Maha Tripura sundari).
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- 17. Bala Tripura SundariTemple
- 18. Lalita • A formof TripurSundari • Lalita = the one who plays • Also known as the deity presiding Sri Yantra • Considered as the most beautiful of deities and represents the supreme ecstatic bliss as source of any other wonderful perceptions. • whole Creation is in fact the beautiful, charming game, or play of the Divine Mother • Lalita awakens the receptive soul to the divine happiness impregnating every single thing that exists in the universe.
- 19. Shodashi • A 16year old form of Tripura Sundari. • The age of sixteen was not chosen by accident. • Is the age the woman experiments the most pleasant and fascinating aspects of her personality. • Her most inner impulse is to experiment new sensations, and to fascinate the people around with her charm • Her innocence and purity disarms even the darkest souls, acting as a powerful magnet for all who resonate with beauty, truth and goodness
- 20. Matangi • Matangi impersonatesthe great powers of nature. • Personifies the wild beauty, the abstraction, the mystery and the hidden power of the tropical jungle where She is symbolized by a strong and active elephant thus reflecting the primary rhythms of Nature. • Bliss (ananda) is another aspect of Matangi that is very active, passionate. • Is the counselor of the Great Cosmic Wisdom Tripura Sundari, the Supreme Queen of the entire Creation. • Music is also a very efficient means of worshipping Matangi
- 21. Main postulates • Worshipof Devi as beautiful, celestial maiden who is Mahabhairavi. • She is the supreme, ultimate, eternal reality of all existence as advaita. • She is the source of all creation, its embodiment and the energy that animates and governs it, and that into which everything will ultimately dissolves. • Main aim of the worshipper is to establish unity with Tripur Sundari. • This is done by Tantra worship
- 22. Method of worship •Females represent a manifestation of Devi. • Females as medium of worship. • Establishing intimacy with her is the same as establishing unity with Devi. • The tantra practices are secretive, subject to speculations and criticism-drinking by both worshipper & worshipped, performing sexual acts • Socially unacceptable behaviour, flouting social norms. • Puranas despise Shakta cult. • Brahmavaivarta Purana: Devi is an obstruction in attaining knowledge and represents ignorance.
- 23. Philosophy of Shaktasect • Derived from the spiritual tradition of the Tantric teachings. • Beauty and ecstatic bliss represent the fundamental energy of the universe • The “game”, the “play” is the nature of any existing thing in the universe. • Tripursundari pierces us with the arrows of ecstasy, delight and happiness, revealing thus to us all the forms of the Creation as aspects of our inner divine nature. • Cuts off any attachment for the illusions of the outside world by her hook
- 24. Sub sects ofShakta cult KAUL MARGI SAMAYACHARI Extremist view Tried to follow the social norms. Worship of Devi by Panchmakaras- Madya, Matsya, Maans, Mudra, Maithun Mode of worship changed- on the basis of meditation No difference between: skin-sandal, enemy- son, cerematory ground-home Became more acceptable socially Hold everything, every trait to be the same reality. Rejects the dualism Believe in Advaita philosophy
- 25. Shakta philosophy • Influenceof Samkhya philosophy-advaita • Shiva & Shakti are supreme elements. • Devi = nature • Shiva = Param Purush • Union of two leads to creation. • Shiva is static Shakti and Shakti is dynamic Shiva. Shiva Shakti Shakta philosophy
- 26. Yoginis and Tripursundari •Lalitōpakhyanā, part of the Brahmaṇḍa Purāṇa: Devas prayed to Tripursundari to kill Bhandasura. • When she started for the war with Bandasura, she was accompanied by the powers called Balambika, Varahi, Gayatri, Matangi.
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- 30. 64 Yogini temple,Heerapurdistrict, Odisa
- 32. 64 Yogini 64 Yoginitemple,Ranipur Jhaaral, Balaangeer district, Odisa
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- 38. 64 Yogini temple,Khajuraho
- 41. Conclusion • Tradition ofdevi worship quite ancient • Worship of sensous form of devi started later • Developed as core of Shakta cult • Associated with Tantric practices. • Continuity of tradition.