Shakta pithas

Hindu literature The Brahmanda Purana, one of the major eighteen Puranas mentions 64 Shakta pithas of the goddess Parvati in the Bharat or Greater India including present-day India, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka, some parts of Southern Tibet in China and parts of southern Pakistan. Another text which gives a listing of these shrines is the Shakta pitha stotram, written by Adi Shankara, the 9th-century Hindu philosopher. According to the manuscript Mahapithapurana (c. 1690–1720 CE), there are 52 such places. Among them, 23 are located in the Bengal region, 14 of these are located in what is now West Bengal, India, 1 in Baster (Chhattisgarh), while 7 are in what is now Bangladesh. Daksha yajna carrying the corpse of Dakshayani Prajapati Daksha organized a yajna but did not invite his daughter, Sati, or her husband, Shiva. Upon learning of Sati's death, an enraged Shiva created Virabhadra, who was accompanied by Bhadrakali and Pramathas. Under Shiva's orders, Virabhadra destroyed the sacrificial grounds and decapitated Daksha. Later, after being pacified by Brahma and the other deities, Shiva revived Daksha by replacing his severed head with that of a goat. Overwhelmed by grief, Lord Śiva placed the burnt corpse of Satī upon his shoulder and wandered through the cosmos. As he traversed the earth, the limbs and ornaments of the Goddess's body fell in various locations, transforming those sites into sacred Siddhapīṭhas or Śakti Pīṭhas. While the Mahabhagavata Purana enumerates 51 such sites, highlighting Kamakhya in Kamarupa as the prominent location where her yoni fell other scriptures, such as the Devi Bhagavata Purana, list 108 sacred Pithas. == Shakta pithas ==

Each temple has shrines for Shakti and Kalabhairava, and most Shakti and Kalabhairava in different Shakta pithas have different names. Map of India's Shakta pithas {{Location map+ |South Asia|width=900|float=center|caption=Shakti names at locations of Shakta pithas : Adi Shakta pithas; : Ashtadasha Maha Shakta pithas; : Daksha yagna site; : Maha Shakta pithas List of 4 Adi Shakta Pithas The scriptures, which include the Devi Bhagvatam Purana, Kalika Purana, recognize four Shakta pithas as sites where most of the energy is. The first pitha is Kamakhya (Assam, - genitals), Vimala (Puri, - feet/lower limbs), Kalighat (West Bengal, - toes of right foot) and Tara Tarini (Berhampur, - breasts). Apart from these 4 there are 48 other famous pithas recognized by religious texts. According to the Pithanirnaya Tantra the 51 pithas are in the present day countries of India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Nepal, Tibet, Bhutan and Pakistan. The Shivacharita besides listing 51 maha-pithas, speaks about 26 more upa-pithas. The Bengali almanac, Vishuddha Siddhanta Panjika too describes the 51 pithas including the present modified addresses. A few of the several accepted listings are given below. In South India, Srisailam in Andhra Pradesh became the site for a 2nd-century temple. List of 18 Ashtadasha Maha Shakta pithas There are believed to be 64 locations. Adi Shankara's Ashtadasha Shakta pitha stotram mentions 18 locations known as the Maha Shakta pithas. Among these, the Shakta pithas at Guwahati, Gaya and Ujjain are regarded as the most sacred as they symbolize the three most important duties of the Mother Goddess viz. Creation (Kamakhya Devi), Nourishment (Sarvamangala Devi), and Annihilation (Mahakali Devi). Sharada Peeth is currently in a ruined state. Only ruins are found in these places. Its ruins are near the Line of Control (LOC) between the Indian and Pakistani-controlled portions of the former princely state of Kashmir and Jammu. Instead, Sringeri Sharada pitham, Sringeri in Karnataka even though not a Shakta pithas, is this aspect of the goddess. It is believed that Goddess Sharada moved from her ruined temple in Kashmir to live in the new temple in Sringeri. Requests have been made by the Hindu community in Pakistan to the Pakistani government to renovate the temple, the issue being raised by former Indian Home minister L. K. Advani to the Pakistan authorities as a confidence-building measure, by increasing the people-to-people cross-border interaction. • Sri Sankari Pitham (Sri Lanka) • Sri Simhika Pitham (Simhala) • Sri Manika Pitham (Draksharamam, Dakshavati) • Sri Shadkala Pitham (Peethapuram) • Sri Bhramaramba Pitham (Srisailam) • Sri Vijaya Pitham (Vijayapura) • Sri Mahalakshmi Pitham (Kolhapur) • Sri padmakshi renuka Pitham (Mahurgad) • Sri Kamakoti Pitham (Kanchipuram) • Sri Kuchananda Pitham (Salagrama) • Sri Biraja Pitham (Jajpur) • Sri Bhadreshwari Pitham (Harmyagiri) • Sri Mahakali Pitham (Ujjain) • Sri Vindhyavasini Pitham (Vindhya mountains) • Sri Mahayogi Pitham (Ahicchatra) • Sri Kanyaka Pitham (Kanyakumari) • Sri Vishalakshi Pitham (Varanasi) • Sri Saraswati Pitham (Kashmir) • Sri Ugratara Shakta pitha (Saharsa) • Sri Abhirami Pitham (Padmagiri, Dindigul) List of all Shakta pithas In the listings below: • "Shakti" refers to the Goddess worshipped at each location, all being manifestations of Goddess Sati; later known as Parvati or Durga; • "Bhairava" refers to the corresponding consort, each a manifestation of Shiva; • "Body Part 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. More details on this are available in the text 'Tantrachūḍamanī' where Parvati tells these details to her son Skanda. Important notes: • The Guhyeshwari temple should not be confused with the Shakta pitha mentioned in the Peethanirnaya from Tantra Chudamani, where Sati's both knees are said to have fallen in Nepal and the presiding deity is Mahamaya. According to the Nepal Mahatmya 11.107 and 1.38, Sati's both knees fell near the confluence of the Vishnumati and Bagmati rivers, where the presiding deity is Mahamaya, while the Anus fell near the Bagmati river close to the Mrigasthali of the Pashupati temple, and the deity is Guhyeshwari or Guhyakali. • The main idol of the Dhakeshwari Shakta pitha in Bangladesh is currently located to the Kumartuli Dhakeshwari Temple in Kolkata, West Bengal. The temple priest fled to India with the main idol during the partition via a specially chartered train. While in the original shrine, a replica is placed. The original holy gem of Goddess Sati was lost long before (the factual date is unknown). So for the actual idol, visit the Kumartoli shrine. Other Shakipeeths:- The following shrines are not recognised as the Shakta pithas, but are still claimed by the devotees and priests, for various reasons. 1. Jwala Devi Temple in Jobner, Rajasthan, India 2. Jayanti Kali Temple (location disputed) 3. Asamai Devi Temple in Kabul, Afghanistan 4. Juranpur Kali Temple in West Bengal, India 5. Ambika Bhawani, Saran, Bihar (Yagyashala of Daksh) 5. Sarbamangala Temple in Burdwan, West Bengal (the temple priests claim that Goddess Sati's body part fell here) 6. Jogamaya Shakta pitha in Kalahandi, Odisha, India There are disputes about the location of the Jayanti Shakta pitha. Based on most presented manuscripts and facts it is situated in the namesake Jaintiapur Upazila town, Bangladesh, which was previously the capital of the Jaintia Hills tribe kingdom, in the Jaintia Hills district of Meghalaya, India, excluding Jaintiapur. However, some believe that the Nartiang Durga Temple is the true Jayanti Shakta pitha, although historical evidence supporting this claim is limited. However there is a temple in near baligaon, kanaighat sylhet which claim to be the true jayanti devi temple, named bam jhangha Kali mandir. argue the actual shrine is at Amta in West Bengal, where the goddess is worshiped as Maa Melai Chandi in Melai Chandi Mandir. But this fact can not be corroborated with any evidence. Moreover, refuting most texts, in Melai Chandi Mandir, the Bhairava is Durgeshwar rather than Kramadishwar. Some also identify the Jayanti shrine with the Mahakal cave temple situated in the village Jayanti of Alipurduar in India, where many statues were created by Stalagmites and Stalactites (natural rock formations), but there is no evidence. ==== Vindhyavasini Shakta pitha ==== The Vindhyavasini Shakta pitha is considered a Shakta pitha even though any body parts of Sati did not fall there. Vindhyavasini is the ultimate and the highest form of the goddess, she is called Adi Parashakti. Goddess Vindhyavasini is considered the embodiment of all of the Mahavidyas, Navadurgas, Matrikas, Yoginis and all the other goddesses present in this universe, she is Tripura Sundari herself. Many legends are associated with Vindhyavasini, she is also called Mahadurga. She is the combined form of all 108 Shakta pithas as mentioned in the Devi Bhagavata Purana text. This is because it is the place where the goddess chose to reside after her birth in Dvapara Yuga. At the time of the birth of Krishna to Devaki and Vasudeva, Vindhyavasini took birth in Gokula to Nanda and Yashoda as per the instruction of Lord Vishnu. Vasudeva replaced his son Krishna with this girl child of Yashoda so that Krishna could escape his demon uncle Kamsa, whom he would kill later according to a prophecy. When Kamsa tried to kill the girl, she slipped from his hands, assumed her true form and warned Kamsa that his killer (Krishna) still lived on. She left Mathura and the goddess chose the Vindhya Mountains as her abode to live on the earth. It is also believed that Vindhyavasini is the sister of Krishna. == See also ==