Katyayani Shakti Peeth or Uma Shakti Peeth Vrindavan – 2nd Among 51 Shakti Peethas

Posted on December 4, 2011 by avatar

Katyayani shatkti peeth also known as Uma shakti peeth located in Vrindavan is one of the 51 Shaktipeethas where the ‘Ringlets of Hair’ of Devi Sati have fallen. Here the worship idols are – Devi as Uma (also known as another name of Goddess Parvati) and Lord Shiva as Bhootesh.

Devi Uma

Devi Uma

 

Maa Katyayani

Maa Katyayani

 

The Katyayani Devi present here has a sword named Uchawal Chandrahaas in her hand and is sitting on a throne. The Katyayani Devi temple is situated in Radhbag near Yamuna in Vrindavan and is a very renowned Siddhapeeth. Katyayani is the 8th from of Durga. It is said that the girls of Braj worshipped Mata Katyayani in this Siddhapeeth to get Shri Krishna.

Maa Katyayani Uma Shakti Peeth

Maa Katyayani Uma Shakti Peeth

 

The location of temple is very clear in Vrindavan, near new bus stand on Bhuteshwar road within Bhuteshwar Mahadev Temple. Vrindavan also known as Vraj, is a town in the Mathura district of Uttar Pradesh, India, is one such sacred town situated on the banks of the holy river Yamuna. It is 150 Kms from Delhi and is approachable by rail and road. The town was named after a tulsi grove which existed here during the ancient times. Vrinda is the other name for the sacred Tulsi (Basil) plant. Vrindavan is a famous pilgrimage site where Lord Krishna is worshipped day and night.

Radhey Krishna

Radhey Krishna

 

Lord Krishna was raised in the cowherding village of Gokul by his foster parents Nanda Maharaj and Yasoda Maa. The Bhagavata Purana describes Krishna’s early childhood pastimes in the Vrindavan forest where He, his brother Balarama, and his cowherd friends stole butter, engaged in childhood pranks and fought with demons. Along with these activities, Krishna is also described as meeting and dancing with the local girls of Vrindavan village, especially Radharani, who were known as gopis. Lord Krishna was capable of amazing feats and saved the village from many perils such as the Naga Kaliya and Krishna lifted the Govardhana hill and taught Indra, the king of the devas and rain, a lesson to protect native people of Vrindavana.

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Kiriteshwari, Kiritkona, Mukuteshwari – 1st Among 51 Shakti Peethas

Posted on December 3, 2011 by avatar

Kiriteshwari or Kiritkona also known as Mukuteshwari One of the 51 Shaktipithas where the Kirit (the crown or headdress) of Goddess Sati have fallen. Here the worship idols are – Devi as Vimala and Lord Shiva as Sangbarta. Maa Kiriteshwari’s temple is main temple in the town. The unique feature of the temple is the absence of any image or deity. The red colored stone which is supposed to be the symbolic representation of the Goddess is covered by a red veil the year through. Only on Ashtami of each Durga Puja, the veil is changed and she is given a holy bath. The headdress of the Maa Kiriteswari, has been worshiped through the ages. At present, the headdress is preserved at Rani Bhabani’s Guptamath, situated opposite to the temple. There is no image in the new temple. There is a high alter on which a small alter is seen. Here the face of Maa is indexed. Yogendranarayan Roy, the late king of Lalgola had renovated and had taken care of the temple constructed by Darpanarayan. The original temple had turned to ruins. Beneath given the shot of the ruined one on the right side.

Maa Vimala

Maa Vimala

 

Kiriteshwari, Kiritkona, Mukuteshwari Temple

Kiriteshwari, Kiritkona, Mukuteshwari Temple

 

Kiriteshwari, Kiritkona, Mukuteshwari - 1st Among 51 Shakti Peethas

Kiriteshwari, Kiritkona, Mukuteshwari - 1st Among 51 Shakti Peethas

Take the train to Azimganj. The Azimganj town is situated on the western side of the river Bhagirathi and is within the Lalbagh (Murshidabad) Subdivision. The Temple is just five kilometres from Dahapara railway station, and is the oldest temple in the Murshidabad district. The temples are on the shore of the ganges near Barnagar.

Devi Vimala

Devi Vimala

Posted in 51 Shakti Peethas, Durga, Hinduism, Maa | Tagged , , , , , | 4 Comments

51 Shakti Peethas of Maa Durga – Maa Sati, Dakshayani

Posted on November 9, 2011 by avatar

Maa Sati aslo known as Dakshayani is a Hindu Goddess of marital felicity and longevity. She is worshipped particularly by Hindu women to seek the long life of their husbands. An aspect of Devi, Sati is the first consort of Shiva, the second being Parvati, the reincarnation of Sati herself.

51 Shakti Peethas of Maa Durga - Maa Sati, Dakshayani

51 Shakti Peethas of Maa Durga - Maa Sati, Dakshayani

In the Satya Yuga, Daksha performed a yagna with a desire to take revenge on Lord Shiva. Daksha was angry because his daughter Dakshayani also known as Sati had married the ‘Yogi’ God Shiva against his wish. Daksha invited all the deities to the yagna except for Shiva and Shakti. The fact that she was not invited did not deter Shakti 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 followers.

Goddess Durga

Goddess Durga

But Sati, being an uninvited guest, was not given any respect. Furthermore, Daksha insulted Shiva. Shakti was unable to bear her father’s insults toward her husband, so Devi Sati invoked her yogic powers and immolated herself. When Sati, the wife of Shiva and the first incarnation of Parvati, sacrificed herself at a yagna being performed by her father the King Daksha; a very distraught Shiva started dancing with her body. The world was terrorized from this Tandava Nritya and to stop the devastating penance, Vishnu used his Sudarshan chakra and completely cut up Sati’s body in several pieces. Wherever her body parts fell, a temple was erected to commemorate different manifestations of Shiva and Parvati and became a Hindu pilgrimage. They are called Pitha or Sakti Pithas. These temples are scattered from present day Pakistan to India to Sri Lanka to Bangladesh. Sati is also called Devi or Shakti. See Below for all Shakti Peethas :-

51 Shakti Peethas of Maa Durga

51 Shakti Peethas of Maa Durga

  1. Kirit Shakti Peeth
  2. Vrindavan Shakti Peeth
  3. Shivaharkaray or Karavipur Shakti Peeth
  4. Shriparvata Shakti Peeth
  5. Varanasi (Vishalakshi) Shakti Peeth
  6. Godavari Tir Shakti Peeth
  7. Suchindram Shakti Peeth
  8. Panchasaagar Shakti Peeth
  9. Jwalamukhi Shakti Peeth
  10. Bhairava Parvat Shakti Peeth
  11. Attahas Shakti Peeth
  12. Janasthan Shakti Peeth
  13. Amarnath Shakti Peeth
  14. Nandipur Shakti Peeth
  15. Sri Sailam Shakti Peeth
  16. Nalhatti Shakti Peeth
  17. Mithila Shakti Peeth
  18. Ratnavali Shakti Peeth
  19. Prabhas Shakti Peeth
  20. Jallandhar Shakti Peeth
  21. Chitrakoot Shakti Peeth
  22. Deoghar Shakti Peeth
  23. Vakreshwar Shakti Peeth
  24. Kanyakumari Shakti Peeth
  25. Bahula Shakti Peeth
  26. Ujjain Shakti Peeth
  27. Manivedika Shakti Peeth
  28. Prayag Shakti Peeth
  29. Puri Shakti Peeth
  30. Kanchipuram Shakti Peeth
  31. AmarKantak Shakti Peeth
  32. Sona Shakti Peeth
  33. Kamakhya Shakti Peeth
  34. Jayantia Shakti Peeth
  35. Patna Shakti Peeth
  36. Tristrota Shakti Peeth
  37. Tripura Shakti Peeth
  38. Vibasha Shakti Peeth
  39. Kurukshetra Shakti Peeth
  40. Yogadaya Shakti Peeth
  41. Virat Shakti Peeth
  42. Kalipitha Shakti Peeth
  43. Manasa Shakti Peeth
  44. Nellore Shakti Peeth
  45. Gandaki Shakti Peeth
  46. Pasupathinath Shakti Peeth
  47. Hingula Shakti Peeth
  48. Sugandha Shakti Peeth
  49. Karota Shakti Peeth
  50. Chattal Shakti Peeth
  51. Yashor Shakti Peeth

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

Lord Shiva in Grief Holding the Body of Sati

Lord Shiva in Grief Holding the Body of Sati

 

Lord Shiva Holding the Body of Sati & Sudrashan Chakra

Lord Shiva Holding the Body of Sati & Sudrashan Chakra

You may find the many locations of the Shakti Peethas with the same name in another places or states of India. But that is not mean to which one is real or which one is not, does not matter us. The fact which matters us is, how much faith & love we have in our heart for Devi Maa. Every one says that Devi Maa is their, that is why There are more than one Shatki Peetha with the same name in India.

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Shri Rama, Lord Rama or Ramachandra – Maryada Purushottama

Posted on October 30, 2011 by avatar
Rama Sita Lakshmana - Shri Rama, Lord Rama or Ramachandra - Maryada Purushottama

Rama Sita Lakshmana - Shri Rama, Lord Rama or Ramachandra - Maryada Purushottama

Lord Rama or Ramachandra was a king of Ayodhya in ancient India. CSN3M75FS64F In Hinduism, He is considered to be the seventh Avatar of Lord Vishnu and a lila-avatara described in Bhagavata Purana. Shri Rama is one of the most popular figures and deities in Vaisnavism and its religious scriptures in South and Southeast Asia. Born as the eldest son of Queen Kaushalya and King Dasharatha, of Ayodhya, Shri Rama is referred to within Hinduism as “Maryada Purushottama”, literally the “Perfect Man” or Lord of Restrictions. The legend of Rama is deeply influential and popular in the societies of the Indian subcontinent and across South East Asia given below in brief.

Shri Rama is revered for his unending compassion,courage and devotion to religious values and duty. Lord Rama’s life and journey is one of perfect adherence to Dharma despite harsh tests of life and time. He is pictured as the ideal man and the perfect human. For the sake of his father’s honour, Shri Rama abandons his claim to Koshala’s throne to serve an exile of fourteen years in the forest. His wife Devi Sita and brother Lakshmana, unable to live without Shri Rama, decide to join him, and all three spend the fourteen years in exile together. While in exile, Devi Sita is kidnapped by Lankapati Ravana, the Rakshasa (Asura) monarch of Lanka. After a long and arduous search that tests his personal strength and virtue, Shri Rama fights a colossal war against Ravana’s armies. In a war of powerful and magical beings, greatly destructive weaponry and battles, Shri Rama slays Ravana in battle and liberates his wife Devi Sita. Having completed his exile, Shri Rama returns to be crowned king in Ayodhya (the capital of his kingdom Koshala) and eventually becomes emperor, rules with happiness, peace, prosperity and justice. And this period known as “Rama Rajya”.

Sita Swaymber

Shri Rama Bearking Bow in Sita Swaymber

 

Shri Ram Sita Lakshman Forest

Shri Ram Sita Lakshman in the Forest

 

Shri Rama Lakshman Sita

Shri Rama Lakshman Sita

Shri Rama’s courage in searching for Devi Sita and fighting a terrible war to rescue his wife and their honour is complemented by Devi Sita’s absolute devotion to her husband’s love, and perfect chastity despite being Ravana’s captive. Lord Rama’s piety and virtue attract powerful and devoted allies such as Hanuman and the Vanaras of Kishkindha, with whose help He rescues Devi Sita. Shri Rama’s younger brothers, namely Lakshmana, Shatrughna and Bharata strongly complement his piety, virtue and strength, and they are believed by many to belong to the Maryada Purushottama and the Seventh Avatara, mainly embodied by Shri Rama.

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Shiva Shakti

Posted on October 29, 2011 by avatar

In the Hinduism, the whole universe is perceived as being created, penetrated and sustained by two fundamental forces, which are permanently in a perfect, indestructible union. These forces or universal aspects are called Shiva and Shakti.

Shiva Shakti Ardhnarishwra

Shiva Shakti Ardhnarishwra

The ten hands of the omnipotent Goddess stand for Her protection of all the ten directions north, south, east, west, northeast, south-east, north-west, south-west, above and below. She is always satisfied which is the distinctive condition of a yogi with the highest of spiritual wisdom, and is shown smiling. She has a fair complexion which signifies Sattva or Morality at its best. At the top of the image the face of Shiva is indicated. With Her blessings,one reaches the Domain of Shiva  (Shiva-Loka), which is of absolute peace.

Shiva Shakti

Shiva Shakti

Thus, the dynamic principle- Shakti leads on to the attainment of the static principle- Shiva which constitutes the goal of human life. Shakti assumes the form of Mother Kali standing on the prostrate body of Lord Shiva, and is extensively worshipped in that form in the eastern part of India. Here She is worshipped in direct conjunction with Shiva whose changeless state is depicted in His lying down posture. Shakti, the principle of change, is shown as standing on Shiva signifying that all the changes in the universe are rooted in the principle of Changelessness.

Maa Kali - Shiva Shakti

Maa Kali - Shiva Shakti

Both Shakti and Shiva, the dynamic and the static principles, can be viewed from the macro and the micro points of view. At the macro Level, She is the receptacle of the universe, its inner strength and energy, and the guiding force behind it. It is She who has planned human nature the way it is, with the potentiality of the individual self’s final release through the attainment of Shivahood means the state of Shiva. At the micro level, She is the dormant divine force in its latent state of sleep, numbered as it is by the pre-spiritual state of the individual’s attractions to pleasures, at the bottom of his spine. The task of the aspirant is to revive the force in the upward direction of Shiva who is on the other end of the spine, letting it pass through five spiritual centres on the way. Their union is marked by a divine ecstasy, a moment symbolized by the abstraction of the Shiva Lingam, where the snake coiling around the Lingam symbolizes the upward movement of the latent force toward Shiva.

Posted in Hinduism, Maa, Maa Kali, Shiva | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment