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Mahavidya 1
Mahavidya
Kali, Tara, Shodashi, Bhuvaneshvari, Bhairavi,
Chhinnamasta, Dhumavati, Bagalamukhi, Matangi, and Kamala.
Mahavidyas (Great Wisdoms) orDasa
Mahavidyas are a group of ten aspects
of the Divine Mother or Devi in
Hinduism. The Ten Mahavidyas are
Wisdom Goddesses, who represent a
spectrum of feminine divinity, from
horrific goddesses at one end, to the
ravishingly beautiful at the other[1]
.
The development of Mahvidyas
represents an important turning point
in the history of Shaktism as it marks
the rise of Bhakti aspect in Shaktism,
which reached its zenith in 1700 CE.First sprung forth in the
post-Puranic
age, around 6th century C.E., it was a
new theistic movement in which the
supreme being was envisioned as female. A fact epitomized by
texts like Devi-Bhagavata Purana, especially its last
nine chapters (31-40) of the seventh skandha, which are known as
the Devi Gita, and soon became central texts of
Shaktism[2]
.
Etymology
Kali
The name Mahavidyas comes from the Sanskrit roots, with
mahameaning 'great' and vidya meaning, 'revelation,
manifestation,
knowledge, or wisdom[2]
.
Names
Shaktas believe, "the one Truth is sensed in ten different
facets; the
Divine Mother is adored and approached as ten cosmic
personalities,"
the Dasa-Mahavidya ("ten-Mahavidyas").[3]
The Mahavidyas are
considered Tantric in nature, and are usually identified
as:[4]
1. Kali: The ultimate form of Brahman, "Devourer of Time"
(Supreme
Deity ofKalikula systems)
2. Tara: The Goddess as Guide and Protector, or Who
Saves.Who
offers the ultimate knowledge which gives salvation(also known
as
Neel Saraswati).
3. Lalita-Tripurasundari (Shodashi): The Goddess Who is
"Beautiful
in the Three Worlds" (Supreme Deity of Srikula systems); the
"Tantric Parvati" or the "Moksha Mukuta".
4. Bhuvaneshvari: The Goddess as World Mother, or Whose Body is
the Cosmos
5. Bhairavi: The Fierce Goddess
6. Chhinnamasta: The Self-Decapitated Goddess
7. Dhumavati: The Widow Goddess,or the Goddess of death.
8. Bagalamukhi: The Goddess Who Paralyzes Enemies
http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Devihttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Hinduismhttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=History_of_Shaktismhttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Bhaktihttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Shaktismhttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Puranichttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Devi-Bhagavata_Puranahttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Shaktismhttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Sanskrithttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Mahahttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Vidyahttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Tantrahttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Kalihttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Shaktism%23Kalikula:_Family_of_Kalihttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Tara_%28Devi%29http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Tripura_Sundarihttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Shaktism%23Srikula:_Family_of_Srihttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Bhuvaneshvarihttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Bhairavihttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Chhinnamastahttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Dhumavatihttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Bagalamukhihttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Bagalamukhihttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Dhumavatihttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Chhinnamastahttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Bhairavihttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Bhuvaneshvarihttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Shaktism%23Srikula:_Family_of_Srihttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Tripura_Sundarihttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Tara_%28Devi%29http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Shaktism%23Kalikula:_Family_of_Kalihttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Kalihttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Tantrahttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Vidyahttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Mahahttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Sanskrithttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Kali_Devi.jpghttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Shaktismhttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Devi-Bhagavata_Puranahttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Puranichttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Shaktismhttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Bhaktihttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=History_of_Shaktismhttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Hinduismhttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Devihttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Mahavidyas.jpg
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Mahavidya 2
9. Matangi: the Prime Minister of Lalita (in Srikula systems);
the "Tantric Saraswati"
10. Kamala: The Lotus Goddess; the "Tantric Lakshmi"
The Mahabhagavata Purana and Brhaddharma Purana however, list
Shodashi (Sodasi) as Tripura Sundari, her
another name.[1]
. The Guhyatiguyha-tantra associates the Mahavidyas with the ten
avatars of Vishnu, and states that
the Mahavidyas are the source from which the avatars of Vishnu
arose. All ten forms of the Goddess, whether gentle
or terrifying, are worshiped as the universal Mother.
Legend
Chhinnamasta : The Self-Decapitated Goddess
The 'Mahabhagvata Purana', describes the origin of Mahavidyas,
as the
result of an argument between Shiva and Sati (Dakshayani), an
earlier
incarnation of Parvati. When Shiva and Sati were wed, Sati's
father
Daksha disapproved of the match and organized a great sacrifice
to
which he invited everyone except for the newlywed couple.
Sati,
incensed, insisted on attending the sacrifice, which Shiva
forbade until
Sati transformed herself into a terrible appearance and
multiplied into
the ten Mahavidyas, whereby she subdued Shiva's resistance
and
attended the sacrifice.[2]
Worship
Lalita-Tripurasundari
In their strong associations with death, violence, ritual
pollution, and
despised marginal social roles, they call into question such
normative
social "goods" as worldly comfort, security, respect, and honor.
The
worship of these goddesses suggests that the devotee experiences
a
refreshing and liberating spirituality in all that is forbidden
by
established social orders.
The central aim here is to stretch one's consciousness beyond
the
conventional, to break away from approved social norms, roles,
and
expectations. By subverting, mocking, or rejecting conventional
social
norms, the adept seeks to liberate her or his consciousness from
the
inherited, imposed, and probably inhibiting categories of proper
and
improper, good and bad, polluted and pure. Living one's life
according
to rules of purity and pollution and caste and class that
dictate how,
where, and exactly in what manner every bodily function may
be
exercised, and which people one may, or may not, interact
with
socially, can create a sense of imprisonment from which one
might
long to escape. Perhaps the more marginal, bizarre,
"outsider"
goddesses among the Mahavidyas facilitate this escape. By
identifying with the forbidden or the marginalized, an
adept may acquire a new and refreshing perspective on the cage
of respectability and predictability. Indeed a
mystical adventure, without the experience of which, any
spiritual quest would remain incomplete.
http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Matangihttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Kamalatmikahttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Avatar_%28Hinduism%29http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Vishnuhttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Chhinnamastahttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Puranahttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Shivahttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Dakshayanihttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Parvatihttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Dakshahttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Lalita_sm.JPGhttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Dakshahttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Parvatihttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Dakshayanihttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Shivahttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Puranahttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Chhinnamasta.JPGhttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Chhinnamastahttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Vishnuhttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Avatar_%28Hinduism%29http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Kamalatmikahttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Matangi
