Mystic Temples in India

    Bhuvanesvari, before her earthly appearance, was an unmanifest energy and power. Sodasi was the only goddess then. The sun appeared in the sky under Sodasi’s watch and the Rishis offered Soma sacrifice to the sun which created the three worlds (Bhuvanas). Bhuvanesvari became a manifest goddess and ruled over the three worlds: Bhūh, Bhuvah, and Svah (the earth or physical plane, atmosphere or astral plane, and heaven or celestial plane). Since she is the ruler of Bhuh, she became Bhuvanesvari, who is no other than Sodasi herself. She is the fourth in line in importance: Kali, Tara, Sodasi and Bhuvanesvari (BVS). BVS is Earth, Water, Fire, Air, Ether, Prakrti, sun, moon and their creator. Since she is the controller of the five gross elements (Mahabhutas), she is Pradhana and Prapancesvari.  The manifested world evolves from out of BVS as the spider issues forth the web from its body. She is the fire which crackles with sparks as souls coming out of the fire in BVS. The spider, the web, and the sparks are analogies used by Ramanuja in explaining Brahman, earth and souls.

The Great Cosmic Power BHUVANESHWARI represents, in an ineffable way, the direct experience of the concept of the endless and all-including space. She is the Divine Mother of all the worlds and of all the realms.

The Great Cosmic Power BHUVANESHWARI is the gigantic sphere of force that creates, penetrates, maintains and nourishes the worlds. She is the omnipresent force, the thread, and at the same time the mysterious warp of the entire texture of the Creation.

The Great Cosmic Power BHUVANESHWARI allows us to access the superior, supernatural, parallel worlds, enabling us to fully experience the truths of the Cosmic Illusion Maya. From a very spiritual perspective, the Cosmic Energy of Space is nothing but the illusion of the Formless Form.  Its existence is a magical Reality (sometimes deceptive), an ephemeral reflection, the Power of the Infinite Consciousness to reflect finite forms. Among other characteristics, BHUVANESHWARI also manifests the Divine Knowledge. She is the one that is framing the context of our spiritual evolution and that is arranging the favorable situations for the beginning.

The Great Cosmic Power of Discipline and Sacrifice -
TRIPURA BHAIRAVI

Goddess Kalaratri

On the spiritual path, one has to form terror (our darker side) to beauty. One has to endure the transforming heat and light of Bhairavi before One can enjoy the cool and gentle bliss of Tripura Sundari who resides in the crown chakra.

Goddess Kalaratri, is the personification of the enemy of darkness and ignorance. The method of worship of Kalaratri is prescribed in the ancient scriptures. She is the slayer of the evil spirits and depicted as having dark skin with flowing hair, four arms and astride a donkey. Her three bright eyes always emit rays and terrible flames come out when she respires through her nostrils. Though she has a fearsome appearance, she is always auspicious in effect and the giver of inexhaustible virtues.

The Great Cosmic Power of Courage and Transcending of the Ego - CHINNAMASTA

Chinnamasta is the Goddess helps us to dissolve our mind into pure awareness. The interaction of Prakasa (light) and Nada (sound) to precipitate the creation is known as the great Goddess Chinnamasta. The interaction of light and sound produces such speed and force that our lower self is almost precipitated out of the higher self. Her force is the most powerful of the Goddess, expressing the power of transformation in action. This force can be very useful in removing our memory cells, which is responsible for all the pain and illness that keeps earth bound.

She helps us to transcend the body beyond the body consciousness, this thought can be frightening, the idea of remaining bound to body consciousness, hence bound to time and death, should be more frightening. As it is, we are all trapped in the dense realm of physical matter, limited us to experience pain and illness.

As such, Chinnamasta could be considered one of the most important of the Goddess, as she is the great liberator and savior. Worship her give One the strength to go beyond sorrows, disappointments and suffering. Her energy also helps us to destroy the demon or the ego, is the main cause for all the sufferings on earth.

She is also Kundalini in her active and assertive role, movement of the prana up the Sushumna to the formless of pure consciousness, by piercing of the Rudra-granthi, one of the three knots, which prevents the movement of energy from flowing up the Sushumna of the subtle body.

Her mantra is to explore our inner beauty, by cutting through illusions. Part of Her mantra also helps to concentrate the force of the mantra. Her name as Vijra-vairocaniyai, the effulgent lighting bolt of direct perception or the lightning of spiritual realization.

To become a master of One’s senses, we need the grace of Chinnamasta. The most powerful activity of the senses is the physical sensual activity. She is depicted as trampling with her feet Rati and Manmatha joined in union. Thus worshiping her grants complete mastery over sexual impulse and other sense impulse.

PRACHANDA CHANDIKA

Chinnamasta is called prachanda chandika or the fiercest form of kali.she is closely related to kali but is the specific application of kali’s energy directed toward the actual moment of transformation.She is also related to Bhairavi & to the dynamic forces of the atmosphere. while chandi destroys the demons, prachanda chandi destroys the ultimate demon or negative entity, “THE EGO” .When this is destroyed all negativity is forever eliminated.

Chinnamasta is vidyut or lightning, the electrical energy of transformation working in the cosmos on all the levels.The electricity in the material world & space is only one form of this.In the mind it functions as the power of instantaneous enlightenment. while kali rules over this force generally, chinnamasta represents the same force directed as the weapon of the supreme for the immediate transformation,she is the lightening bolt of insight which destroys the powers of the ignorance & lift us beyond the skies.As lightning, chinnamasta represents direct perception,pure seeing which cuts through everything & reveals the infinite beyond all forms. She represents the atman-yajna or self sacrifice  where in we offer ourselves to the divine through the sacrifice of the mind.

CHINNAMASTA & KUNDALINI

According to the yogic science there are three knots or granthis which prevent the movement of energy from flowing up the sushumna of the subtle body.these three Brahman-Granthi in the root chakra which represents our bondage to speech,The Vishnu -Granthi in the heat chakra showing our bondage to emotions & the rudra Granthi in the third  showing the bondage to the thought processes.chinnamasta represents the piercing of the Rudra-granthi or the knot in the head,allowing us to transcend thought, the mind & body consciousness altogether.

Chinnamasta thus represents he free flow of energy through the sushumna.she s the kundalini shakti flowing  upward from the base of the spine to burst open the crown chakra & stream out into the infinite & thus bringing the transformation in the individual.

Meditating on Chinnamasta we can raise the kundalini directly from the third eye.chinnamasta is thus sacred to the siddhas who have rent asunder the veil of the mind.the way to the realms or lokas of the siddhas is through her.those seeking to contact the siddhas in the siddhaloka should worship her. chinnamasta is the great yogini.she is the yoga shakti or the power of yoga, hence known as vajra yogini,para dakini, the supreme or foremost of the Dakinis the attendant goddesses on the yogis path.As she is worshipped by those seeking yogis & occult powers.

Chinnamasta relates to the third eye (Ajna Chakra) which is her chief place of action.She represents the third eye from which comes the lightning of direct that destroys all duality & negativity.As the upward movement of the vital vayus or airs which the yogis seek to develop she is Udana vayu.

In Hinduism, Chhinnamasta (often spelled Chinnamasta and also called Chhinnamastika) is one of the mahavidyas, and an aspect of Devi. The literal meaning of the word Chhinnamasta is one with a severed head. Chhinnamasta, having severed her own head with her own sword, holds her severed head on one of her hands. Three jets of blood spurt out of her bleeding neck, and one streams into her own mouth of her severed head, while the other two streams into the mouths of her two female associates.

She is the goddess of courage and discernment.

Origin

It is said that one day Parvati went to bathe in the Mandakini River with her two attendants, Jaya and Vijaya. After bathing, the great goddess’s mind went to some worldly related things. After some time, her two attendants asked her, “Give us some food. We are hungry.” She replied, “I shall give you food but please wait.” After a while, again they asked her. She replied, “Please wait, I am thinking about some matters.” Waiting a while, they implored her, “You are the mother of the universe. A child asks everything from her mother. The mother gives her children not only food but also coverings for the body. So that is why we are praying to you for food. You are known for your mercy; please give us food.” Hearing this, the consort of Shiva told them that she would give anything when they reached home. But again her two attendants begged her, “We are overpowered with hunger, O Mother of the Universe. Give us food so we may be satisfied, O Merciful One, Bestower of Boons and Fulfiller of Desires.”

Hearing this true statement, the merciful goddess smiled and severed her own head. As soon as she severed her head, it fell on the palm of her left hand. Three bloodstreams emerged from her throat; the left and right fell respectively into the mouths of her flanking attendants and the center one fell into her mouth.

After performing this, all were satisfied and later returned home. (From this act) Parvati became known as Chhinnamasta.

Symbolism

In visual imagery, Chhinnamasta is shown standing on the copulating couple of Kamadeva and Rati, with Rati on the top. They are shown lying on a lotus.

There are two different interpretations of this aspect of Chhinnamasta’s iconography. One understands it as a symbol of control of sexual desire, the other as a symbol of the goddess’s embodiment of sexual energy.

The most common interpretation is one where she is believed to be defeating what Kamadeva and Rati represent, namely sexual desire and energy. In this school of thought she signifies self-control, believed to be the hallmark of a successful yogi. The decapitation of her own head also suggests that spiritual success and self-control are intrinsically connected with the losing of the head, which is symbolic of the ego. The three spurts of blood may also represent the three main subtle channels, the Ida, Pingala and Sushmana flowing free, and the three somewhat secret Chakras that exist outside of the body, above the head, as opposed to the other 6 which are connected to some point of the body.

The other, quite different interpretation states that the presence of the copulating couple is a symbol of the goddess being charged by their sexual energy and desire. Desire is one of the main reasons for manifestation of the physical universe, which is ponly though the power of the Maha Shakti/Maha Devi. Just as a deity seated upon a lotus is believed to acquire its qualities of auspiciousness and purity, Kamadeva and Rati impart to the Goddess standing over them the power and energy generated by their lovemaking. Gushing up through her body, this energy spouts out of her headless torso to feed her devotees and also replenish herself. Significantly here the mating couple is not opposed to the goddess, but an integral part of the rhythmic flow of energy making up the Chhinnamasta icon. The mother who is the physical universe also creates, maintains and destroys it as the Shakti or power of the Trimurthi and the power behind everything which plays a role in the universe. The Mother’s creation ends up becoming her food as well, which is also very much related to blood sacrifice which plays a role in some Shakti/Mother Goddess worship, because it’s the giving of life energy back to her so that the energy is recycled and able to be used for other creative purposes.

The image of Chhinnamasta is a composite one, conveying reality as an amalgamation of sex, death, creation, destruction and regeneration. It is stunning representation of the fact that life, sex, and death are an intrinsic part of the grand unified scheme that makes up the manifested universe. The stark contrasts in this iconographic scenario-the gruesome decapitation, the copulating couple, the drinking of fresh blood, all arranged in a delicate, harmonious pattern - jolt the viewer into an awareness of the truths that life feeds on death, is nourished by death, and necessitates death and that the ultimate destiny of sex is to perpetuate more life, which in turn will decay and die in order to feed more life. As arranged in most renditions of the icon, the lotus and the pairing couple appear to channel a powerful life force into the goddess. The couple enjoying sex convey an insistent, vital urge to the goddess; they seem to pump her with energy. And at the top, like an overflowing fountain, her blood spurts from her severed neck, the life force leaving her, but streaming into the mouths of her devotees (and into her own mouth as well) to nourish and sustain them. The cycle is starkly portrayed: life (the couple making love), death (the decapitated goddess), and nourishment (the flanking yoginis drinking her blood).

The Great Cosmic Power of Sublime Vacuity - DHUMAVATI

Void ness – Goddess Dhumavati as Grandmother Spirit is the great teacher of birth and death. She reveals the depth of the unknown and the unmanifested.
In Hinduism, Dhumavati is one the of mahavidyas (Great Wisdoms); she is one of the many aspects of Devi. She acts as the divine smoke screen in the form of old age and death. Only the ardent devotee is able to see beyond the fear of mortality to the Goddess’s promise of immortality.

Origin

The legend behind Dhumavati’s origin says that once, when Shiva’s spouse Sati was dwelling with him in the Himalayas, she became extremely hungry and asked him for something to eat. When he refused to give her food, she said, “Well, then I will just have to eat you.” Thereupon she swallowed Shiva. She persuaded to disgorge him, and when she did he cursed her, condemning her to assume the form of the widow Dhumavati. The myth underlines Dhumavati’s destructive bent. Her hunger is only satisfied when she consumes Shiva, who himself contains or creates the world. Ajit Mookerjee, commenting on her perpetual hunger and thirst, which is mentioned in many places, says that she is the embodiment of “unsatisfied desires.” The myth also emphasizes that Dhumavati as a widow is inauspicious. This is compounded by the fact that she has also been cursed and rejected by her husband. Her status as a widow is curious. She makes herself one by swallowing Shiva, an act of self-assertion, and perhaps independence.

Iconography

The dhyana mantra of Dhumavati says:

Dhumavati is ugly, unsteady, and angry. She is tall and wears dirty clothes. Her ears are ugly and rough, she has long teeth, and her breasts hang down. She has a long nose. She has the form of a widow. She rides in a chariot decorated with the emblem of the crow. Her eyes are fearsome, and her hands tremble. In one hand she holds a winnowing basket, and with the other hand she makes the gesture of conferring boons. Her nature is rude. She is always hungry and thirsty and looks unsatisfied. She likes to create strife, and she is always frightful in appearance.

Symbolism

The crow which appears as her emblem atop her chariot is a carrion eater and symbol of death. Indeed, she herself is sometimes said to resemble a crow. The Prapancasarasara-samgraha, for example, says that her nose resembles a crow’s.

The dress she wears has been taken from a corpse in the cremation ground. She is said to be the embodiment of the tamas gun, the aspect of creation associated with lust and ignorance. Her thousand-name hymn says that she likes liquor and meat, both of which are tamsic. Dhumavati is also interpreted by some Tantra scholars as “the aspect of reality that is old, ugly, and unappealing. She is generally associated with all that is inauspicious: she dwells in areas of the earth that are perceived to be desolate, such as deserts, in abandoned houses, in quarrels, in mourning children, in hunger and thirst, and particularly in widows.

The goddess tends to be in a sad state of mind and is quarrelsome. Her eyes are glaring red, stern, and without tenderness. Her lips too are red, covered with blood.

Mother Dhumavati is the feminine principle devoid of the masculine principle, or Sakthi without Shiva

The Great Cosmic Power of Fascination and Stoppage - BAGALAMUKHI

The ultimate enemy to suppress is the ego, and its duality of self and other, which divides the energy of one’s own awareness. The negative energy of ego usually manifest it self in wrong speech. This process of our being must be stopped for spiritual growth, when meditation in used. The key to control thought is to control our speech. This can be done by repeating her mantra

In Hinduism, Bagalamukhi is one of the Ten mahavidyas. Bagalamukhi Devi smashes the devotee’s misconceptions and delusions by her cudgel.

The name literally means “crane faced,” though this is a misnomer. The name ‘Bagla’ is a distortion of the original Sanskrit root ‘ValgA’. She has a golden complexion and her cloth is yellow. She sits in a golden throne in the midst of an ocean of nectar full of yellow lotuses. A crescent moon adorns her head.

Two descriptions of the goddess are found in various texts- The ‘Dwi-BhujA’ (two handed), and the ‘ChaturbhujA’ (Four handed).

The Dwi-BhujA depiction is the more common, and is described as the ‘Soumya’ or milder form. She holds a club in her right hand with which she beats the demon, while pulling his tongue out with her left hand. This image is sometimes interpreted as an exhibition of stambhana, the power to stun or paralyze one’s enemy into silence. This is one of the boons for which Bagalamukhi’s devotees worship her. Other Mahavidya goddesses are also said to represent similar powers useful for defeating enemies, to be invoked by their worshippers through various rituals.

The legend behind the origin of goddess Bagalamukhi is as follows:

Once upon a time, a Huge storm erupted over the earth. As it threatened to destroy whole of the creation, all the gods assembled in the Saurashtra region. Goddess Bagalamukhi emerged from the ‘Haridra Sarovara’, and appeased by the prayers of the gods, calmed down the storm.

A demon named Madan undertook austerities and won the boon of vak siddhi, according to which anything he said came about. He abused this boon by harassing innocent people. Enraged by his mischief, the gods worshipped Bagalamukhi. She stopped the demon’s rampage by taking hold of his tongue and stilling his speech. Before she could kill him, however, he asked to be worshipped with her, and she relented, That is why he is depicted with her.

Bagalamukhi maha mantram meaning is as below:

Oh Goddess, paralyze the speech and feet of all evil people. Pull their tongue, destroy their intellect.

Major temples to the goddess are situated in the Himachal Pradesh in the north, and at Nalkheda at Shajapur and Datia in Madhya Pradesh. Nepal, where the worship of tantric goddesses had Royal patronage, also has a large temple devoted to Bagalamukhi in the Newar city of Patan. The territory of the Bagalamukhi temple in Patan also has several other temples there: a Ganesha temple, a Shiva temple, a Saraswati temple, a Guheswari temple, a Bhairabha temple and also temples for many other gods and goddesses. In Hinduism there are 330 million separate gods and goddesses. The main difference between any other temple and a Bagalamukhi temple is that if someone worships all the gods in this temple, they would actually worship all 330 million gods and goddesses at one place. Bagalamukhi Devi Temple is situated at Guma in Mandi, in the state of Himachal Pradesh in North India. Large numbers of Hindu devotees offer prayers here to fulfill their wishes. Bagalamukhi Puja is performed by an experienced Pandit, as any mistake in the ritual may result in bad effects.

Bagalamukhi Devi is one of the ten Hindu Goddesses of Power. Bagalamukhi Puja is performed according to Vedic ritual, to defeat enemies. It not only decreases the power of the enemy, but also creates an atmosphere where he or she becomes helpless. The Abhimantrit Bagalamukhi Yantra is also used for the same purpose. It protects the person from enemies and evils.

The Great Cosmic Power of Universal Order and Wisdom – MATANGI

Matangi relates to Sarasvati, the Goddess if wisdom, and the consort of Lord Brahma, the creator of the Universe.

The un-manifest word perceives itself for manifestation and then reaches the thinking mind for expression, and this stage of word is matanga. When word fashioned by the heart and formulated by the mind is expressed, articulated, it is Matangi

Matangi is worshiped as the minister to the great Goddess Lalita or Rajarajeshwari. Her favor leads the aspirant to the august presence of Lalita Tripura Sundari.

In the Hindu pantheon, Goddess Saraswati is universally recognized as the personification of all knowledge; all arts — music, dance, literature, etc.; all sciences, crafts and skills. She is also the paradigm of total “sattva”; of complete spiritual purity.

Goddess Matangi, on the other hand, is a comparatively obscure deity, barely known outside beyond her role as one of the “Dasha Mahavidya,” or “Ten Wisdom Goddesses” of Tantric lore. In that context, she is usually known as the Outcaste Goddess, presiding over all that is polluted or impure, the goddess of scraps and leftovers (see my introductory comments on the Maatangi section of the homepage).

Here is a nice introduction to the Goddess, by Elizabeth Greenleaf, an artist who has beautifully painted Her yantra: “Daughter of hunter-king, Matanga, and of Buddhist as well as Hindu origin, Matangi’s home is deep within the jungle. She is radiantly dark in color, dressed in red, has the disc of the moon on her forehead and is usually flanked by two parrots. She is of low caste, a Chandala. She is known as ‘Ucchista-Matangini’ ['ucchista' meaning 'leftover']: The bestower of all boons on the unwashed, and She asks, in turn, for polluted offerings — a goddess for our age of pollution and waste. No vows or preparation of any kind are needed to ask for her blessing and the uninitiated are welcome. She offers psychic power and liberation to consciousness bound by social conformity and conventionality. She nourishes the sixty-four arts and plays the veena. One can ask her for poetic talent or any other gift associated with creation.”

And so we have Saraswati — Goddess of Purity — and Matangi — Goddess of Pollution. On the surface, they could not be more different. And yet they are (or at least I believe they are) one and the same: A pure Vedic and a pure Tantric vision of the same Divine Reality.

MATANGI AND SARASWATI

My analysis begins with the contrasting Vedic and Tantric conceptions of the Gunas — the three elements that make up Creation: Sattva (the spiritual element of uplift), Tamas (the material element of down-drag), and Rajas (the element of action and motion, shifting between the other two). Vedic Hinduism characterizes Saraswati as Pure Sattva (just as Kali is Pure Tamas and Lakshmi is Pure Rajas).

According to Tantric Shaktism, however, every manifestation of Devi (Goddess) involves a different combination of all three elements. In practice, this means that each Goddess must have both a dark (fearsome, destructive) side, and a bright (beautiful, compassionate) side. The dark side destroys ignorance and tears away illusion; the bright side bestows Supreme Knowledge and spiritual liberation. But by that analysis, the Vedic goddess Saraswati — composed as she is of pure sattvic (spriritual) energy — must necessarily be an incomplete representation of Shakti. She is all brightness and no darkness. And so the Tantric approach to Hinduism offers a “completed” Tantric counterpart — the Goddess Matangi.

It’s really not such an outrageous proposition: The same process occurred when Tantra “completed” another ancient Vedic goddess, namely, Lakshmi (or Shree), in the form of the 10th Mahavidya, Goddess Kamala. As Kamala, Lakshmi — who is almost always conceived as a Consort Goddess, co-equal with or (more frequently) subordinate to, a Male God — becomes a fully Independent Goddess, a full manifestation of the Divine Feminine. Rather than being purely benevolent, She takes on fearsome traits as well — although She is still the least fearsome of the Mahavidyas. This Lakshmi-Kamala connection is widely known and accepted. However, the fact that the 9th Mahavidya, Matangi, is Saraswati, seems to have been mostly overlooked or forgotten.

I want to stress that I’m not holding up Matangi as being “better” than Saraswati, or even different from Her — in fact, my feeling is that She *is* Saraswati, just a different conception of Her. In an old Club discussion of this point, our longtime member dkSesh wrote that he agreed with this idea:

Maatangi is the Tantrik form of Saraswathi. Here Maatangi also means that Saraswathi imparts knowledge on Tantra and Maya as the same manifestation of Brahman [the Supreme Divine] and is something that is not to be disliked and gotten ridden of as a Vedantic beginner thinks but to be worshipped as Brahman. For Brahman is described as one without the second, which means that Maya must also be another form of the same Brahman. It’s in there on this path, that many manifestations and traits are removed in a Tantric way unlike the Vedantic way. Many are violent. The Vedantic sees the violent removal of a trait differently than a Tantrik. Hence the reason why I called it an issue of perception — and for a Tantrik, it’s the mother with her sword, removing the trait a/k/a, the asuras [inner demons]. Hence the form and the weapons and the differentiated name. Gnanis [those following the Yoga of Knowledge] don’t see the difference but a Saadhaka [one engaged in worship of a God/dess form] under practice and pressure for emotional support needs a form that can re-assure him that the Lord [Brahman] is here to kill the trait. Maybe the requirement for the Lord as Maatangi.”

Once again, the outcaste/leftover goddess Matangi — like the pure Saraswati — is also a goddess of learning, wisdom, the arts and sciences. They are identical to the extent that they are both worshipped using the same bija (”seed”) mantra, “Aing” or “Aim.” However, there are some significance differences in the way these two manifestations of Saraswati carry out their work.

The traditional, Vedic Saraswati mainly “represents the knowledge and virtue of the Brahmin or learned class which never departs from propriety,” according to Frawley. Her arena tends to be “ordinary learning, art and culture.” Matangi, on the other hand, “is the form of Saraswati directed toward inner knowledge. She is Her dark, mystical, ecstatic or wild form.” As an outcaste or residue, Matangi lives beyond the bounds of convention, propriety and norms of “respectable” society.

To deepen our understand this conception, I will next compare the ways in which these two Goddess forms are conceived.

Complexion

Saraswati is purely a creature of transcendent spirituality. Usually depicted as an extremely beautiful and graceful woman, She is pure white in complexion — one prayer describes her as being “fair as a garland of moon rays.”

Matangi, on the contrary, is very much a creature of manifest nature. She is also “a beautiful young woman,” usually said to be 16 years old, but is usually shown with “a dark or black complexion.” (Alternatively, for reasons I’ll discuss later, she is portrayed with a blue or green complexion; and sometimes, like Saraswati, She is shown as white. But her primary forms have very dark complexions.)

She is usually conceived as what Indians call a “tribal” — a member of one of India’s indigenous forest/jungle-dwelling societies. Specifically, Matangi is said to be a daughter of the Chandalas, a tribe considered by orthodox Brahmins to be so polluted (as meat- eating hunter-gatherers) that its name became a synonym for “outcaste.”

The message conveyed by the Goddesses’ respective complexions is twofold: On a purely symbolic level, Saraswati’s whiteness symbolizes Her purity, whereas Matangi’s darkness (or greenness!) emphasizes her impurity or pollution. On a societal level, it should also be noted that there is something of the enduring Vedic color/class/caste consciousness here: Even in modern India, the old prejudice persists that a fair-skinned woman is somehow more beautiful than one who is dark-complexioned.

As for clothing, Saraswati is usually depicted “clad in spotless white apparel, and seated on a white lotus. Her conveyance is a white duck [or swan].” Mantangi is most often depicted wearing bright red clothing and ornaments. In Tantra, this is the color of the Divine Feminine (mystically representing menstrual blood; in contrast to the Masculine white, mystically representing semen). On a certain level, then, Saraswati’s appearance embodies and endorses the patriarchal, Brahminical vision of feminine perfection. Matangi’s completely opposes it. To accept Matangi requires a much more complete acceptance of the primacy and reality of the Divine Feminine.

Saraswati is a rarity among Hindu goddesses in that she is generally not associated with fertility (at least in Her modern incarnation; in Her original conception as a Vedic river goddess, there was certainly a fertility association); motherhood; or sexuality (although She is officially Brahma’s consort, the primary legend of their marriage concerns Her cursing Him for trying to consummate it).

Though she portrayed as a beautiful grown woman, She is said to be sweetly innocent, even childlike. In a way, She is Hinduism’s closest approach to Christianity’s Virgin Mary — the very definition of ideal femininity unsullied by any sexual associations; even thinking of Her in a sexual context would seem a sort of blasphemy. As an essentially non-sexual goddess, Saraswati is especially venerated by monks and celibate seekers - it is not unusual to find a Hindu swami taking “Saraswati’ as part of his monastic name.

Now contrast Saraswati’s image with that of Matangi. Her descriptions always stress Her “highly developed breasts” and a “very thin waist,” (recalling the imagery of ancient forest nymphs or apsaras). She is also portrayed as being wet with perspiration; sometimes with a line of superfluous pubic hair trailing up to Her navel; as having “wild” and “intoxicated” eyes and limbs; as walking with the graceful swaying gait of an elephant; wearing her hair loose and wild like Kali’s.

If Saraswati is the paradigm of self-controlled, purely spiritual Femininity, then forest-dwelling Matangi is the paradigm of unashamed, untamed natural Femininity. Again, on one level, She is everything a strict brahmin would find “low class” in an outcaste tribal woman — while She proudly wears and even flaunts Her pariah status. On a deeper level, the stress is on the all-pervasiveness of the Divine Feminine: If everything is a manifestion of God/dess, then nothing and no one can truly be impure. Everyone and everything is essentially Divine.

Instruments

Because Saraswati’s cult is ancient and pan-Indian, Her iconography is now completely standardized: She has four hands - two of them hold a veena (an Indian lute); one holds an aksamala (a string of prayer beads), and one a pustak (a holy book, often labeled as the Vedas). Matangi, however, is a less well-known goddess, and so Her iconography is less settled and more varied (NOTE: Matangi appears in many forms all over India; I will discuss some of the implications of this in future posts). Like most Mahavidyas, She wears a crescent moon on Her forehead, underlining Her status as a form of Parvati.

Like Saraswati, she almost always carries a veena, and sometimes a set of prayer beads. Interestingly, Matangi usually carries Her veena in one hand, to leave room for a darker arsenal of instruments. I’ve found about a dozen diverse descriptions of these other instruments, which include, in part: a noose; a sword; a shield; an elephant goad; a club; a skull; a skull-bowl; a machete; a mace; a pair of scissors.

These tools signify that unlike Saraswati, Matangi functions not only as a bestower of knowledge, but also as a destroyer of Ignorance. Again, this reflects Matangi as Saraswati’s Kali aspect. As for iconogaphical settings, Saraswati is usually shown seated in a forest by a river, with the Himalayas towering in the distance and Her vehicle, a white swan, by Her side. Matangi, true to Her tribal persona, is shown in the jungle, flanked by parrots.

Some Dhyanas (Meditation Descriptions)

From “Sakti: A Dictionary of Female In Hindu Mythology,” by Subodh Kapoor:

“Lord Shiva is also known as Matang. His Shakti (power) is called Matangi. Her complexion is dark and possesses a moon on her forehead. The three-eyed goddess is seated on the crown decorated with jewels. Her lustre is like a blue lotus and is destroyer of the demons (forest) like a fire. In each of her four hands, she has a noose, a mace, an axe and a hook. She is a destroyer of the demons by enchanting them first with her beauty and a fulfiller of every desire of her devotees. She is worshipped for the attainment of great powers, power of speech, happiness in family life etc.”

 “The one who has an enchanting veena embedded with rubies. The one who has intoxicating beauty and whose speech is charming. The one who is tenderly built and has the glow of a blue sapphire. That kanya [daughter] of Matang should be meditated on.

“She is supposed to be Shyama (the Dark One) of a beautiful emerald-green color. She is called Chandali because she was born as the daughter of Matang Rishi, who was from the lowest caste, known as Chandal. … [She is] seated on a beautiful ratnapith [throne embedded with precious gems], radiant like the moon, charming tender, of dark complexion, having nicely braided hair, dressed in red garments, playing beautiful music with her veena decorated with radiant rubies. She wears beautiful ornaments, has a parrot that recites enchating verses in a human voice, and has a pot made of a beautiful conch shell.

Here is a synthesis of dhyana mantras for Her forms as Ucchista Maatangini (from the Brihat Tantrasaara), Maatangi (from the Purashcharyaarnava), and Raja-Maatangi (from the Purashcharyaarnava and Saaradaa-tilaka):

“She is seated on an altar and has a smiling face and a green complexion. Her eyes are intoxicated. Her clothes and all of Her ornaments are red. Around Her neck is a garland of kadamba flowers. She is sixteen years old and has very full breasts and a very slim waist. She holds a skull on Her left side and a bloodied chopping blade on Her right, and She plays a jewel-encrusted veena. Her hair is long and wild, and the disc of the moon adorns Her forehead. She perspires slightly around Her face, which makes Her all the more beautiful and bright. Below Her navel are three horizontal folds of skin and a thin vertical line of fine hair. She wears a girdle of jeweled ornaments, as well as bracelets, armlets, and earrings. She represents the 64 arts and She is flanked by two parrots.”

MATANGI AND MEENAKSHI

Matangi also plays a significant role in Srividya, as the “minister” of Lalitha Tripurasundari. Here again She is referred to as Rajamatangi, and She is strongly associated with the veena. A Srividya acquaintance of mine stresses that, ultimately, there is no difference between Maatangi and Lalitha — or for that matter any form of Devi. They are all The Goddess. But as to Matangi specifically, some extremely interesting discussion has taken place in the Ambaal group regarding this Devi:

Aum Maatangyai Namahe: Matangi is the first name in Sri Meenakshi Ashtottaram and Meenakshi Madurai is known as Rajamatangi.

An origin myth: Sage Matanga did penance on Ambaal (Devi) and received the boon that She would take birth as his daughter. Sage Matanga belonged to a low caste (”the fourth varna“), and he had done penance to win the title of Brahma Rishi. But Ambaal told him that She could not grant that and asked him to choose something else. So wise Matanga asked Her a greater boon — that She should be known to the world as his daughter.

So he and his wife Siddhimati gave birth to Ambaal, whom they named as Laghushyama. That daughter is considered a manifestation of the Goddess Raja Shyaamala. But because She was born to Matanga, the world even today remembers him through Her name Matangi. Because of this, even other daughters of sage Matanga attained the status of Shaktis (goddesses) and they serve Raja Shyamala.

Ambaal’s avatara as Meenakshi has this connection with Matangi: Whenever there is a reference to Matangi, one can infer that She is also Meenakshi. The Ambaal Group notes: “The fact that shrii miinaakShii is also a mahaa paNDitai in sa.ngiita shaastram gives that link.”

That Group’s Aravind Krishna adds: The names Shyamala, Matangi and Meenakshi represent the same deity. First she incarnated as Shyamala along with Lalita. Shyamala is the minister of Lalita. “She is seated on geya chakra or giiti chakra ratam besides lalitaa who is seated in Sri chakra ratam.”

Krishna adds: Devi manifested as the daughter of Matanga. … As Matanga was a Chandala [outcaste tribal] she is known as Uchista Chandali. ‘Mati’ is bhuddi or intellect. Mata is thought. First thought manifests and then we try to convey that through sound. Devi in the form of Nada (or the eternal subtle sound) shapes the thoughts in the form of words (Matanga). Such Bhuddi Shakti is known as Matangi. This is the reason why she is the deity of [Worship Through Music].

In a similar vein, David Frawley writes: “Mata” literally means “a thought” or “an opinion.” Matangi is thus the Goddess power, which has entered into thought or the mind. She is the word as the embodiment of thought. She also relates to the ear and our ability to listen, which is the origin of true understanding that forms powerful thoughts. Matangi bestows knowledge, talent and expertise. She is the Goddess of the spoken word and of any outward articulation of inner knowledge, including all forms of art, music and dance.

Aravind Krishna mentions yet another Matangi Dhyana: “To visualize, Matangi is seated under a kadamba tree with a veena in her hands. A parrot is seen on her shoulder that sings in tune with her veena music. Such a dhyana itself is extremely pleasing. She holds similar status as Lalita and is hence called as Raja Maatangi. Kalidasa [known as "India's Shakespeare"] was an ardent devotee of Matangi.

Ambaal Group’s Dr. V Sadagopan notes: “Sri Matangi and Raja Matangi are descriptions of the energy behind the ninth object of Transcendent Knowledge [i.e. the Ninth Mahavidya] .In this form, She is also known as Moha Raathri or the Elephant Power. … The Elephant Power or Matangi is invoked for establishing the reign of peace and prosperity. Besides Her association as the daughter of Sage Matanga, Lord Shiva is known as the Elephant (Matanga), based on His auspicious virtues as the destroyer of the evil. Hence His divine consort is recognized as Matangi. The Elephant is the symbol of royal power and the power of domination (i.e., King of the Forest ).”

Sadagopan adds: “As you know, Madurai Meenakshi sitting in the Mantrini Pitha is recognized as Matangi.”

Some Other Names of Matangi/Meenakshi:

* Shyaamaa: “This means She who is dark in complexion. … This is often portrayed by blue or green color. This name also occurs in sahasranama as shyaamaabhaa. … Her darkness symbolically indicates that She is like dark cloud (full of water) filled with compassion and every ready to shower Her grace on Her devotees whose hearts are dried by the fire of desires. That grace quenches the error-prone fire of desires and brings peace to the devotees.”

* Mantrini: “Even though Shankara does not refer to Her as Mantrini in the Meenakshi Stotram, he calls Her ‘Muni-sute,’ indicating Her as a daughter of a sage and it is needless to say that this denotes Her as Matangi.

* Kadamba Vanavasini: “This calls her the daughter of Matanga and vividly describes her how she bears the veena and is fully immersed in playing and singing in tune with it.”

* Shukapriya: “Shuka means parrot. Hence, this name means She is fond of parrot. What does the parrot in this name signify? “It can signify Nada (music/sound) then it means She is fond of worship through music (Naadopaasana). She can be easily pleased using Naadopaasana. The essence of all Naada is Aum and Aum is Her symbol as the iishwarii of this jagat. Through meditation on Aum which is most pleasing to Her, one can worship and realize Her. Or the parrot can signify the Vedas. She delights in hearing the Vedic chants and the Vedas delight in praising Her. Or the word shuka can denote Jnanis [followers of the Yoga of Knowledge] like Sage Shuka and Sge is fond of them. In the Gita She declares (as Krishna) that a Jnani is Her own Self and She is most pleased and fond of Jnanis. Similarly, Jnanis delight in meditating and contemplating on Her.”

* Nipapriya: “Nipa = Kadamba. She is fond of kadamba trees. Whenever the reference to kadamba comes in Ambaal’s name, it reminds one of Meenakshi. She is Kadambavanavaasini. {Her temple at Madurai] was once a kadamba forest according to the Thiruvilaiyadal Purana.

* Kadambeshya: “Kadamba means a collection or multitude, and it denotes the cosmos. She is the God(dess) (ishii) of this cosmos. This implies that She is not only transcendent but also immanent. She is indeed all this as material cause of this jagat [Creation].”

For more detail and scriptural citations, as well as further information on Madurai Meenakshi, look here and here.

Another Srividya View:

“Matangi is the intelligible manifest sound. The primordial throb (Adya spanda), which originates by the self-volition of the Supreme, starts a series of vibrations that take the form of nâda. This is the Eternal Word, the creatrix of manifestation. The manifestation takes place in four steps: sthula (gross, matter principle), sukshma (subtle, life principle), Kârana (causal, mind principle), and mahâkârana (great causal, original rythm). These steps correspond to the four steps of jâgrat (waking state), swapna (dream state), sushupti (deep sleep state), and turiya ( transcendental state).

“Tântrics locate the four steps of sound in the nervous system: parâ, pashyanti, madhyama, and vaikhari. Parâ: the first and supreme source, it is unmanifest, but turned towards manifestation (Târa). It is the mahâ kârana seated at the mulâdhâra. Pashyanti: the word that percieves. This is the kârana, located at the manipura chakra. Madhyama: the word in the middle subtle region between the navel and the throat (anâhata chakra). Vaikhari: the expression of speech, Goddess Matangi.

“Matangi is greenish dark in complexion (Syamala). Her tender limbs have the glow of sapphire. She is known as Ucchista Chândâli. Sage Mâtanga was a Chandala by birth. Goddess of Speech manifested as the daughter of the sage and hence Her name Chandala Kanya.

“Mati is the thinking mind and mata is thought. The unmanifest Word perceives itself for manifestation and then reaches the thinking mind for expression (Matanga). When the word fashioned by the heart and formulated by the mind is expressed it is Matangi. The Word of pristine purity becomes colored during expression (varana). The speech descends from the Supreme Source, bringing into expression only part of its Glory, hence the name Uchhista [Leftover] Chandali. By catching the tail-end of the Word (articulated speech), one can get to the source. The worship of Matangi leads one to the realization of the residual above (Lalita). She is the Mantrini of Lalita. She represents the power of attraction of Lalita. Her main purpose is to lead aspirants to Lalita Upasana. Matangi is the Akarshna. Lalita uses Her mantra to attract devotees to Her.”

Here is the original source of the above passage.

MATANGI’S ORIGINS

There are more layers of Maatangi iconography in Tantric Buddhism, which both illuminate and obscure Her nature. For example, there is Shoshika, a Buddhist form of Maatangi. Historically, it appears She was (1) an aboriginal Indian tribal deity borrowed by proto-Hindu Goddess worshippers, then (2) absorbed by Tantric Buddhism and forgotten by Hinduism, then (3) absorbed back into Hindism as a Mahavidya by Shakta sects in Kashmir and then Bengal … and so on.

To try to trace any of this is great detail, however, boggles the mind! And it obscures more than it reveals, wrapping the seeker in a web of academic and theoretical hair-splitting. Maatangi’s ultimately create the impression (probably intended and certainly true) that Her nature — like that of any Devi form — is ANYTHING and EVERYTHING.

As I’ve pointed out before, Maatangi is one of Sri Durga’s primary 108 names. She is also called a form of Kali, a form of Parvati, a form of Sati, even a form of Lakshmi. Maatangi, you see, is ubiquitously lurking in the jungle shadows — a dark, wild presence found almost everywhere in Devi’s vast mythology; now seen, now gone again.

In one Mahavidya text, I saw Her called “the Goddess of Royalty.” Another says She “establishes the rule of peace, calm and prosperity.” The modern Tantric master Kavyakantha Ganapati Muni (1878-1936) — whose sadhana centered on the Mahavidyas — taught that “Matangi is the highest of the Goddesses in that She allows all their powers and principles to be realized.”

These towering and mighty ch