Tripura Sundari
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Tripura Sundari, also called Shodashi, Lalita and Rajarajeshvari, is one of the group of ten goddesses of Hindu mythology, and these goddesses are collectively called mahavidyas. The other nine mahavidyas are Kali, Tara, Bhuvaneshvari, Bhairavi, Chhinnamasta, Dhumavati, Bagalamukhi, Matangi, and Kamalatmika.
The goddess Tripura Sundari in her aspect as Shodasi is represented as a sixteen-year-old girl, and is believed to embody sixteen types of desire. The Shodasi Tantra, a treatise on the Tantra, describes Tripura Sundari as "the radiant light in the eyes of Shiva". She is described as being of dusky color, and is depicted in an intimate position with an aspect of Shiva. The couple are shown on a bed, a throne, or a pedestal resting on the significant male gods of Hinduism like Brahma, Visnu, Rudra, and Indra.
The Indian state of Tripura derives its name from the goddess Tripura Sundari. Her main temple, the Tripura Sundari temple is also located in this state, though Kashmiris are the foremost in worship of Tripura Sundari, who are the only ones who remember the hymn to Tripura Sundari, Pancastavi in entirety.
[edit] References in Hindu literature
Tripura Sundari is described in great detail as extremely attractive, beautiful, and erotically inclined.
The Lalitha Sahasranama details her charms from head to foot, and the most part of the Saundaryalahari is similarly occupied with her attractive appearance. She is often said to give desire and to suffuse the creation with desire. The Saundaryalahari also states that that a worn-out old man, ugly and sluggish in the arts of love, can be restored to sexual attractiveness and vigor by her glance. The description of a beautiful woman, part by part, in the process of her arraying herself (shringar), was an established poetic form in Indian classical literature.
The Prapancasara Tantra says that her worship has such an amorous effect that celestial females such as gandharvas, yakshis, and siddhas come to the sadhaka (devotee) "with gazelle-like eyes, breathing heavily, their bodies quivering … and moist with the pearly sweat of passion; and throwing away their ornaments and letting their clothes fall from about them, [they] bow themselves before him and offer to do his will."
The several names that associate or identify her with the female sexual organ in her thousand-name hymn in the Vamakeshvara Tantra also suggest the erotic character of the goddess.
The Tripura Sundari Ashtakam by Adi Shankaracharya describes her as a Mother, her nourishing breasts akin to mountain peaks that give birth to rivers. She is described wearing a blue dress with red spots, holding a pot of honey, her eyes quivering with intoxication.
[edit] Further reading
- Hindu Goddesses: Vision of the Divine Feminine in the Hindu Religious Traditions (ISBN 81-208-0379-5) by David Kinsley
[edit] References
| Hinduism | Hindu mythology | Indian epic poetry |  |
|---|---|
| Female Deities: Saraswati | Lakshmi | Dakshayani | Gayatri | Parvati | Durga | Shakti | Kali | Sita | Devi | Radha | Mahavidya | more... | |
| Male Deities: Brahma | Vishnu | Shiva | Rama | Krishna | Ganesha | Murugan | Hanuman | Indra | Surya | more... | |
| Texts: Vedas | Upanishads | Puranas | Ramayana | Mahabharata | Rigveda | |
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