Shakti Peetha

Lord Shiva carrying the corpse of Dakshayani

Lord Brahma performed a yajna (Vedic ritual of fire sacrifice) to please Shakti and Shiva. Goddess Shakti emerged, separating from Shiva and helped Brahma in the creation of the universe. Brahma decided to give Shakti back to Shiva. Therefore, his son Daksha performed several yagnas to obtain Shakti as his daughter in the form of Sati. It was then decided that Sati was brought into this world with the motive of marrying Shiva.

However, due to Lord Shiva's curse to Brahma that his fifth head was cut off due to his lie in front of Shiva, Daksha started hating Lord Shiva and decided not to let Lord Shiva and Sati get married.

However, Sati got attracted to Shiva and finally one day Shiva and Sati were married. This marriage only increased Daksha's hatred towards Lord Shiva.

Daksha performed a yagna with a desire to take revenge on Lord Shiva. Daksha invited all the deities to the yajna except Lord Shiva and Sati. The fact that she was not invited did not deter Sati from attending the yagna. She expressed her desire to attend the yagna to Shiva, who tried his best to dissuade her from going. Shiva eventually relented and Sati went to the yagna. Sati, being an uninvited guest, was not given any respect at the yagna. Furthermore, Daksha insulted Shiva. Sati was unable to bear her father's insults toward her husband, so she self-immolated.

Enraged at the death and insult of his spouse, Shiva in his Virabhadra avatar destroyed Daksha's yagna, cut off Daksha's head, but later replaced it with that of a male goat as he restored him to life.Virabhadra didn't stop fighting; he kept raging with anger. Gods prayed to lord Vishnu. He came there and started fighting him. Still immersed in grief, Shiva picked up the remains of Sati's body, and performed the Tandava, the celestial dance of destruction, across all creation. The other Gods requested Vishnu to intervene to stop this destruction, towards which Vishnu used the Sudarshana Chakra, which cut through Sati's corpse. The various parts of the body fell at several spots all through the Indian subcontinent and formed sites which are known as Shakti Peethas today.[6]

At all the Shakti Peethas, the Goddess Shakti is accompanied by her consort, Lord Bhairava (a manifestation of Lord Shiva).

The history of Daksha yajna and Sati's self-immolation had immense significance in shaping the ancient Sanskrit literature and even influenced the culture of India. It led to the development of the concept of Shakti Peethas and thereby strengthened Shaktism. Enormous numbers of stories in the Puranas and other Hindu religious books took the Daksha yagna as the reason for their origin. It is an important incident in Shaivism, resulting in the emergence of Parvati in the place of Sati Devi and making Shiva a grihastashrami (house holder), leading to the origin of Ganesha and Kartikeya.[9]

Shakti Peethas are shrines or divine places of the Mother Goddess. These are places that are believed to have been blessed with the presence of Shakti due to the falling of body parts of the corpse of Sati Devi, when Lord Shiva carried it and wandered throughout Aryavartha in sorrow. There are 51 Shakti Peeth linking to the 51 alphabets in Sanskrit.[10] Each temple has shrines for Shakti and Kalabhairava, and most Shakti and Kalabhairava in different Shakti Peeth have different names.

Some of the great religious texts like the Shiva Purana, the Devi Bhagavata, the Kalika Purana, the AstaShakti, and Pithanirnaya Tantra recognize four major Shakti Peethas (centers): Bimala Temple (Pada Khanda) inside the Jagannath Temple of Puri, Odisha; Tara Tarini (Sthana Khanda, Purnagiri, Breasts), near Berhampur, Odisha; Kamakhya Temple (Yoni Khanda), in Guwahati, Assam; and Dakshina Kalika (Mukha Khanda) in Kolkata, West Bengal, all originating from the parts of the corpse of Mata Sati in the Satya Yuga.

The Ashtashakti and Kalika Purana says (in Sanskrit):

"Bimala Pada khandancha,

Stana khandancha Tarini (Tara Tarini),

Kamakhya Yoni khandancha,

Mukha khandancha Kalika (Dakshina Kalika)

Anga pratyanga sanghena

Vishnu Chakra Kshyta nacha"

Further explaining the importance of these four Pithas, the "Brihat Samhita" also gives the location of these Pithas as (in Sanskrit)

"Rushikulya* Tatae Devi,

Tarakashya Mahagiri,

Tashya Srunga Stitha Tara

Vasishta Rajitapara" (Rushikulya is a holy river flowing on the foothill of the Tara Tarini Hill Shrine).

In the listings below:

• "Shakti" refers to the Goddess worshiped at each location, all being manifestations of Dakshayani (Sati), Parvati or Durga;
• "Body Part or Ornament" refers to the body part or piece of jewelry that fell to earth, at the location on which the respective temple is built.

Temple	City/Town	State in India/Country	Body Part	Image
Vimala Temple	Puri	Odisha	pada (feet)
Taratarini Temple	Berhampur	Odisha	stana (breast)
Kamakhya Temple	Guwahati	Assam	yoni (genitals)
Kalighat Kali Temple	Kolkata	West Bengal	daahina padangushtha (right toe)

Apart from these 4 there are 48 other famous Peethas recognized by religious texts. According to the Pithanirnaya Tantra the 51 peethas are scattered all over present day countries of India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Nepal, China, Bhutan and Pakistan. The Shivacharita besides listing 51 maha-peethas, speaks about 26 more upa-peethas. The Bengali almanac, Vishuddha Siddhanta Panjika too describes the 51 peethas including the present modified addresses. A few of the several accepted listings are given below.[11] One of the few in South India, Srisailam in Andhra Pradesh became the site for a 2nd-century temple.[12]

The Hindus of Meghalaya consider Nartiang Durga Temple shaktipeetha as the Permanent abode of godess Durga

In the listings[13] below:

• "Shakti" refers to the Goddess worshipped at each location, all being manifestations of Dakshayani, 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.

The details of this is available in the text "TANTHRACHOODAMANI" where Parvathi tells these details to her son Skanda.

Sr. No.	Place	State in India/Country	Body Part or Ornament	Shakti	Bhairava	Image
1	A.Amarnath Temple, from Srinagar through Pahalgam 94 km by Bus, Chandanwari 16 km by walk B. Shri Parvat in Ladakh	Jammu and Kashmir	A. Throat B. Anklet	Mahamaya	Trisandhyeshwar
2	At a village also named as Attahas or Ashtahas around 2 km east of Labhpur village road in the district of Birbhum	West Bengal	Lips	Phullara	Vishvesh
3	Bahula at Ketugram, 8 km from Katwa, Purba Bardhaman	West Bengal	Left arm	Goddess Bahula	Bhiruk
4	Bakreshwar, on the banks of Paaphara river, 24 km distance from Siuri Town [a district headquarter], district Birbhum, 7 km from Dubrajpur Rly. Station	West Bengal	Portion between the eyebrows	Mahishmardini	Vakranath
5	Bhairavparvat, at Bhairav hills on the banks of Shipra river in the city of Ujjaini. These Shaktpeeth known as Harsiddi temple.	Madhya Pradesh	Elbow	Avanti	Lambkarna
6	Bhabanipur, located in the Upazila of Sherpur, Bogra, Rajshahi Division. Also located at Karatoyatat, it is about 28 km distance from the town of Sherpur.	Bangladesh	Left anklet (ornament)	Aparna	Vaman
7	Biraja Temple at Jajpur, in Jajpur District	Odisha	Navel	Biraja	Varaha (Baraha)
8	Chhinnamastika Shaktipeeth at Chintpurni, in Una District of Himachal Pradesh	Himachal Pradesh	Foot	Chhinnamastika	Rudra Mahadev
9	Muktinath Temple[14]	Nepal	Right Cheek	Gandaki Chandi	Chakrapani
10	Goddess Bhadrakali on banks of Godavari in Nashik city (Saptashrungi)	Maharashtra	Chin (2 parts)	Bhadrakali	Vikritaksh
11	Hinglaj	Pakistan	Bramharandhra (Part of the head)	Kottari	Bhimlochan
12	Jayanti at Nartiang village in the Jaintia Hills district. This Shakti Peetha is locally known as the Nartiang Durga Temple.	Meghalaya	Left thigh	Jayanti	Kramadishwar
13	Jeshoreshwari Kali Temple	Bangladesh	Palms of hands and soles of the feet	Jashoreshwari	Chanda
14	Jwalaji, Kangra from Pathankot alight at Jwalamukhi Road Station from there 20 km	Himachal Pradesh	Tongue	Siddhida (Ambika)	Unmatta Bhairav
15	Kalipeeth, (Kalighat, Kolkata)	West Bengal	Right Toes	Kalika	Nakuleshwar
16	Kamgiri, Kamakhya, in the Neelachal hills in Guwahati	Assam	Genitals	Kamakhya	Umananda or Bhayaanand
17	Kankalitala, on the banks of Kopai River 10 km north-east of Bolpur station in Birbhum district, Devi locally known as Kankaleshwari	West Bengal	Pelvis	Devgarbha	Ruru
18	Kanyashram of Balaambika – The Bhagavathy temple in Kanyakumari, the southernmost tip of mainland India, Tamil Nadu (also thought to be situated in Yunnan province, China)	Tamil Nadu	Back	Sarvani	Nimish
19	Karnat, Brajeshwari Devi, Kangra	Himachal Pradesh	left Breast	Jayadurga	Abhiru
20	Kiriteswari Temple at Kiritkona village, 3 km from Lalbag Court Road station under district Murshidabad	West Bengal	Crown	Vimla	Sanwart
21	Ratnavali, on the banks of Ratnakar river at Khanakul I Krishnanagar, district Hooghly (locally known as Anandamayee Tala)	West Bengal	Right Shoulder	Kumari	Ghanteshwar
22	'A.Locally known as Bhramari Devi in Jalpaiguri near a small village Boda on the bank of river Teesta or Tri-shrota (combination of three flows) mentioned in Puranas B.Ma Malai Chandi Temple at Amta, Howrah	West Bengal	A. Left leg B. Part of Left Knee	Bhraamari	Ambar
23	Manas, under Tibet at the foot of Mount Kailash in Lake Manasarovar, a piece of Stone	China	Right hand	Dakshayani	Amar
24	Manibandh, at Gayatri hills near Pushkar 11 km north-west of Ajmer. People know this temple as Chamunda Mata Temple or Shri Raj Rajeshwari Puruhuta Manivedic Shaktipeeth.	Rajasthan	Wrists	Gayatri	Sarvanand
25	Mithila, near Janakpur railway station on the border of India and Nepal	Nepal	Left shoulder	Uma	Mahodar
26	Nainativu (Manipallavam), Northern Province, Sri Lanka. Located 36 km from the ancient capital of the Jaffna kingdom, Nallur. The murti of the Goddess is believed to have been consecrated and worshipped by Lord Indra. The protagonist, Lord Rama and antagonist, Ravana of the Sanskrit epic Ramayana have offered obeisances to the Goddess. Nāga and Garuda of the Sanskrit epic Mahabharata; resolved their longstanding feuds after worshipping this Goddess.	Sri Lanka	Silambu (Anklets)	Indrakshi (Nagapooshani / Bhuvaneswari)	Rakshaseshwar (Nayanair)
27	Guhyeshwari Temple	Nepal	Both Knees	Mahashira	Kapali
28	Chandranath Temple	Bangladesh	Right arm	Bhawani	Chandrashekhar
29	Panchsagar Near Lohaghat (in Champawat District of Uttarakhand) just 12 km from nearest railway station Tanakpur. पूर्णागिरी / DeviDhura Champawat Varahi Devi	Uttarakhand	Lower teeth/ Navel	Varahi	Maharudra
30	Prabhas, 4 km from Veraval station near Somnath temple in Junagadh district. Local People call this temple as Kali Mandir, It is nearby Triveni Sangam.[15]	Gujarat	Stomach	Chandrabhaga	Vakratund
31	Alopi Devi Mandir near Sangam at Prayagraj	Uttar Pradesh	Finger	Lalita	Bhava
32	Present day Kurukshetra town or Thanesar ancient Sthaneshwar	Haryana	Ankle bone	Savitri/BhadraKali	Sthanu
33	Sharda Peeth on top Trikoot Hill, at Maihar	Madhya Pradesh	necklace[16]	Shivani	Chanda
34	Nandikeshwari Temple is located in Sainthia city.	West Bengal	Necklace	Nandini	Nandikeshwar
35	Kotilingeswar Ghat temple on the banks of Godavari river near Rajamundry	Andhra Pradesh	Cheeks	Rakini or Vishweshwari	Vatsnabh or Dandpani
36	Naina Devi Temple	Himachal Pradesh	Right Eye	Mahishmardini	Krodhish
37	Shondesh, at the source point of Narmada River in Amarkantak	Madhya Pradesh	Right buttock	Narmada	Bhadrasen
38	Sri Sailam, at Nallamalai hills, Andhra Pradesh	Andhra Pradesh, India	Neck	Bramarambika	mallikarjuna
39	Shuchi, in a Shiva temple at Suchindrum 11 km on Kanyakumari Trivandrum road	Tamil Nadu	Upper teeth	Narayani	Sanhar
40	Sugandha, situated in Shikarpur, Gournadi, about 20 km from Barisal town, on the banks of Sonda river.	Bangladesh	Nose	Sugandha	Trayambak
41	Udaipur, Tripura, at the top of the hills known as Tripura Sundari temple near Radhakishorepur village, a little distance away from Udaipur town	Tripura	Right leg	Tripura Sundari	Tripuresh
42	Ujaani, at Mangalkot 16 km from Guskara station in Purba Bardhaman district	West Bengal	Right wrist	Mangal Chandika	Kapilambar
43	Varanasi at Manikarnika Ghat on banks of the Ganges at Kashi	Uttar Pradesh	Face or Earring	Vishalakshi & Manikarni	Kaal bhairav
44	Vibhash, at Tamluk under district Purba Medinipur	West Bengal	Left ankle	Kapalini (Bhimarupa) also known as Bargabheema	Sarvanand
45	virat nagar district alwar, near Bharatpur, India,	Rajasthan	Fingers of Left Leg	Ambika	Amritaksha
46	Vrindavan, near new bus stand, on Bhuteshwar road within Bhuteshwar Mahadev Temple, Katyayanipeeth.	Uttar Pradesh	Ringlets of hair	Uma	Bhutesh
47	Jalandhar, from Jalandhar Cantonment Station to Devi Talab.	Punjab	Left Breast	Tripurmalini	Bhishan
48	Baidyanath Dham	Jharkhand	Heart	Jaya Durga	Baidyanath
49	[Adhi Kamakshi Amman Temple behind Kamakshi Amman Temple]	Tamil Nadu	Odyanam(Navel)	Kamakshi
50	Jogadya (যোগাদ্যা), at Kshirgram (ক্ষীরগ্রাম) near Kaichar under Burdwan district	West Bengal	Great Toe	Jogadya (যোগাদ্যা)	Ksheer Kantak (ক্ষীর কন্টক)
51	Pithapuram under Kakinada Port Town	Andhra Pradesh	Hip Part	Purohotika
52	Ambaji at Anart	Gujarat	Heart	Amba	Batuk Bhairav
53	Jwaladevi Temple, Shaktinagar, Sonbhadra	Uttar Pradesh	Tongue	Jwala Devi
54	Chandika Sthan, near Munger town	Bihar	Left Eye	Chandika Devi
55	Danteshwari Temple, Dantewada	Chhattisgarh	Tooth or daant	Danteshwari devi	Kapalbhairav
56	Juranpur, Nadia	West Bengal
57	Tara Tarini, Berhampur, Ganjam	Odisha	Breast/Sthan	Maa Taratarini	Tumbeswar
58	Nalhateswari, Nalhati	West Bengal	Stomach/Nauli	Kalika	Jogesh
59	Mankachar, 266 km from Guwahati	Assam	Little finger	Devi
60	Vimala Temple, Inside Jagannath Temple, Puri	Odisha	Foot	Devi

First relating to Brahmanda Purana, one of the major eighteen Puranas, it mentions 64 Shakti Peetha of 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 Shakti Peetha Stotram, written by Adi Shankara, the 9th-century Hindu philosopher.[17]

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.

Rishi Markandeya composed the 'Devi Saptashati' or the seven hundred hymns extolling the virtues of the Divine Goddess at the shaktipeetha in Nashik. The idol is also leaning a little to the left to listen to the sage's composition. The Saptashati or the "Durga Stuti" forms an integral part in the Vedic form of Shakti worship.

The third eye of Mata Sati fell below a tree in a mortuary in the Ishan corner of Vakreshwar. This is on the bank of the north-flowing Dwarka river in the east of Baidyanath. Here Mata Sati is called Chandi Bhagwai Ugra Tara and Bhairav is called Chandrachur. This Shaktipeeth is called Tarapith in Birbhum district West bengal, India.

The modern cities or towns that correspond to these 64 locations can be a matter of dispute, but there are a few that are totally unambiguous, these are mentioned in the Ashta Dasa Shakti Peetha Stotram by Manish Bhandari.[18] This shubham dubey contains 18 such locations which are often referred to as Most Popular Shakti Peeths.

Sr. No.	Temple	Place	State in India/Country	Appellation	Part of the body fallen	Shakti	Image
1	Shankari Temple (part of the Koneswaram Temple)|[[Heart	Trincomalee	Triconmalee, SriLanka	Lankayam Shankari Peetham ]]	Shankari
2	Kamakshi Amman Temple|[[Skeleton|Navel	Kanchi	Tamil Nadu	Kama koti peetam ]]	Kamakshi Amman
3	(Stomach)	Pandua]]) Bengal	BavTharini Peetham		Maa Shrinkala
4	[[Chamundeshwari Temple][Hair]	Mysuru	Karnataka	Krounja Peetham ]]	Maa Chamundeshwari
5	[Alampur, Jogulamba(Teeth) Gadwal district#The shrine of Jogulamba devi|Jogulamba Devi]]]	Alampur, Gadwal district	Telangana	Yogini Peetham	[[]	Jogulamba Thalli (Yogamba)
6	Bhramaramba Mallikarjuna Temple][Neck]	Srisailam,|[	Andhra Pradesh	Srisaila Peetham ]]	Maa Bhramarambika
7	[[Mahalakshmi Temple, Kolhapur][Eye]	Kolhapur |[]	Maharashtra	Shri Peetham	Aai Ambabai
8	Eka Veerika Temple[Left Hand]	Mahur, Maharashtra	Maharashtra	Moola Peetham		Eka Veerika
9	Mahakaleshwar Jyotirlinga[Tongue]	[[Ujjain]	Madhya Pradesh|[	Ujjaini Peetham ]]	Maa Kaali
10	Kukkuteswara Swamy Temple[Back]	[[Pithapuram]	Andhra Pradesh	Pushkarini Peetham ]]	Maa Puruhutika
11	[[Biraja Temple][Navel]	Jajpur	Odisha	Oddyana Peetham ]]	Maa Biraja
12 [[Chalukya Kumararama Bhimeswara Temple|Kumararama Bhimeswara Temple][Left cheek]	Draksharamam	Andhra Pradesh	Draksharama Peetham		Maa Manikyamba
13	[[Kamakhya Temple](Genitals)	Guwahati|	Assam	Kamarupa Peetham	Devi Kamakhya
14	[[Alopi Devi Mandir](Fingers)	Prayagraj|[	Uttar Pradesh	Prayaga Peetham ]]	Maa Madhaveswari
15.	Jwalamukhi Temple[Head]	Kangra	Himachal Pradesh	[ ]]	Maa Jwalamukhi
16.	[[Mangla Gauri Temple][Breast]	Gaya	Bihar|[	Gaya Peetham ]]	Maa Sarvamangala
17.	[[Vishalakshi Temple[Noses]	Varanasi	Uttar Pradesh	Varanasi Peetham ]]	Maa Vishalakshi
18.	[[Sharada Peeth{Right Hand}	Sharda, Kashmir|[[hand|]	Kashmir	Sharada Peetham ]	Maa Sharada Devi

[*]Sharada Peeth: This temple is currently non-existent*.[19] Only ruins are found in these places. Its ruins are near the Line of Control (LOC)[20] between the Indian and Pakistani-controlled portions of the former princely state of Kashmir and Jammu. Instead, Sringeri Sharada Peetham, Sringeri in Karnataka even though not a Shakti Peetha, is this aspect of the goddess. 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[21] as a confidence-building measure, by increasing the people to people cross-border interaction.[20]

Among these, the Shakti Peethas at Kamakhya, Gaya and Ujjain are regarded as the most sacred as they symbolise the three most important aspects of the Mother Goddess viz. Creation (Kamarupa Devi), Nourishment (Sarvamangala Devi/Mangalagauri) and Annihilation (Mahakali Devi).

As per Sankara Samhita of Sri Skanda Purana,[22]

1. Sri Sankari Peetham (at Lanka)
2. Sri Simhika Peetham (at Simhala)
3. Sri Manika Peetham (at Dakshavati)
4. Sri Sudkala Peetham (At Petapur)
5. Sri Bhramaramba Peetham (Srisailam)
6. Sri Vijaya Peetham (Vijayapura)
7. Sri Mahalakshmi Peetham (Kolhapuri)
8. Sri Kamakshi Peetham ( Kanchipuram)
9. Sri Kuchananda Peetham (Salagrama)
10. Sri Viraja Peetham (Odyana, Jajpur)
11. Sri Bhadreswari Peetham (Harmyagiri)
12. Sri Mahakali Peetham (Ujjayini)
13. Sri Vindhyavasini Peetham (The Vindhya mountains)
14. Sri Mahayogi Peetham (Ahicchatra)
15. Sri Kanyaka Peetham (Kanya Kubja)
16. Sri Visalakshi Peetham ( Kashi)
17. Sri Saraswati Peetham (Kashmira)
18. Sri AbhirAmA Peetham (Padmagiri, Dindigul)

Kottiyoor Yajna bhoomi

The Kerala Hindus believes that the self immolation of the Sati happened in the Kottiyoor in Kannur district in Kerala.The annual Kottiyoor Vysakha Mahotsavam is conducted to commemorate the self immolation of Sati.The Kottiyoor Temple is located on the both banks of the Bavali river.[23]

• Dineschandra Sircar (1998). The Śākta Pīṭhas. Motilal Banarsidass Publ. ISBN 978-81-208-0879-9.

• Phyllis K. Herman, California State University, Northridge (USA), "Siting the Power of the Goddess: Sita Rasoi Shrines in Modern India", International Ramayana Conference Held at Northern Illinois University, DeKalb, IL USA, 21–23 September 2001.
• Hindu Goddesses: Vision of the Divine Feminine in the Hindu Religious Traditions (ISBN 81-208-0379-5) by David Kinsley
• com/navratra/Shaktipeeth.html 51 Nav Durga Shaktipeeths- Legend and listing Zee News

• Hindu pilgrimage sites
• List of Shakti peeth in Bengal

• 52 shakti peethas map
• 51 Shakti Peethas of Ma Durga
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• Sri Swamiji visits Sri Lanka for Shankari Temple Darshan
• Comprehensive guide on 51 Shakti Peethas
• Daksha Yagna – The story of Daksha's sacrifice and the origin of the Shakti Pithas