By Shobha Rao Smilemaker
Oct 14: Navrathri is the time when we honour the feminine energy of the Divine Goddesses and the traits that they represent. Even Lord Shiva is depicted as ‘Ardha-nari-ishwara’ with his feminine energy side called as Shakthi. There is a legend of Lord Shiva, wallowing in grief and anger at the death of his beloved wife Sati. He started doing the dance of cosmic destruction, carrying the corpse of Sati, vowing to stop only when her body disappears completely out of his hands.
To save the Universe and to break Shiva’s attachment, Lord Vishnu used his disc to cut Sati’s body into pieces. The 51 places where the body parts of Sati are believed to have fallen on earth and are considered to have high spiritual energy. They became the ‘Seat of Strength or Shakthi Peet’ and are very holy powerful places of pilgrimage for the devotees across India.
The following is a brief account of my experiences at some of the Shakti Peeth pilgrim shrines that I have personally visited.
1. Jwalajidevi temple at Kangra in Himachal is supposed to be the site where the tongue of the Goddess would have fallen. In spite of non-clarity regarding driving distance and temple timings and warnings against venturing alone there sat night, I decided at 6 pm to go there after my office training workshop and reached in time for the night Aarathi. . There is no image of any idol inside the main cave, instead there are nine spots in the stone walls from where flames are emitted continuously in the shape of a tongue. I was lucky to witness the night sleeping ceremony of the Goddess in another chamber, where the temple jewellery is laid out in order/ on a mattress, as if adorning a lady. Then it is covered with blankets and the priest claimed that the jewels are completely disheveled in the morning.
2. Kamakhyadevi temple at Guwahati in Assam is supposed to be the site where the Vagina of the Goddess would have fallen. I reached at dawn admiring the bird’s eye view as we drove to the top of the Nilachil Hill. As we wandered across the temple courtyard, I noticed the blood red colour of the vermillion powder, which is supposed to have been mixed with the blood of animals like goats that are sacrificed here. I was surprised to see the image of Lajja Gauri, the Goddess sitting in a squatted open vagina position. There is no image of any idol inside the main cave, instead there is a depression in a stone filled with eternal spring water that is worshipped by the devotees. Do Smile here in honour of ‘Yoni’ which is the source of birth of human beings into this world.
3. Vaishnodevi at Katra in Jammu is supposed to be the site where the left arm of the Goddess would have fallen. We started our long climb up the hills from the base at 5 am to the enthusiastic cries of Jai Mata Di. I slowly made up my mind for the long trek ahead, but was not at all prepared to face the heavy rains and the gusty chilly winds. After arming ourselves with a temporary plastic sheet masquerading as a raincoat, we slowly went up the sloping pathways, this time saying Jai Mata di in the mind as I tried to ignore the notorious looking monkeys. After the tough climb, there was a feeling of accomplishment that I felt from within when finally I was in the presence of the three stones, representing the three Goddesses.
4. Vishalaxshi temple at Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh. It is the place where the face of Sati is supposed to have fallen. I had visited this Shakti peeth as a college student after taking a dip in the Holy waters of river Ganga. This temple in North India is patronized by many South Indians and the priest invited us for a rare traditional South India meal, which was a happy surprise for us at the end of our 15 day trip of eating only North Indian food. The wide eyes of the idol were mesmerizing, giving this Goddess the name of Vishal-akshi.
5. Bimladevi inside Jagganath temple complex at Puri in Orissa. It is the place where the foot of Sati is supposed to have fallen. I had heard about the many miraculous facts about Lord Jagganath temple at Puri, but I did not know that there was a Shakti peet here of his powerful consort Bimla devi who is an important deity of tantrik Goddess worshippers. When my mother and I visited this beautiful temple, the priest there took personal interest in us, did some religious ceremonies, and in the end gave us each a sacred yantra to be kept inside our shrines at home. We quietly gave him some dakshina and felt we had taken an important part of the temple back with us in our pockets and hearts. It is customary to make prostrations and offer prasad to this Goddess Bimladevi before visiting the shrine of Lord Jagannath.
6. Kalighatdevi at Kolkata in West Bengal. It is the place where the big right toe of Sati is supposed to have fallen. A not so great memory of my first visit to this temple was along with an official colleague and how we were soon surrounded with seemingly greedy looking priests. They chanted mantras and insisted on dakshina. Though I refused repeatedly to indulge them, my friend parted with a huge sum of money for some private Pooja and was later miraculously blessed with a child. However the image of the fierce avatar of the divine Goddess remained etched in my heart. Few years later, I ventured again to visit this Shakti peet at dawn, walking through narrow roads and crossed a smelly drain water stretch on local boats. This time I experienced a terrific sense of connection with the higher power, as I stood in front of the idol, thanking her for always protecting my daughter. (In my mind I have appointed Kali Goddess as the protector of women across the world!) Please have no fear, when Kali is here!
7. Kamakshiamman at Kanchipuram in Tamil Nadu. It is the place where the navel of Sati is supposed to have fallen. Swami Shankaracharya had installed the Sri chakra here and the Goddess is depicted in a sitting position. It must be one of the first Shakti Peets I visited as a child with my grandfather and I remember staring in amazement at the fantastic architecture and the carvings around the temple complex
8. Ambabai Laxmidevi at Kohlapur in Maharashtra. It is the place where the eye of Sati is supposed to have fallen. This was my first official visit as a Corporate Trainer and the local HR person took me around the temple complex with a lot of interest after my training day ended. The wonderful architecture of the temple is such that on certain days of the year the rays of the rising sun fall directly on the body of the Goddess through a window as if paying homage to her greatness.
9. Sarkhandadevi near Kanathal in Uttarakhand. It is the place where the part of the head of Sati is supposed to have fallen. I thought I was going on a trek to a nearby mountain and was shocked to know that I had to scale 2 more peaks to reach this temple. Leech bites. Insect bites, buzzing bees, poison shrubs, hunger, thirst, tired legs, yet strong mind, good guide and good company made this dense forest uphill trek one absolutely unforgettable 7 hours of my life. The amazing views from the small, cute, colourful temple on the peak made the experience absolutely worth it. I could actually sense the mighty power or Sarkhanda devi.. (Sar is head in Hindi). The best part was when I dressed up in a Devi costume, complete with a sword and actually experienced the divine feminine energy within. Some devotees even wanted to take pictures with me..we even got some donations and many laughs!
Shobha Rao Smilemaker has a vision of living in a world where people use their ability to find and make smiles in any situation. She is a lawyer by qualification, a soft skills trainer by passion, a motivational speaker, a freelance journalist, a bestselling author, an avid traveler and founder of 'Smilemakers Trainings'. She can be contacted at www.shobhasmilemaker.com.