Hare Krishna
Hare Krishna
Krishna Krishna
Hare Hare
Hare Rama
Hare Rama
Rama Rama
Hare Hare
“He had a thousand hands and wore matted locks. His head was adorned by the crested moon. He appeared like a bird with wings and beak. His body was fierce and fully developed.
His fangs were very sharp. Adamantine claws were His weapons. His neck was black in colour. He had huge arms and four legs. He was blazing like fire.
His voice was resonant and terrible like the rumbling sound of the clouds that gather at the end of the yuga. His three eyes were wide and blazing as the fire of the evil spirit of great fury.
His fangs and lips were clearly visible. He was producing a hissing sound of humkara. Shiva of such a form appeared in sight.”
With Indra’s city still under siege, the gods arrange the marriage of Siva and Tripura-sundari. After some time the goddess, with her female associates (saktis), goes off to battle Bhanda and his army. Tripura-sundari produces many weapons from the noose and goad that she carries in her hands. Bhanda is amused by the army of females and predicts that they will be as ineffective in battle as the name of their leader, Lalita (soft and delicate), suggests. Tripura-sundari and her army, however, turn out to be superior to Bhanda and his army. In the course of the battle the two chief protagonists, Tripura-sundari and Bhanda, produce various beings from their bodies. Bhanda creates a number of demons that are well known in Hindu mythology, and Tripura-sundari counters by bringing forth a corresponding deity or avatara to defeat the demon. Bhanda, for example, creates Hiranyakasipu. Lalita in turn produces Prahlada, who in the well-known Vaisnava myth defeats Hiranyakasipu. Bhanda brings forth Ravana, and Tripura-sundari creates Rama from one of her fingernails. In the course of the battle Bhanda also creates Mahisasura. The goddess responds by producing Durga, who is ornamented with jewelry given to her by many male gods. Durga then slays Mahisasura, as she does in the famous Devi-mahatmya. Finally, the goddess defeats Bhanda himself. After the battle, the gods, led by Kama-deva’s wife, Rati, implore Tripura-sundari to restore the god of love, whom Siva had destroyed. She does so, and desire is restored to the world. The gods praise her in unison.
AnonymousDo you mean this photo? That is a deity of Kateri Amman, a particularly nasty goddess associated with Kali whose name translates to “vampire.” I did take the photo. Her shrine is located in a clearing in the woods behind my home. She is… an interesting presence to live near. I can attest to her vampiric qualities, but fortunately for my own well-being, she demands solitude most of the time.
