Kamakhya Temple, Guwahati – Legends

Kamakhya Temple, Guwahati – Legends

Sakthi Peeth:

In Hindu mythology, Daksha Yajna or Daksha-Yaga is an important event, which is narrated in various Hindu scriptures. It refers to a yajna (sacrifice) organized by Daksha, where his daughter Sati immolated herself. The wrath of god Shiva, Sati's husband, thereafter destroyed the sacrifice. The tale is also called Daksha-Yajna-Nasha (destruction of Daksha's sacrifice). The story forms the basis of the establishment of the Shakti Peethas, temples of the Hindu Divine Mother. It is also becoming a prelude to the story of Parvati, Sati's reincarnation who later marries Shiva. The mythology is mainly told in the Vayu Purana. It is also mentioned in the Kasi Kanda of the Skanda Purana, the Kurma Purana, Harivamsa Purana and Padma Purana. Linga Purana, Shiva Purana, and Matsya Purana also detail the incident.

Sati-Shiva marriage:

Daksha was one of the Prajapati, son of Brahma, and among his foremost creations. The name Daksha means "skilled one". Daksha had two wives: Prasoothi and Panchajani (Virini). Sati (also known as ‘‘Uma’’) was his youngest daughter; born from Prasoothi (the daughter of the Prajapati Manu), she was the pet child of Daksha and he always carried her with him. Sati (meaning truth) is also called Dakshayani as she followed Daksha’s path; this is derived from the Sanskrit words Daksha and Ayana (walk or path).

Sati, the youngest daughter of Daksha, was deeply in love with the god Shiva and wished to become his wife. Her worship and devotion of Shiva strengthened her immense desire to become his wife. However, Daksha did not like his daughter’s yearning for Shiva, mainly because he was a Prajapati and the son of the god Brahma; his daughter Sati was a royal princess. They were wealthy nobility and their imperial royal lifestyle was entirely different from that of Shiva.

As an emperor, Daksha wanted to increase his influence and power by making marriage alliances with powerful empires and influential sages and gods. Shiva on the other hand led a very modest life. He lived among the downtrodden, wore a tiger skin, smeared ashes on his body, had thick locks of matted hair, and begged with a skull as bowl. His abode was Mount Kailash in the Himalayas. He embraced all kinds of living beings and did not make any distinction between good souls and bad souls.

The Bhutaganas, his followers, consisted of all kinds of ghosts, demons, ghouls and goblins. He wandered through garden and graveyard alike. As a consequence, Daksha had aversion towards Shiva being his daughter’s companion. However, unlike Daksha, Sati loved Shiva as she had the revelation that Shiva was the Supreme God. Sati won Shiva as her husband by undergoing severe austerities (tapas). Despite Daksha's disappointment, Sati married Shiva.

Brahma's Yajna:

Once Brahma conducted a huge yajna (sacrifice), where all the Prajapatis, gods and kings of the world were invited. Shiva and Sati were also called on to participate in the yajna. All of them came for the yajna and sat in the ceremonial place. Daksha came last. When he arrived, everyone in the yajna, with the exception of Brahma, Shiva and Sati, stood up showing reverence for him. Brahma being Daksha's father and Shiva being Daksha's son-in-law were considered superior in stature to Daksha. Daksha misunderstood Shiva’s gesture and considered Shiva's gesture as an insult. Daksha vowed to take revenge on the insult in the same manner.

Daksha Yaga:

Daksha’s grudge towards Shiva grew after Brahma's yajna. With the prime motive of insulting Shiva, Daksha initiated a great yajna, similar to that of Brahma. The yajna was to be presided over by the sage Bhrigu. He invited all the gods, Prajapatis and kings to attend the yajna and intentionally avoided inviting Shiva and Sati.

Dadhichi – Daksha argument:

The Kurma Purana discusses the dialogues between the sage Dadhichi and Daksha. After the sacrifice and hymns where offered to the twelve Aditya gods; Dadhichi noticed that there was no sacrificial portion (Havvis) allotted to Shiva and his wife, and no Vedic hymns were used in the yajna addressing Shiva which were part of Vedic hymns. He warned Daksha that he should not alter the Holy Vedas for personal reasons; the priests and sages supported this. Daksha replied to Dadhichi that he would not do so and insulted Shiva. Dadhichi left the yajna because of this argument.

Sati's Death:

Sati came to know about the grand yajna organized by her father and asked Shiva to attend the yajna. Shiva refused her request, saying that it was inappropriate to attend a function without being invited. He reminded her that she was now his wife more than Daksha’s daughter and, after marriage, is a member of Shiva’s family rather than Daksha’s. The feeling of her bond to her parents overpowered the social etiquette she had to follow. She even had a notion that there was no need to have received an invitation in order to attend as she was Daksha’s favourite daughter and no formality existed between them.

She constantly pleaded and urged Shiva to let her attend the ceremony and became adamant in her demands without listening to the reasons Shiva provided for not attending the function. He allowed Sati to go to her parents' home, along with his followers including Nandi, and attend the ceremony, but refused to accompany with her. Upon arriving, Sati tried to meet her parents and sisters; Daksha was arrogant and avoided interacting with Sati. He repeatedly snubbed her in front of all the dignitaries, but Sati maintained her composure.

Because of Sati’s persistence in trying to meet him, Daksha reacted vehemently, insulting her in front of all the other guests at the ceremony to which she had not been invited. He called Shiva an atheist and cremation ground dweller. As planned, he took advantage of the situation and continued shouting repugnant words against Shiva. Sati felt deep remorse for not listening to her beloved husband. Daksha’s disdain towards her, and especially her husband Shiva, in front of all the guests was growing each moment she stood there. The shameless insult and humiliation of her and her beloved, eventually became too much to bear.

She cursed Daksha for acting so atrociously toward her and Shiva and reminded him that his haughty behaviour had blinded his intellect. She cursed him and warned that the wrath of Shiva would destroy him and his empire. Unable to bear further humiliation, Sati committed suicide by jumping into the sacrificial fire. The onlookers tried to save her, but it was too late. They were only able to retrieve the half-burnt body of Sati.

Daksha's pride in being a Prajapati and his prejudice against his son-in-law created a mass hatred within himself, which resulted in the death of his daughter. The Nandi and the accompanying Bhootaganas left the yajna place after the incident. Nandi cursed the participants and Bhrigu reacted by cursing the Bhootaganas back.

Destruction of the Yajna by Lord Shiva:

Lord Shiva was deeply pained upon hearing of his wife's death. His grief grew into a terrible anger when he realized how Daksha had viciously plotted a treachery against him; but it was his innocent wife who fell into the trap instead of him. Shiva learned of Daksha’s callous behaviour towards Sati. Shiva's rage became so intense that he plucked a lock of hair from his head and smashed it on the ground, breaking it into two with his leg. Armed and frightening, two fearsome beings Virabhadra and Bhadrakali (Rudrakali) emerged. Lord Shiva ordered them to kill Daksha and destroy the yajna.

The ferocious Virabhadra and Bhadrakali, along with the Bhutaganas, reached the yajna spot. The invitees renounced the yajna and started running away from the turmoil. Sage Bhrigu created an army with his divine penance powers to resist Shiva’s attack and protect the yajna. Bhrigu’s army was demolished and the entire premises were ravaged. All those who participated, even the other Prajapatis and the gods, were mercilessly beaten, wounded or even slaughtered.

The Vayu Purana mentions the attack of Bhutaganas: the nose of some goddesses were cut, Yama's staff bone was broken, Mitra's eyes were pulled out, Indra was trampled by Virabhadra and Bhutaganas, Pushan's teeth were knocked out, Chandra was beaten heavily, all of the Prajapatis' were beaten, the hands of Vahini were cut off, and Bhrigu's beard was cut off. Daksha was caught and decapitated, the attack culminated when the Bhutaganas started plucking out Bhrigu’s white beard as a victory souvenir. 

The Vayu Purana do not mention the decapitation of Daksha, instead it says Yagna, the personification of yajna took the form of an antelope and jumped towards the sky. Virabhadra captured it and decapitated Yagna. Daksha begs mercy from the Parabrahmam (the Supreme Almighty who is formless), who rose from the yajna fire and forgives Daksha. The Parabrahmam informs Daksha that Shiva is in fact a manifestation of Parabrahmam. Daksha then becomes a great devotee of Shiva. The Linga Purana and Bhagavatha Purana mention the decapitation of Daksha.

Certain other puranas like Harivamsa, Kurma, and Skanda narrate the story from the perspective of the Vaishnava-Shaiva community feud prevalent in ancient times. In these puranas, there are fights between Vishnu and Shiva or Virabhadra, with various victors throughout. The story of Daksha Yaga in Vaishnava and Shaiva puranas end with the surrendering of Daksha to the Parabrahmam or with the destruction of yajna and decapitation of Daksha.

Aftermath:

As the obstruction of the yajna will create havoc and severe ill effects on the nature, Brahma and the god Vishnu went to the grief-stricken Lord Shiva. They comforted and showed their sympathy towards Shiva. They requested him to come to the yajna location and pacify the Bhutaganas and allow the Yaga to be completed; Shiva agreed. Shiva found the burnt body of Sati. Shiva gave permission to continue yajna. Daksha was absolved by Shiva and the head of a ram (Male goat) meant for yajna was fixed on the decapitated body of Daksha and gave his life back. The yajna was completed successfully.

The later story is an epilogue to the story of Daksha yajna mentioned in Shakta Puranas like Devi Bhagavata Purana, Kalika Purana and the folklores of various regions. Shiva was so distressed and could not part from his beloved wife. He took the corpse of Sati and wandered around the universe. To reduce Shiva's grief, Vishnu cuts Sati's corpse as per Vaishnava Puranas; whose parts fell on the places Shiva wandered. The Shaiva version says that her body disintegrated on its own and the parts fell while Shiva was carrying Sati's corpse in various places. The Yoni (Genitals) of Goddess Sati fell here.

These places commemorating each body part came to be known as the Shakti Peethas. There are 51 Shakti Peethas, representing the 51 letters of Sanskrit. Some of the puranas which came in later ages gave more importance to their supreme deity (depending on Vaishnava, Shaiva, and Shakta sects) in their literature. Shiva went to isolation and solitude for ages and wandered all around until Sati reincarnated as Parvati, the daughter of the King Himavan. Like Sati, Parvati took severe austerities and gave away all her royal privileges and went to forest. Shiva tested her affection and devotion in disguise. He eventually realized Parvati is Sati herself. Shiva later married Parvati.

Adi Sakthi Peethas:

Religious texts like the Shiva Purana, the Devi Bhagavata, the Kalika Purana and the Ashta Shakti recognize four major Shakti Peethas (centres), like Bimala (Pada Khanda) (inside the Jagannath Temple of Puri, Odisha), Tara Tarini (Sthana Khanda, Purnagiri, Breasts) (Near Berhampur, Odisha), Kamakhya Temple (Yoni Khanda) (Near Guwahati, Assam) and Dakshina Kalika (Mukha Khanda) (Kolkata, West Bengal) originated from the parts of the corpse of Mata Sati in the Satya Yuga.

This is not corroborated in the Devi Bhagavata, which lists 108 places associated with Sati's body, though Kamakhya finds a mention in a supplementary list. The Yogini Tantra, a latter work, ignores the origin of Kamakhya given in Kalika Purana and associates Kamakhya with the goddess Kali and emphasizes the creative symbolism of the yoni.

Kalika Purana:

According to the Kalika Purana, Kamakhya Temple denotes the spot where Sati used to retire in secret to satisfy her amour with Shiva. The Kalika Purana, an ancient work in Sanskrit describes Kamakhya as the yielder of all desires, the young bride of Shiva, and the giver of salvation.

Tantric Worship:

Vatsyayana, a Vedic Sage in Varanasi during the later first Century was approached by the King in the Himalayan region (now Nepal) to find a solution to convert the tribals and their rituals of human sacrifice to a more socially accepted worship. The Sage suggested the worship of a tantric goddess Tara that spread towards the eastern Himalayan belt till the Garo Hills where the tribals worshipped a fertility 'yoni' goddess 'Kameke'. It was much later in the later Brahmanical period Kalika Purana that most tantric goddess were related to the legend of 'Shakti' and began to be erroneously worshiped as a 'Devi' by the Hindus.

Avathar of Kamakhya:

Legend also has it that all the 10 goddesses (Kali, Tara, Sodashi, Bhuvaneswari, Bhairavi, Chinnamasta, Dhumavati, Bagalamukhi, Matangi and Kamalatmika) in the temple town of Kamakhya are the avatars / incarnations of the goddess Kamakhya.

Maha Sakthi as source of all creations:

According to hallowed tradition, Lord Brahma after having created the Universe, prided himself on his great accomplishment as a shining symbol of the supreme force of primordial creation. The Supreme Goddess was put off by the overweening arrogance of Lord Brahma. In order to suppress the pride of Lord Brahma, she created a demon out of herself and named him Kesi. Kesi chased Lord Brahma around the four corners of the universe, with his mouth wide open and ready to swallow Lord Brahma. Lord Brahma fled and absconded from the universe. Kesi then built a city named Kesi Puri from which the ever-reverberant sounds of “Brahma Kunjah” (Kill Brahma) came out.

Lord Brahma, realising his original mistake, retraced his steps and after giving up his vain pride, offered his fervent prayers to Mahashakti. Shakthi took pity on Lord Brahma and destroyed Demon Kesi with a simple blow from her mouth ending in ‘hum’ (the syllable of destruction). In order to atone for his sins Lord Brahma had to create a mountain out of Kesi’s ashes and cover it with grass for the cattle. Accordingly, Lord Brahma created a mountain. The Gods and Goddesses offered their salutations to Mahashakti from atop the Govardana Mountain created by Lord Brahma. Maha Sakthi pleased with their prayers burst forth as a spring from an opening atop the hill, and commanded Lord Brahma to know and understand that this place indeed would be the very centre of Creation and the Eternal Source of his Creative Power.

Devi had placed the yoni in Kamarupa essentially for the good of the world. After he was absolved of all his sins, Lord Brahma brought down a luminous ray of light from the heavens and placed it on the yoni circle. The yoni is the quintessence of feminity and is a yantra for many Shaktha-based Tantric Cults in India. Represented as a downward pointing triangle, it stands for the sacred feminine womb, from which all life springs. The worship of the Goddess at Kamakhya is in this form of her creative power. She is venerated as a life giver. Kamakhya Temple happens to be one of the very few Hindu temples where Goddess Maha Sakthi is worshipped in her reproductive aspect as the source of all life on Earth.

Narakasura:

Naraka is a prominent figure in the pre-historic period of Assam. In the Ramayana, he is the lord of Pragjyotispura, (as Assam was then known) and a friend of the demon king Ravana. In the Mahabharata, he is called a Danava, the son of Danu. His son Bhagadatta's daughter Banumathi marries the Kaurava prince Duryodhana and fights on the Kaurava side in the Kurukshetra War. Bhagadatta is a Sailalaya trya (mountain dweller), Parvatapatih (lord of the mountains), and his hordes consist of the Kirata (Mongoloid people) China (Tibetans) and Sagaranupavasin (dwellers of the sea coast). His soldiers are described as 'golden skinned'. But by the time of the composition of the Purana literature, they had been assimilated into the Vedic-Brahmanical fold and assigned a divine origin.

The Puranas depict Naraka as the son of Varaha Vishnu (the Boar incarnation of the Vedic God Vishnu) and Bhumidevi (Mother Earth). The Kalika Purana and Upa-Purana, believed to be composed in Assam itself, further develops this story. Naraka was conceived by Mother Earth during the Varaha (Boar) Incarnation of the Great God Vishnu but was born aeons later during Vishnu’s incarnation as Krishna. He grows up in the court of King Janaka of Mithila (modern Indian state of Bihar) and when he is sixteen years old, his mother in the form of the Goddess Kathyayini, brings him to the notice of his father Krishna, the lord of Dwarka.

Krishna brings Naraka to Pragjyotispura (Assam) where the latter kills Ghataka, the Kirata Chieftain, and drives his followers beyond the Dikkaravasini. Thereupon, Krishna placed Naraka upon the throne of Pragjyotispura and enjoins him to worship the Goddess Kamakhya who dwells on the Nilachal. Blessed by the Goddess Kamakhya, Naraka becomes very powerful. Gradually, he comes under the influence of his friend King Bana of Sonitpur (present Tezpur), a staunch Saivite, and develops Asura (demonic) qualities. Meanwhile, the sage Vasishtha comes to Kamarupa to worship at the shrine of Kamakhya. But an arrogant Naraka denies the sage access to the Goddess.

This arrogant behaviour of Naraka angers sage Vasishtha who curses him and says that the Goddess Kamakhya would henceforth be worshipped according to the Vamachara (left-handed) mode of worship. She would disappear from his kingdom and without her protection he would soon meet his end. He even vows to remain in Kamarupa itself till Naraka meets his end and establishes an Ashram at Sandhyachala. Naraka then attacks Indra, King of the Devas (divine beings), robs the ear-rings of Aditi, the mother of the Devas, robs the umbrella of the God Varuna, and kidnaps 16,100 heavenly women whom he imprisons in his capital city at Guwahati. Driven with arrogance derived from power, Naraka asks the Goddess Kamakhya to marry him.

Kamakhya promises to be his wife but sets a condition. She wants Naraka to construct, within a single night, a temple for her on the Nilachal and build a stairway leading up to it. Naraka was almost about to complete the task within the stipulated time. This scared Goddess Kamakhya and before the final steps of the temple were completed, a cock was sent to announce the arrival of dawn by crowing, very much before the due time for the birth of dawn. Angered by the crowing of the cock, Narakasura killed the cock (kukura) on that spot and the place is today known as Kukurakota.

To punish Naraka for his evil deeds, Krishna comes to Assam and kills him. Sage Vasistha's curse also comes into effect. The earth opens up and the temple disappears underground. The river Brahmaputra changes its course and floods all the sacred, Tirthas (holy places) such as Urvasi. This event, graphically recorded in the Yogini Tantra, a sixteenth century text; appears to be the description of an actual earthquake, the intensity of which shifted the bed of the Brahmaputra and caused the temple to tumble down.

Kamadeva, Builder of Kamakhya Temple:

Another tradition has it that the Kamakhya Temple was built by Kamadeva, the God of Love. According to this tradition, when Lord Shiva went into deep meditation upon Sati’s death at the yagna performed by her father Daksha, the Gods grew very worried and anxious about the uncertain future of the world. They concluded that further creation would only be possible if the divine union between the Holy Mother and the Divine Father is made possible once again. In order to bring about this Union, they sent Kama to shake Lord Shiva out of his Yogic State of trance and thus make him fall for Parvathi, the daughter of Himavan who the very reincarnation of Sati was.

Kama let his arrows fly from his bow. They struck Shiva and woke him up from his trance. Furious with the disturbance, Shiva burnt Kamadeva alive with a single glance. Later at the instance of all the Gods, Lord Shiva brought Kama back to life. Unfortunately, Kama lost all his charm and good looks. Lord Shiva however comforted him with these words: “Don’t worry Manmadha. It was all a part of my divine act. You will regain your good looks once you build a temple for my beloved Sati at the spot where her vagina fell.

Nilachal:

This hill where the temple was situated, was said to represent the body of Lord Siva himself, and when Sati's genitals fell on it, the mountain turned blue and came to be known as the Nilachal or the Blue hill (Nila meaning blue; Achal meaning mountain).

Kamakhya, an animist Goddess:

Puranic literature on the other hand refers to the Goddess on the Nilachal as a primordial Goddess, associated with the fertility cult. The region of the Nilachal was originally inhabited by the Austric people who were animists, worshipping nature and natural objects like mountains and stone as the divine. With the gradual inroads of Vedic Brahmanical religion, local Goddesses like Kamakhya, were assimilated into the Brahmanical fold and a Puranic origin was assigned to them. According to the oral tradition, as well as the Vishnu Purana and Kalika Purana, it was Naraka who initiated the worship of the Goddess Kamakhya who dwelt on the Nilachal hill in Assam and built the original Kamakhya Temple.

Koch Bihar Royals was banned from visiting the Temple:

Within the temple premises, we can also find two full size representational statues of Malladeva and Sukladhvaj. According to a folk legend, the Goddess Kamakhya, assuming the form of a beautiful woman, used to dance within the closed doors of the Temple at the time of the evening prayers. The Koch king Malladeva and his brother Sukladhvaj desired to see the dancing Goddess and as suggested by the chief priest Kendu Kalai, they peeped through a hole in the wall.

She, however, got offended by the intrusion and tore off the head of the priest and turned the King and his brother to stone. According to another version, the King and his future descendants were henceforth, forbidden to cast a look even at her very hill, the Nilachal or they would die. Even today, descendants of the Koch royal family pass by the hill under the cover of umbrellas.

Vatsyayana:

Vatsyayana, Vedic Sage in Varanasi was approached by the King in the Himalayan region (now Nepal) to find a solution to convert the tribals and their rituals of human sacrifice to a more socially accepted worship. The Sage suggested the worship of a tantric goddess Tara that spread towards the eastern Himalayan belt till the Garo Hills where the tribals worshipped a fertility yoni goddess Kameke. It was much later in the later Brahmanical period Kalika Purana that most tantric goddess were related to the legend of ‘Shakti’ and began to be erroneously worshipped as devi by the Hindus.