Vaishno Devi
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| Vaishno Devi | |
|---|---|
Mother Goddess; Goddess of hills | |
 Inside view of the Holy Cave, the 3 Pindis; Mahakali, Mahalakshmi and Mahasarasvati | |
| Other names | Vaishnavi, Mata Rani, Ambe, Trikuta, Sheravali, Jyotavali, Pahadavali, Durga, Bhagavati, Jagdamba, Vishnumaya |
| Devanagari | वैष्णो देवी |
| Affiliation | Mahadevi, Durga, Mahakali, Mahalakshmi, Mahasarasvati |
| Abode | Vaishno Devi Temple, Katra, India |
| Mount | Lion |
| Genealogy | |
| Parents |
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Vaishno Devi (also known as Mata Rani, Trikuta, Ambe and Vaishnavi) is a manifestation of the Hindu mother goddess Durga in some beliefs. It is a shaktipeeth. Vaishno Devi is worshipped as a combined form of the goddesses Mahakali, Mahalakshmi, and Mahasarasvati. Additionally, she is seen as the three pindis representing the female divines.Vaishnavi means the one who is related to Vishnu, as per the puranas Durga is said to be Vishnu 's sister.According to legends once a devotee of the goddess mother Durga wanted to celebrate her festival navratri on a large scale. So the goddess came to him in the form of a little girl called vaishnavi and organised a feast for an entire village. But there was a demon named bhaironath who interrupted the feast and demanded meat and alcohol to which Mata Rani denied. This angered the demon and he ran after the little goddess with the purpose of killing her. The goddess went to trikuta mountain and rested there in a cave , she was also joined by Hanuman who vowed to protect her, later bhaironath found her and began fighting with Hanuman. When Hanuman ji found it difficult to fight the demon alone . Vaishno devi took her Durga Ambika form and slayed the demon.
Origin
[edit]Purāṇa
[edit]According to Dēvī Mahābhāgavata Purāṇa, she is mentioned as "Viṣṇupriyā".[1]
In the Varāha Purāṇa's Triśakti Māhātmya, she originated from Trikalā (the goddess who was born from Trimūrtis) and slayed an asura called Mahiṣāsura on Śataśṛṅga Parvata where the current Trikūṭa Dhāma of Vaiṣṇōdēvī is situated.[2]
Pāñcarātra
[edit]The Lakṣmīnārāyaṇa Saṃhitā's Kṛtayuga Santāna and Dvāparayuga Santāna calls her "Māṇikī", the Śakti of Kalki, as she resides on Māṇika Parvata (another name of Trikūṭa).[3]
Pilgrimage route
[edit]Professor and author Manohar Sajnani says, According to Hindu beliefs, the original abode of Vaishno Devi was Ardha Kunwari, a place about halfway between Katra town and the cave. She meditated in the cave for 9 months just like how a baby stays in its mother's womb for 9 months.[4] It is said that when Bhairav Nath ran after Vaishno Devi to catch her. The Devi reached near a cave in the hill, she called up Hanuman and told him that "I would do penance in this cave for nine months, till then you should not allow Bhairav Nath to enter the cave." Hanuman obeyed the mother's orders. Bhairavnath was kept outside this cave and today this holy cave is known as 'Ardha Kunwari'.[5]
Temple
[edit]
The Vaishno Devi Temple is an important Hindu temple dedicated to Vaishno Devi located in Katra at the Trikuta Mountains within the Indian Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir.[6][7][8] The temple is one of the 108 Shakti Peethas dedicated to Durga, who is worshipped as Vaishno Devi.[9] It is one of the most visited pilgrimage centers of India. Every year millions of visitors visit the temple.[10][11] During festivals like Navaratri, the count even increases to ten million (one crore) visitors.[12] Vaishno Devi Temple is one of the richest temples in India. Authors Michael Barnett and Janice Gross Stein says, "Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine in Jammu has an annual income of about $16 million, mainly from offerings by devotees".[13]
The temple is considered sacred by all Hindus. Many prominent saints such as Vivekananda have visited the temple.[14]
See also
[edit]- Jag Janani Maa Vaishno Devi - Kahani Mata Rani Ki
- Matrikas
- Vaishnodevi Temple, Rourkela
- Hariyali Devi / Vaishno Devi Temple located in Rudraprayag district of Uttarakhand.
- Shri Mata Vaishno Devi University
References
[edit]- ^ "Dēvī Mahābhāgavata Purāṇa". 4 March 1975.
- ^ Veda Vyasa. The Varaha Purana in English.
- ^ www.wisdomlib.org (28 January 2021). "Lakshminarayana Samhita Verse 1.334.53 [Sanskrit text]". www.wisdomlib.org. Retrieved 16 November 2023.
- ^ Manohar Sajnani (2001). Encyclopaedia of Tourism Resources in India, Volume 1. Gyan Publishing House. p. 158. ISBN 9788178350172.
- ^ Virodai, Yashodhara (5 October 2017). "Story of Mata Vaishnodevi". newstrend.news (in Hindi). Newstrend Network Communication Pvt Ltd. Retrieved 5 June 2021.
- ^ Rindani, Kirit (2016). Indian Himalaya: Story of a 100 Visits. Partridge Publishing. p. 47. ISBN 978-1482858860.
- ^ S. S. Negi (1998). Discovering the Himalaya, Volume 1. Indus Publishing. p. 429. ISBN 9788173870798.
- ^ Kuldip Singh Gulia (2007). Mountains of the God. Gyan Publishing House. p. 15. ISBN 9788182054202.
- ^ "Famous Durga temples in India for religiously inclined souls". Times of India. 5 April 2019.
- ^ "Vaishno Devi pilgrim footfall in 2019 lowest in 3 years: Shrine Board". Business Standard. 2 January 2020.
- ^ "Vaishno Devi likely to receive 8.5 mn pilgrims by Dec 31; highest in 5 yrs". Business Standard. 29 December 2018.
- ^ "Vaishno Devi-Bhairav Mandir ropeway service starts from today". The Times of India. Retrieved 25 December 2018.
- ^ Michael Barnett; Janice Gross Stein (3 July 2012). Sacred Aid: Faith and Humanitarianism. Oxford University Press. p. 140. ISBN 978-0199916030.
- ^ Dipankar Banerjee; D. Suba Chandran (2005). Jammu and Kashmir: Charting a Future. Saṁskṛiti. p. 61. ISBN 9788187374442.
https://www.maavaishnavi.com/51-shakti-peethas-of-maa-durga-maa-sati-dakshayani/
External links
[edit]
- Maa Vaishno Devi Shrine Board Archived 7 March 2023 at the Wayback Machine