Prapanceshvari appears to be identical to Bhu-
vaneshvari; this text is the fullest source for details
on Bhuvaneshvari. In most aspects she resembles
SARASVATI. In tantrism, her worship resembles in
many details the worship of Sri Lalita.
Chinnamasta has the most startling repre-
sentation of all these goddesses. She stands,
self-decapitated, with her head in one hand and
the large cutting instrument in the other. On two
sides attendants drink her blood. She stands on
the recumbent, copulating couple of Kama, god of
love, and RAT I, his mate. As does Kali she wears a
necklace of human skulls, and, as does SHIVA she
has a cobra encircling her upper body. Her body
is naked, except for ornaments. One myth has
Chinnamasta as a form of PARVATI, the consort of
Shiva. Another sees her as Parvati in the form of
CHANDI. In both myths the goddess is begged for
food by her attendants and cuts off her head to
offer them her blood. There are specific texts that
outline the worship of this goddess with mantras
and YANTRAS.
Bhairavi (the fierce goddess) is described as
wearing red silk and a garland of severed heads
(again as does Kali). Her breasts are said to be
smeared with blood. She has three eyes with a
crescent Moon on her forehead. She smiles, wear-
ing a jeweled crown. She is shown with four or 10
hands. She holds a sword and a begging bowl in
two of them. She is sometimes shown in sexual
intercourse sitting astride Shiva. The literature
often regards Bhairavi as Mahadevi, or Supreme
Divinity. She is seen as supreme above even
the male divinities BRAHMA, Shiva, and VISHNU.
Unusual epithets call her “Fond of semen and
menstrual blood” and “She who dwells in the YONI
[the vagina].” Such epithets show her transgres-
sive, tantric character.
Dhumavati, the widow goddess, is a rare and
unusual personage. She is seen as black in color,
ugly, old, and angry. She has hanging breasts, a
long nose, and dirty clothes. She rides a convey-
ance that has a banner with a crow on it. She has
only two arms. In one hand is a winnowing basket
and the other shows the “boon-granting” (VARADA
MUDRA) gesture. (But sometimes she will hold a
begging bowl made of a human skull and a spear.)
Dhumavati is only rarely found independently of
the Mahavidyas.
Dhumavati’s origin myths show her being
born from the smoke of the funeral pyre of
the prototypical self-immolated goddess, SAT I.
Another myth shows her as a form of Sati, forced
to become a widow through a curse of Shiva. Her
separate temples are few. At her temples liquor,
meat, and a marijuana drink are offered in addi-
tion to the usual offerings. Though her mytho-
logical history seems to depict this goddess as
dangerous, she is approachable in temples and
offers boons and protections, as any other local
goddess.
Bagalamukhi is depicted on a lion throne. She
has a yellow complexion and wears a yellow dress
and yellow ornaments. She is surrounded and
covered with things of yellow. One myth shows
this goddess as a form of Sri Lalita. In a more
popular myth she stops a demon named Madan
who is killing people merely by speaking. She
grasps his tongue and he becomes her devotee
and therefore is not killed; there are iconographic
and pictorial depictions of this event. In another
myth Bagalamukhi is created by a curse of Shiva
upon Parvati.
Bagalamukhi is associated with magic and
occult power. She is often approached for magical
powers such as the ability to immobilize or attract
people. Sometimes, as with all of these tantric
deities, she is associated with sexuality and sexual
intercourse. As have several of the Mahavidyas,
she has aspects that belong to Kali and she is
sometimes said to sit upon a corpse, often while
holding on to the tongue of the demon described
in her myth.
Matangi is an unusual goddess who prefers
offerings that are “polluted” in the Hindu sense,
food that has been partially eaten or left over,
things that have menstrual blood on them or have
touched the dead. She is depicted as a 16-year-oldK 120 Dasha Mahavidya