saptamatrika
The saptamatrika (sapta, seven; matrika, mothers)
are a grouping of seven goddesses found in the
VEDAS, and possibly cited on seals of the ancient
INDUS VALLEY CIVILIZATION. They are worshipped in
both India and Nepal and have their own iconog-
raphy. Their names only appear in the post-Vedic
period. Six of the seven are considered wives of
Hindu gods, as reflected in their names: Brah-
mani, Maheshvari, Kaumari, Vaishnavi, Varahi,
and Indrani are married, respectively, to BRAHMA,
SHIVA, Kumara (KARTTIKEYA), VISHNU, VARAHA, and
INDRA. CHAMUNDA, the seventh, is most often seen
as a form of DURGA.
Further reading: Shivaji K. Panikkar, Saptamatrka
Worship and Sculptures: An Iconological Interpretation of
Conflicts and Resolutions in the Storied Brahmanical Icons
(New Delhi: D. K. Printworld, 1997).
sapta rishi (saptarshi)
The sapta rishi were a grouping of seven (sapta)
RISHIS (seers), who are said to have received some
of the most important books and verses of the
VEDAS. They are considered to be the progenitors
of the orthodox BRAHMIN lineages (GOTRAS). They
are usually listed as Kashyapa, Atri, Bharadvaja,
Vishvamitra, Gotama, Jamadagni, and Vasishtha.
(There is another tradition that lists the chief
rishis as Marici, Atri, Angiras, Pulastya, Kratu,
Bhrisu, and Vasishtha; in that tradition, they are
not necessarily the source for the Brahminical
lineages.)
Those in the first list are frequently encoun-
tered in the epics and PURANAS, the Indian mytho-
logical literature. In the month of Bhadrapada
(August–September) the seven rishis are honored
on the fifth day of the bright half of the month,
when the Moon is waxing. The ritual in their
honor can be performed by anyone. Worship is
offered to images of the seven, and celibacy and
a vegetarian diet are observed for the celebration.
The images of the rishis (often fashioned by hand)
are offered to Brahmins alongside seven pots. This
observance guarantees happiness, progeny, and
freedom from sin and other difficulties.
The second list of rishis are usually worshipped
in the seven days that begin on the first day of the
bright half of the month of Chaitra (March–April),
the New Year’s month. Fruits, flowers, and cow’s
milk are offered to the saptarshi. A single meal is
to be taken, only after sundown.Further reading: Ravi Prakash Arya and Ram Narain
Arya, Vedic Concordance of Mantras as Per Devata and
Rsi (Rohtak: Indian Foundation for Vedic Science,
2003); John E. Mitchiner, Traditions of the Seven Rishis
(Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass, 1982).Sarada Devi, Sri (1853–1920) incarnation of
Holy Mother
Sri Sarada Devi, wife of the Kali priest Sri RAMA-
KRISHNA, was a very popular teacher in her own
right, considered to be an incarnation of Holy
Mother. She became an important activist in help-
ing the poor and in advancing educational oppor-
tunities for women.
Sarada Devi was born in the rural village of
Jayrambati, west of Kamarpurkur in Bengal, on
December 22, 1853. The eldest of seven children
of Ram Chandra Mukhopadhyay and Shyamasun-
dari Devi, Sarada was raised in a poor BRAHMIN
household where she assisted her parents in
household duties, worked in the fields, and cared
for her younger siblings. She was described as a
gentle, humble, hardworking, and diligent child.
When time permitted, she attended school and
learned to read and write.
At the age of five, Sarada married Sri RAMA-
KRISHNA, a Bengali priest of goddess KALI who was
17 years her senior. By that time, Sri Ramakrishna
had experienced his first vision of the divine
mother, the goddess KALI, and was living in an
ecstatic state of communication with the divine.
His mother, concerned with his strange behavior,
sought to restore him to worldly life by findingSarada Devi, Sri 385 J