Pratyangira

Pratyangira
Pratyangira upon her lion vehicle
Other namesNarasimhi, Atharvana Bhadrakali, Pratyangira, Nikumbhila
Sanskritप्रत्यङ्गिरा
AffiliationMahadevi, Mahalakshmi, Bhadrakali
WeaponTrishula (Trident), Damaru (Drum), Kapala (Skull), Pasha (rope or snake)
MountLion
TextsAtharvaveda, Devi Bhagavata, Kalika Purana,
ConsortShiva as Sarabha[1]

Pratyangira (Sanskrit: प्रत्यङ्गिरा, IAST: Pratyaṅgirā), also called Atharvana Bhadrakali, Narasimhi and Nikumbhala, is a Hindu goddess associated with Shaktism.

There are multiple stories of her origin, namely: as a formless being discovered through fire by sages Prathyangira and Angiras[2], as a wrathful manifestation of Parvati[3], or the as female energy or Shakti of Narasimha.[4][5]

In the Vedas, Pratyangira is represented earliest in the form of Atharvana Bhadrakali, the goddess of the Atharva Veda and magical spells.[6]

According to the Tripura Rahasya, she is the pure manifestation of the wrath of Tripura Sundari. As Narasimhi, Prathyangira is also seen as part of the Saptamatrika mother goddesses.

Legends

There are many Hindu texts that narrate the different legends of Narasimhi.

In a tale in the Devi Mahatmyam, Prathyangira was one of the Saptamatrikas, or one of the seven mother goddesses who were forms of the goddess Mahadevi. They had assembled to defeat the asuras Shumbha and Nishumbha, who had overrun Svarga (heaven).[7]

According to many Puranas, at the end of the Krita Yuga, a glittering spark appeared from the universe and transformed into a wicked demon named Vipulasura. Vipulasura disturbed a group of eight sages who were performing rituals of Ashta Lakshmi. This angered the goddess Lakshmi who transformed her holy lotus flower into a kavacha or a strong shield to protect the eight sages, so they could perform the holy rituals without any disturbance. Then, Laxmi took the form of Narasimhi to defeat and kill the demon Vipulasura.[8]

According to the Markandeya Purana and Shiva Purana, in the beginning of the Treta Yuga, Lord Narasimha (the fourth among the ten avataras of Vishnu), enraged by the demon king Hiranyakashipu, kills him by tearing up his body and consequently, drinking his blood.

But the act of drinking the demon's blood made Lord Narasimha lose his godly attributes. Full of rage and unstoppable, Narasimha was in a destructive mode, and the world was threatened with destruction as he could not be pacified.

The story ends with Prahlada pacifying Narasimha and he returns to Vaikuntha after assuming his true form as Vishnu.[9] In the Shaiva tradition, Shiva assumed the form of Sharabha, a bird-lion hybrid form with two wings of Shakti in the form of Shulini Devi and Pratyangira Devi to calm down Narasimha. Seeing this, Narasimha created Gandaberunda, a powerful two-headed bird, to fight Sharabha. Seeing that the fight between Sharabha and Gandaberunda was terrorizing the world, Pratyangira in her ugra form was released from the third eye of Sharabha. The war ended with Pratyangira's roar and thus, Dharma in the world was restored.[10]

The term 'Prati' means reverse and Angiras means attacking. Thus, the goddess Pratyangira is the one who reverses any black magic attacks. In the temples of South India, she is also eulogised as Atharvana Bhadrakali as she is considered the embodiment of the Atharva Veda.[11][12]

Iconography

Goddess Pratyangira is a powerful manifestation of divine mother who is ever willing to shower her grace upon her devotees. She is described as a goddess with the head of a male lion and the body of a woman. This unique combination represents the union of Shiva and Shakti. In Vaishnavism, she is referred to as Narasimhi, the power of Narasimha. In Shaivism, Pratyangira is Siddhilakshmi, a form of Guhya Kali. In Shaktism, Pratyangira is referred to as Purna Chandi. She is associated with Sharabha.

In the Vedas, Pratyangira named as Atharvana Bhadrakali, the ruling goddess of Atharva Veda. She is considered to be a powerful repellent of the influences generated by witchcraft and is said to have the power to punish anyone doing Adharma.

Many paintings describe her as a Goddess with a dark complexion, a lion’s face, reddened eyes, disheveled hair, and a protruding tongue. She rides on a lion, wearing a garland of human skulls. She holds a trident, a serpent in the form of a noose, a hand drum, and a skull in her four hands.

She is mainly described in two forms. One, the commonly seen form of the Goddess with four hands, seated on a lion. The other one is a greater form called Maha Pratyangira devi with multiple faces of lions and numerous hands. Behind her terrible appearance lies a wonderful mother who is soft-hearted and always ready to help her children. Praying to her whole-heartedly is said to help overcome all worldly problems.

Literature

Prathyangira is also mentioned in the Hindu epic Ramayana. Indrajita is described to have begun to perform the Nikumbala yajna, a ritual to worship Nikumbala, another name of Pratyangira, while Rama and his soldiers were waging war in Lanka. Hanuman is described to have arrived at the site and stopped the ritual because its completion would have granted invincibility to Indrajita.[13] Consequently, Lakshmana was able to defeat and kill Indrajita in the Battle of Lanka.

Worship

Tantra classifies deities as Shanta (calm), Ugra (wrathful), Prachanda (horrifying), Ghora (terrifying) and Teevara (ferocious). Pratyangira is considered as a teevra murti. Pratyangira worship is strictly prohibited for people who have namesake Bhakti. Pratyangira worship is only done by the guidance of a Guru who is proficient in Tantra.[14]

Worships dedicated to Pratyangira is performed at many places for the welfare of the people and for eliminating the influences of evil forces. In some temples, Pratyangira Homam is performed on the days of Amavasya.[15]

In some temples such as Shri Prathyangira Parameswari Mandiram in Hyderabad[16], prayers to Goddess Prathyangira can also include Goddess Varahi, the Mahavidyas or both.

Eight kinds of Tantric acts

Like all Tantric deities, she can be invoked for the eight kinds of acts usually performed. They are appealing, growth, increasing, attracting, subduing, dissension, repealing, and killing. Detailed information is found as to what kind of materials are to be used for the respective aim, and the number of recitations to be performed. It is further said that for any act performed invoking this deity, especially the bad ones like killing and subduing, it is impossible to retract it even if the doer wishes so.[17][18]

See also

References

  1. ^ Kindler, Babaji Bob (4 July 1996). Twenty-Four Aspects of Mother Kali. SRV Associations. ISBN 9781891893179.
  2. ^ "Goddess Pratyangira". Devshoppe. Retrieved 2025-12-20.
  3. ^ "Pratyangira Devi". siddhapedia.com. Retrieved 2025-12-20.
  4. ^ Nagar, Shanti Lal (1989). The Universal Mother. Atma Ram & Sons. ISBN 978-81-7043-113-8.
  5. ^ Punja, Shobita (1996). Daughters of the Ocean: Discovering the Goddess Within. Viking. ISBN 978-0-670-87053-0.
  6. ^ Dr Ramamurthy, Sri Maha Pratyangira Devi: Holy Divine Mother in Ferocious Form [1]
  7. ^ Bhattacharji, Sukumari; Sukumari (1998). Legends of Devi. Orient Blackswan. ISBN 978-81-250-1438-6.
  8. ^ Nagar, Shanti Lal (2007). Śiva-mahāpurāṇa: Māhātmyam, Vidyeśvara saṁhitā, Rudra saṁhitā (Sr̥ṣṭi khaṇḍa, Satī khaṇḍa and Pārvatī khaṇḍa). Parimal Publications. ISBN 978-81-7110-298-3.
  9. ^ Swami, Bodhasarananda (2016-03-02). Stories from the Bhagavatam. Advaita Ashrama. ISBN 978-81-7505-814-9.
  10. ^ "The Mother Who Calmed Down Ugra Narasimha - Sri Maha Pratyangira Devi". Retrieved 2025-10-29.
  11. ^ Max Muller The Hymns of the Atharva-Veda: The Sacred Books of the East V42
  12. ^ Teun Goudriaan Maya: Divine And Human
  13. ^ Dharma, Krishna (2020-08-18). Ramayana: India's Immortal Tale of Adventure, Love, and Wisdom. Simon and Schuster. p. 390. ISBN 978-1-68383-919-4.
  14. ^ Ajit Mookerjee KALI Brill Archive 1988
  15. ^ "Pratyangira Devi Homa". nanjangud.info. Retrieved 2016-01-17.
  16. ^ "Official website of Sri Maha Pratyangira Parameshwari Mandiram at Kothapet, Hyderabad". www.pratyangiratemple.com. Retrieved 2025-12-20.
  17. ^ Max Muller The Hymns of the Atharva-Veda: The Sacred Books of the East V42
  18. ^ Teun Goudriaan Maya: Divine And Human
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