The Indian Cult of the Goddess: A Brief History of the Development of Śaktism in the Purāṇa

Abstract

Śaktism is a religious approach that regards the Great Indian Goddess (Mahā Devī, or Śakti) as the supreme deity. Since the remotest antiquity, one may find many goddesses (devī) in the Indian religious traditions, but they have a secondary role in the early sacred literature. This situation changes in the Indian scriptures known as Purāṇa, which demarcate the cultural period of India called “Puranic Age”, which starts at the beginning of the Christian era. During this period of the history of India, several devotional religious tendencies are born or gain strength and influence, redefining Hinduism in many ways. In this context arises Śaktism as an independent cult worshiping the Goddess, that is, a cult emphasizing the feminine principle as the ultimate supreme reality, with a distinct philosophy, as an autonomous movement, recognized in the Hindu religious landscape. This paper will evaluate and define the relevance and role of the Purāṇa in the founding and development of the Śakti cult, in what has been called the “crystallization of the Goddess tradition” – a process that attains completion in the Devī-Bhāgavata Purāṇa