Tara (Mahavidya)

This article is about the Hindu goddess,a form of Adi Parashakti. For the Buddhist bodhisattva, seeTara (Buddhism).For Brihaspati's wife, seeTara (Hindu goddess).

"Tara Devi" redirects here. For the Nepali singer, seeTara Devi (singer).

Tara
Member of The TenMahavidyas
Tara in a form of Ugra-Tara (Violent Tara) in Newari style.
Devanagari	तारा
Sanskrittransliteration	Tārā
Affiliation	Parvati,Mahavidyas,Devi,Kali
Planet	Jupiter
Weapon	Khadaga, flaying knife, skull
Consort	Akṣobhya Bhairava,(Shiva)

In theShaivismandShaktismtradition ofHinduism,the goddessTara(Sanskrit:तारा,Tārā) is the second of the tenMahavidyas.She is considered a form ofAdishakti,thetantricmanifestation ofParvati.Her three most famous forms are Ekajaṭā, Ugratara, and Nīlasarasvatī (also spelled Neelasaraswati, Neela Saraswati, or Neelsaraswati).Her most famous centre of worship is the temple and the cremation ground ofTarapithin West Bengal, India.

Legends

The commonly known origin of Tara is from the 17th chapter of theRudrayāmalawhich describes the initial unsuccessful attempts of the sageVasiṣṭhain worshipping Tara, and the subsequent meeting with the godVishnuin the form of Buddha in the region called Mahācīna (China) and his eventual success by the means ofkaularites. She is also described as the form of theAtharvaveda.HerBhairavais namedAkṣobhya.According to theSvatantratantra,Tara protects her devotees from difficult (ugra) dangers and so she is also known as Ugratārā.The goddess is all-pervading and also manifests on Earth.

Historical origin

Tara lithograph

Tara-related beliefs are probably an amalgamation of the beliefs linked to Bhīmā or Nīlā in the geographical region ofOḍḍiyānawhich has experienced Buddhist and possibly Taoist influence. The syncretism between Shaivist and Buddhist cults created a congenial atmosphere for the formation of the traditions of Tārā, both a Hindu and a Buddhist goddess. Her pleasant forms were popular amongst the Buddhists, while the cult of Bhīmā-Ekajaṭā was popular mainly amongst the Shaivas, from whom it merged into Vajrayana Buddhism until it was reintroduced by Vasiṣtha from Mahācīna, which is identified on the basis of the Śaktisaṅgamatantra as a small geographical entity betweenKailasa,South East of the lakeManasarovarand near LakeRakshas Tal,or alternatively located somewhere in Central Asia.Some of the forms of the deity like Mahācīnakrama Tara, also known as Ugra-Tara, are worshipped in both Hindu and Buddhist systems. Hersādhanādescribed by Śāśvatavajra, which was included in the Buddhist collection of sadhanas called the Sādhanāśatapañcāśikā, which was incorporated in thePhetkarīyatantraand was quoted in tantric manuals like theBṛhat-tantrasāraby Kṛṣṇānanda Agamavāgīśa with some aspects of the iconography and the subsequent interpretations differing between the Hindu and Buddhist systems.

Iconography

Kali (left) and Tara (right) have similar iconography

Tara is often described in these chapters as a fierce deity, holding kartrī (knife),khaḍga(sword),chamara(Fly-whisk) orindivara(lotus) and a single matted braid over her head. She is dark in complexion, tall, with a bulging belly, wears tiger pelts, with her left foot on the chest of a corpse and her right foot placed on a lion or between the thighs of the corpse. She has a terrifying laugh and is fearsome. The goddess Tīkṣṇakāntā, who is also considered a form of Tara in theKalika Purana,has similar iconography with dark-complexion and a single braid (ekajaṭā), and is also pot-bellied.

Hindu goddessKaliand Tara are similar in appearance. They both are described as standing upon a supine corpse sometimes identified with Shiva. However, while Kali is described as black, Tara is described as blue. Both wear minimal clothing, however Tara wears a tiger-skin skirt, while Kali wears only a girdle of severed human arms. Both wear agarland of severed human heads.Both have a lolling tongue, and blood oozes from their mouths. Their appearances are so strikingly similar that it is easy to mistake one for the other. Tara is shown standing in thepratyalidhastance (in which the left foot is forward). HerBhairava(consort) is Akshobhya, a form ofShivawho is in the form of anaga(serpent) coiled around her matted hair. She wears a crown made of 5 skulls connected with plates of bone. Eight forms of Tara are attested in theMāyātantraquoted in the tantric compendiumTantrasāraand the names are Ekajaṭa, Ugra-Tara, Mahogra, Kameshvari-Tara, Chamunda, Nila-Sarasvati (Neelasaraswati or 'Blue Saraswati'), Vajra-Tara and Bhadrakali.

Scriptures

Tantric scriptures that describe the worship of Tara includeTārātantra,Brahmayāmala,Rudrayāmala,Nīlatantra/Bṛhannīlatantra,Tārātantra,Nīlasarasvatītantraas well as various tantric compendia likeTantrasarabyAgamavagisha,Prāṇatoṣiṇī,Tārābhaktisudhārṇavaby Narasiṃha Thakkura, orTārārahasyaby Brahmānanda Giri.

Tara is mentioned in theDevi Bhagavata Purana,where it is said that her favourite place is Cīna(China) and also that Svarocisha Manu worshipped the deity on the banks of the Kalindi (Yamuna).She is also attested in theKalika Purana's 61st, 79th and 80th chapter.

Modern traditions

In Bengal, the literary works ofRamprasad Sengave a new phase to the classical secretive worship of Tara, and his devotionalism influenced the image of the deity. He addresses Tara as a daughter in his songs.Sadhak Bamakhepaalso was a famous siddha of Tara in the modern era. These devotees introduced a public devotional dimension to the secretive tantric worship of this deity and emphasised her motherliness.

Further reading

• Banerjee, Sumanta (2002).Logic in a Popular Form: Essays on Popular Religion in Bengal.Seagull Books.ISBN81-7046-162-6.
• Kinsley, David R. (1988).Hindu Goddesses:Visions of the Divine Feminine in the Hindu Religious Tradition.University of California Press.ISBN0-520-06339-2.
• Kinsley, David R. (1997).Tantric Visions of the Divine Feminine: The Ten Mahāvidyās.New Delhi:Motilal Banarsidass.ISBN978-0-520-20499-7.
• MacDaniel, June (2004).Offering Flowers, Feeding Skulls: Popular Goddess Worship in West Bengal.Oxford University Press.ISBN0-19-516790-2.
• MacDaniel, June (1989).The Madness of the Saints: Ecstatic Religion in Bengal.University of Chicago Press.ISBN0-226-55723-5.
• Shankaranarayanan, Sri (1972).The Ten Great Cosmic Powers.Dipti Publications.ISBN81-85208-38-7.

External links

• Official Tarapith Website