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The 51 Shakti Peethas 41/51

Godavari-tira Shakti Peetha

Vishveshi (Rakini)The bank of the Godavari; the text names no exact place, Uncertain

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Godavari-tira Shakti Peetha: The 51 Shakti Peethas 41/51, Vishveshi (Rakini), The bank of the Godavari; the text names no exact place, Uncertain
In short

Godavari-tira is one of the 51 Shakti Peethas of the Pithanirnaya; by the text Sati’s left cheek fell on the bank of the Godavari, and the goddess is Vishveshi (Rakini) and the Bhairava Dandapani (Vatsanabha). The text names the river but no village or temple, so the exact place of the pitha is not settled.

Deity
Vishveshi (Rakini)
Tradition
Shakta
List
The 51 Shakti Peethas 41/51
Place
The bank of the Godavari; the text names no exact place
State
Uncertain
Country
India

Where the sources differ

  • The text quoted in the Vachaspatyam makes two pithas of it: the goddess Vishveshi and the Bhairava Dandapani on the Godavari bank, then the goddess Rakini and the Bhairava Vatsanabha at the left cheek. Sircar takes it as one pitha, half of which was added later.
  • The Devi Bhagavata (7.30) names the goddess on the Godavari Trisandhya.
  • Some popular lists today link this pitha with a temple, but we found no official or scholarly source for it; so no temple and no map are given here.
  • The count of pithas depends on the text: the Pithanirnaya lists 51, some Bengali lists 52, the Devi Bhagavata (7.30) gives 108 places with names of the goddess, and the early Tantras name only four (Sircar).

Frequently asked questions

Which limb of Sati fell at the Godavari-tira Shakti Peetha?

By the Pithanirnaya, the left cheek; the goddess is Vishveshi (Rakini) and the Bhairava Dandapani (Vatsanabha). The text says only "the bank of the Godavari".

Where is Godavari-tira Shakti Peetha?

Godavari-tira Shakti Peetha is in The bank of the Godavari; the text names no exact place, Uncertain.

Which lists of tirthas include Godavari-tira Shakti Peetha?

The 51 Shakti Peethas (number 41 of 51 in the list).

Sources

  1. D. C. Sircar, The Śākta Pīṭhas (Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Bengal 1948; Motilal Banarsidass, 1973): table of the Pithanirnaya pp. 35-37, note on this pitha p. 56 (archive.org)
  2. Vachaspatyam (Taranatha Tarkavachaspati), "pitha": the list of pithas quoted from the Tantrachudamani (Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries, sanskrit-lexicon.uni-koeln.de)
  3. Devi Bhagavata Purana 7.30 (the list of 108 pithas), English translation by Swami Vijnanananda (wisdomlib.org)

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