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The 51 Shakti Peethas 9/51

Manasa Shakti Peetha

DakshayaniDisputed: Lake Manasarovar, Tibet Autonomous Region (or Malwa, Madhya Pradesh)

Also known as: Variant reading: Malava

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Manasa Shakti Peetha: The 51 Shakti Peethas 9/51, Dakshayani, Disputed: Lake Manasarovar, Tibet Autonomous Region (or Malwa, Madhya Pradesh)
In short

Manasa is one of the 51 Shakti Peethas of the Pithanirnaya; by the text Sati’s right hand fell here, and the goddess is Dakshayani and the Bhairava Hara (Amara). Some manuscripts read "Manasa", that is Lake Manasarovar in Tibet, and some "Malava", that is Malwa; the historian D. C. Sircar thinks "Manasa" more likely.

Deity
Dakshayani
Tradition
Shakta
List
The 51 Shakti Peethas 9/51
Place
Disputed: Lake Manasarovar, or by a variant reading Malwa
Region
Tibet Autonomous Region (or Malwa, Madhya Pradesh)
Country
Tibet (China)

Where the sources differ

  • The text quoted in the Vachaspatyam reads "Malave" and names the Bhairava Amara.
  • The Devi Bhagavata (7.30) counts two places at Manasa: the goddess Kumuda at southern Manasa and Vishvakama at northern Manasa.
  • 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

Where is the Manasa Shakti Peetha?

It depends on the reading: read "Manasa" it is Lake Manasarovar in Tibet, read "Malava" it is Malwa in central India. By the text Sati’s right hand fell here and the goddess is Dakshayani.

Which lists of tirthas include Manasa Shakti Peetha?

The 51 Shakti Peethas (number 9 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. 45 (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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