Shrishaila is one of the 51 Shakti Peethas of the Pithanirnaya; by the text Sati’s neck fell here, and the goddess is Mahalakshmi and the Bhairava Samvarananda. The historian D. C. Sircar takes it not as Srisailam in Andhra but as Jainpur-Gotatikar near Sylhet in Bangladesh, because Shriparvata, which is like Shrishaila, comes separately in the list; the "Shri Shri Mahalakshmi Bhairavi Griva Mahapeeth" stands there today.
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- Deity
- Mahalakshmi
- Tradition
- Shakta
- Place
- Disputed: according to Sircar Jainpur-Gotatikar near Shrihatta (Sylhet), Dakshin Surma upazila; from the name, Srisailam in Andhra Pradesh is also proposed
- Region
- Sylhet Division (Bangladesh), or Andhra Pradesh
- Country
- Bangladesh
The Griva Mahapeeth at Sylhet
The Sylhet district government list of temples records it as the "Mahapeeth" of Jainpur, Gotatikar, Dakshin Surma (the list prints the name "গ্রীনা", which looks like a misprint for "গ্রীবা", griva, the neck). According to the Bangladesh state news agency BSS (2023) the temple is at Jainpur village, about 3 km south-east of Sylhet town, and there too the goddess is held to be Mahalakshmi and the Bhairava Samvarananda.
According to BSS a three-day Mahalakshmi Bhairavi puja is held here from Saptami to Navami in the Chaitra (Vasanti) Navratri, and the autumn Durga Puja as well.
Main festivals
Where the sources differ
- No map is given because the identification of the pitha is disputed (Sylhet or Srisailam); the Kosh list also marks it as disputed.
- The Banglapedia table has the throat falling at Jainpur/Kalagol, Sylhet.
- The official website of the Srisailam Devasthanam (Andhra Pradesh) calls Bhramaramba there a Shakti Peetha, but names no limb.
- The Devi Bhagavata (7.30) names the goddess at Shrishaila Madhavi.
- 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 Shrishaila Shakti Peetha?
By the Pithanirnaya, the neck; the goddess is Mahalakshmi and the Bhairava Samvarananda. D. C. Sircar places it near Sylhet (Bangladesh), not at Srisailam in Andhra.
Where is Shrishaila Shakti Peetha?
Shrishaila Shakti Peetha is in Disputed: according to Sircar Jainpur-Gotatikar near Shrihatta (Sylhet), Dakshin Surma upazila; from the name, Srisailam in Andhra Pradesh is also proposed, Sylhet Division (Bangladesh), or Andhra Pradesh (Bangladesh).
Which lists of tirthas include Shrishaila Shakti Peetha?
The 51 Shakti Peethas (number 27 of 51 in the list).
Sources
- 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. 52 (archive.org)
- Vachaspatyam (Taranatha Tarkavachaspati), "pitha": the list of pithas quoted from the Tantrachudamani (Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries, sanskrit-lexicon.uni-koeln.de)
- Sylhet district (sylhet.gov.bd): list of temples ("Griva Mahapeeth, Jainpur, Gotatikar, Dakshin Surma")
- Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha (bssnews.net), 26 October 2023: Shri Shri Mahalakshmi Bhairavi Griva Mahapeeth
- Banglapedia (Asiatic Society of Bangladesh), "Sakta-pitha" by Masahiko Togawa: the table of the pithas in Bangladesh
- Devi Bhagavata Purana 7.30 (the list of 108 pithas), English translation by Swami Vijnanananda (wisdomlib.org)
- Srisaila Devasthanam, official website (srisailadevasthanam.org): the main temple
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