Durgā
Durgā is a significant goddess in Hinduism, known primarily for her role as a warrior who combats evil forces. Her narratives often revolve around themes of divine struggle and restoration of cosmic order, particularly exemplified in the well-known story from the *Devī Māhātmya*, where she battles the demon Mahisāsura, who has gained formidable powers through asceticism. Enlisted by the gods, Durgā is created from their combined energies, equipped with powerful weapons, and embodies the qualities of courage and strength.
Despite being a lesser deity compared to Brahmā, Śiva, and Visnu, Durgā has garnered immense reverence, particularly in regions like Assam and West Bengal, where her festival, Durgā Pūjā, serves as a major cultural and religious event. This celebration not only involves the worship of clay idols of Durgā but also acts as a social occasion for families, particularly for married daughters returning to their parental homes.
Durgā is also notable for challenging traditional gender roles in Hindu society; she actively engages in battle and is associated with qualities that defy societal norms for women. Her worship can include unconventional offerings, reflecting her unique position within the pantheon. Overall, Durgā symbolizes empowerment and protection, resonating deeply with her devotees and contributing to her enduring significance in Hindu culture.
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Subject Terms
Durgā
Author: Traditional
Time Period: 1 CE–500 CE
Country or Culture: India
Genre: Myth
PLOT SUMMARY
Stories of the goddess Durgā are found in a number of Hindu sacred scriptures. They all follow a similar pattern. First, a demonic being gains magical powers through ascetic feats. Second, the demon uses these powers to defeat the gods. Third, the gods combine their strengths to create a many-armed female defender, Durgā, and each god gives her his magical weapon to fight the demon. In the end, Durgā defeats massive evil armies and then the ruling demon himself.
The best known of the Durgā stories comes from the Devī Māhātmya purānic text. It recounts how a demon named Mahisāsura (also known as Mahisā and Durgāma), who often appears in the form of a giant buffalo but can change his shape at will, attains great powers through meditation and ascetic endurance. Because of his spiritual achievements, he is given the opportunity to ask for a magical boon from Brahmā, the creator. He asks for immortality, and Brahmā decrees that he can never be killed by god or man.
Mahisāsura wages war on the gods for hundreds of years and eventually defeats them, throwing them out of heaven and forcing them to live in exile in the forests. In a final act of desperation, the gods appeal to the three most powerful gods, Brahmā, Śiva (Shiva), and Visnu (Vishnu), to help them overthrow the usurping demon. These three gods know that they cannot beat Mahisāsura because of his magical boon. Cunningly, they create a female warrior to avenge them, for, as a female, she is neither god nor man and therefore unaffected by Mahisāsura’s magical protection.
Durgā is a beautiful, multi-armed woman, who rides a fierce lion (sometimes translated as tiger). The gods arm her with their characteristic weapons. Śiva gives her his trident, Agni his fire dart, Indra his thunderbolt, and so forth, so that she wields the most powerful armaments in the cosmos. Durgā drinks copious quantities of wine, making her eyes red, and she is intoxicated as she enters into battle.
With her arms constantly moving but her face still and serene, Durgā calmly laughs as she destroys Mahisāsura’s millions of troops. Eventually, Durgā and Mahisāsura face each other on the field of battle. After a fierce struggle, Durgā knocks down the demon king, chops his head off, and kills the spirit escaping from his decapitated body. Thus, she ends Mahisāsura’s reign of terror, restores the gods to their proper places, and renews the cosmic order.
SIGNIFICANCE
Durgā is discussed in a number of Sanskrit Hindu scriptural sources, or Purānas. One of the first accounts of Durgā comes from the Mārkandeya Purāna, which may date back to as early as the fourth century CE. Stories about this warrior-goddess are prominent in the Devī Māhātmya section of the Mārkandeya Purāna, which was written down by the sage Mārkandeya in the fifth century CE. Her deeds also form an important part of the Devī Bhāgavata Purāna, which is traditionally attributed to Vyāsa, the nominal author of the Mahābhārata. While the Devī Bhāgavata Purāna’s actual origins are not fully understood, it was likely compiled sometime between the sixth and fourteenth centuries CE. The Skanda Purāna, which is mainly about the exploits of the god Śiva and his kin, also contains details about Durgā. This text is thought to date back to the eleventh or twelfth century CE.
Although she is a lesser divinity compared to the primary gods Brahmā, Śiva, and Visnu, the goddess Durgā has been a popularly important figure in the vast and diverse Hindu pantheon for the past two millennia. In some regions of the Indian subcontinent, particularly the northeast, she is highly revered. Like Pārvatī, the goddess in her manifestation as the wife of the god Śiva, Durgā is associated with human, plant, and animal fertility. Durgā is also considered a divine protector, able to calmly fight off dangerous forces to protect those unable to protect themselves.
Durgā Pūjā, the autumnal festival in her honor, is one of the most important religious holidays in the Indian states of Assam and West Bengal. Images of Durgā, made of clay from ritually sacred rivers, are venerated in households during Durgā Pūjā. At the end of the holiday, these idols are paraded to the rivers and thrown in, signifying the cycle of death and rebirth. Durgā Pūjā is very important socially because married daughters, who traditionally move to live in their husbands’ households, return to their childhood homes and enjoy the seasonal festivities with their own families.
Although Durgā is an extremely popular divinity in parts of India, she also contradicts typical Hindu sensibilities. This is particularly true regarding traditional gender roles. In most parts of the Indian subcontinent, it is considered appropriate for women to be protected by men. In the case of Durgā, this norm is reversed, as she has to fight to avenge the honor of the vanquished male gods. Not only does she engage in warfare, which is highly unusual for females in India, but she does so while intoxicated on wine—and heavy drinking is considered scandalous for high-caste Hindu women. Furthermore, the way she is worshipped reflects her marginality. It is traditional for Durgā’s worshippers to give her offerings of meat and blood, which are otherwise believed to be polluting to high-caste Hindus.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
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McDaniel, June. Offering Flowers, Feeding Skulls: Popular Goddess Worship in West Bengal. Oxford: Oxford UP, 2004. Print.
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