Ashṭa Mātṛkās
The Ashṭa Mātṛkās are the Eight Mothers. They are eight divine śaktis (powers) who arose in the battle between Bhagavān Śiva and the asura Andhaka. They drank all of Andhaka’s blood and so ended his endless multiplying. The Varāha Mahā Purāṇa tells their story.
Origin: the battle with Andhaka
Background
Andhaka (the blind one) was a powerful asura. Brahmā had given him varas (boons) that made him invincible. He could not be killed while standing on the ground. He drove the devas from Meru and took control of the three worlds.
The devas could not fight him. They went to Brahmā, who said:
“I cannot save you from Andhaka. I gave him a vara that he cannot be killed by me. Only Rudra can slay him. Come with me to Kailāsa.”
Bhagavān Śiva’s battle and the problem of the blood
Bhagavān Śiva faced Andhaka. He impaled Andhaka on his triśūla (trident) and went on dancing and fighting. But each drop of Andhaka’s blood that fell on the earth at once gave birth to more Andhakas. They threatened to multiply without end.
The Mātṛkās arise
To stop Andhaka’s blood from touching the earth, eight divine śaktis arose:
- From Bhagavān Śiva’s own flame of anger: Yogeśvarī, also called Mahāmāyā.
- A śakti that arose by herself (svayam).
- From Bhagavān Vishṇu: one form.
- From Brahmā: one form.
- From Kumāra (Skanda): one form.
- From Indra: one form.
- From Yama: one form.
- From Bhagavān Varāha (Vishṇu): Vārāhī, the one who lifts the earth from Pātāla.
Together these eight are called the Ashṭa Mātṛkās (ashṭa mātṛ, the eight mothers). Their shared name is Mahāmāyā-mūrtis. The lead form is sometimes called Mahāmāheśvarī.
All eight drank Andhaka’s blood completely, and the multiplying ended. When his māyā (power of illusion) was destroyed, Andhaka became a siddha (a liberated being).
The eight Mātṛkās and their origins
| # | Mātṛkā | Origin |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Yogeśvarī / Mahāmāyā | Bhagavān Śiva’s flame of anger |
| 2 | Māheśvarī | Self-manifested, from Pārvatī or the body |
| 3 | Vaishṇavī | Created by Bhagavān Vishṇu |
| 4 | Brāhmaṇī | Created by Brahmā |
| 5 | Kaumārī | Created by Kumāra (Skanda) |
| 6 | Aindrī / Indrājā | Created by Indra |
| 7 | Yamadaṇḍadhārā | Created by Yama |
| 8 | Vārāhī | Created by Bhagavān Varāha, the boar form of Vishṇu |
The eight Mātṛkās in the body
In Chapter 17, the Varāha Purāṇa names the eight Mātṛkās as forces inside the body, both of the mind and of the elements:
| Force in the body | Mātṛkā |
|---|---|
| Kāma (desire) | Yogeśvarī |
| Krodha (anger) | Māheśvarī |
| Lobha (greed) | Vaishṇavī |
| Mada (pride) | Brāhmaṇī |
| Moha (delusion) | Kaumārī (self-born) |
| Mātsarya (envy) | Indrājā |
| Krūratva (cruelty) | Yamadaṇḍadhārā |
| Asūyā (jealousy, spite) | Vārāhī |
“This body contains these eight, kāma and the rest. These are the Mātṛkā-gaṇas appearing as forms.”
Ashṭamī, the day of the Mātṛkās
Brahmā named Ashṭamī, the eighth lunar day (tithi), as the sacred day of the Ashṭa Mātṛkās.
How to keep it:
- Eat only the māreḍu fruit (the bael fruit, also called wood apple).
- Do pūjā (worship) to the Mātṛkās.
“Those who thus worship them receive kshema (well-being) and ārogya (health) from the pleased Mātṛkās.”
A person who reads or hears the story of the birth of the Mātṛkās reaches Śiva-loka, the world of Bhagavān Śiva.
Sources
- Varāha Mahā Purāṇa, Chapter 27
- Varāha Mahā Purāṇa, Chapter 17 (the Mātṛkās as forces in the body)