Śatarūpā
Śatarūpā is the first woman. She was born from the left half of Brahmā’s own body, when Brahmā divided himself at the inner urging of Bhagavān Śiva. Her name means “she who has a hundred forms”. She was a yoginī and a tapasvinī by nature. She became the wife of Svāyaṃbhuva Manu, the first man, born from Brahmā’s right half.
Manu and Śatarūpā are the parents of the human race. Through their daughter Prasūti and her husband Dakṣa, their line filled all three worlds with moving and unmoving creation.
Origin
Brahmā had made the great ṛṣis (seers) from the parts of his body. Then Bhagavān Śaṅkara (Śiva), who dwells within all as antaryāmī (the inner guide), urged him from within. Brahmā divided his own body (deha) into two halves.
- The right half became the man, Svāyaṃbhuva Manu.
- The left half became the woman, Śatarūpā.
The two had no real difference between them, because both rose from one undivided source. Brahmā describes Śatarūpā as a yoginī (one absorbed in yoga) and a tapasvinī (one given to tapas, austerity). She was a sādhikā, a woman of spiritual practice, by her very nature. Her name points to many forms: she can appear in a hundred different shapes. This is told in the Śiva Purāṇa, Rudra Saṃhitā, Sṛṣṭi Khaṇḍa, Chapter 16.
Marriage and children
Svāyaṃbhuva Manu married Śatarūpā by the proper rites. Through their union, human creation went on. They had five children.
| Child | Place in the family |
|---|---|
| Priyavrata | Elder son |
| Uttānapāda | Younger son, the father of Dhruva |
| Ākūti | Eldest daughter, given to Ruci |
| Devahūti | Second daughter, given to Kardama Muni |
| Prasūti | Third daughter, given to Dakṣa |
The widest line came through Prasūti. Dakṣa’s many daughters were married to Dharma, to the ṛṣis (Bhṛgu, Marīci, Aṅgiras, Pulastya, Pulaha, Kratu, Atri and Vasiṣṭha), to Agni, to the Pitṛs and to Kaśyapa. From them all three worlds came to be filled with every kind of living being.
What the text says of her
- The Rudra Saṃhitā says she was born from Brahmā’s left side by the inner urging of Bhagavān Śiva.
- The text calls her yoginī and tapasvinī. She was not only a wife, but a person of spiritual attainment in her own right.
- She and Manu came from the same body, and nothing essential divides them.
Sources
- Śiva Purāṇa, Rudra Saṃhitā, Sṛṣṭi Khaṇḍa, Chapter 16