The nine-day Navratri festival began on October 10 this year. Shaktipeethas are places of worship dedicated to Maa Durga and are spread throughout India, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. If you are wondering about how these Shaktipeethas came into existence, there is a popular legend that describes the origins of the various Shaktipeethas.
The Legend:
According to a legend, King Daksha, who was one of the sons of Brahma, performed Vrihaspati Yagna withthe intention of taking revenge against Lord Shiva who had married his daughter Sati against his wishes. TheYagna took place in Satya Yuga with all dieties invited except Shiva and Sati.
Sati wasn’t invited to the Yagna yet she had a strong desire to attend it. Lord Shiva tried his best to stop her from going but eventually had to give in to his wife’s desire and he allowed her to go along with his ‘ganas’ ( followers).
When she reached her parent’s house, Sati wasn’t given the treatment a daughter would expect. She was instead rebuked and insulted for having been married to a ‘yogi’. The way her father insulted Shiva, her husband, was too much for Sati and she set herself ablaze by jumping into the pyre.
Lord Shiva was furious when he learnt about Sati’s death and destroyed the place where the Yagna was held. King Daksha’s head was severed off his body by the Ganas. After Daksha apologized for his foolish act, Lord Shiva replaced his head with that of a goat.
But the lord was struck by grief with his wife’s death and he took Sati’s body with him and started performing the dance of destruction, also known as Rudra Tandav.
Looking at Lord Shiva, other Gods requested Lord Vishnu to do something to stop this dance. Lord Vishnu, known as ‘the preserver’ cut Sati’s body into 51 pieces with his Sudarshan Chakra to bring Lord Shiva back to his sanity.
The 51 parts of Sati’s body fell at different places which are today known as Shaktipeethas.
At all Shaktipeethas, Goddess Shakti is accompanied by Lord Bhairava (a manifestation of Lord Shiva).
The 51 Shaktipeethas are as follows:
| Sr. No. | Place | Organ or Ornament | Shakti | Bhairava |
| 1. | Hingula (Or Hinglaj), about 125 Km towards North-East from Karachi, Pakistan | Bramharandhra (Part of the head) | Kottari | Bhimlochan |
| 2. | Sharkrare, a little distance from Sukkar Station from Karachi, Pakistan | Eyes | Mahishmardini | Krodhish |
| 3. | Sugandha, about 20 Km from Barisal, Bangladesh at Shikarpur on banks of Sondh river | Nose | Sunanda | Trayambak |
| 4. | Amarnath in Kashmir, India from Srinagar through Pahalgaon 94 km by Bus, Chandanbari 16 Km by walk | Throat | Mahamaya | Trisandhyeshwar |
| 5. | Jwalamukhi, Kangra, India from Pathankot alight at Jwalamukhi Road Station from there 20 Km | Tongue | Siddhida (Ambika) | Unmatta Bhairav |
| 6. | Jalandhar, India from Jalandhar Cantonment Station to Devi Talab | Left Breast | Tripurmalini | Bhishan |
| 7. | Baidyanathdham, at Deoghar, Jharkhand, India
| Heart | Jaya Durga | Baidyanath |
| 8. | Nepal, near Pashupatinath Temple at Gujyeshwari Temple | Both Knees | Mahashira | Kapali |
| 9. | Manas, under Tibet at the feet of Mount Kailash in Lake Mansarovar, a piece of Stone | Right Hand | Dakshayani | Amar |
| 10. | Biraja in Utkal present Orissa, India | Navel | Vimla | Jagannath |
| 11. | Gandaki from Pokhara, Nepal about 125 Km on the banks of Gandaki river where Muktinath temple is situated | Temple | Gandaki Chandi | Chakrapani |
| 12. | Bahula, on the banks of Ajay river, at Ketugram 8 Km from Katua, Burdwan, West Bengal, India | Left Arm | Goddess Bahula | Bhiruk |
| 13. | Ujaani, 16 Km from Guskura Station under Burdwan district of West Bengal, India | Right Wrist | Mangal Chandika | Kapilambar |
| 14. | Udaipur, Tripura, at the top of the hills known as Matabari near Radhakishorepur village, a little distance away from Udaipur town of Tripura, India | Right Leg | Tripur Sundari | Tripuresh |
| 15. | Chatral or Chô??ogram at the top of Chandranath hills near Sitakunda station of Chittagong district, Bangladesh | Right Arm | Bhawani | Chandrashekhar |
| 16. | Trisrota, at Salbari village under Boda division of Jalpaiguri district, West Bengal, India | Left Leg | Bhraamari | Ambar |
| 17. | Kamgiri, Kamakhya, at the Neelachal hills near Guwahati, capital of Assam, India | Genital Organ | Kamakhya | Umanand |
| 18. | Jugaadya at Khirgram under Burdwan district, West Bengal, India | Great Toe (Right) | Jugaadya | Ksheer Khandak |
| 19. | Kalipeeth, (Kalighat, Kolkata), India | Right Toe | Kalika | Nakuleesh |
| 20. | Prayag near Sangam of Allahabad, Uttar Pradesh, India | Finger (Hand) | Lalita | Bhava |
| 21. | Jayanti at Kalajore Bourbhog village of Khasi hills under Jayantia Parganas of Sylhet district, Bangladesh | Left Thigh | Jayanti | Kramadishwar |
| 22. | Kireet at Kireetkona village, 3 Km from Lalbag Court Road station under district Murshidabad, West Bengal, India | Crown | Vimla | Sanwart |
| 23. | Varanasi at Manikarnika Ghat on banks of Ganga at Kashi, Uttar Pradesh, India | Earring | Vishalakshi & Manikarni | Kalbhairav |
| 24. | Kanyashram, Kanyakumari the Bhadrakali temple within the precincts of Kumari temple, Tamil Nadu, India | Back | Sarvani | Nimish |
| 25. | Kurukshetra, at Haryana, India | Ankle Bone | Savitri | Sthanu |
| 26. | Manibandh, at Gayatri hills near Pushkar 11 Km towards north-west from Ajmer, Rajasthan, India
| Two Bracelets | Gayatri | Sarvanand |
| 27. | Shri Shail, at Jainpur village towards north-east 3 Km from Sylhet town, Bangladesh | Neck | Mahalaxmi | Sambaranand |
| 28. | Kanchi, on the banks of Kopai river 4 Km towards north-east from Bolpur station of district Birbhum, West Bengal, India | Bone | Devgarbha | Ruru |
| 29. | Kalmadhav on the banks of Shon river in a cave over hills near to Amarkantak, Madhya Pradesh, India | Buttock (Left) | Kali | Asitang |
| 30. | Shondesh, at the source point of Narmada river in Amarkantak, Madhya Pradesh, India | Buttock (Right) | Narmada | Bhadrasen |
| 31. | Ramgiri, at Chitrakuta on the Jhansi Manikpur Railway line in Uttar Pradesh, India | Right Breast | Shivani | Chanda |
| 32. | Vrindavan, near new bus stand on Bhuteshwar road within Bhuteshwar Mahadev Temple, Vrindavan, Uttar Pradesh, India | Ringlets of Hair | Uma | Bhutesh |
| 33. | Shuchi, in a Shiva temple at Shuchitirtham 11 Km on Kanyakumari Trivandrum road, Tamil Nadu, India | Teeth (Upper Jaw) | Narayani | Sanhar |
| 34. | Panchsagar place not known | Teeth (Lower Jaw) | Varahi | Maharudra |
| 35. | Kartoyatat, at Bhawanipur village 28 Km distance from interior Serpur. Alight at Bagura station under district Bagura, Bangladesh
| Left Anklet (Ornament) | Arpana | Vaman |
| 36. | Shri Parvat, near Ladak, Kashmir, India. Another belief: at Srisailam in Shriparvat hills under Guntur district, Andhra Pradesh, India | Right Anklet (Ornament) | Shrisundari | Sundaranand |
| 37. | Vibhash, at Tamluk under district East Medinipur, West Bengal, India | Left Ankle | Kapalini (Bhimarupa) | Sarvanand |
| 38. | Prabhas, 4 Km distance from Veraval station near Somnath temple in Junagadh district of Gujarat, India | Stomach | Chandrabhaga | Vakratund |
| 39. | Bhairavparvat, at Bhairav hills on the banks of Shipra river a little distance from Ujjaini town, Madhya Pradesh, India | Upper Lips | Avanti | Lambkarna |
| 40. | Jansthan, at Godavari river valley near Nasik, Maharasthra, India | Chin (Two Parts) | Bhramari | Vikritaksh |
| 41. | Sarvashail or Godavaritir, at Kotilingeswar temple on the banks of Godavari river near Rajamundry, Andhra Pradesh, India | Cheeks | Rakini or Vishweshwari | Vatsnabh or Dandpani |
| 42. | Birat, near Bharatpur, Rajasthan, India | Left Feet Fingers | Ambika | Amriteshwar |
| 43. | Ratnavali, on the banks of Ratnakar river at Khanakul-Krishnanagar, district Hooghly, West Bengal, India | Right Shoulder | Kumari | Shiva |
| 44. | Mithila, near Janakpur Railway station on the boarder of India-Nepal | Left Shoulder | Uma | Mahodar |
| 45. | Nalhati, on a hillock near Nalhati station of Birbhum district, West Bengal, India | Tubular Bones of the Feet | Kalika Devi | Yogesh |
| 46. | Karnat place not known | Both Ears | Jayadurga | Abhiru |
| 47. | Vakreshwar, on the banks of Paaphara river, 7 Km distance from Dubrajpur station, district Birbhum, West Bengal, India | Portion between the eyebrows | Mahishmardini | Vakranath |
| 48. | Yashor, at Ishwaripur, district Khulna, Bangladesh | Hands & Feet | Yashoreshwari | Chanda |
| 49. | Attahas, 2 Km distance from Labhpur station district Birbhum, West Bengal, India | Lips | Phullara | Vishvesh |
| 50. | Nandipur under a Banyan tree within a boundary wall near Sainthia Railway station, district Birbhum, West Bengal, India | Necklace | Nandini | Nandikeshwar |
| 51. | Lanka place not known (One opinion is this temple is in Trincomalee, but destroyed during portuguese shelling. Only a pillar remains. This temple is near to the more famous Trikoneshwara temple) | Anklets | Indrakshi | Rakshaseshwar |
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