The 64 Yoginis

The terms "Yogi" and "Yogini" are used in both Buddhism and in Hinduism to refer to male and female experts on yoga, respectively. However, over time, under the beliefs of Tantricism and Shaktism, it is only the female definition that has changed. Namely, Yoginis came to be sorceresses, or women who had supernatural powers. There are normally 64 - 81 Yoginis, depending on the texts being referred to.

The Yoginis were women who had achieved enormous power through the practice of yoga as well as a pursuit of knowledge and enlightenment; their powers included control over bodily functions such as heart rate, fertility, exposure to heat and cold, their metabolism, and might also have included the ability to fly. The fact that is not concrete is whether or not the women being mentioned are human or divine, hence, in this paper, the term Yogini will focus more on the deified aspect of these 64 representations of women.

The Yoginis are a large part of a Tantric-Shaktism cult. Shaktism, is one such sub-sect of Hinduism that places a large emphasis on the female-principle. A large part of the cult is based on an abstract idea; the Gods and Goddesses are all simply shaktis (energy). It is the union of this energy that is key to achieving the ultimate knowledge. The Shakta philosophy holds that The Devi is the ultimate being tasked with the roles of the creator, the sustainer and the destroyer. The Devi is seen in her manifestations of Parvati, and then further in the forms of Uma, Durga and Kali.

The Yoginis, having been mentioned in the Vedas, are considered to be lower in status than the Devi herself. However, their purpose and composition are topics of speculation as they vary depending on the religious scriptures being considered. Some of the texts refer to them as being manifestations of the Goddess Durga, while other texts believe they are simply the attendants of the Supreme Goddess. Due to the Yoginis being manifestations of The Devi, they represent all the various aspects ranging from motherhood, love, and fertility to violent, fierce and terrible aspects of The Devi. In correspondence with these various aspects, there are seven or eight principle Yoginis known as the Matrikas.

The Matrikas are the main source of all the other Yoginis, according to one myth. They In another myth, they are the principle forms of the Supreme Goddess herself, who is also considered to be the mother of all beings, divine or otherwise. This characteristic is reflected in the Matrikas who are viewed as being auspicious goddesses tasked with the position of acting as mothers to the rest of the world to protect it.

Depending on the text, there are either seven or eight Matrikas, giving them the names Sapta Matrikas or Astha Matrikas, respectively. The Markandeya Purana is known for mentioning the Astha Matrikas who emerged from the anger and wrath of the Supreme Goddess, but for the most part, Sapta Matrikas as considered to be the most commonly accepted form of the Matrikas.

Incidentally, the word Matrikas can also be taken to mean "mother". The seven mother goddesses are physical representations of the 7 great principles; life, mind and matter which are composed of 5 key elements; earth, wind, fire, space and water. When the Puranas mentioned the eight Matrikas, they come to represent a Hindu version of the Seven Deadly Sins found in Christianity, but are more accurately known as 8 mental vices. A defining aspect of the Matrikas within iconography is the presence of a small child in the hands of each Matrika, except for Chamunda. In the academic sphere, it is theorized that the number 64 was arrived at due to eight mother goddesses each creating her own eight attendants.

When studying the Sakta temples found all over India, it soon becomes a clear fact that each site is viewed as a center of Tantricism. The Yogini cult has its origins in the local aboriginal culture of India, primarily due to a base made up of a focus on rituals, black magic & sorcery, and the use of such actions, signs and sounds that are commonly found in the folk traditions of India. The Yogini cult rose to prominence sometime around the beginning of the 8th Century CE and lasted till the 15th Century CE with some inscriptions even indicating a continuation till the end of the 16th Century CE.

During the 9th Century CE till the 12th Century CE, in accordance to multiple Tantric scriptures that are backed by solid archaeological finds of multiple shrines, there was a movement to help spread the popularity of this highly mis-understood cult. Ultimately, the cult of the 64 Yoginis fell out of popularity and through a slow decline has eventually led to it almost being abandoned altogether. The Yogini temples lies empty and deserted, however, occasionally it is still possible to find offerings left by people at the foot of the Yogini statues, revealing the existence of a few who still hold some faith within these goddesses.

The purpose of the worship of Yoginis, due to the major influence from Tantricism, was to attain supernatural power, in other words, black magic. The influence of Tantricism created an emphasis on rituals and the Five Fold Path (Panchamackara). The worshippers would partake in 1. Wine, 2. Meat , 3. Fish , 4. Yogic Practices, and 5. Sexual Union.

It is believed that the practice of all 5, coupled with regular Tantric rituals, would lead the devotee on the path to achieving the ultimate knowledge and power. Some rituals, though having a grisly face value, were of great significance and importance to the cult, i.e. the "Shava Chhedana" ritual involved the decapitation of a human corpse. Despite the gruesome ritual, the action of separating the head of the cadaver symbolized the ultimate form of detachment from all earthly passions and desires.

On a mythological note, as written in certain Puranas, the Yoginis are said to support the primary Goddess Durga as she battles demons. Shaktism believes that one of the Supreme Deity's roles is to be incarnated in physical for on Earth in order to destroy the demons causing havoc. One myth, as recorded in the Markandeya Purana, states that the energies or shaktis of Vishnu, Brahma, Shiva, Varah, Kartikeya, Indra and Narasimha were released from their physical forms and went to help The Devi in her battle against the demons Raktabija, Sumbh and Nisumbh.

The Shaktis of the seven gods gave form to the now known forms of the Sapta Matrikas. It is believed that the Astha Martika, Chamunda, was created from The Devi herself as a representation of her wrath. The shaktis/Yoginis were crucial in defeating the demon Raktabija due to a boon granted to him by Brahma that caused many more Raktabijas to emerge from every sing drop of his blood that touched the Earth.

In another adaptation of this myth, Shiva is locked in mortal combat with the demon Andhakasura, who was granted the same boon as Raktabija. To defeat what appeared to be an invincible foe, Shiva created a multitude of Fierce Goddesses whose only task was to drink Andhakasura's blood before it touched the ground. Having conquered Andhakasura, the Goddesses turned their fury on the rest of the world and continued their destruction.

Vishnu, in order to stem the madness, created the Matrikas or Devine Mothers from his body, who, being stronger than the furious Goddesses, were able to calm them down. It was then Vishnu who advised them to become the protectors of the world as the mothers to it. The second myth is quite clearly a Vaishnavite story while the first myth is a Shakta tale.

Due to the rise of Yoginis stemming from a mixture of Shakta, Tantric and folk ideas, the symbol and underlying theme of the cult was a chakra or a wheel. It was illustrated as having sixty four spokes, one to represent each one of the 64 Yoginis, and as wheels go, it is never shown with just a part of a wheel, similarly, the Yoginis were never worshipped on their own as individual deities. However, though the Yogini cult had gained a lot of popularity, it failed to continue on as a prominent religious cult for a variety of reasons that can at most only be theorized.

In one such theory, the cult's heavy focus on the Panchamackara and cryptic rituals which did not have readily available information for the masses would have turned people away from joining the cult of the Yoginis. There was never any practice of sacrifice, human or otherwise, and even the Shava Chhedana ritual of beheading a cadaver was conducted by devotees being given dead family members from poor backgrounds with the promise of proper funeral rites.

The lack of information in the esoteric cult made it difficult for the laymen to join in. Additionally, during the 15th Century CE, there was the rise of the Bhakti movement that preached the path of god as being one of love, peace, and a personal devotion to god, making the strange rituals practiced by the Yogini cult redundant.

As far as the temples of the Yoginis are concerned, there are currently only nine that have been found to be clearly marked as temples for the Yogini cult. Almost all the temples are left empty, devoid of any visitors, and some have turned into ruins over centuries of lack of maintenance due to the non-existence of the cult and local superstitions. Of the nine temples, there are four that are roof-less (hypaethral).

The reason for the open-air temples is theorized to be attributed to the supernatural abilities of the Yoginis that allows them to fly. The most well known hypaethral temple is found on the banks of the Bhargavi River in Hirapur, Orissa. It is a temple dated to being built in the 9th Century CE during the reign of two particular kings, Somavamsisa and Bhauma. The Hirapur temple is circular in structure, which appears to be the case with all the temples focused on the Yoginis themselves.

The outer wall is covered with niches that contain carvings of all sixty four Yoginis, many of which a seen smiling or richly adorned. However, the Astha Matrikas were not identifiable among the sixty four carvings present. Due to the cult being almost non-existent, a large amount of information has been lost, making it impossible to accurately identify all sixty four Yoginis. Another major hypaethral temple is found in Ranipur, Orissa. A odd finding in this temple reveals that to date, only sixty two of the sixty four Yogini idols have been found on its walls.

Another two major Yogini temples are located in Madhya Pradesh. The oldest Yogini temple is located among a group of temples lies in Khajuraho which dates back to the 9th Century CE while the second temple found in Bhedaghat is not as old and dates back to the 10th Century CE. The Hirapur temple has Shiva has the primary deity, while the temple in Khajuraho is focused on the Goddess Kali.

Tying back to the problem of identification of icons, what must be understood is that every one of the sixty four Yoginis is represented differently in each temple. Sometimes the idol is shown standing, or seated perhaps in lalitasana, or dancing. The forms are shown looking fierce or gentle, smiling or scowling and in certain idols, even more feminine poses meant to emphasize sexuality, while others are depicted as grotesque and mal-nourished.

The prominence of the Yogini cult, though a non-existent form of worship today, has made its way into the pantheon of Hindu gods and goddesses. Although the cult died out due to the lack of information about its cryptic practices and the rise of the Bhakti movement, the Yoginis are a key chapter within Shaktism, albeit, as with all local cults and deities that are absorbed into the mainstream religion, the Yoginis now take subsidiary roles compared to the major Hindus gods and goddesses and are considered inferior, as revealed by the myths created around them stating that they were created by Shiva and had to be controlled by Vishnu. The lesser status given to the Yoginis reinforces their folk origin and makes sure their only task was to serve and support the main goddesses in the Hindu pantheon.

Appendix A:

The following are the names of the Astha Matrikas as well as the eight mental vices they represent when they are all together (Shah, Viraj).

Brahmini: pride

Maheshwari: anger

Kaumari: illusion

Indrani: fault-finding

Vaishnavi: greed

Varahi: envy

Chamunda: gossiping

Yogeshwari: desire

Appendix B:

The following list is of the speculated names for all 64 Yogini, as understood from the Chandi Purana. However, this is not a comprehensive list as there is no agreement within that academic world on the names of all 64 Yoginis (Choudoury, Dr. Janmejay).

Chhaya
Maya
Narayani
Brahmayani
Bhairavi
Maheswari
Rudrayani
Baseli
Tripura
Ugratara
Charchika
Tarini
Ambika Kumari
Bhagabati
Nila
Kamala
Santi
Kanti
Ghatabari
Chamunda
Chandrakanti
Madhavi
Kachikeswari
Anala
Rupa
Barahi
Nagari
Khechari
Bhuchari
Betali
Kalinjari
Sankha
Rudrakali
Kalavati
Kankali
Bukuchai
Bali
Dohini
Dwarini
Sohini
Sankata Tarini
Kotalai
Anuchhaya
Kechamukhi Samuha
Ullaka
Samasila
Mudha
Dakhinai
Gopali
Mohini
Kamasena
Kapali
Uttarayani
Trailokya Byapini
Trilochana
Nimai
Dakeswari
Kamala
Ramayani
Anadi Shakti
Balakshatrayani
Brahmani
Dharani
Matangi

Works Cited:

Book/Excerpt:

Banerjea, Jitendra Nath. "Sakti." The Development of Hindu Iconography. Calcutta: U of Calcutta, 1956. 489-97. Print. Newspaper Article:

Choudhury, Dr. Janmejay. "Origin of Tantricism and Sixty-Four Yogini Cult in Orissa."Orissa Review. Orissa Government, Oct. 2004. Web. 5 Jan. 2015. <http://orissa.gov.in/e-magazine/orissareview/oct2004/englishpdf/originoftantricism.pdf>.

Database:

Kinsley, David. "The Portrait of the Goddess in the Devī-māhātmya." Journal of the American Academy of Religion 46.4 (1978): 489-506. JSTOR. Web. 04 Jan. 2015. <http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.2307/1463045?ref=no-x-route:9fa66fbd848945218a82da30bcd94a18>. Website:

Davis, Kent. "India’s Chaunsat Yogini Temple and the Women of Angkor Wat."Devata.org. Wordpress, Mar. 2010. Web. 04 Jan. 2015. < http://www.devata.org/chaunsat-yogini-temple-in-india-and-the-women-of-angkor-wat/#.VKwhIyuUdS1>.

Khandro. "The 64 Dakinis or Yoginis." Home Page. Khandro.net, 2011. Web. 05 Jan. 2015. <http://www.khandro.net/dakini_the64.htm>. Shambhavi, Yogini. "Yogini, the Enlightened Woman." Vedanet. American Institute of Vedic Studies. Web. 06 Jan. 2015. < http://vedanet.com/2012/06/13/yogini-the-enlightened-woman/>.

Lecture: Shah, Viraj. "Iconography 103." Tagore 1. FLAME, Pune. 28 Dec. 2014. Lecture.