By Swami Harshananda
Vārāhi literally means ‘boar-faced goddess’.
Significance of Vārāhi[edit]
Durgāsaptaśati, the well-known work of the śakti-sect, describes Saptamātṛkas,[1] the seven aspects of the Divine Mother, which are the Śaktis[2] of the seven deities like Śiva, Viṣṇu, Brahmā and Indra Vārāhī is counted among them as the fifth. She is the Śakti of Varāhāvatāra[3] of Viṣṇu.
Description of Vārāhi[edit]
She is boar-faced, is dark in complexion and has four or six arms. On the right side she exhibits the varadamudrā,[4] and holds daṇḍa[5] and asi[6] also. On the left she shows the abhayamudrā[7] and carries carma[8] and pātra.[9] Her vāhana or mount may be either an elephant or a buffalo. Sometimes, several varieties of Vārāhī such as Mahāvārāhi, Svapnavārāhī, Dhumravārāhī and so on are mentioned in tāntrik works. They are usually invoked in black magical rites.
References[edit]
- The Concise Encyclopedia of Hinduism, Swami Harshananda, Ram Krishna Math, Bangalore