The Shakti Peetas are places of worship consecrated to the Goddess 'Shakti', the female principal of Hinduism and the main deity of the Shakta sect.

This Goddess is often associated both with Gowri / Parvati, the Goddess of marital felicity and longevity, and with the virgin Goddess Durga, Goddess of strength and valour.

Legend

According to legend, the corpse of Dakshayani disintegrated into many pieces and fell to earth. Various parts of the body and ornaments worn by Dakshayani fell at various places. Each of these places is deemed a "Shakti Peetha". Preserving the mortal relics of famous and respected individuals was a common practice in ancient India -- for example the Buddhist Stupas preserve the relics of Gautama Buddha. It is believed by some that these 51 peethas preserve the relic of some ancient lady sage from whom the legend of Kali could have emerged

The modern geographic city or town that correspond to these 51 locations is a matter of some dispute. There are a few that are totally unambiguous . for example Kalighat in Calcutta and Kamakshya in Assam. However there are many that are disputed. One of several accepted listings is given below.

In the listing given below,

• "Shakti" refers to the Goddess woshipped (invaribly, in this case, a manifestation of Dakshayani / Parvati / Durga);
• "Bhairava" refers to her consort, a manifestation of Shiva;
• "Organ or Ornament" refers to the body part or piece of jewelry that fell to earth, at the location on which the respective temple is built.

The 51 Shakti peethas are:

Satî