In Hinduism, Gowrī or Dākshāyani is the Goddess of marital felicity and longevity; she is worshipped particularly by ladies to seek the long life of their husbands. An aspect of Devi, Dakshayani is the consort of Shiva.

Other names for Dakshayani include Gowrī, Umā, Satī, Aparnā, Lalithā, Sivakāmini and over a thousand others; a listing is to be found in the Lalithā Sahasranāmam.

Legend

The Goddess Umā, a personification of the divine "Omkāra", took human birth at the bidding of Brahmā. She was born as a daughter of Daksha Prajāpati, a son of Brahmā himself, and his wife Prasuti. She was named Gowri, the turmeric-hued one, since she was of the fair, golden complexion of auspicious turmeric. As the daughter of Daksha, she is also known as "Dākshāyani".

Dakshayani weds Shiva

In bidding the Goddess Umā to take human birth, Brahmā's design was that she should wed Shiva; it was therefore natural that Gowri, as a child, adored the tales and legends associated with Shiva and grew up an ardent devotee.

As Gowri grew to womanhood, the idea of marrying anyone else, as proposed by her father, became

To win the regard of the ascetic Shiva, the daughter of Daksha forsook the luxuries of her father's palace and retired to a forest, there to devote herself to austerities and the worship of Shiva. So rigorous were her penances that she gradually renounced food itself, at once stage subsisting on one Bilva leaf a day, and then giving up even that nourishment; this particular abstinance earned the sobriquet Aparnā. Her prayers finally bore fruit; after testing her resolve, Shiva finally acceded to her wishes and consented to make her his bride.

An ecstatic Gowri returned to her natal home to await her bridegroom, but found her father less than enthusiastic about the turn of events. The wedding was however held in due course, and Gowri made her home with Shiva in Kailāsa. Daksha, depicted in legend as an arrogant king, did not get on with his renunciate son-in-law and basically cut his daughter away from her natal family.

Dakshas arrogance

Daksha once organized a grand yagna to which all the celestials were invited, with the exception of Gowri and Shiva. Wanting to meet her parents, relatives and childhood friends, Gowri reasoned within herself that her parents had neglected to make a formal invitation only because, as family, such formality was unnecessary; certainly, she needed no invitation to visit her own

Dakshayani's self-immolation

Gowri was received coolly by her father. They were soon in the midst of a humungous argument about the virtues (and alleged lack thereof) of Shiva. Every passing moment made it clear to Gowri that her father was gross, vain, obstreperous and entirely incapable of appreciating the many excellent qualities of her husband. The thought came forcibly to Gowri that so much abuse was being heaped on Shiva only because he had wed her; she was the cause of this dishonour to her husband. She was consumed by rage against her father and loathing for his mentality.

Calling up a prayer that she may, in some future birth, be born the daughter of a father whom she could respect, Dākshāyani invoked her yogic powers and immolated herself.

Shiva's rage

Shiva sensed this catastrophe, and his rage was awesome. He created Virabhadra and Bhadrakāli, two ferocious goblins who wreaked havoc and mayhem on the scene of the argument between Daksha and his daughter Gowri. Nearly all those present were indiscriminately felled overnight. Daksha himself was decapitated.

According to some traditions, it is believed that an angry Shiva performed the fearsome and awe-inspiring Tāndava dance with Gowri's charred body on his shoulders. In the process, the different body parts of Sati fell at different places on earth. These places, 51 in number, are called Shakti Peethas, and are places of pilgrimage. This legend however is not accepted by mainstream traditions of south India and elsewhere.

After the night to horror, Shiva, the all-forgiving, restored all those slain to life and granted them his blessings. Even the abusive and culpable Daksha was restored not only to life, his decapitated head being substituted for that of a goat, but also to his kingship. He spent his remaining years a devotee of Shiva.

Aftermath

Dākshāyani was reborn as Pārvatī, daughter of Himavan, king of the mountains, and his wife, the apsara Menā. This time, she was born the daughter of a father whom she could respect, a father who appreciated Shiva fulsomely. Naturally, Pārvatī sought and received Shiva as her husband.

This legend appears in detail in Tantra literature, in the puranas and in Kālidāsa's lyrical Kumārasāmbhavam, an epic that deals primarily with the birth of Subrahmanya.

See also

• Hindu deities
• List of Hindu deities
• List of Hinduism-related articles

Sati Satî Uma Sati