Prathyangira--The Lionheaded

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Dear All,

In Dasa Maha Vidhya,(an ancient religious work) it is said

that the COSMIC MOTHER manifested to various forms to destroy the

evil forces. One such was the form of DEVI PRATHYANGRA .She is also

mentioned as Atharvana Bhadra kali. The Devi has conquered the TIME

element (Kala) and She is beyond the Time. Oliver Twist, the great

poet quotes like this: "Stallion the Eternal mounted the mare of

time "So it is obvious that there is no time bound for the eternal

mother. .She is being worshipped for so many Yugas. As she is not

bound by Kala (time) she is called as Kali.. Once the Divine mother

took a very ferocious form, having 1000 heads the center being that

of a lion. When Lord Shiva attained the form of Sharba Moorthy to

control the ferocious Narashimha which began to destroy the entire

world after destroying the demon HIRANYA, the cosmic mother helped

Lord Shiva for getting the required two wings for Saraba Moorthi to

have a a very dynamic movement in his divine task. One wing

represented Durga when the other represented Goddess Prathyangira.

She is said to be the core of Atharva Mantras. Her Moola Mantra

There is a reference in Atharva Veda that the people who have been

put to untold suffering through sorcery(witchcraft) done by their

enemies were able to get remedy by worshiping Pratyangra only.

Kashmora and Banamathi were two well-known sorcery methods narrated

in the old tantric text deals with black magic. Very severe and

killing body pain, frightened pale face, frequent unconsciousness

and a state of delirium are some of the indications among the people

affected by this black magic. The sorcerers in some parts of Andhra

Pradesh and Karnataka mostly practiced Banamathi, where as kashmora

is very common in some parts of North India.A reasearch document on

Banamathi quotes as follows:

"In the most backward regions of India, the belief in witchcraft and

sorcery thrive. In 1976 Mededuppalapalli in Nalgonda Dist. of Andhra

Pradesh, was the scene of mass hysteria due to the fear of

witchcraft and sorcery. Twenty-six women and two men were attributed

to be the victims of witchcraft and sorcery, and they accused some

people as the sorcerers.

Dr. Raghu Rami Reddy the Superintendent of the Mental Hospital in

Hyderabad, visited the village and examined the so-called victims.

He declared them as psychiatric patients and they were treated. But,

fear spreads like wild fire, hence some people were persecuted for

being sorcerers.

In 1980, the fear of Banamati or witchcraft again came to the fore

in Ranga Reddy district of Andhra Pradesh and in Bidar and Gulbarga

districts of Karnataka. It is interesting to note, that all these

districts were part of the former Nizam State, where the fear of

Banamati reoccurred many a time. The Nizam of Hyderabad, even

constituted 'Banamati squads'. Even after the integration of the

native state of Hyderabad, these areas remained backward and were

neglected.

In 1983, the fear of Banamati gripped the Medak district of Andhra

Pradesh. Incidentally Medak district is also a part of the former

Hyderabad State.

The scare of Banamati led to political, social and psychological

problems. Illiterate and innocent people were persecuted. Five

people were murdered in 1983, on the pretext of being sorcerers.

Earlier four people were murdered and police had to open fire to

prevent two people from being killed.

In the name of driving away the evil spirits, collective fines were

imposed on the people by the exploiters. Thus money was extracted

from the poor and the illiterate. The village elders, collected the

money. After collecting the money they would invite a 'sadhu' or

some 'witch doctor' to perform a 'puga' against the so-called evil

spirits Thus the so-called holy men and village headmen shared the

spoils, at the expense of many. It had become a profitable business

proposition and the cheats thrived on the ignorance of many innocent

people".

Whether it is Banamathi or any other tactics, immediate remedy comes

through the worship of Prathyangara Devi. Let me refer to a sloka in

Atarvana Veda. The meaning of the Sanskrit version of that sloka

given in Atharvana Veda is as follows:

 

" O Divine Mother! with your bountiful mercy, let all the miseries

and sufferings caused by my enemies through sorcery be bounced back

to them by chanting your powerful Mantra."

 

In Vama Marga of worship, it is recommended to do homa (offering to

the divine fire) with Apoopam (Tamil equivalent is 'Appam' ie., a

type of cake) dipped in Madhyam (wine) for getting all round

prosperity. So, be confident and worship the divine mother to solve

all your problems, for conquering your enemies and for your general

prosperity.It is only illustrative and not exaustive.

 

May the Cosmic Mother bless you all.

Jai prathyangira,

Yours Yogically,

Dattu