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mw-first-heading"><span class="mw-page-title-main">Shashthi</span></h1> <div id="p-lang-btn" class="vector-dropdown mw-portlet mw-portlet-lang" > <input type="checkbox" id="p-lang-btn-checkbox" role="button" aria-haspopup="true" data-event-name="ui.dropdown-p-lang-btn" class="vector-dropdown-checkbox mw-interlanguage-selector" aria-label="Go to an article in another language. Available in 15 languages" > <label id="p-lang-btn-label" for="p-lang-btn-checkbox" class="vector-dropdown-label cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--fake-button--enabled cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--action-progressive mw-portlet-lang-heading-15" aria-hidden="true" ><span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-language-progressive mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-language-progressive"></span> <span class="vector-dropdown-label-text">15 languages</span> </label> <div class="vector-dropdown-content"> <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-ar mw-list-item"><a href="https://ar.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D8%B4%D8%B4%D8%AA%D9%8A" title="ششتي – Arabic" lang="ar" hreflang="ar" data-title="ششتي" data-language-autonym="العربية" data-language-local-name="Arabic" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>العربية</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-ban mw-list-item"><a href="https://ban.wikipedia.org/wiki/D%C3%A9wi_Shashthi" title="Déwi Shashthi – Balinese" lang="ban" hreflang="ban" data-title="Déwi Shashthi" data-language-autonym="Basa Bali" data-language-local-name="Balinese" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Basa Bali</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-bn mw-list-item"><a href="https://bn.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E0%A6%B7%E0%A6%B7%E0%A7%8D%E0%A6%A0%E0%A7%80_%E0%A6%A6%E0%A7%87%E0%A6%AC%E0%A7%80" title="ষষ্ঠী দেবী – Bangla" lang="bn" hreflang="bn" data-title="ষষ্ঠী দেবী" data-language-autonym="বাংলা" data-language-local-name="Bangla" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>বাংলা</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-de mw-list-item"><a href="https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shashthi" title="Shashthi – German" lang="de" hreflang="de" data-title="Shashthi" data-language-autonym="Deutsch" data-language-local-name="German" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Deutsch</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-hi mw-list-item"><a href="https://hi.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E0%A4%B7%E0%A4%B7%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%A0%E0%A5%80" title="षष्ठी – Hindi" lang="hi" hreflang="hi" data-title="षष्ठी" data-language-autonym="हिन्दी" data-language-local-name="Hindi" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>हिन्दी</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-id mw-list-item"><a href="https://id.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dewi_Shashthi" title="Dewi Shashthi – Indonesian" lang="id" hreflang="id" data-title="Dewi Shashthi" data-language-autonym="Bahasa Indonesia" data-language-local-name="Indonesian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Bahasa Indonesia</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-kn mw-list-item"><a href="https://kn.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E0%B2%B7%E0%B2%B7%E0%B3%8D%E0%B2%A0%E0%B2%BF_(%E0%B2%A6%E0%B3%87%E0%B2%B5%E0%B2%A4%E0%B3%86)" title="ಷಷ್ಠಿ (ದೇವತೆ) – Kannada" lang="kn" hreflang="kn" data-title="ಷಷ್ಠಿ (ದೇವತೆ)" data-language-autonym="ಕನ್ನಡ" data-language-local-name="Kannada" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>ಕನ್ನಡ</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-or mw-list-item"><a href="https://or.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E0%AC%B7%E0%AC%B7%E0%AD%8D%E0%AC%A0%E0%AD%80_(%E0%AC%A6%E0%AD%87%E0%AC%AC%E0%AD%80)" title="ଷଷ୍ଠୀ (ଦେବୀ) – Odia" lang="or" hreflang="or" data-title="ଷଷ୍ଠୀ (ଦେବୀ)" data-language-autonym="ଓଡ଼ିଆ" data-language-local-name="Odia" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>ଓଡ଼ିଆ</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-pa mw-list-item"><a href="https://pa.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E0%A8%B8%E0%A8%BC%E0%A8%B8%E0%A8%BC%E0%A8%A0%E0%A9%80" title="ਸ਼ਸ਼ਠੀ – Punjabi" lang="pa" hreflang="pa" data-title="ਸ਼ਸ਼ਠੀ" data-language-autonym="ਪੰਜਾਬੀ" data-language-local-name="Punjabi" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>ਪੰਜਾਬੀ</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-km mw-list-item"><a href="https://km.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E1%9E%96%E1%9F%92%E1%9E%9A%E1%9F%87%E1%9E%98%E1%9F%89%E1%9F%82%E1%9E%9F%E1%9F%90%E1%9E%91%E1%9E%9F%E1%9E%91%E1%9E%B8" title="ព្រះម៉ែស័ទសទី – Khmer" lang="km" hreflang="km" data-title="ព្រះម៉ែស័ទសទី" data-language-autonym="ភាសាខ្មែរ" data-language-local-name="Khmer" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>ភាសាខ្មែរ</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-pl mw-list-item"><a href="https://pl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Szaszthi" title="Szaszthi – Polish" lang="pl" hreflang="pl" data-title="Szaszthi" data-language-autonym="Polski" data-language-local-name="Polish" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Polski</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-sa mw-list-item"><a href="https://sa.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E0%A4%B8%E0%A5%81%E0%A4%AC%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%B0%E0%A4%B9%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%AE%E0%A4%A3%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%AF%E0%A4%B7%E0%A4%B7%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%A0%E0%A5%80" title="सुब्रह्मण्यषष्ठी – Sanskrit" lang="sa" hreflang="sa" data-title="सुब्रह्मण्यषष्ठी" data-language-autonym="संस्कृतम्" data-language-local-name="Sanskrit" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>संस्कृतम्</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-sv mw-list-item"><a href="https://sv.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shashti" title="Shashti – Swedish" lang="sv" hreflang="sv" data-title="Shashti" data-language-autonym="Svenska" data-language-local-name="Swedish" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Svenska</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-ta mw-list-item"><a href="https://ta.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E0%AE%9A%E0%AE%B7%E0%AF%8D%E0%AE%9F%E0%AE%BF_%E0%AE%A4%E0%AF%87%E0%AE%B5%E0%AE%BF" title="சஷ்டி தேவி – Tamil" lang="ta" hreflang="ta" data-title="சஷ்டி தேவி" data-language-autonym="தமிழ்" data-language-local-name="Tamil" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>தமிழ்</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-th mw-list-item"><a href="https://th.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E0%B8%9E%E0%B8%A3%E0%B8%B0%E0%B8%A9%E0%B8%B1%E0%B8%A9%E0%B8%90%E0%B8%B5" title="พระษัษฐี – Thai" lang="th" hreflang="th" data-title="พระษัษฐี" data-language-autonym="ไทย" data-language-local-name="Thai" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>ไทย</span></a></li> </ul> <div class="after-portlet after-portlet-lang"><span class="wb-langlinks-edit wb-langlinks-link"><a href="https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Special:EntityPage/Q534133#sitelinks-wikipedia" title="Edit interlanguage links" class="wbc-editpage">Edit links</a></span></div> </div> </div> </div> </header> <div class="vector-page-toolbar"> <div class="vector-page-toolbar-container"> <div id="left-navigation"> <nav aria-label="Namespaces"> <div id="p-associated-pages" class="vector-menu vector-menu-tabs mw-portlet mw-portlet-associated-pages" > <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li id="ca-nstab-main" class="selected vector-tab-noicon mw-list-item"><a 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<nav class="vector-appearance-landmark" aria-label="Appearance"> <div id="vector-appearance-pinned-container" class="vector-pinned-container"> <div id="vector-appearance" class="vector-appearance vector-pinnable-element"> <div class="vector-pinnable-header vector-appearance-pinnable-header vector-pinnable-header-pinned" data-feature-name="appearance-pinned" data-pinnable-element-id="vector-appearance" data-pinned-container-id="vector-appearance-pinned-container" data-unpinned-container-id="vector-appearance-unpinned-container" > <div class="vector-pinnable-header-label">Appearance</div> <button class="vector-pinnable-header-toggle-button vector-pinnable-header-pin-button" data-event-name="pinnable-header.vector-appearance.pin">move to sidebar</button> <button class="vector-pinnable-header-toggle-button vector-pinnable-header-unpin-button" data-event-name="pinnable-header.vector-appearance.unpin">hide</button> </div> </div> </div> </nav> </div> </div> <div id="bodyContent" class="vector-body" aria-labelledby="firstHeading" data-mw-ve-target-container> <div class="vector-body-before-content"> <div class="mw-indicators"> <div id="mw-indicator-good-star" class="mw-indicator"><div class="mw-parser-output"><span typeof="mw:File"><a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Good_articles*" title="This is a good article. Click here for more information."><img alt="This is a good article. Click here for more information." src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/94/Symbol_support_vote.svg/19px-Symbol_support_vote.svg.png" decoding="async" width="19" height="20" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/94/Symbol_support_vote.svg/29px-Symbol_support_vote.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/94/Symbol_support_vote.svg/39px-Symbol_support_vote.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="180" data-file-height="185" /></a></span></div></div> </div> <div id="siteSub" class="noprint">From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia</div> </div> <div id="contentSub"><div id="mw-content-subtitle"></div></div> <div id="mw-content-text" class="mw-body-content"><div class="mw-content-ltr mw-parser-output" lang="en" dir="ltr"><div class="shortdescription nomobile noexcerpt noprint searchaux" style="display:none">Hindu folk goddess of children</div> <p class="mw-empty-elt"> </p> <style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1257001546">.mw-parser-output .infobox-subbox{padding:0;border:none;margin:-3px;width:auto;min-width:100%;font-size:100%;clear:none;float:none;background-color:transparent}.mw-parser-output .infobox-3cols-child{margin:auto}.mw-parser-output .infobox .navbar{font-size:100%}@media screen{html.skin-theme-clientpref-night .mw-parser-output .infobox-full-data:not(.notheme)>div:not(.notheme)[style]{background:#1f1f23!important;color:#f8f9fa}}@media screen and (prefers-color-scheme:dark){html.skin-theme-clientpref-os .mw-parser-output .infobox-full-data:not(.notheme) div:not(.notheme){background:#1f1f23!important;color:#f8f9fa}}@media(min-width:640px){body.skin--responsive .mw-parser-output .infobox-table{display:table!important}body.skin--responsive .mw-parser-output .infobox-table>caption{display:table-caption!important}body.skin--responsive .mw-parser-output .infobox-table>tbody{display:table-row-group}body.skin--responsive .mw-parser-output .infobox-table tr{display:table-row!important}body.skin--responsive .mw-parser-output .infobox-table th,body.skin--responsive .mw-parser-output .infobox-table td{padding-left:inherit;padding-right:inherit}}</style><table class="infobox"><tbody><tr><th colspan="2" class="infobox-above" style="font-size:125%;background-color: #FFC569;">Shashthi</th></tr><tr><td colspan="2" class="infobox-subheader"><div style="font-size: 110%;">Goddess of children, reproduction, child birth, mid-wives</div></td></tr><tr><td colspan="2" class="infobox-image"><span class="mw-default-size" typeof="mw:File/Frameless"><a href="/wiki/File:Shashthi_Arnab_Dutta.jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4a/Shashthi_Arnab_Dutta.jpg/220px-Shashthi_Arnab_Dutta.jpg" decoding="async" width="220" height="316" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4a/Shashthi_Arnab_Dutta.jpg/330px-Shashthi_Arnab_Dutta.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4a/Shashthi_Arnab_Dutta.jpg/440px-Shashthi_Arnab_Dutta.jpg 2x" data-file-width="2551" data-file-height="3667" /></a></span></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Other names</th><td class="infobox-data">Devasena, Kaumari</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label"><a href="/wiki/Devanagari" title="Devanagari">Devanagari</a></th><td class="infobox-data">षष्ठी</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label"><a href="/wiki/Sanskrit" title="Sanskrit">Sanskrit</a> transliteration</th><td class="infobox-data"><span title="International Alphabet of Sanskrit transliteration"><i lang="sa-Latn">Ṣaṣṭhī</i></span></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Bengali</th><td class="infobox-data">ষষ্ঠী</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Affiliation</th><td class="infobox-data"><a href="/wiki/Devi" title="Devi">Devi</a>, <a href="/wiki/Prakriti" class="mw-redirect" title="Prakriti">Prakriti</a></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Abode</th><td class="infobox-data">Skandaloka</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label"><a href="/wiki/Mantra" title="Mantra">Mantra</a></th><td class="infobox-data">Om Shashthi Devi Namah</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label"><a href="/wiki/Vahana" title="Vahana">Mount</a></th><td class="infobox-data">Cat</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label"><a href="/wiki/Hindu_texts" title="Hindu texts">Texts</a></th><td class="infobox-data"><a href="/wiki/Brahmavaivarta_Purana" class="mw-redirect" title="Brahmavaivarta Purana">Brahmavaivarta Purana</a>, <a href="/wiki/Devi_Bhagavata_Purana" title="Devi Bhagavata Purana">Devi Bhagavata Purana</a></td></tr><tr><th colspan="2" class="infobox-header" style="background-color: #FFC569;">Genealogy</th></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Parents</th><td class="infobox-data"><style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1126788409">.mw-parser-output .plainlist ol,.mw-parser-output .plainlist ul{line-height:inherit;list-style:none;margin:0;padding:0}.mw-parser-output .plainlist ol li,.mw-parser-output .plainlist ul li{margin-bottom:0}</style><div class="plainlist"><ul><li><a href="/wiki/Indra" title="Indra">Indra</a> (father)</li><li><a href="/wiki/Sachi" class="mw-redirect" title="Sachi">Sachi</a> (mother)</li></ul></div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Consort</th><td class="infobox-data"><a href="/wiki/Kartikeya" title="Kartikeya">Kartikeya</a> (when identified with <a href="/wiki/Devasena" title="Devasena">Devasena</a>)</td></tr></tbody></table> <p><b>Shashthi</b>, <b>Shashti</b>, <b> Soshthi</b> or <b>Chhathi</b> (<a href="/wiki/Sanskrit_language" class="mw-redirect" title="Sanskrit language">Sanskrit</a>: <span lang="sa">षष्ठी</span>, <a href="/wiki/Bengali_language" title="Bengali language">Bengali</a>: <span lang="bn">ষষ্ঠী</span>, <a href="/wiki/Hindi_language" class="mw-redirect" title="Hindi language">Hindi</a>: <span lang="hi">छठी</span>, <span title="International Alphabet of Sanskrit transliteration"><i lang="sa-Latn">Ṣaṣṭhī</i></span>, literally "sixth") is a <a href="/wiki/Hinduism" title="Hinduism">Hindu</a> goddess, venerated in <a href="/wiki/Nepal" title="Nepal">Nepal</a> and <a href="/wiki/India" title="India">India</a> as the benefactor and protector of children. She is also the deity of vegetation and reproduction and is believed to bestow children and assist during childbirth. She is often pictured as a motherly figure, riding a cat and nursing one or more infants. She is symbolically represented in a variety of forms, including an earthenware pitcher, a banyan tree or part of it or a red stone beneath such a tree; outdoor spaces termed <i>Shashthi Tala</i> are also consecrated for her worship. The worship of Shashthi is prescribed to occur on the sixth day of each lunar month of the <a href="/wiki/Hindu_calendar" title="Hindu calendar">Hindu calendar</a> as well as on the sixth day after a child's birth. Barren women desiring to conceive and mothers seeking to ensure the protection of their children will worship Shashthi and request her blessings and aid. She is especially venerated in eastern India. </p><p>Also known as Chhathi Maiya (छठी मईया), the sixth form of <a href="/wiki/Prak%E1%B9%9Bti" title="Prakṛti">Devi Prakriti</a> and <a href="/wiki/Surya" title="Surya">Lord Surya's</a> sister is worshipped during <a href="/wiki/Chhath" title="Chhath">Chhath Puja</a>. It is celebrated six days after <a href="/wiki/Diwali" title="Diwali">Deepavali</a>, on the sixth day of the lunar month of Kartika (October–November) in the Hindu calendar <a href="/wiki/Vikram_Samvat" title="Vikram Samvat">Vikram Samvat</a>. The rituals are observed over four days. They include holy bathing, <a href="/wiki/Fasting" title="Fasting">fasting</a> and abstaining from drinking water (<a href="/wiki/Vratta" class="mw-redirect" title="Vratta"><i>vrata</i></a>), standing in water, and offering <i><a href="/wiki/Prasad" class="mw-redirect" title="Prasad">prasad</a></i> (prayer offerings) and <i><a href="/wiki/Arghya" class="mw-redirect" title="Arghya">arghya</a></i> to the setting and rising sun. Some devotees also perform a <a href="/wiki/Prostration" title="Prostration">prostration</a> march as they head for the river banks. </p><p>Most scholars believe that Shashthi's roots can be traced to <a href="/wiki/Folk_Hinduism" class="mw-redirect" title="Folk Hinduism">Hindu folk traditions</a>. References to this goddess appear in Hindu scriptures as early as 8th and 9th century BCE, in which she is associated with children as well as the Hindu war-god <a href="/wiki/Kartikeya" title="Kartikeya">Skanda</a>. Early references consider her a foster-mother of Skanda, but in later texts she is identified with Skanda's consort, <a href="/wiki/Devasena" title="Devasena">Devasena</a>. In some early texts where Shashthi appears as an attendant of Skanda, she is said to cause diseases in the mother and child, and thus needed to be propitiated on the sixth day after childbirth. However, over time, this malignant goddess came to be seen as the benevolent saviour and bestower of children. </p> <meta property="mw:PageProp/toc" /> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Iconography">Iconography</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Shashthi&action=edit&section=1" title="Edit section: Iconography"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <figure class="mw-default-size mw-halign-left" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:Kalasha.jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f3/Kalasha.jpg/170px-Kalasha.jpg" decoding="async" width="170" height="196" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f3/Kalasha.jpg/255px-Kalasha.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f3/Kalasha.jpg/340px-Kalasha.jpg 2x" data-file-width="1185" data-file-height="1363" /></a><figcaption>The Purna Ghata sometimes represents Shashthi in worship.</figcaption></figure> <p>Shashthi is portrayed as a motherly figure, often nursing or carrying as many as eight infants in her arms.<sup id="cite_ref-stutley_1-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-stutley-1"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>1<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-wilkins_2-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-wilkins-2"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>2<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-white_3-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-white-3"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>3<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-wilkins6ff_4-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-wilkins6ff-4"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>4<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Her complexion is usually depicted as yellow or golden.<sup id="cite_ref-stutley_1-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-stutley-1"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>1<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-wilkins_2-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-wilkins-2"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>2<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> A <i>Dhyana-<a href="/wiki/Mantra" title="Mantra">mantra</a></i> – a hymn describing the iconography of a deity, upon which a devotee of Shashthi should meditate – describes her as a fair young woman with a pleasant appearance, bedecked in divine garments and jewellery with an auspicious twig laying in her lap.<sup id="cite_ref-Legends_5-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Legends-5"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>5<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> A cat (<i><span title="International Alphabet of Sanskrit transliteration"><i lang="sa-Latn">mārjāra</i></span></i>) is the <i><a href="/wiki/Vahana" title="Vahana">vahana</a></i> (mount) upon which she rides.<sup id="cite_ref-stutley_1-2" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-stutley-1"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>1<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Older depictions of Shashthi may show her as cat-faced,<sup id="cite_ref-white_3-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-white-3"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>3<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-6" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-6"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>6<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> while another reference describes her as bird-faced.<sup id="cite_ref-white_3-2" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-white-3"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>3<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>In <a href="/wiki/Kushan_Empire" title="Kushan Empire">Kushan</a> era representations between the first and third centuries CE, she is depicted as two-armed and six-headed like <a href="/wiki/Murugan" class="mw-redirect" title="Murugan">Skanda</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-srinivasan_7-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-srinivasan-7"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>7<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> A significant number of Kushan and <a href="/wiki/Yaudheya" title="Yaudheya">Yaudheya</a> coins, sculptures and inscriptions produced from 500 BCE to 1200 CE picture the six-headed Shashthi, often on the reverse of the coin, with the six-headed Skanda on the obverse. Shashthi is also pictured in a Kushan-era <a href="/wiki/Vrishni" title="Vrishni">Vrishni</a> triad from the <a href="/wiki/Mathura" title="Mathura">Mathura</a> region, surrounded by Skanda and <a href="/wiki/Vishakha" class="mw-redirect" title="Vishakha">Vishakha</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-white_3-3" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-white-3"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>3<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> In Yaudheya images, she is shown to have two arms and six heads that are arranged in two tiers of three heads each, while in Kushan images, the central head is surrounded by five female heads, sometimes attached to female torsos.<sup id="cite_ref-srinivasan_7-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-srinivasan-7"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>7<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Terracotta <a href="/wiki/Gupta_Empire" title="Gupta Empire">Gupta era</a> (320–550 CE) figures from <a href="/wiki/Ahichchhatra" title="Ahichchhatra">Ahichchhatra</a> show the goddess with three heads on the front and three on the back.<sup id="cite_ref-srinivasan_7-2" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-srinivasan-7"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>7<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>The folk worship representation of Shashthi is a red-coloured stone about the size of a human head, typically placed beneath a <a href="/wiki/Ficus_benghalensis" title="Ficus benghalensis">banyan</a> tree such as those usually found on the outskirts of villages. The banyan may be decorated with flowers or strewn with rice and other offerings. Shashthi is also commonly represented by planting a banyan tree or a small branch in the soil of a family's home garden.<sup id="cite_ref-wilkins_2-2" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-wilkins-2"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>2<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-wilkins6ff_4-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-wilkins6ff-4"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>4<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Other common representations of the goddess include a <a href="/wiki/Shaligrama" class="mw-redirect" title="Shaligrama">Shaligrama</a> stone, an earthen water pitcher, or a <a href="/wiki/Kalasha" title="Kalasha">Purna Ghata</a> – a water vase with an arrangement of coconut and mango leaves – generally set beneath a banyan tree.<sup id="cite_ref-swami_8-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-swami-8"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>8<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Evolution_and_textual_references">Evolution and textual references</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Shashthi&action=edit&section=2" title="Edit section: Evolution and textual references"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <figure class="mw-default-size" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:Standing_Goddess_Sashti_Between_Two_Warriors_Skanda_and_Visakha_-_Circa_2nd_Century_CE_-_ACCN_00-F-13_-_Government_Museum_-_Mathura_2013-02-23_5789.JPG" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a6/Standing_Goddess_Sashti_Between_Two_Warriors_Skanda_and_Visakha_-_Circa_2nd_Century_CE_-_ACCN_00-F-13_-_Government_Museum_-_Mathura_2013-02-23_5789.JPG/220px-Standing_Goddess_Sashti_Between_Two_Warriors_Skanda_and_Visakha_-_Circa_2nd_Century_CE_-_ACCN_00-F-13_-_Government_Museum_-_Mathura_2013-02-23_5789.JPG" decoding="async" width="220" height="275" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a6/Standing_Goddess_Sashti_Between_Two_Warriors_Skanda_and_Visakha_-_Circa_2nd_Century_CE_-_ACCN_00-F-13_-_Government_Museum_-_Mathura_2013-02-23_5789.JPG/330px-Standing_Goddess_Sashti_Between_Two_Warriors_Skanda_and_Visakha_-_Circa_2nd_Century_CE_-_ACCN_00-F-13_-_Government_Museum_-_Mathura_2013-02-23_5789.JPG 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a6/Standing_Goddess_Sashti_Between_Two_Warriors_Skanda_and_Visakha_-_Circa_2nd_Century_CE_-_ACCN_00-F-13_-_Government_Museum_-_Mathura_2013-02-23_5789.JPG/440px-Standing_Goddess_Sashti_Between_Two_Warriors_Skanda_and_Visakha_-_Circa_2nd_Century_CE_-_ACCN_00-F-13_-_Government_Museum_-_Mathura_2013-02-23_5789.JPG 2x" data-file-width="2840" data-file-height="3546" /></a><figcaption>Kushan-era image of Shashthi between Skanda and Vishakha, c. 2nd century CE, <a href="/wiki/Mathura_Museum" class="mw-redirect" title="Mathura Museum">Mathura Museum</a>.</figcaption></figure> <p>The general consensus among scholars of Hinduism traces the origins of Shashthi, like Skanda, back to ancient folk traditions.<sup id="cite_ref-swami_8-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-swami-8"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>8<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Over the course of the early centuries BCE, the <a href="/wiki/Vedic" class="mw-redirect" title="Vedic">Vedic</a> fertility goddess of the new moon, <a href="/wiki/Sinivali" title="Sinivali">Sinivali</a>-Kuhu, and Shri-<a href="/wiki/Lakshmi" title="Lakshmi">Lakshmi</a>, the Vedic antecedent of Lakshmi, were gradually fused with the folk-deity Shashthi. This merger created a "new" Shashthi that was associated in various ways with Skanda (also known as Kartikeya or Murugan).<sup id="cite_ref-swami_8-2" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-swami-8"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>8<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> From her origins as a folk goddess, Shashthi was gradually assimilated into the Brahmanical Hindu pantheon, and ultimately, came to be known in Hinduism as the Primordial Being and Great Mother of all.<sup id="cite_ref-swami_8-3" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-swami-8"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>8<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> The fifth century text <i><a href="/wiki/Vayu_Purana" title="Vayu Purana">Vayu Purana</a></i> includes Shashthi in a list of 49 goddesses,<sup id="cite_ref-swami_8-4" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-swami-8"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>8<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> while a Puranic text calls her "the worthiest of worship among mother goddesses."<sup id="cite_ref-Legends_5-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Legends-5"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>5<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> However, the long-standing universality of her worship has led scholar David Gordon White to challenge the classification of Shashthi as a folk goddess, observing that Shashthi has been worshipped on the sixth day after childbirth by "<i>all</i> Hindus: rural as well as urban people, since the <a href="/wiki/Kushan_Empire" title="Kushan Empire">Kushan</a> era."<sup id="cite_ref-white_3-4" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-white-3"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>3<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>In textual references, Shashthi is often depicted as closely connected to Skanda. An early textual reference dating to 8th–9th century BCE relates Shashthi to the six <a href="/wiki/Krittika" class="mw-redirect" title="Krittika">Krittikas</a> who nurtured and nursed Skanda. Sometimes regarded as an aspect of the goddess <a href="/wiki/Durga" title="Durga">Durga</a> (identified with <a href="/wiki/Parvati" title="Parvati">Parvati</a> – the mother of Skanda), she is also called <a href="/wiki/Skandamata" title="Skandamata">Skandamata</a> ("Skanda's mother").<sup id="cite_ref-stutley_1-3" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-stutley-1"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>1<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> The 3rd to 5th century text <i><a href="/wiki/Y%C4%81j%C3%B1avalkya_Sm%E1%B9%9Bti" title="Yājñavalkya Smṛti">Yajnavalkya Smriti</a></i> describes Shashthi as the foster-mother and protector of Skanda.<sup id="cite_ref-Yajnavalkya_9-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Yajnavalkya-9"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>9<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> However, later texts identified her as <a href="/wiki/Devasena" title="Devasena">Devasena</a>, the consort of Skanda,<sup id="cite_ref-Legends_5-2" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Legends-5"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>5<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> including the epic <i><a href="/wiki/Mahabharata" title="Mahabharata">Mahabharata</a></i> wherein Shashthi (as Devasena) -the daughter of <a href="/wiki/Prajapati" title="Prajapati">Prajapati</a>- is betrothed by the god-king <a href="/wiki/Indra" title="Indra">Indra</a> to Skanda. She is also identified with goddesses Shri, Lakshmi, Sinivali, and Kuhu in this text.<sup id="cite_ref-white_3-5" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-white-3"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>3<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-swami_8-5" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-swami-8"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>8<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> The scripture <i><a href="/wiki/Padma_Purana" title="Padma Purana">Padma Purana</a></i> also describes Shashthi as the wife of Skanda.<sup id="cite_ref-swami_8-6" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-swami-8"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>8<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-Mani_10-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Mani-10"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>10<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> In the 7th century text <i><a href="/wiki/Kadambari" class="mw-redirect" title="Kadambari">Kadambari</a></i>, the images of Skanda and Shashthi are also said to have painted together on the wall of a palace lying-in chamber of the queen.<sup id="cite_ref-white_3-6" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-white-3"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>3<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <figure class="mw-default-size mw-halign-left" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:Devasenapati.jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/79/Devasenapati.jpg/220px-Devasenapati.jpg" decoding="async" width="220" height="302" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/79/Devasenapati.jpg/330px-Devasenapati.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/79/Devasenapati.jpg/440px-Devasenapati.jpg 2x" data-file-width="1080" data-file-height="1482" /></a><figcaption>Skanda with his consort <a href="/wiki/Devasena" title="Devasena">Devasena</a>, who is sometimes identified with Shashthi</figcaption></figure> <p>Scriptures and folk traditions also connect Shashthi and Skanda in numerous indirect ways. The <i>Mahabharata</i>, finalised around the 4th century CE, describes a relationship between the infant Skanda and the <a href="/wiki/Matrikas" title="Matrikas">Matrikas</a> ("Mothers"), a group of female deities who embody the perils that afflict children until the age of sixteen. The <i>Encyclopaedia of Hinduism</i> identifies this textual account as a source of the modern-day practice of mothers worshipping Shashthi until their child reaches the age of sixteen.<sup id="cite_ref-11" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-11"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>11<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> In the <i>Mahabharata</i>, Shashthi is described as an attendant of Skanda who behaves malevolently by causing disease.<sup id="cite_ref-clothey_12-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-clothey-12"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>12<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Skanda is furthermore said to have 18 <a href="/wiki/Malevolent_spirit" class="mw-redirect" title="Malevolent spirit">malevolent spirit</a>-followers collectively known as the skanda graha, one of whom – Revati – is given the epithet "Shashthi." This association of Revati with Shashthi is reiterated in the 5th century text <i><a href="/wiki/Kashyap_Samhita" class="mw-redirect" title="Kashyap Samhita">Kashyapa Samhita</a></i>,<sup id="cite_ref-swami_8-7" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-swami-8"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>8<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> wherein Shashthi is also identified as the sixth form of Skanda and a sister of the five Skanda deities.<sup id="cite_ref-clothey_12-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-clothey-12"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>12<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Like Skanda, Shashthi is occasionally depicted with six heads, in which form she is also known by the epithet Shanmukhi ("six-headed").<sup id="cite_ref-swami_8-8" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-swami-8"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>8<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>Shashthi is historically associated with a variety of other deities. The second century BCE composition <i><a href="/wiki/Grhya_Sutras" class="mw-redirect" title="Grhya Sutras">Manava Grhya Sutra</a></i> identifies Shashthi with Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth and beauty. It also describes the <i>Shashthi-kalpa</i> rite was performed on the sixth lunar day of every fortnight invoking Shashthi to provide sons, cattle, treasures, corn, and the fulfilment of wishes.<sup id="cite_ref-white_3-7" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-white-3"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>3<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-13" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-13"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>13<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> The scripture <i>Padma Purana</i>, composed between the 8th and 11th centuries, describes Shashthi as the daughter of Indra.<sup id="cite_ref-swami_8-9" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-swami-8"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>8<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Texts written over the last 500 years, such as the <i><a href="/wiki/Brahma_Vaivarta_Purana" title="Brahma Vaivarta Purana">Brahma Vaivarta Purana</a></i> and the <i><a href="/wiki/Devi_Bhagavata_Purana" title="Devi Bhagavata Purana">Devi Bhagavata Purana</a></i> describe Shashthi as the daughter of the creator-god <a href="/wiki/Brahma" title="Brahma">Brahma</a>. In addition, she is associated with Mula-<a href="/wiki/Prakriti" class="mw-redirect" title="Prakriti">Prakriti</a>, the universal female energy said to be composed of six aspects: one of these, typically the sixth aspect, is said to be Shashthi.<sup id="cite_ref-swami_8-10" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-swami-8"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>8<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-Mani_10-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Mani-10"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>10<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <figure class="mw-default-size" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:Shashthi.jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/61/Shashthi.jpg/170px-Shashthi.jpg" decoding="async" width="170" height="271" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/61/Shashthi.jpg/255px-Shashthi.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/61/Shashthi.jpg/340px-Shashthi.jpg 2x" data-file-width="374" data-file-height="597" /></a><figcaption>Like the Hindu demoness Jara and the Buddhist goddess Hariti, Shashthi was originally a devourer of children who gradually evolved into their protector.</figcaption></figure> <p>Over time, the characterisation of Shashthi underwent a gradual evolution. Aforementioned folk traditions originating between the 10th and 5th centuries BCE associated the goddess with both positive and negative elements of fertility, birth, motherhood and childhood. However, between the 4th century BCE and the 5th century CE, a shift occurred in which Shashthi was increasingly depicted as a malevolent deity associated with the sufferings of mothers and children. The fifth century text <i>Kashyapa Samhita</i> calls Shashthi by the epithet Jataharini ("one who steals the born") and provides a list of the malevolent activities in which Shashthi is believed to engage, including her practice of stealing foetuses from the womb and devouring children on the sixth day following birth. For this reason, the text recommends that she be propitiated through worship in her honour on this day in the <a href="/wiki/Lying-in" title="Lying-in">lying-in</a> room and on the sixth day of every fortnight thereafter.<sup id="cite_ref-swami_8-11" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-swami-8"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>8<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>Eventually, Shashthi came to represent all goddesses and forces responsible for causing diseases in children and their mothers, who needed to be propitiated on the sixth day after childbirth to prevent these illnesses. Consequently, Shashthi came to personify the sixth day of a child's life.<sup id="cite_ref-swami_8-12" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-swami-8"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>8<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-clothey_12-2" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-clothey-12"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>12<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> The sixth day of the lunar fortnight is itself called <a href="/wiki/Shashti" class="mw-redirect" title="Shashti">Shashti</a>, a name derived from the name of the goddess.<sup id="cite_ref-swami_8-13" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-swami-8"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>8<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-britannica_14-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-britannica-14"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>14<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> The <i>Yajnavalkya Smriti</i>, composed during Gupta rule between the 3rd and 5th centuries CE, describes the rites of Shashthi Puja in which Shashthi is worshipped on the sixth day after childbirth to ensure the protection of the newborn baby.<sup id="cite_ref-Yajnavalkya_9-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Yajnavalkya-9"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>9<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> According to one explanation for the worship of Shashthi on this day, folk belief associates this critical time in an infant's life with great susceptibility to diseases related to childbirth, such as <a href="/wiki/Puerperal_fever" class="mw-redirect" title="Puerperal fever">puerperal fever</a> and <a href="/wiki/Tetanus" title="Tetanus">tetanus</a>, and that worship of Shashthi is performed to help ward off these diseases.<sup id="cite_ref-underhill_15-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-underhill-15"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>15<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>Over the past 1500 years, the characterisation of Shashthi gradually shifted toward that of a benevolent and protective figure.<sup id="cite_ref-swami_8-14" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-swami-8"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>8<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> In <a href="/wiki/Banabhatta" class="mw-redirect" title="Banabhatta">Banabhatta</a>'s 7th century work <i><a href="/wiki/Harshacharita" title="Harshacharita">Harshacharita</a></i>, Shashthi is called Jatamatr ("mother of the born one"), while the <i>Kadambari</i> by the same author calls her Bahuputrika, meaning "having many children".<sup id="cite_ref-swami_8-15" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-swami-8"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>8<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Shashthi's evolution mirrors that of the demoness <a href="/wiki/Jarasandha" title="Jarasandha">Jara</a> of the <i>Mahabharata</i><sup id="cite_ref-16" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-16"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>n 1<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> and a similar Buddhist goddess, <a href="/wiki/Hariti" title="Hariti">Hariti</a>:<sup id="cite_ref-17" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-17"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>n 2<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-white_3-8" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-white-3"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>3<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> all of them are characterised in early texts as malevolent goddesses, but over the course of time these deities transform from devourers of children into their saviours and protectors.<sup id="cite_ref-swami_8-16" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-swami-8"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>8<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Legends">Legends</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Shashthi&action=edit&section=3" title="Edit section: Legends"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>A chapter entitled <i>Shashthidevyupakhyanam</i>, appended to the texts <i>Brahma Vaivarta Purana</i> and <i>Devi Bhagavata Purana</i>, narrates the tale of Shashthi.<sup id="cite_ref-swami_8-17" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-swami-8"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>8<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> King Priyavrata – the son of <a href="/wiki/Svayambhuva_Manu" class="mw-redirect" title="Svayambhuva Manu">Svayambhuva Manu</a> (the progenitor of mankind) – and his wife Malini performed the <i>putrakamesti <a href="/wiki/Yajna" title="Yajna">yajna</a></i> (a fire-sacrifice ritual to gain a son) in an effort to conceive, but after twelve years of pregnancy, a still-born son was delivered to Malini. Priyavrata set off to the cremation grounds with the corpse of his son. On his way, he saw a celestial woman dressed in white silk and jewels, riding in a heavenly chariot. She declared to Priyavrata that she was Devasena, the daughter of Brahma and wife of Skanda. She further said that she was Shashthi, foremost of the <a href="/wiki/Matrikas" title="Matrikas">Matrikas</a> ("Mothers") of Skanda, and had the power to grant children to devotees. She held the child in her hand and resurrected the infant, then began to leave for her heavenly abode, taking the child with her. Priyavrata stopped the goddess, praising her and pleading that she return his son to him. The goddess agreed on the condition that Priyavrata would initiate and propagate her worship in all three worlds: heaven, earth and the netherworld. She returned the child to the king, naming him Suvrata and declaring that he should become famous as a great, virtuous, and learned ruler. Priyavrata decreed that Shashthi should be worshipped on the sixth day of every month, as well as the sixth and twenty-first days after childbirth, and on all occasions auspicious to a child. She would be worshipped in the form of a Shaligrama stone, a <i>Purna Ghata</i> under a banyan tree, or an image of her on a wall.<sup id="cite_ref-swami_8-18" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-swami-8"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>8<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-Mani_10-2" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Mani-10"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>10<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-18" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-18"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>16<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <figure class="mw-default-size" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:Black_cat_on_a_railing_and_green_trees_in_summer-Hisashi-01.jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8d/Black_cat_on_a_railing_and_green_trees_in_summer-Hisashi-01.jpg/220px-Black_cat_on_a_railing_and_green_trees_in_summer-Hisashi-01.jpg" decoding="async" width="220" height="146" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8d/Black_cat_on_a_railing_and_green_trees_in_summer-Hisashi-01.jpg/330px-Black_cat_on_a_railing_and_green_trees_in_summer-Hisashi-01.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8d/Black_cat_on_a_railing_and_green_trees_in_summer-Hisashi-01.jpg/440px-Black_cat_on_a_railing_and_green_trees_in_summer-Hisashi-01.jpg 2x" data-file-width="3216" data-file-height="2136" /></a><figcaption>In the <i>Jamai-Shasthi Vrata</i> tale, the black cat – the <a href="/wiki/Vahana" title="Vahana">vahana</a> (mount) of Shashthi – stole a woman's infant children as revenge for an injustice she had committed against it.</figcaption></figure> <p>A Bengali folk-tale about Shashthi tells of the youngest of seven daughters-in-law in a prosperous household who was a <a href="/wiki/Gluttony" title="Gluttony">glutton</a> that used to secretly steal food and then blame a black cat, which was thrashed as punishment. The black cat happened to be the <i>vahana</i> (mount) of Shashthi and complained about the mistreatment to the goddess, who pledged to avenge it. When the youngest daughter-in-law gave birth to a son, the cat stole the child in the night and gave it to the goddess, and did the same for her next six sons. The neighbours accused the young mother of carelessness and began to believe she might be a witch who ate her own children. Finally, when a daughter was born, the young mother decided to remain awake the whole night to resolve the mystery. She managed to catch the cat in the act of robbery and wounded it with her bracelet, but the cat escaped with the child, leaving a trail of blood. The mother followed this trail to the abode of Shashthi. There she saw her sons playing around Shashthi as the goddess held the mother's infant daughter in her arms. Shashthi explained the reason for the mother's ordeal and told her to ask pardon of the cat. The mother asked the cat's pardon, which was granted, and then she promised the goddess that she would offer worship in a ritual dedicated to her, which would come to be known as the Jamai-Shasthi Vrata. The mother returned home with her children and spread the worship of the goddess, who blessed her family with children, wealth and happiness.<sup id="cite_ref-jamaishashti_19-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-jamaishashti-19"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>17<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>A different version of this tale narrates that when the youngest daughter-in-law was pregnant, she secretly ate the food-offerings ritually dedicated to Shashthi and then blamed the theft on the black cat. Angered by the dishonour of its mistress and the unjust accusation of theft, the cat pledged to teach the young mother a lesson. In this version of the tale, the cat not only stole her six children, but also ate them. But when the seventh child was born, the mother caught the cat fleeing with her child and followed it but tripped in middle of the chase and fainted. The cat took the infant to Shashthi's abode, where she told the goddess the whole tale of her insult. The benign goddess, however, was annoyed with the cat and rushed to the aid of the mother. The goddess explained the reason of her suffering, and after the mother had begged the cat for forgiveness and had sworn to worship Shashthi on anointed days, all seven of her children were returned to her.<sup id="cite_ref-20" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-20"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>18<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>Shashthi's Bengali legends appear in the <i><a href="/wiki/Mangal-K%C4%81vya" title="Mangal-Kāvya">Mangal-Kavya</a></i> texts, especially in the <i>Shashthi-mangal</i> section of this work.<sup id="cite_ref-britannica_14-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-britannica-14"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>14<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> The <i>Mangal-Kavya</i> and Bengali folk tales describe Shashthi as closely related to <a href="/wiki/Manasa" title="Manasa">Manasa</a>, the serpent goddess.<sup id="cite_ref-white_3-9" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-white-3"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>3<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Shashthi furthermore appears as an ally of Manasa in a famous Bengali folk-tale describing Shashthi's activities during the <a href="/wiki/Nag_Panchami" class="mw-redirect" title="Nag Panchami">Nag Panchami</a> festival of Manasa.<sup id="cite_ref-21" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-21"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>19<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Worship">Worship</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Shashthi&action=edit&section=4" title="Edit section: Worship"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>Among Hindus, Shashthi is widely regarded the benefactor and protector of children and tutelary deity of every household.<sup id="cite_ref-swami_8-19" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-swami-8"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>8<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> She is also worshipped as a bestower of children to the childless, and regarded as the foremost goddess for blessing children.<sup id="cite_ref-Mani_10-3" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Mani-10"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>10<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> One of the earliest scriptural sources to describe a ritual in her honour is the second century BCE composition <i>Manava Grhya Sutra</i>, appended to the <i><a href="/wiki/Yajurveda" title="Yajurveda">Yajurveda</a></i> (written between the 14th and 10th centuries BCE), which describes a ritual called Shashthi-kalpa. In the Shashthi-kalpa rite, which was described as performed on the sixth lunar day of every fortnight, Shashthi was invoked to provide sons, cattle, treasures, corn, and the fulfilment of wishes.<sup id="cite_ref-white_3-10" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-white-3"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>3<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Today, Shashthi continues to be worshipped on the sixth day of each of the twelve lunar months of the <a href="/wiki/Hindu_calendar" title="Hindu calendar">Hindu calendar</a>,<sup id="cite_ref-white_3-11" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-white-3"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>3<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-Legends_5-3" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Legends-5"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>5<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> as well as on the sixth day after childbirth in the <a href="/wiki/Lying-in" title="Lying-in">lying-in</a> chamber where the birth has taken place. Shashthi is worshipped in a different form in each of these lunar months as the deities Chandan, Aranya, Kardama, Lunthana, Chapeti, Durga, Nadi, Mulaka, Anna, Sitala, Gorupini or Ashoka.<sup id="cite_ref-Legends_5-4" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Legends-5"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>5<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>In North India, Shashthi is worshipped at childbirth and puberty, and during marriage rites.<sup id="cite_ref-white_3-12" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-white-3"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>3<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> When the pregnant woman is isolated during childbirth in the lying-in chamber, a cow-dung figure of the goddess is traditionally kept in the room. The birth of a living child is considered the blessing of Shashthi, while the birth of a stillborn infant or the early death of a child are considered manifestations of her wrath.<sup id="cite_ref-wilkins6ff_4-2" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-wilkins6ff-4"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>4<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Before childbirth, Shashthi is worshipped to protect the welfare of the expecting mother. She is also invoked after childbirth on the sixth day of each month until the child reaches puberty, especially when the child is sick.<sup id="cite_ref-wilkins68ff_22-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-wilkins68ff-22"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>20<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <figure class="mw-default-size mw-halign-left" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:Big_Banyan.jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/18/Big_Banyan.jpg/220px-Big_Banyan.jpg" decoding="async" width="220" height="140" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/18/Big_Banyan.jpg/330px-Big_Banyan.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/18/Big_Banyan.jpg/440px-Big_Banyan.jpg 2x" data-file-width="800" data-file-height="508" /></a><figcaption>The banyan tree is considered sacred to Shashthi, and in worship the tree often represents this goddess.</figcaption></figure> <p>In <a href="/wiki/Bengal" title="Bengal">Bengal</a> and South India,<sup id="cite_ref-underhill_15-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-underhill-15"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>15<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Shashthi is worshipped on the sixth day after childbirth and on Aranya-Shashthi (also called Jamai-Shashthi), the sixth day of the bright fortnight of the Hindu month of <a href="/wiki/Jyeshtha_(month)" title="Jyeshtha (month)">Jyeshtha</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-swami_8-20" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-swami-8"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>8<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Her worship can be performed in the house, where she is symbolised as an earthenware pitcher; she may also be worshipped outdoors in a natural, open space consecrated to her, termed a shashthitala. In honour of Shashthi, women tie a stone in a small rag to the branch of a tree in the shasthitala: a mother does this to ask for long life for her child, while a barren woman does so to entreat the goddess to aid her in conceiving.<sup id="cite_ref-swami_8-21" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-swami-8"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>8<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> The vrata (ritual) performed on the day of Jamai-Shashthi is also prescribed to be performed by pregnant women at least once on any Monday, Tuesday, Friday or Saturday in the month of Jyestha. Dough images of Shashthi and her black cat are prepared and worshipped, along with a water pitcher with a banyan tree branch near it. <a href="/wiki/Betel_nut" class="mw-redirect" title="Betel nut">Betel nuts</a> and leaves, fruits, sweets and <a href="/wiki/Kheer" title="Kheer">kheer</a> are offered to her in units of six.<sup id="cite_ref-underhill_15-2" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-underhill-15"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>15<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-jamaishashti_19-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-jamaishashti-19"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>17<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> In North India, Shashthi is worshipped in the form of the banyan tree, which is sacred to her.<sup id="cite_ref-wilkins68ff_22-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-wilkins68ff-22"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>20<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>In Bengal, on the night of the sixth day after childbirth, a number of items may be placed in the lying-in chamber in deference to Shashthi, such as an earthen pitcher of water covered with a napkin, offerings of husked rice, cooked rice, bananas and sweets, bangles, and pieces of gold and silver. A pen and paper are also kept in the room, because it is believed that Shashthi (or, according to some traditions, <a href="/wiki/Chitragupta" title="Chitragupta">Chitragupta</a> or <a href="/wiki/Brahma" title="Brahma">Brahma</a>) comes into the home after everyone is asleep and writes the child's fortune on the paper with invisible ink.<sup id="cite_ref-swami_8-22" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-swami-8"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>8<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-23" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-23"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>21<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> In <a href="/wiki/Bihar" title="Bihar">Bihar</a>, the sixth day ceremony is called Chhathi or Chhati ("sixth") and Shashthi is known by the epithet Chhati Mata ("Mother Chhati"). A lump of cow dung dressed in red cloth or paper and covered with <a href="/wiki/Vermilion" title="Vermilion">vermilion</a>, symbolising the goddess, is kept in the lying-in room. Here, the new-born baby is oiled and dressed in new clothes and rings and then named; a feast follows this ceremony. Childless people may perform a vrata (ritual) in worship of Shashthi, called either Chhati Mata or Shashthi Vrata, in an effort to conceive.<sup id="cite_ref-swami_8-23" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-swami-8"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>8<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Similar traditions of naming the child on the sixth day also exist in <a href="/wiki/Gujarat" title="Gujarat">Gujarat</a>. In Gujarat and <a href="/wiki/Haryana" title="Haryana">Haryana</a>, Shashthi (known as Chhathi or Be-Mata) is said to decide the future of the new-born. </p><p>In <a href="/wiki/Orissa,_India" class="mw-redirect" title="Orissa, India">Orissa</a>, the goddess is worshipped in the lying-in room on the sixth day after childbirth, on the 21st day after childbirth and on every subsequent birthday of the child until he or she reaches the age of sixteen. Shashthi is also prescribed to be worshipped the sixth day of each of the two <a href="/wiki/Paksha" title="Paksha">lunar fortnights</a> occurring each month; as part of the <i>vrata</i> rites, the worship occurring on the <a href="/wiki/Shukla_paksha" class="mw-redirect" title="Shukla paksha">bright fortnight</a> of the month of <a href="/wiki/Bhadrapada" class="mw-redirect" title="Bhadrapada">Bhadrapada</a> is the most important of these and holds the same status in Orissa as the Aranva-Shashthi ritual in Bengal. By these rites, it is believed a childless woman may gain offspring, while a mother may secure the longevity and welfare of her child by the grace of the goddess.<sup id="cite_ref-swami_8-24" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-swami-8"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>8<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> IN odisha the sixth day of Hindu calendar month Bhadrav is celebrated as Shashthi Osha or sathi osha .On this day mothers worship goddess sashti for long life and well-being of their kids . A spinach curry made out of 6 different Odia saag is prepared along with six rice cakes and rice pudding (rice atakali ) as an offering to the Goddess . Mothers collect six different plant saplings and use it to beat their children as a custom for six times after the sashti pooja. It is believed that this custom would make the child's body strong and disease free . </p><p>In North India, women worship Shashthi on Ashoka Shashthi, the sixth lunar day of the month of Chaitra. In this region, women will drink water from six flower-buds of the <a href="/wiki/Ashoka_tree" title="Ashoka tree">Ashoka tree</a> to secure the well-being of their children. Women observe Khas Shashthi in the month of Pausha by fasting to ensure the longevity of their children.<sup id="cite_ref-underhill_15-3" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-underhill-15"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>15<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p><a href="/wiki/Chhath" title="Chhath">Chhath</a> is celebrated in Bihar in honour of her and <a href="/wiki/Surya" title="Surya">Surya</a>(sun god), twice in a year(In lunar months of <a href="/wiki/Kartik_(month)" class="mw-redirect" title="Kartik (month)">Kartik</a>, given more prominence and other one in <a href="/wiki/Chaitra" title="Chaitra">Chaitra</a> month.) </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Footnotes">Footnotes</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Shashthi&action=edit&section=5" title="Edit section: Footnotes"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1239543626">.mw-parser-output .reflist{margin-bottom:0.5em;list-style-type:decimal}@media screen{.mw-parser-output .reflist{font-size:90%}}.mw-parser-output .reflist .references{font-size:100%;margin-bottom:0;list-style-type:inherit}.mw-parser-output .reflist-columns-2{column-width:30em}.mw-parser-output .reflist-columns-3{column-width:25em}.mw-parser-output .reflist-columns{margin-top:0.3em}.mw-parser-output .reflist-columns ol{margin-top:0}.mw-parser-output .reflist-columns li{page-break-inside:avoid;break-inside:avoid-column}.mw-parser-output .reflist-upper-alpha{list-style-type:upper-alpha}.mw-parser-output .reflist-upper-roman{list-style-type:upper-roman}.mw-parser-output .reflist-lower-alpha{list-style-type:lower-alpha}.mw-parser-output .reflist-lower-greek{list-style-type:lower-greek}.mw-parser-output .reflist-lower-roman{list-style-type:lower-roman}</style><div class="reflist"> <div class="mw-references-wrap"><ol class="references"> <li id="cite_note-16"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-16">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text">Initially described as a killer, Jara gave life to the prince <a href="/wiki/Jarasandha" title="Jarasandha">Jarasandha</a> of <a href="/wiki/Magadha_(Mahajanapada)" class="mw-redirect" title="Magadha (Mahajanapada)">Magadha</a> and was then adored as the saviour of children throughout the kingdom.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-17"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-17">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text">Initially a devourer of children, Hariti was transformed by the <a href="/wiki/Buddha" class="mw-redirect" title="Buddha">Buddha</a> into their protector. In contemporary iconography, Hariti, like Shashthi, is pictured surrounded with children and is affiliated with a cat.</span> </li> </ol></div></div> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Notes">Notes</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Shashthi&action=edit&section=6" title="Edit section: Notes"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1239543626"><div class="reflist"> <div class="mw-references-wrap mw-references-columns"><ol class="references"> <li id="cite_note-stutley-1"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-stutley_1-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-stutley_1-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-stutley_1-2"><sup><i><b>c</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-stutley_1-3"><sup><i><b>d</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text"><style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1238218222">.mw-parser-output cite.citation{font-style:inherit;word-wrap:break-word}.mw-parser-output .citation q{quotes:"\"""\"""'""'"}.mw-parser-output .citation:target{background-color:rgba(0,127,255,0.133)}.mw-parser-output .id-lock-free.id-lock-free a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/65/Lock-green.svg")right 0.1em center/9px no-repeat}.mw-parser-output .id-lock-limited.id-lock-limited a,.mw-parser-output .id-lock-registration.id-lock-registration a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d6/Lock-gray-alt-2.svg")right 0.1em center/9px no-repeat}.mw-parser-output .id-lock-subscription.id-lock-subscription a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/aa/Lock-red-alt-2.svg")right 0.1em center/9px no-repeat}.mw-parser-output .cs1-ws-icon a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4c/Wikisource-logo.svg")right 0.1em center/12px no-repeat}body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .id-lock-free a,body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .id-lock-limited a,body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .id-lock-registration a,body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .id-lock-subscription a,body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .cs1-ws-icon a{background-size:contain;padding:0 1em 0 0}.mw-parser-output .cs1-code{color:inherit;background:inherit;border:none;padding:inherit}.mw-parser-output .cs1-hidden-error{display:none;color:var(--color-error,#d33)}.mw-parser-output .cs1-visible-error{color:var(--color-error,#d33)}.mw-parser-output .cs1-maint{display:none;color:#085;margin-left:0.3em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-left{padding-left:0.2em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-right{padding-right:0.2em}.mw-parser-output .citation .mw-selflink{font-weight:inherit}@media screen{.mw-parser-output .cs1-format{font-size:95%}html.skin-theme-clientpref-night .mw-parser-output .cs1-maint{color:#18911f}}@media screen and (prefers-color-scheme:dark){html.skin-theme-clientpref-os .mw-parser-output .cs1-maint{color:#18911f}}</style><cite id="CITEREFStutley" class="citation book cs1">Stutley, Margaret. "<span title="International Alphabet of Sanskrit transliteration"><i lang="sa-Latn">Ṣaṣṭhī</i></span>". <i>The Illustrated Dictionary of Hindu Iconography</i>. p. 127.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=bookitem&rft.atitle=%3Cspan+title%3D%22International+Alphabet+of+Sanskrit+transliteration%22%3E%3Ci+lang%3D%22sa-Latn%22%3E%E1%B9%A2a%E1%B9%A3%E1%B9%ADh%C4%AB%3C%2Fi%3E%3C%2Fspan%3E&rft.btitle=The+Illustrated+Dictionary+of+Hindu+Iconography&rft.pages=127&rft.aulast=Stutley&rft.aufirst=Margaret&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AShashthi" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-wilkins-2"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-wilkins_2-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-wilkins_2-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-wilkins_2-2"><sup><i><b>c</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFWilkins1900" class="citation book cs1">Wilkins, W. J. (1900). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.sacred-texts.com/hin/hmvp/hmvp47.htm"><i>Hindu Mythology, Vedic and Puranic</i></a>. Sacred Texts Archive. p. 477. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/1-4021-9308-4" title="Special:BookSources/1-4021-9308-4"><bdi>1-4021-9308-4</bdi></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=Hindu+Mythology%2C+Vedic+and+Puranic&rft.pages=477&rft.pub=Sacred+Texts+Archive&rft.date=1900&rft.isbn=1-4021-9308-4&rft.aulast=Wilkins&rft.aufirst=W.+J.&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.sacred-texts.com%2Fhin%2Fhmvp%2Fhmvp47.htm&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AShashthi" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-white-3"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-white_3-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-white_3-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-white_3-2"><sup><i><b>c</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-white_3-3"><sup><i><b>d</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-white_3-4"><sup><i><b>e</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-white_3-5"><sup><i><b>f</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-white_3-6"><sup><i><b>g</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-white_3-7"><sup><i><b>h</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-white_3-8"><sup><i><b>i</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-white_3-9"><sup><i><b>j</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-white_3-10"><sup><i><b>k</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-white_3-11"><sup><i><b>l</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-white_3-12"><sup><i><b>m</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFWhite2003" class="citation book cs1">White, David Gordon (2003). <i>Kiss of the Yogini: "Tantric Sex" in Its South Asian Contexts</i>. pp. 40–3. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/0-226-89483-5" title="Special:BookSources/0-226-89483-5"><bdi>0-226-89483-5</bdi></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=Kiss+of+the+Yogini%3A+%22Tantric+Sex%22+in+Its+South+Asian+Contexts&rft.pages=40-3&rft.date=2003&rft.isbn=0-226-89483-5&rft.aulast=White&rft.aufirst=David+Gordon&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AShashthi" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-wilkins6ff-4"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-wilkins6ff_4-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-wilkins6ff_4-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-wilkins6ff_4-2"><sup><i><b>c</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text">Wilkins pp. 6–8</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-Legends-5"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-Legends_5-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-Legends_5-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-Legends_5-2"><sup><i><b>c</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-Legends_5-3"><sup><i><b>d</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-Legends_5-4"><sup><i><b>e</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text">Bhattacharji p. 66</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-6"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-6">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text">McDaniel p. 39</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-srinivasan-7"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-srinivasan_7-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-srinivasan_7-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-srinivasan_7-2"><sup><i><b>c</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFSrinivasan1997" class="citation book cs1">Srinivasan, Doris Meth (1997). "Ṣaṣṭhī". <i>Many heads, arms, and eyes: origin, meaning, and form of multiplicity in Indian art</i>. Brill. pp. 333–5. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/90-04-10758-4" title="Special:BookSources/90-04-10758-4"><bdi>90-04-10758-4</bdi></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=bookitem&rft.atitle=%E1%B9%A2a%E1%B9%A3%E1%B9%ADh%C4%AB&rft.btitle=Many+heads%2C+arms%2C+and+eyes%3A+origin%2C+meaning%2C+and+form+of+multiplicity+in+Indian+art&rft.pages=333-5&rft.pub=Brill&rft.date=1997&rft.isbn=90-04-10758-4&rft.aulast=Srinivasan&rft.aufirst=Doris+Meth&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AShashthi" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-swami-8"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-swami_8-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-swami_8-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-swami_8-2"><sup><i><b>c</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-swami_8-3"><sup><i><b>d</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-swami_8-4"><sup><i><b>e</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-swami_8-5"><sup><i><b>f</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-swami_8-6"><sup><i><b>g</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-swami_8-7"><sup><i><b>h</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-swami_8-8"><sup><i><b>i</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-swami_8-9"><sup><i><b>j</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-swami_8-10"><sup><i><b>k</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-swami_8-11"><sup><i><b>l</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-swami_8-12"><sup><i><b>m</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-swami_8-13"><sup><i><b>n</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-swami_8-14"><sup><i><b>o</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-swami_8-15"><sup><i><b>p</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-swami_8-16"><sup><i><b>q</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-swami_8-17"><sup><i><b>r</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-swami_8-18"><sup><i><b>s</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-swami_8-19"><sup><i><b>t</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-swami_8-20"><sup><i><b>u</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-swami_8-21"><sup><i><b>v</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-swami_8-22"><sup><i><b>w</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-swami_8-23"><sup><i><b>x</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-swami_8-24"><sup><i><b>y</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFSingh,_Nagendra_Kr.2000" class="citation book cs1 cs1-prop-long-vol">Singh, Nagendra Kr., ed. (2000). "A Folk deity in Purana Literature". <i>Encyclopaedia of Hinduism</i>. Vol. 31–45. Anmol Publications. pp. 861–72. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/81-7488-168-9" title="Special:BookSources/81-7488-168-9"><bdi>81-7488-168-9</bdi></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=bookitem&rft.atitle=A+Folk+deity+in+Purana+Literature&rft.btitle=Encyclopaedia+of+Hinduism&rft.pages=861-72&rft.pub=Anmol+Publications&rft.date=2000&rft.isbn=81-7488-168-9&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AShashthi" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-Yajnavalkya-9"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-Yajnavalkya_9-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-Yajnavalkya_9-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation book cs1"><i>Yajnavalkya Smriti: Book 2: The Prayaschita Adhyaya</i>. The Sacred books of the Hindus. Translated by Naraharayya, Samarao Narasimha. Cosmos Publications. 2008. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-81-307-0545-3" title="Special:BookSources/978-81-307-0545-3"><bdi>978-81-307-0545-3</bdi></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=Yajnavalkya+Smriti%3A+Book+2%3A+The+Prayaschita+Adhyaya&rft.series=The+Sacred+books+of+the+Hindus&rft.pub=Cosmos+Publications&rft.date=2008&rft.isbn=978-81-307-0545-3&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AShashthi" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-Mani-10"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-Mani_10-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-Mani_10-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-Mani_10-2"><sup><i><b>c</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-Mani_10-3"><sup><i><b>d</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFMani,_Vettam1975" class="citation book cs1"><a href="/wiki/Vettam_Mani" title="Vettam Mani">Mani, Vettam</a> (1975). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://archive.org/details/puranicencyclopa00maniuoft"><i>Puranic Encyclopaedia: A Comprehensive Dictionary With Special Reference to the Epic and Puranic Literature</i></a>. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass. p. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://archive.org/details/puranicencyclopa00maniuoft/page/700">700</a>. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/0-8426-0822-2" title="Special:BookSources/0-8426-0822-2"><bdi>0-8426-0822-2</bdi></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=Puranic+Encyclopaedia%3A+A+Comprehensive+Dictionary+With+Special+Reference+to+the+Epic+and+Puranic+Literature&rft.place=Delhi&rft.pages=700&rft.pub=Motilal+Banarsidass&rft.date=1975&rft.isbn=0-8426-0822-2&rft.au=Mani%2C+Vettam&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Farchive.org%2Fdetails%2Fpuranicencyclopa00maniuoft&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AShashthi" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-11"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-11">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFSingh2002" class="citation encyclopaedia cs1">Singh, Nagendra Kumar (2002). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://openlibrary.org/books/OL13146742M/Encyclopaedia_of_Hinduism_Volumes_16-30">"Encyclopaedia of Hinduism"</a>. <i>Encyclopaedia of Hinduism</i>. New Delhi: Anmol Publications PVT. LTD. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/9788174881687" title="Special:BookSources/9788174881687"><bdi>9788174881687</bdi></a>. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20230622071807/https://openlibrary.org/books/OL13146742M/Encyclopaedia_of_Hinduism_Volumes_16-30">Archived</a> from the original on 22 June 2023.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=bookitem&rft.atitle=Encyclopaedia+of+Hinduism&rft.btitle=Encyclopaedia+of+Hinduism&rft.place=New+Delhi&rft.pub=Anmol+Publications+PVT.+LTD.&rft.date=2002&rft.isbn=9788174881687&rft.aulast=Singh&rft.aufirst=Nagendra+Kumar&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fopenlibrary.org%2Fbooks%2FOL13146742M%2FEncyclopaedia_of_Hinduism_Volumes_16-30&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AShashthi" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-clothey-12"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-clothey_12-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-clothey_12-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-clothey_12-2"><sup><i><b>c</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFClothey1978" class="citation book cs1">Clothey, Fred W. (1978). <i>The many faces of Murukan: the history and meaning of a South Indian god</i>. The Hague: Mouton Publishers. p. 135. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/90-279-7632-5" title="Special:BookSources/90-279-7632-5"><bdi>90-279-7632-5</bdi></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=The+many+faces+of+Murukan%3A+the+history+and+meaning+of+a+South+Indian+god&rft.place=The+Hague&rft.pages=135&rft.pub=Mouton+Publishers&rft.date=1978&rft.isbn=90-279-7632-5&rft.aulast=Clothey&rft.aufirst=Fred+W.&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AShashthi" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-13"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-13">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFGonda1993" class="citation book cs1">Gonda, J. (1993). "Sri". <i>Aspects of early Viṣnuiṣm</i>. Motilal Banarsidass. p. 218. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/81-208-1087-2" title="Special:BookSources/81-208-1087-2"><bdi>81-208-1087-2</bdi></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=bookitem&rft.atitle=Sri&rft.btitle=Aspects+of+early+Vi%E1%B9%A3nui%E1%B9%A3m&rft.pages=218&rft.pub=Motilal+Banarsidass&rft.date=1993&rft.isbn=81-208-1087-2&rft.aulast=Gonda&rft.aufirst=J.&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AShashthi" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-britannica-14"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-britannica_14-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-britannica_14-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/524786/Shashthi">"Shashthi"</a>. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. 2010<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">3 December</span> 2010</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=unknown&rft.btitle=Shashthi&rft.pub=Encyclop%C3%A6dia+Britannica+Online&rft.date=2010&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.britannica.com%2FEBchecked%2Ftopic%2F524786%2FShashthi&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AShashthi" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-underhill-15"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-underhill_15-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-underhill_15-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-underhill_15-2"><sup><i><b>c</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-underhill_15-3"><sup><i><b>d</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFUnderhill1921" class="citation book cs1">Underhill, M. M. (March 1921). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://archive.org/details/cu31924079584821"><i>The Hindu religious year</i></a>. Oxford University Press. pp. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://archive.org/details/cu31924079584821/page/n108">103</a>–5. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/81-206-0523-3" title="Special:BookSources/81-206-0523-3"><bdi>81-206-0523-3</bdi></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=The+Hindu+religious+year&rft.pages=103-5&rft.pub=Oxford+University+Press&rft.date=1921-03&rft.isbn=81-206-0523-3&rft.aulast=Underhill&rft.aufirst=M.+M.&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Farchive.org%2Fdetails%2Fcu31924079584821&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AShashthi" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-18"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-18">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><i>The Stillborn Prince</i>: Bhattacharji pp. 66–9</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-jamaishashti-19"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-jamaishashti_19-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-jamaishashti_19-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text">For Jamai-Shasthi Vrata, see <i>Jamaisathi Brata</i>: McDaniel pp. 46–9</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-20"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-20">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><i>The Cat's Revenge</i>: Bhattacharji pp. 69–71</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-21"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-21">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text">McDaniel pp. 55–7</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-wilkins68ff-22"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-wilkins68ff_22-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-wilkins68ff_22-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text">Wilkins (1900) pp. 68–9</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-23"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-23">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text">Wilkins(1900) p. 10</span> </li> </ol></div></div> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="References">References</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Shashthi&action=edit&section=7" title="Edit section: References"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <ul><li><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFMcDaniel2003" class="citation book cs1">McDaniel, June (2003). <i>Making virtuous daughters and wives: an introduction to women's Brata rituals in Bengali folk religion</i>. SUNY Press. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/0-7914-5565-3" title="Special:BookSources/0-7914-5565-3"><bdi>0-7914-5565-3</bdi></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=Making+virtuous+daughters+and+wives%3A+an+introduction+to+women%27s+Brata+rituals+in+Bengali+folk+religion&rft.pub=SUNY+Press&rft.date=2003&rft.isbn=0-7914-5565-3&rft.aulast=McDaniel&rft.aufirst=June&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AShashthi" class="Z3988"></span></li> <li><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFBhattacharji1998" class="citation book cs1">Bhattacharji, Sukumari (1998). <i>Legends of Devi</i>. Orient Longman. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/81-250-1438-1" title="Special:BookSources/81-250-1438-1"><bdi>81-250-1438-1</bdi></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=Legends+of+Devi&rft.pub=Orient+Longman&rft.date=1998&rft.isbn=81-250-1438-1&rft.aulast=Bhattacharji&rft.aufirst=Sukumari&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AShashthi" class="Z3988"></span></li> <li><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFWilkins1900" class="citation book cs1">Wilkins, W. J. (1900). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://archive.org/stream/modernhinduisman00wilkuoft#page/n7/mode/2up"><i>Modern Hinduism : an account of the religion and life of Hindus in Northern India</i></a> (2 ed.). Thacjer, Spink & Co. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/0-524-09142-0" title="Special:BookSources/0-524-09142-0"><bdi>0-524-09142-0</bdi></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=Modern+Hinduism+%3A+an+account+of+the+religion+and+life+of+Hindus+in+Northern+India&rft.edition=2&rft.pub=Thacjer%2C+Spink+%26+Co&rft.date=1900&rft.isbn=0-524-09142-0&rft.aulast=Wilkins&rft.aufirst=W.+J.&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Farchive.org%2Fstream%2Fmodernhinduisman00wilkuoft%23page%2Fn7%2Fmode%2F2up&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AShashthi" class="Z3988"></span></li></ul> <div class="navbox-styles"><style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1129693374">.mw-parser-output .hlist dl,.mw-parser-output .hlist ol,.mw-parser-output .hlist ul{margin:0;padding:0}.mw-parser-output .hlist dd,.mw-parser-output .hlist dt,.mw-parser-output .hlist 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navbar-mini"><ul><li class="nv-view"><a href="/wiki/Template:Hindu_deities_and_texts" title="Template:Hindu deities and texts"><abbr title="View this template">v</abbr></a></li><li class="nv-talk"><a href="/wiki/Template_talk:Hindu_deities_and_texts" title="Template talk:Hindu deities and texts"><abbr title="Discuss this template">t</abbr></a></li><li class="nv-edit"><a href="/wiki/Special:EditPage/Template:Hindu_deities_and_texts" title="Special:EditPage/Template:Hindu deities and texts"><abbr title="Edit this template">e</abbr></a></li></ul></div><div id="Hindu_deities_and_texts" style="font-size:114%;margin:0 4em"><a href="/wiki/Hindu_deities" title="Hindu deities">Hindu deities</a> and <a href="/wiki/Hindu_texts" title="Hindu texts">texts</a></div></th></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="background:#FFC569;;width:1%"><a href="/wiki/Deva_(Hinduism)" title="Deva (Hinduism)">Gods</a></th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Trimurti" title="Trimurti">Trimurti</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Brahma" title="Brahma">Brahma</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Vishnu" title="Vishnu">Vishnu</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Shiva" title="Shiva">Shiva</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Agni" title="Agni">Agni</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ashvins" title="Ashvins">Ashvins</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Chandra" title="Chandra">Chandra</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Dattatreya" title="Dattatreya">Dattatreya</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ganesha" title="Ganesha">Ganesha</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Hanuman" title="Hanuman">Hanuman</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indra" title="Indra">Indra</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Kamadeva" title="Kamadeva">Kama</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Kartikeya" title="Kartikeya">Kartikeya</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Krishna" title="Krishna">Krishna</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Kubera" title="Kubera">Kubera</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Rama" title="Rama">Rama</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Shasta_(deity)" title="Shasta (deity)">Shasta</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Surya" title="Surya">Surya</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Varuna" title="Varuna">Varuna</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Vayu" title="Vayu">Vayu</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Vishvakarma" title="Vishvakarma">Vishvakarma</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Yama" title="Yama">Yama</a></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Category:Hindu_gods" title="Category:Hindu gods">more</a></i></li></ul> </div></td><td class="noviewer navbox-image" rowspan="4" style="width:1px;padding:0 0 0 2px"><div><span typeof="mw:File"><a href="/wiki/Hinduism" title="Hindu Om symbol"><img alt="Hindu Om symbol" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b7/Om_symbol.svg/50px-Om_symbol.svg.png" decoding="async" width="50" height="52" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b7/Om_symbol.svg/75px-Om_symbol.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b7/Om_symbol.svg/100px-Om_symbol.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="356" data-file-height="367" /></a></span></div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="background:#FFC569;;width:1%"><a href="/wiki/Devi" title="Devi">Goddesses</a></th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-even" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Tridevi" title="Tridevi">Tridevi</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Saraswati" title="Saraswati">Saraswati</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Lakshmi" title="Lakshmi">Lakshmi</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Parvati" title="Parvati">Parvati</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Aditi" title="Aditi">Aditi</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Bhumi_(goddess)" title="Bhumi (goddess)">Bhumi</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Chhaya" title="Chhaya">Chhaya</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Durga" title="Durga">Durga</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ganga_(goddess)" title="Ganga (goddess)">Ganga</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indrani" title="Indrani">Shachi</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Kali" title="Kali">Kali</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Mahadevi" title="Mahadevi">Mahadevi</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Mahavidya" title="Mahavidya">Mahavidya</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Matangi" title="Matangi">Matangi</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Matrikas" title="Matrikas">Matrikas</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Radha" title="Radha">Radha</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Rati" title="Rati">Rati</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Rohini_(goddess)" title="Rohini (goddess)">Rohini</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Rukmini" title="Rukmini">Rukmini</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Sanjna" title="Sanjna">Sanjna</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Sati_(Hindu_goddess)" title="Sati (Hindu goddess)">Sati</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Shakti" title="Shakti">Shakti</a></li> <li><a class="mw-selflink selflink">Shashthi</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Sita" title="Sita">Sita</a></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Category:Hindu_goddesses" title="Category:Hindu goddesses">more</a></i></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="background:#FFC569;;width:1%">Other deities</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Apsara" title="Apsara">Apsaras</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Asura" title="Asura">Asuras</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Daitya" title="Daitya">Daitya</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Danava_(Hinduism)" title="Danava (Hinduism)">Danava</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Devata" title="Devata">Devata</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Guardians_of_the_directions" title="Guardians of the directions">Dikpāla</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Gandharva" title="Gandharva">Gandharvas</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Gana" title="Gana">Gana</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Kuladevata" title="Kuladevata">Kuladevatas</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Gramadevata" title="Gramadevata">Gramadevatas</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Rakshasa" title="Rakshasa">Rakshasas</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Vahana" title="Vahana">Vahanas</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Yaksha" title="Yaksha">Yakshas</a> / <a href="/wiki/Yakshini" title="Yakshini">Yakshini</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="background:#FFC569;;width:1%">Texts (<a href="/wiki/List_of_Hindu_texts" title="List of Hindu texts">list</a>)</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-even" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Vedas" title="Vedas">Vedas</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Rigveda" title="Rigveda">Rig</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Samaveda" title="Samaveda">Sama</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Yajurveda" title="Yajurveda">Yajur</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Atharvaveda" title="Atharvaveda">Atharva</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Upanishads" title="Upanishads">Upanishads</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Puranas" title="Puranas">Puranas</a></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Ramayana" title="Ramayana">Ramayana</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Mahabharata" title="Mahabharata">Mahabharata</a></i> <ul><li><i><a href="/wiki/Bhagavad_Gita" title="Bhagavad Gita">Bhagavad Gita</a></i></li></ul></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Yoga_Sutras_of_Patanjali" title="Yoga Sutras of Patanjali">Yoga Sutras of Patanjali</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Category:Hindu_texts" title="Category:Hindu texts">more</a></i></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><td class="navbox-abovebelow" colspan="3" style="background:#FFC569;"><div> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Hinduism" title="Hinduism">Hinduism</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Hindu_mythology" title="Hindu mythology">Hindu mythology</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr></tbody></table></div> <p class="mw-empty-elt"> </p>    </div><noscript><img src="https://login.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:CentralAutoLogin/start?type=1x1" alt="" width="1" height="1" style="border: none; position: absolute;"></noscript> <div class="printfooter" data-nosnippet="">Retrieved from "<a 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