or move on to Goddess Befana, next chronologically,
or use Her Cyclopedia Index
Bhavani, BH1V*NE, `Giver-of-Existence'.
[to Whom the tenth day of April, day 100, is dedicated]
Geography/Culture:Hindustani. (A popular name of Devi in the Sakta cult).
[Note from FW to self: there really doesn't seem enough to distinguish Her, from others. Bhuvanesvari could replace Her because there is the Woodroffe hymn, and such a replacement would not disturb HCT ordering. However that would make Rajarajesvari redundant. Try and solve either by placing Bhavani under Rajarajesvari, or vice versa - which ever one is easier to replace].
Description: Great elemental Mother Goddess of earth, life, nature, death and perpetual renewal; Untraversable Ocean of mercy; Root of the world; She Who gives life to Bhava. See also the Goddess Anthology. In the hymn to Bhairavi there is a reference to Bhavani. [There are more references to Her in the hymn to Bhuvanesvari, Woodroffe, p31].
To Whom are sacred: lotus; thorn-apple (and its poison); tortoise; jackals; cattle; skull; the Thugs were Her devotees; the art of garrotting.
Consort: Bhava, `Giver-of-Existence', a form of Siva as Lord or cattle and men. Also said to be one of the eight forms of Rudra. Stutley HDH 44.
Titles, Variants, etc.
Source: Stutley HDH 44 [review this]; Woodroffe HGHK 25. [I think the reference to the thorn-apple, Thugs, etc. is from Neuman, "The Great Mother" - perhaps there's more there.]
Geography/Culture: Hindustani.
Description: Women dedicated to the service of the temple. In a town near Madras members of the weaver caste dedicated their eldest daughters to the temple. A marriage ceremony was performed in which the girls were wedded to a dagger, or to a mask of the God.
Source: Stutley HDH 44.
Description: [Try and develope Trimurti]. [Note: My earlier notes read: "Trimurti actually refers to the male triad Brahma (equilibrium between), Visnu (centripetal, preservation and renewal), and Siva (centrifugal, disintergration and destruction). As a forename of Bhavani it suggests She is the origin of this triad.
Source: Stutley HDH 304. [Look into this further.]