Shakti and the Shakta Traditions

1. The Great Goddess (Mahadevi) and Hindu Goddesses
1. Devi-Mahatmya (ca. 6th century C.E.)
2. The Goddess as “power” or “energy” (shakti)
   
   
2. The Creative Potential of Shakti
1. Sarasvati
2. Lakshmi (also called Shri or Shri Lakshmi)
3. Sita
4. Parvati (Sati)
   
   
3. The Destructive potential of Shakti
1. Durga
2. Kali
   
   
4. 10 Mahavidyas (great manifestations)
1. Chinnamasta: cycle of creative generation, feeding and death
   
   
5. The Goddess as the Physical Universe
1. The Goddess as Prakrti (“materiality” or “nature”)
2. The Goddess as earth (Bhu-devi, Prithvi)
   
   
6. The Goddess as Mother India (Bharat Mata):  the Goddess and Sacred Geography
1. Geographical features as the "seats" (pithas) of the divine female power in the world
   
   
7. Women as the Embodiments of the Feminine Principle
1. The ambiguity of female gender
2. Divine models for Hindu women?