Devi and Her Avatars

In Devi and Her Avatars, writer and historian Dr Alka Pande has chosen some of the most revered and fascinating avatars from the Devi Bhagavata Purana and the Durga Saptashati— the two key texts in which the many forms of Devi are celebrated— and explored their origins as well as the local lores, legends and symbolism surrounding them. From Adi Shakti to Shiva Shakti to Mahadevi, from the Vedic to the Puranic to the tribal goddesses, from Vindhyavasini to Durga to the kuladevis, the Goddess is worshipped in different forms. In Assam, She is Kamakhya Devi, the Tantrik goddess; in Bengal, She is Durga and Kali, slayers of asuras and demons; in Gujarat, She is Momai Mata or Dashama; in Kerala, Her form is Bhadrakali; in Tamil Nadu, She is Amman; among the Gonds in central India, She is worshipped as Prakriti and Kankali Kali. She is the Eternal and reigns supreme as the Primal Energy. This fascinating book traces how Devi’ s presence has been experienced and revered by Her believers for many millennia.

Dr Alka Pande is one of India’ s leading authors, art historians and curators. Her prominent books include 108 Portraits of Indian Culture and Heritage (2024) and Body Sutra (2019). Currently, she serves as a consultant art advisor and curator of the Visual Arts Gallery at the India Habitat Centre in New Delhi. Her honours include the Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters (2006), the Australia-India Council Special Award (2009), and the Amrita Sher-Gil Samman (2015). Recently, she received the Culture Champion Award (Global) and the CIMA Lifetime Achievement Award (2023) for her contribution