| Indrani | |
|---|---|
Queen of theDevas | |
 | |
| Other names | Shachi, Poulomi, Aindri |
| Affiliation | Devi,Shakti |
| Abode | Amaravati, Indraloka,Svarga |
| Mantra | ॐ ऐन्द्री नम: |
| Weapon | Vajra,Astras,Trishula |
| Day | Sunday |
| Mount | Airavata |
| Gender | Female |
| Festivals | Navaratri |
| Genealogy | |
| Parents | Puloman (father) |
| Consort | Indra |
| Children | Jayanta, Rishabha, Midhusha,Jayanti,Devasena (Shashthi) |
Indrani (Sanskrit: इन्द्राणी,IAST:Indrāṇī), also known asShachi (Sanskrit: शची,IAST:Śacī), is the queen of thedevas inHinduism. Described as tantalisingly beautiful, proud and kind, she is the daughter of theasuraPuloman and the consort of the king of thedevas,Indra.
According to legend, due to her heavenly beauty and sensuality, Indrani was desired by many men, many of whom tried to marry her. When Indra was away performing his penance for the slaying ofVritasura,Nahusha, a mortal king of theLunar dynasty, was chosen as the ruler of heaven. The latter tried to seduce Shachi and make her his queen, though she cleverly executed a scheme to dethrone him and later reunite with her husband.
Indrani (or Aindri) is also one of the SaptaMatrika—the seven divine mothers. She is an important goddess inShaktism, a major sect of Hinduism.[1] Indrani is rarely worshipped as an independent deity and is most often worshipped with Indra throughout India. She is also a goddess inJainism andBuddhism, mentioned in their texts.
Like manyVedic goddess-consorts whose names are derived from their husband's name by adding a feminine termination, the word Indrani (Indrāṇī) is derived fromIndra and means 'wife of Indra'.[2][3] Importantly, however, Indra is known by his wife's name as well; he is often referred to as Shachipati (husband of Shachi), Shachindra (Shachi's Indra), or Shachivat (possessor of Shachi).[4][5]
Shachi (Śacī) is a prominent other name of Indrani. The term finds usage in the Vedas with dual significance: firstly, as the proper name for Indrani and secondly, as a generic expression denoting the strength inherent in the divine entities, particularly associated with Indra.[6] According toSir Monier Monier-Williams, 'Shachi' means 'speech', 'power of speech', or 'eloquence'. It is derived from the Sanskrit wordshach, which means 'speak', 'say' or 'tell'.Shachi is also associated with the wordshak, meaning 'power', 'strength', 'action' or 'exploit'.[4] David Kinsley, a professor known for his research on Hindu goddesses, believed that the wordShachi is suggestive of the later concept ofShakti, the personification of power.[2] Other scholars use 'divine grace' as the translation ofShachi.[7]Other names include:
Indrani first appears in theRigveda, which was composed in the early second millennium BCE. According to Subodh Kapoor, unlike many Vedic deities who personify natural phenomena, Indrani does not have a myth of nature that explains her existence and may have originated as Indra's wife.[12] IndologistJohn Muir states that in theRigveda, she is invoked multiple times and is mentioned with other goddesses in the first three of these passages. Another hymn considers her to be the most fortunate female, as her husband Indra cannot die from old age.[13] David Kinsley states that many of the goddesses in the early texts are named after their husbands and have no independent character of their own. While Indrani is mentioned more often than any other Vedic goddess-consorts, she remains overshadowed by her husband.[2]
Hymn 10.68 of theRigveda praises her as being very beautiful and mentions her jealousy of rivals. Another hymn (10.159) describes Indrani as being boastful and claiming that she has conquered her husband; he is submissive to her will. Despite this, in the same hymn, Indrani asks the gods to rid her of rivals in Indra's favour.[2] A hymn inRigveda is dedicated to a quarrel between Indrani and Indra, where she becomes annoyed with the pranks of Vrishakapi—Indra's pet ape—and complains about it.[12]
TheShatapatha Brahmana refers to Indrani as Indra's beloved. TheTaittiriya Brahmana suggests that Indra chose Indrani over other goddesses because of her beauty and sensuality.[7] Scholars note that theAitareya Brahmana mentions Prasaha and Sena as the wives of Indra, but both of them are identified with Indrani.[5]
In the later Hindu texts, including the epicsRamayana andMahabharata, as well as thePuranas, Indrani is more commonly referred to as Shachi, and is the daughter ofPuloman, anasura (demonic figure) son of the sageKashyapa and his wifeDanu. She married Indra and became the queen of thedevas (gods).[14] TheBhagavata Purana mentions that Indra and Shachi had three sons namedJayanta, Rishabha, and Midhusha;[7] some other texts include Nilambara and Ribhus.[15] Indra and Shachi had a daughter namedJayanti, who married Indra's rivalShukra. In some scriptures, Indra and Shachi bestowed their daughterDevasena toKartikeya.[11]
Author James G. Lochtefeld comments that Shachi is not a major figure, and this may reflect Indra's diminished status in later Hindu mythology. He claims that Shachi's only important role is in the story ofNahusha.[16] In the story, according to theMahabharata, Indra once committedBrahmahatya (Brahminicide) by killingVritra, after which he set out incognito to perform a penance. During this period, thedevas appointed Nahusha, a powerful mortal ruler of theLunar dynasty, to be the king of heaven.[17] He soon became proud of his power and desired Shachi, but she refused his amorous advances and sought protection underBrihaspati, Indra's teacher.[18] Angered by Nahusha's illicit behaviour, the devas advised her to bring back Indra, and after crafting a plan, Shachi went to Nahusha. She told Nahusha that before accepting him, he would have to wait until Indra was found; Nahusha showed his consent. Though Indra was found and redeemed from his sin, he refused to return as Nahusha was the king, and went back into hiding. Aided by the goddess Upashruti, Shachi located Indra in the lakeManasarovar.[19] Indra suggested that Shachi scheme to remove Nahusha from his position. She returned to Nahusha and asked him to come to her in a palanquin driven by sages. Due to his impatience and arrogance, Nahusha kicked the sageAgastya while riding in the palanquin. Agastya cursed Nahusha to fall from heaven and transformed him into a snake. Indra was hence restored as the King of Heaven and reunited with Shachi.[20][21][22][16]
_LACMA_M.72.1.26.jpg)
According to another story in theRamayana, Anuhlada, the son of theDaityaHiranyakashipu, wanted to marry Shachi, but she refused. As a result, he took permission from Puloman to forcefully abduct and marry her. During the abduction, Indra spotted Anuhlada and Shachi and saved his wife by killing both Anuhlada and Puloman.[14][23][a] The Southern Indian textKanda Purana narrates that when the asuraSurapadman desired Shachi, Indra appointed the godShasta as her guard. During his absence, Surapadman's sister came to Shachi and unsuccessfully tried to convince her to marry the asura.[24][25] In the epics, Shachi's beauty and devotion are compared to other women, such asRohini,Arundhati,Sita, andDraupadi.[26][27] TheMahabharata also mentions that the heroine Draupadi was Shachi'sincarnation, though Draupadi is praised as an incarnation ofSri in other earlier chapters of the text.[28]
The Puranas attest that Shachi owned theParijata tree (Nyctanthes arbor-tristis), which was one of the jewels emerging from theSamudra Manthan (the churning of the ocean). In theVishnu Purana andBhagavata Purana, the godKrishna and his wifeSatyabhama visitedAmaravati to return the earrings of Indra's motherAditi, which were stolen by the demonNarakasura. Shachi considered Satyabhama to be inferior because of her mortal background and while introducing the latter to Aditi, she didn't treat her properly.[24] Later, while travelling through Indra's garden, Satyabhama saw the Parijata tree and decided to transplant it toDvaraka. When Shachi's guards warned Satyabhama, she challenged Shachi to ask Indra to protect the tree if he was truly submissive to her will. After hearing about Satyabhama's words from a guard, Shachi insisted that her husband take back her possession. A battle between Indra and Krishna occurred, in which the latter was victorious and took the tree with him.[29][30]
InShaktism, the goddess-oriented sect of Hinduism, Indrani (or Aindri) is the name of one of the SaptaMatrika—the seven divine mothers. Sometimes, Indra's wife and the Matrika are equated into one goddess.[1]
The legends of the Matrikas are narrated in various texts. In theDevi Mahatmyam, when the gods could not defeat the powerful demons Shumbha and Nishumbha, theirShaktis (power) personified themselves to defeat the demon. Indrani is described to be emerging from Indra and has similar characteristics to him.[31][32] According to later chapters in theDevi Mahatmyam, the Matrikas appeared again to defeatRaktabija, a demon with the power to multiply himself whenever a drop of his blood reached the ground. In this battle, the Matrikas emerged from different parts of the supreme goddess.[33][34]
TheVaraha Purana associates each of the Matrikas with an emotion; Indrani is associated with jealousy.[33][34]
.jpg)
%3b_The_Hindu_Goddess_Brahmani_(b)_LACMA_M.91.232.11a-b_(2_of_2).jpg)
Sculptures of Indrani and Indra are common in Hindu temples. They are typically depicted sitting on the white elephantAiravata. While explaining the iconography as described in theVishnudharmottara, archeologistT.A. Gopinatha Roa writes that Indrani should be depicted with two arms, seated on the lap of her husband. She is of golden complexion and is dressed in blue garment. One of her hand embraces Indra, while the other one carries asantana-manjari. The textAmshumadbhed-agama contains a similar account, according to which she should be shown as a joyful young lady, decorated with all kinds of ornaments and carrying autpala flower (Nymphaea nouchali) in her hand.[35]
Roa describes the Matrika Indrani as being red, with three eyes and four hands. Two of her hands should be in Varada and Abhayamudra, while the other two hands hold avajra (thunderbolt) and a spear. She wears akirita on her head and is decorated with various ornaments. Hervahana (vehicle), as well as her emblem banner, is an elephant.[36] According to theVishnudharmottara, like Indra, Indrani is yellow and has one thousand eyes. She has six arms, four of which carry a sutra, vajra, pot, and vessel. The remaining two are in Abhaya and Varada mudra. TheDevi Bhagavata Purana states that Indrani has two arms and carries anankusha (goad) and vajra, while thePurva Karangama depicts her as having two eyes and carrying a lotus in one hand.[36][11] Indrani is associated with thekalpaka tree; sometimes, a lion is mentioned as hervahana.[37]
Indrani is usually venerated with Indra and is rarely worshipped as an independent deity. AuthorRoshen Dalal states that Indra and Indrani are thekul devata (family deity) of the royal family ofVidarbha. In theHarivamsha,Rukmini, the chief wife of Krishna, visited a temple dedicated to Indra and Shachi.[38][39] InHindu astrology, Indrani is the ruler ofShukra (Venus) and symbolises the quality ofrajas.[40] The 7th-centuryHarshacharita mentionsCharanas assembling in the temple of goddess Indrani.[41] In modern times, Indrani is sometimes equated with the Matrika of the same name and is worshipped along with the other Matrikas. Apuja (worship) dedicated to Indrani is performed during the Ashada Navratri.[42]
Indrani exists in other religions, though she plays a minor role.InJain tradition, she is a mirror image of Indra, and they represent an ideal couple.[43] According to myth, when aTirthankara is born, Indra descends with his consort Indrani, riding the great elephant Airavata, to celebrate the event.[44]
In the BuddhistPāli Canon, Indrani is referred to as Sujā, the wife ofŚakra.[45][43] Born to asuraVemacitrin, Sujā went through a long process and was reborn over many lifetimes to purify herself and become Śakra's wife. As Vemacitrin was his nemesis, Śakra, disguised as an old asura, came to Sujā and took her with him. After defeating Vemacitrin, Sujā and Śakra got married and she became his chief consort.[46]
In his Harshacharita Bana informs that Charanas of various branches had come from far off places and assembled in a small room where the goddess Indrani was worshipped.
Media related toIndrani at Wikimedia Commons| Gods |
|  | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Goddesses |
| |||||||||||
| Other deities | ||||||||||||
| Texts (list) | ||||||||||||
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Other | |
