Debunking the myth of Mā Tārā being Gaṇeśapatnī
Debunking the myth of Mā Tārā being Gaṇeśapatnī
Introduction:—
 |
| Tārā Mahiṣamardinī |
Goddess Tārā is the 2nd deity among the 10 primordial wisdom set (Mahāvidyās). She's is one of the most renowned manifestations of the primordial Supreme Power (Ādyāparāśakti). In recent times, however, certain individuals have been deliberately spreading misleading information in Her name. These people are not true Śāktas, yet they disguise themselves as “Śāktas” to confuse genuine devotees of the Goddess and other worshippers of Śakti. Among them, some follow Śaṅkarite (Advaita) doctrines, some claim to be Gāṇapatyas, and others belong to a strange mixed sect known as Khecarānnavādins (a blend of Christian, Buddhist, and Hindu ideas).
 |
| Fake claims and posts |
True spiritual practitioners of different traditions remain content within their own paths; those who interfere in all sects indiscriminately have no legitimate recognition in religion.
According to these Khecarānnavādins, the consort of the Primordial Goddess Tārā (Ādyāśakti Tāriṇī) is Ucchiṣṭa Gaṇapati. To support this claim, they cite various so-called scriptures.
But is that really true? Let us see who the true consort of Ucchiṣṭa Gaṇapati is —
According to the Uttara Kāmicāgama, the consort of Ucchiṣṭa Gaṇapati is Bhagavatī Vighneśvarī, not the Mahāvidyā Tārā.
उत्सङ्गे निहितां देवीं सर्वाभरणभूषितम् ।
दिगम्बरां सुवदनां भुजद्वय समन्विताम् ॥४६॥
विघ्नेश्वरीति विख्यातां सर्वावयवसुन्दरीम् ।
पाशहस्तां तथा गुह्यं दक्षिणेन करेण तु ॥४७॥
[[ Reference:— Uttara Kāmikāgama : Chapter 45: Ucchiṣṭa Gaṇapati Dhyāna]]
Meaning :—"The Goddess was seated upon Ucchiṣṭa Gaṇeśa's lap, adorned with all kinds of ornaments, unclad (digambara), radiant, and possessed of two arms. She, the all-beautiful one, was renowned as Vighneśvarī, the remover of obstacles. In one hand she held a noose (pāśa), and with the other she touched his penis."
🔴 Fake Claim 1 :—
Now, the opponents argue that in certain mantras of Ucchiṣṭa Gaṇapati, He is referred to as the husband of Nīlasarasvatī; therefore, they claim, He must be the consort of Tārā.
🟢 Refutation:
The title Nīlasarasvatī (“Blue Sarasvatī”) can be applied to more than one Goddess. Any blue-complexioned Goddess presiding over speech and wisdom may be addressed as Nīlasarasvatī. It should be noted that even the blue form of Viṣṇupriyā Sarasvatī is known by that name. However, Goddess Tārā is not merely Nīlasarasvatī — She is Mahānīlasarasvatī, the supreme and foremost among all the Nīlasarasvatīs. Āgamakalpalatā, Tārātantra, Tārābhaktisudhārṇava, Vīracūḍāmaṇi Tantra etc texts also addressed Ugratārā as Mahānīlasarasvatī (महानीलसरस्वती).
Even the Muṇḍamālā Tantra, a work of , says,
प्रणमेत् पार्वतीं देवीं महानीलसरस्वतीम् ।
उग्रताराक्रमं वक्ष्ये देवानामपि दुर्लभम् ॥८१ ॥
[[ Ref— Muṇḍamālā Tantra: 6th Paṭala]]
Tārākula Sādhaka Śaṅkara Āgamācārya explained the Tattva of Mahānīlasarasvatī through Parādvaita (Trika) Philosophy,
उर्जितानन्दगहनां सर्व-देव-स्वरूपिणीम् ।
परां वाग्रूपिणीं वन्दे महानीलसरस्वतीम् ॥
स्वप्रकाश-विमर्षाख्य-बीजाद्यङ्कुररूपिणीम् ।
पूर्णानन्दमयीं वन्दे महानीलसरस्वतीम् ॥
[[ Reference:— Tārārahasya vṛttikā by Śaṅkara Śāktācārya]]
Translation: — "I bow to Mahānīlasarasvatī (Ugratārā), the intensified joy (Ūrjitānanda - ऊर्जितानन्द), all-goddess embodiment, and the supreme form of divine speech.
She is the sprout of the seed of self-luminous reflection, full of perfect bliss. I bow to Mahānīlasarasvatī ."
Note— Śaṃkara Āgamācārya (शंकर आगमाचार्य) is one of the greatest Sādhakas of Tārākula. He is also known as Gauḍīya Śaṅkarācārya (गौडीय शंकराचार्य) or Śaṅkara Śāktācārya (शंकर शाक्ताचार्य). He belonged to 16th century. He has no connection with Sankarite Paramparā or Jaḍabrahmavādīs .
Another Tārākrama Sādhaka Śrīpāda Viśveśvara Ācārya (1438 AD) explained Mahānīlasarasvatī in his Tārā Sahasranāmavyākhyā’bhidhārthacintāmaṇiḥ (तारासहस्रनामव्याख्याऽभिधार्थचिन्तामणिः) or the Commentary of Tārā Sahasranāma. He also stated Goddess Pārvatī to be the mother of Tridevīs (Vāṇī, Sindhujā and Maitrāyaṇī). Goddess Girijā took all the Mahāvidyā manifestations alone.
🔴 Fake Claim 2:—
Svānanda Gaṇeśa is the Supreme tattva. He's the highest "Śaktimāna". Hence, he can be addressed as the husband of Parāśakti Tārā.
🟢 Refutation:—
Svānanda Gaṇeśa is supreme in his own sect —'Gāṇapatya Dharma'. Goddess Tārā is solely a deity of Śaktism. She's not worshipped in Gāṇapatya Dharma. Far from observing the Gāṇapatya tradition, Tibet(the region of Tārā) does not even have any knowledge of it.
Gaṇeśa's place in the Śākta philosophy —
Śākta Ācārya Śrīpāda Bhāskara used Svacchanda Tantra for explaining the Śākta philosophy in his works (i.e. Saubhāgya Ratnākara, Guptavatī etc).
It said about the Aṣṭapāśas (the 8 primordial boundaries),
देवी नन्दि महाकालो गणेशो वृषभस्तथा ।
भृङ्गी चण्डीश्वरश्चैव कार्तिकेयोऽष्टमः स्मृतः॥
[[ Svacchanda Tantra: 10th Paṭala]]
Meaning:— The Aṣṭapāśas (the 8 primordial boundaries) are Devī (Gaṇāmbikā, an attendant of Pārvatī), Nandī (monkey faced gatekeeper), Mahākāla(another gatekeeper, not Śiva's Mahākāla form), Gaṇeśa, Vṛṣabha, Bhṛṅgī, Caṇḍīśvara and Kārtikeya.
The 8 Pāśas can't hold Parāśakti. Parāśakti can only sit on the lap of Prakāśa Śiva who can hold her.
Now, those Khecarānnavādins can say, this Gaṇapati is Ekākṣara Gaṇapati, not the Svānanda Gaṇeśa. But this Kailāsa is not the metarialistic region. As per Svacchanda Tantra, Kailāsa is situated upon the Vyāpinī, Unmanā and Samanā layers, — "अत एव के मूर्धन्ये ब्रह्मबिले एला स्फुरन्ती शक्तिः तस्यामासः आसनमुपरिस्थितिर्यस्य, व्यापिनीसमनात्मनः शिखरस्य सर्वाध्वोपरिवतीनः पदस्य, तत् कैलासशिखरम्".
Ekākṣara Gaṇapati and other incarnations of Gaṇeśa are not higher than these layer. This Gaṇeśa is solely Svānandeśa Gaṇapati, the Supreme Gaṇeśa Tattva.
Who is Ucchiṣṭa Gaṇapati? —
The Rudrayāmala Mahātantra states Ucchiṣṭa Gaṇapati to be the son of Ādyāparāśakti Pārvatī. —
"पञ्चमोदकरः पातु पातु मां पार्वतीसुतः"~ Ucchiṣṭa Gaṇeśa Kavaca.
"सुरतप्रवृत्तमुच्छिष्टं अम्बासुतं आश्रयेऽहम्" Ucchiṣṭa Gaṇapati Dhyāna (Also stated this in Mantra Mahodadhi)
[[ Reference:— Śiva Purāṇa: Śatarudra Saṃhitā: Chapter 17]]
Meaning —"Paramaśiva's 2nd incarnation is Tāra (तार), his wife is Tārā (तारा). Both of them bestows material prosperity and liberation from the birth circle."
In pursuance of the Rudrayāmala, Tārabhairava is known as Sadyojāta—
"सद्योजातस्तु तारायाः शिव इत्येवमीश्वरि ॥"
[[ Reference:— Rudrayāmala: Parādevīrahasya Tantra : 53rd Paṭala]]
Sadyojāta's another name is Akṣobhya. But in the early periods, it was not so popular term. Vajrayanī Buddhists copied the 5 forms of Sadāśiva and they make Pañca-Dhyānī-buddhas. Then they named Sadyojāta's buddha form as Akṣobhya.
Akṣobhya (अक्षोभ्य) is purely a manifestation of lord Śiva—
ममोर्ध्ववक्त्रान्निःसृत्य तेजोराशिविनिर्गतः ।
हृदे चोले निपत्यैव नीलवर्णाऽभवत् पुरा ॥"
"From my upward-facing mouth, a great mass of radiant energy emerged.
As it fell upon my heart’s garment (hṛde cole), it turned deep blue in color in ancient times."
"हृदस्य चोत्तरे भागे ऋषिरेकोऽभवत्ततः ।
अक्षोभ्यनाम चाश्रित्य मुनिवेशधरः शिवः ॥"
~ Tārā bhakti Surdhārṇava
"From the northern part of my heart, a great sage was then born.
He assumed the name Akṣobhya and took the form of a sage, embodying Śiva himself."
🔴 Fake Claim 3:—
Tārā Yāmala tells Gaṇapati to be the consort of Tārā. Rudrayāmala states Sadyojāta to be elephant-headed.
Now the team of Khecarānnavādins made a fake Dhyāna by "false-quoting" Rudrayāmala Mahātantra. Here is this,
🟢 Refutation:—
To begin with, there is no authentic scripture known as the "Tārā Yāmala"(तारा यामल). If someone refers to such a text, it is either a mistaken attribution or an unfounded claim. The genuine sources — such as the Aśrauta Tantra (अश्रौत तन्त्र)— make no mention of it, nor does it appear in the Yamalāṣṭaka or among the 52 Upa-Yāmalas.
Even the Skanda Yāmala (स्कन्द यामल), which lists fifty-two Yamalas, and the Śrīkaṇṭhī Saṁhitā (श्रीकण्ठी संहिता), which names sixty-four, contain no reference to any text called Tārā Yāmala. Furthermore, no recognized authority or commentator has ever quoted from such a work.
Therefore, there’s no real need to engage with such claims, as most are clearly unfounded. The Śākta Tantras themselves are explicit about the nature and identity of Mahānīlasarasvatī or Tārā.
In fact, the Gaṇeśavimarśinī (गणेशविमर्षिणी), a canonical Gaṇapatya text, confirms this in 2.85.69:
"नीलसरस्वतीं योजयामास ह्यक्षोभ्येन गणाधिपः"
Meaning,— “Gaṇeśa gave his daughter Nīlasarasvatī to Akṣobhya.”
Explanation of the grammatical errors of that Fake Śloka —
There's no such term "क्रोरे", it could be "क्रोडे", "तारायाः पार्श्वे / या तारायाः पार्श्वमारूढं". The word “कोरे” does not exist in Sanskrit. The intended meaning seems to be “beside” or “on the lap of,” which is better expressed by pārśva (side) or aṅka (lap).
Though sanniṣaṇṇa (seated) is grammatically correct, ārūḍha (mounted or seated upon) is more suitable if describing one sitting on the lap or side of the Goddess.
Veda-vāhu is incorrect. The correct form is Veda-bāhu
कुंजरास्यं गजमुखं Both mean “elephant-faced,” but gajamukha is the more traditional and widely accepted Sanskrit expression.
"कर्तृकपालवज्ज्रकं"– The word vajjrakam is incorrect. The correct derivation is from vajra (thunderbolt) + -in (possessor), forming vajriṇ — “the bearer of the vajra.”
दधतं or Dadhatam is less precise. धारयन्तं or Dhārayantam (holding or bearing) is a clearer and grammatically proper present participle.
ध्याये or Dhyāye is incorrect. The correct optative form (vidhiliṅ) for “one should meditate” is ध्यायेत् or dhyāyet (3rd person singular).
Btw, this Śloka is absent in Rudrayāmala's Tārā Pañcāṅga and Khaṇḍa. The Agnikāryapaddhati of Rudrayāmala portrayed Sadyojāta Śiva as —
Radiant like the newly-risen sun, Holding a Khaḍga (sword) and an Indīvara (blue lotus) in His hands, Three-eyed, adorned with the crescent moon upon His crown—I worship the Sadyojāta Śiva.
Agnikāryapaddhati :— Manuscript Number: 781 Research Library J. and K. Govt. Shrinagar.
Tārakeśvara Sadyojāta sahita Tāriṇyai Namah 🙏🏻🌺
.jpeg)
Comments
Post a Comment