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This article is about the Hindu religious concept, for other meanings of the word see: Shakti (disambiguation).

Lakshmi is a common aspect of Shakti

Shakti meaning sacred force, power or energy is the Hindu concept or personification of the divine feminine aspect, sometimes referred to as 'The Divine Mother'. Shakti represents the active, dynamic principles of feminine power. In Shaktism, Shakti is worshiped as the Supreme Being. However, in other Hindu traditions, Shakti embodies the active energy and power of male deities (Purushas), such as Vishnu in Vaishnavism or Shiva in Shaivism. Vishnu's shakti counterpart is called Lakshmi, with Parvati being the female shakti of Shiva.

In the Hindu scripture 'Devi Mahatmya', Mahamaya (Great Maya) is said to cover Vishnu's eyes in Yoganidra (divine sleep) during cycles of existence when all is resolved into one. By exhorting Mahamaya to release Her illusory hold on Vishnu, Brahma is able to bring Vishnu to aid him in killing two demons, Madhu and Kaitabh, who have manifested from Vishnu's sleeping form.

The Shakti goddess is also known as Amma (meaning 'mother') in south India, especially in the states of Tamil Nadu,Kerala and Andhra Pradesh. There are many temples devoted to various incarnations of the Shakti goddess in most of the villages in South India. The rural people believe that Shakti is the protector of the village, the punisher of evil people, the curer of diseases, and the one who gives welfare to the village. They celebrate Shakti Jataras with a lot of hue and great interest once a year. Some examples of incarnations are Gangamma, Aarti, Kamakshamma, Kanakadurga, Mahalakshmammma, Meeenakshamma, Poleramma and Perantalamma.

There are 51 important centres of Shakti worship located in the Indian sub-continent, which are located in India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bangladesh, Tibet and even Pakistan. These are called Shakti Peethas. Most Shakti peethas have since developed into famous temple complexes, including: Amarnatha (Jammu and Kashmir), Jwalaji (Himachal), Katyayani (Chattarpur, Delhi), Kamakhya (Assam), Naina Devi (Himachal), Mansa devi (Chandigarh).

Adi-Shakti or Adi Shakti is a Hindu concept of the ultimate Shakti, the ultimate feminine power inherent in all Creation. This is especially prevalent in the Shakta denomination within Hinduism, which worships the Goddess Devi in all Her manifestations.

The Adi Shakti has a Unicode representation of U+262C (☬) on the Miscellaneous Symbols table.

• Ardhanari
• Kundalini
• Devi
• Mahadevi
• Mahakali

• Indian Mythology: Shakti
• A site containing short biographies of several Shakta devotees from the Indian state of Bengal
• Shakti: Listing of usage in Puranic literature
• Shakti temples of India (Includes articles on Shaktism)

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