***She **Whose **Body **Is **the **World ***
Her complexion is vermillion in color. She has three eyes and wears a crown resplendent with jewels. She has the disk of the moon on her brow and has a smiling face. Her breasts are high and firm. In her two hands she holds a red lotus and a bowl filled with jewels. She is very peaceful and amiable. Her right foot rests on a jeweled jar. In this way one should meditate upon the supreme mother goddess.1
She is the color of lightning and is seated on a red lotus. She has three eyes and is naked. She is adorned with pearls of many colors. She has twenty arms in which she holds a sword, spear, club, disc, conch, bow, arrows, scissors, trident, mace, garland, and makes the boon-conferring gesture and the assurance gesture. She has a smiling face.2
Origin Myth
The only myth I have found that mentions the origin or emergence of Bhuvanesvari appears in a contemporary Hindi source. It says that in the beginning the sun, Surya, appeared in the heavens. *Rsis *(sages) offered *soma *(a sacred plant) so that the world might be created. The sun then created the three worlds *(lokas *or *bhuvanas). *At that time Sodasi (Tripura-sundari) was the main power, or *sakti, *through whom Surya created them. Having created the worlds, or having empowered the sun to do so, the goddess assumed an appropriate form and pervaded and directed the triple world. In this form she became known as Bhuvanesvari, “mistress of the world.” The author also says that Bhuvanesvari remains unmanifest until the world is created. That is, Bhuvanesvari is particularly associated with the visible, created world.3 The myth also emphasizes that Bhuvanesvari is a form of Sodasi (Tripura-sundari).
Bhuvaneśvarī as the Embodiment of the Physical World
More than any of the other Mahavidyas, with the possible exception of Kamala, Bhuvanesvari is associated and identified with the earth, the creation in general, and the underlying energy that brings it to be and pervades it. She embodies the characteristic dynamics and constituents that make up the world and that lend creation its distinctive character. In this sense, as we shall see, she is identified with the *mahabhiitas *(the basic physical elements) and *prakrti *(nature or the physical world). Her name itself stresses this, Bhuvana (mistress of the world), as do several of her epithets, such as Mahamaya, Sarvesi (mistress of all), Bhuvanesi (a synonym for Bhuvanesvari), Sarvarupa (she whose form is all), Visvarupa (she whose form is the world), She Who Makes All the Worlds, She Who Dwells in the Five Basic Elements, She Who Makes the Basic Elements.4 The *Bhuvanesvari-stotra *praises her as the form of the five *bhutas *(elements) and as the moon and the sun.5 Her hundred-name hymn from the *Rudrayamala *says that she is each of the five basic elements.6 The *Devi**bhagavata-purana *says that the universe rests on Bhuvanesvari, arises from her, melts away into her, and, while it exists, is identified with her. Bhuvanesvari is also identified *withprabti.7 *The world is said to emerge from her as a web emerges from a spider or as sparks emerge from fire.8 Other Mahavidyas are associated with the physical world and creation, particularly in their thousand-name hymns, as well as with the cosmic rhythms of creation, maintenance, and destruction, but this emphasis is the most sustained and consistent in regard to Bhuvanesvari.
Bhuvanesvari does not seem to have had a widespread cult of her own prior to being incorporated into the Mahavidyas. Some early sources refer to her, however, or to goddesses very like her. The *Prapaiicasara-tantra, *for example, which is attributed to Sankara, and if not actually written by him is probably a quite early South Indian tantric text, extols the goddess Prapancesvari, “mistress of the fivefold world.” The description of her closely resembles that of Bhuvanesvari in later literature. At one point, for example, the text says that she has the luster of a thousand rising suns, wears the crescent moon on her head, holds a noose and a goad, and makes the gestures of giving boons and bestowing fearlessness (n.16). The *bija *mantra (seed mantra) of this goddess is also the same as Bhuvanesvari’s, namely, *brim. *In tantric philosophy and practice the *bija *mantra *is *the goddess herself in her most essential and complete form, so the identity of the goddess of the *Prapancasara-tantra *and the later goddess Bhuvanesvari is implied (although the *blja *mantra *hrwi *is used for other goddesses besides these two). Prapancesvari is undoubtedly an early expression of Bhuvanesvari, or at least her prototype.
*Prapaiica, *the term used in this text for “world,” refers to the fivefold *(prapaiica) *nature of the creation, that is, the five basic elements—ether, fire, water, wind, and earth—which constitute the physical creation. The name Prapancesvari, “she who is mistress of the fivefold world,” associates the goddess with the material creation and thus *withprakrti. **Asprakni *this goddess is tangibly present in the physical world; indeed, she is the world. Her reality is immediate and her presence immanent and accessible. A hymn in praise of Prapancesvari in the *Prapancasara-tantra *stresses this identification with the physical world.9 She is called Pradhana (the receptacle of all matter), Prakrti, and She Who Is the Form of the Elemental World (v. 1).10 In one place she is praised as each of the five elements *(bhiitas) *and its corresponding physical sense *(indriya): *“Obeisance to Thee in the form of sound and ether, / Salutation to Thee in the form of touch and air, / Obeisance to Thee in the form of sight and fire, / Salutation to Thee in the form of taste and water, / Obeisance to Thee in the form of earth with its quality of smell” (v. 5).11 She is further praised in vividly concrete terms as manifest in “ear, skin, eyes, tongue and nose, and in the form of mouth, speech, arms, legs, organs of excretion and generation” (v. 6).12 She is also praised as manifest in mountains, oceans, stars, islands, and even the netherworlds (v. 18). She is, in short, the goddess who is “the form of the whole Universe: Who pervadest all” (v. 6).13
In her manifestation as a Mahavidya, Bhuvanesvari is often described in three forms that are very similar in appearance. They have different complexions, however: gold, red, and bluish. As these three forms probably correspond to the three *gunas *that make up the fabric of material creation, they suggest in another way Bhuvanesvari’s identification with the material world.14
The Cosmic Queen
Prapancesvari and her later manifestation as Bhuvanesvari are goddesses whose power and reality go beyond the physical creation itself. They are also identified with that from which the physical creation proceeds and that which governs the physical creation. They are the source of all and that into which all dissolves at the end of the cosmic cycle. This aspect of Prapancesvari-Bhuvanesvari’s character is often expressed in terms of her overseeing the three cosmic functions of creation, maintenance, and destruction. She is the cosmic queen, she who pervades the creation and from whom it emerges and into whom it eventually dissolves. Her hymn of praise in the *Rudrayamala *says that she is the mother of Brahma, Visnu, and Siva and the cause of their forms and functions, that is, the cause of creation, maintenance, and destruction.15 In her thousand-name hymn from the *Rudrayamala, *she is called She Who Is the Cause of Mahapralaya (the great cosmic dissolution).16 In the *Prapancasara**tantra, *Siva says in her praise: “Whatever is knowable, is she herself. This movable and immovable world during the *mahapralaya *goes to rest in her.“17 She is also called Jagaddhatri, “she who nurses the world,” or “world nurse.“18 The *Devi-bhagavata-purana *says that she directs and upholds everything.19 That is, she is the source of the vitality that pervades the physical creation as well as being identical with the creation itself. A particularly dramatic image of Bhuvanesvari’s cosmic role occurs in the *Mahdtantra, *a Vaisnavite *tantra: she is the fig leaf that supports Visnu when he lies on the cosmic ocean duringpralaya.20 *
Bhuvanesvari not only nourishes the creation, she protects it. She does this by assuming various forms to combat demonic forces and preserve or restore cosmic order. Her thousand-name hymn from the *Rudrayamala *calls her the slayer of Mahisasura, the slayer of Sumbha and Nisumbha, the destroyer of Raktabija, and the destroyer of Madhu and Kaitabha,21 roles that associate her with the *Devi-mahatmya *and the demon-slaying protector of the cosmos, Durga, who incarnates herself in appropriate forms to maintain the welfare of the world. In the same hymn, Bhuvanesvari is also linked to the three goddesses who are associated with the cosmic functions, the *sakta *version of the male *trimurti: *Sarasvati (creation), Laksmi (maintenance), and Kali (destruction).22
The Bīja Mantra Hrīm
In her role as creator and pervader of the cosmos, Bhuvanesvari is often identified with Sarasvati, particularly as the goddess of speech. She is called Vagesvari, “mistress of speech,“23 and is identified with *sabda **brahman,24 *ultimate reality in the form of sound. That is, Bhuvanesvari is identified with the created order and with its essence as sound.
An analysis of Bhuvanesvari’s *bija *mantra, *brim, *illustrates her embodiment of creation and the stages in the creative process and also shows the centrality of *bija *mantras for all of the Mahavidyas. We are in the habit of referring to the *bija *mantra as belonging to a particular goddess, but in fact, as was made clear in the case of Srividya (see the chapter on Tripura-sundari), the *bija *mantra is the goddess herself, and her physical, anthropomorphic image is considered her *sthiila, *or gross form, a refracted or imperfect representation of her. We are so used to thinking of a deity in physical, anthropomorphic form, and so unused to thinking of one as a sound, that it is unnatural for us to look to the *bija *mantra as the essential manifestation of the goddess. In tantric philosophy and *sadhand, *however, the mantra has priority over the physical image of the goddess. It is not surprising, therefore, to find commentaries or analyses that elaborate the entire cosmos in terms of a given mantra. It is simply assumed that the mantra, which is the goddess herself, contains all of reality, that the mantra is the cosmos in its essential form. The literal translation, “seed,” may mislead us; “essence” would be better, for in tantric thought, the cosmos represents a refraction of the essential being of the goddess, which is the mantra itself. A seed is only realized or completed in the growth of a tree, but in the tantric view, the mantra is already complete, the emerging cosmos a natural and necessary effect, or emanation, of the mantra. We can thus appreciate the great secrecy with which mantras are guarded in tantric tradition. The mantra is ultimate power and creativity, the essential revelation of the goddess herself, indeed, the goddess herself made accessible to the *sadhaka. *
The explication of Bhuvanesvari’s *bija *mantra *(hrith) *is the subject of chapter 4 of the *Prapancasdra-tantra. *There we find each of the four components of the mantra—*ha, **ra, **i, *and m **(bindu)—interpreted as basic phases or constituents of the cosmic creative process. Different letters of the alphabet are said to proceed from each of the four components of the mantra, along with certain deities and certain aspects of the physical creation. The creation proceeds from the mantra on three levels: sound, deities, and the physical creation. Within the physical creation, furthermore, the creative pattern repeats itself in the maturation of the embryo. The letters of the alphabet are said to have a threefold character—solar, lunar, and fiery—and to correspond to the goddess in her threefold aspect of sun, moon, and fire.25 That from which all emanates, the mantra itself, is referred to as the *paramdtman, *the supreme or transcendent self or soul. In the physical creation, the goddess is the sun from whom the planets and constellations derive. In terms of sound she is the Gayatri mantra, the most sacred verses of the Vedas. She is also said to be *kundalini **sakti *and as such is the energizing element of the human organism that is awakened in *sadhana *or in the recitation of mantras. She is said to sleep in the *?nidadhdra **cakra *and as *kundalini *to rise up through the *cakras, *breaking the knots within them and liberating the worshiper.26 Letters (sounds), deities, and the physical constituents of the creation, then, are inextricably associated in the creative process that emerges when the *bija *mantra *bran *is uttered. From the tantric perspective, of course, all of these emanations—sound, deity, constituents of the material world, aspects of the human organism—are subsidiary to the mantra itself, to the goddess herself, who is complete and self-contained.
The Bhuvaneśvarī Yantra
Yantras have an important place in the worship of all of the Mahavidyas. As mentioned above, the Sri *cakra, *the yantra particular to Tripura-sundari, is considered identical with the deity in question. Although the yantras of differing deities vary in design, and though the deities and powers represented may also vary, the overall structure and logic of the yantra, particularly among the Mahavidyas, are consistent. Similarly, the overall purpose of worshiping the yantra, the way in which it is worshiped, and its role in tantric *sadhana *are also consistent among the Mahavidyas.
To understand the context in which the Mahavidyas are worshiped, it is important to look in detail at yantra *sadhana *(the construction and worship of a yantra), and Bhuvanesvari’s may be taken as representative. It is simpler than some (such as the Sri *cakra) *and more complex than others. It combines the basic shapes and patterns of the other yantras and depicts a series of deities and powers that are common to most of the other Mahavidyas. The method of worshiping the Bhuvanesvari yantra also is typical and can be extended, in most of its features, to all of the other Mahavidya yantras. I will therefore give a detailed description of the Bhuvanesvari yantra from the *Tantrasara *as an example of this aspect of Mahavidya worship.27
In the center of the yantra one is to imagine a *bindu, *a spot, dot, or “seed,” or the seed syllable of Bhuvanesvari, *brim, *but in actual pictures of the yantra the center is usually blank. Around the center are two interlocking or superimposed triangles, one pointing down and the other up. Together they form a six-pointed star. Around these triangles is a circle with eight petals (an eight-petaled lotus), and around this another lotus of sixteen petals. The outermost boundary of the yantra is a threelined rectangular frame containing four gates or entrances.
In overall design, the yantra is intended to represent the emergence of the cosmos from the center to the edges, so its details are usually given from the middle outward. The *bindu *symbolizes the conjunction of Siva and Sakti in harmonious tension. It may also represent *ambika **sakti *and *santa **sakti *conjoined (discussed below). The *bija *mantra is the goddess herself in her essential being. When the *bindu *or the mantra begins to expand, pulsate, or vibrate (all three terms are sometimes used), the first thing that appears is a point where two emerging polarities combine in harmonious tension; this is followed by two additional pairs coming into being, each of which creates another point. These three points form the first, innermost triangle and are are called *pithas *(seats). The three pairs are *iccha **sakti *(the power of will) and *vama **sakti *(the leftward *power);jndna **sakti *(the power of knowledge) and *jyesthd **sakti *(the elder power); and *kriya **sakti *(the power of action) and *raudra **sakti *(the fierce power). Together these three *pithas *represent the triple nature of creation as will or desire *(iccha), *knowledge *(Jnana), *and action *(kriyd), which is a common schema in Tantrism. A fourth pair, forming a fourthpitba, *is to be imagined in the middle of the triangle (this is *ambika **sakti *and *santa **sakti), *and together the four *pithas *are said to represent the four Mahapithas, or places sacred to the goddess, on the Indian subcontinent—Kamarupa, Jalandhara, Purnagiri, and Uddiyana—which mark the four “corners” of India. The downward-pointing triangle, representing the yoni, also may be thought of as the goddess Sakti, the upward-pointing one as Siva; overlapping each other, the two triangles are said to be Sakti and Siva in union or sexual embrace. The downward-pointing triangle also may be thought of as creation or emanation (or exhalation), the upward-pointing one as dissolution (inhalation), and the two together as symbolizing the basic rhythm of the cosmos.
On the eight petals of the inner lotus are the following goddesses, beginning in the east (at the top of the diagram) and going clockwise toward the south: Jaya, Vijaya, Ajita, Aparajita, Nitya, Vilasini, Dogdhri, and Ghora; in the middle is Marigala. Four goddesses stand at the four cardinal directions around the inner pericarp of the inner lotus: Gagana (east), Rakta (south), Karalika (north), and Mahoccusma (west). At the six apexes of the triangles in the center are the following divine pairs, beginning in the east and going clockwise toward the south: Gayatrl and Brahma, Saitri and Visnu, Sarasvati and Rudra, Sri and Dhanapati (Kubera), Rati and Kama, and Pusti and Ganesa. At the interstices of the inner circle at the north and south are Sankhanidhi (wealth of the conch, that is, the sea) and Padmanidhi (wealth of the earth).
On the tips of the eight petals of the inner lotus are the following goddesses, beginning in the east and going clockwise toward the south, most of whom are forms of Rati: Anariga-kusuma (east), “who longs for union with Rama”; Anariga-kusumatura (southeast), “who really longs for union with Rama”; Anariga-madana (south), Kami-devi; Anarigamadanatura (southwest), Bhuvana-pala (west), “who protects the world”; Anariga-vedya (northwest), “who is known by Kama”; Sasti-rekha (north), “crescent moon,” signifying an adolescent girl; and Gaganarekha (northeast), “moon crescent,” signifying a prepubescent girl. If these forms of Rati are read in reverse order, they may imply the transformation of a young girl into a sexually mature woman. It is not clear why maturation should follow the counterclockwise direction, when the emergence of the cosmos takes place in clockwise fashion in the construction or emergence of the yantra.
In the eight spaces between the eight inner petals of the lotus are the following*saktis, *beginning in the east and going clockwise: Anariga-rupadevl, Anariga-madana-devl, Bhuvana-vega-devi, Bhuvana-palika-devi, Sarva-sisira-devl, Anariga-vedana-devl, and Anariga-mekala-devl. Several of these goddesses are also forms of Rati. In the sixteen petals of the outer lotus there are the following *saktis, *beginning in the east and proceeding clockwise to the south: Karalini (dreadful), Vikaralim (very dreadful), Uma, Sarasvatl, Sri, Durga, Usas, Laksml, Sruti, Smrti, Dhrti (the power of support), Sraddha, Medha (merit), Mati (right discernment), Kanti (beauty), and Arya (nobility).
In the outer rectangle, at the four gates and the four corners, are the following deities: Indra (east), Agni (southeast), Yama (south), Nirrti (southwest), Varuna (west), Vayu (northwest), Soma (north), and Isana (northeast). Brahma is between the east and northeast and Ananta between the west and southwest, representing, perhaps, the zenith and the underworld. The ten Lokapalas (guardians of the directions) and their *vahanas *(“vehicles,” usually animals) and weapons are also spread around this outer perimeter. Their weapons are the *vajra, **sakti, **danda, **khadga, **Mia, **arikusa, **gada, **sula, **padma, *and *cakra. *
Yantras are used in different religious contexts for different reasons. A yantra may be inscribed on a silver, gold, or copper plate and be set up for worship in a temple or in a private home. Generally puja done to such a permanent form of the yantra is of the sixteen-part type. In that case the yantra is worshiped as a whole, as the goddess herself, and not in all its particulars. The yantra also may be constructed on paper and, with some personal modifications made by a competent guru, be worn on the body as an amulet or as a portable *murti *(image) of the goddess for purposes of worship.
The yantra is also used for individual tantric *sadhand. *In this case the general aim of the *sadhaka *is “to identify with the deity, in this case Bhuvanesvari, and in doing so to obtain the powers that are in her store.“28 In this type *oipujd, *the yantra is worshiped in each of its individual parts. That is, each of the *s’aktis, *goddesses, or deities is individually worshiped by the invocation of a mantra, in this case, often the Bhuvanesvari mantra. The worship of the yantra itself is preceded by rituals of purification that include banishing inimical spirits and invoking guardian deities. The sequence in which the elements in the yantra are invoked may vary, and the actual worship may be either mental (in which case the yantra is imagined to reside in the *sadhaka **s *heart) or outward and physical. In the *Tantrasdra *and *Sdkta-pramoda, *the Bhuvanesvari yantra is described from the center outward, and the deities are invoked in clockwise order. That is, the yantra represents the emergence of the cosmos in a spiraling, clockwise fashion. The invocation and worship of the different elements, then, reiterate the creation of the world.
There is some indication, however, that the yantra (or at least the yantras of some of the other Mahavidyas) may be worshiped from the outside inward, and in a counterclockwise, inwardly spiraling order. In the *Mantra-mahodadhih, *for example, the Tārā yantra is worshiped from outside to inside, although each layer or covering is worshiped in a clockwise direction.29 For the Chinnamasta yantra, worship is prescribed from outside to inside. “Worship of Chinnamasta Devi should begin from the outer-most covering and proceed in an inverse order.“30 In such cases the theme of “going against the stream” comes to mind. In classical yoga, the practitioner de-creates the various elements *oiprabli, *going against the natural rhythms of creation, in an attempt to still or transcend the limitations of the physical world. Classical yoga is the process of dissolving the creation in order to transcend it.
Tantric yoga aims to unite the practitioner with the deity. When worship proceeds from the outside of the yantra to the inside, we might think of the *sadhaka *as distilling or reducing the creation to a single point, the central *bindu *or seed mantra of the goddess. Having thereby concentrated the goddess’s essence, the adept then identifies with that.
The basic shapes and design of the yantra are significant. The triangle and lotus dominate the yantras of all ten Mahavidyas, and in this respect the Bhuvaneśvarī yantra is typical. The triangle, particularly when pointing downward, is a symbol of the yoni and symbolizes creation, generation, and reproduction. The lotus, too, is a creative symbol in Indian religion and in Tantrism also represents the yoni. It is often a symbol of the living cosmos, which is understood to be organic in nature. The blossoming lotus is likened to the maturing, emerging cosmos. As the seat of a deity or spiritual being, the lotus also denotes spiritual authority and command, spiritual perfection, purity, and completeness. Both the triangle and the lotus can be understood as female symbols of growth, emergence, and life energy.
The outer layers or coverings are the same in all the Mahavidya yantras, square or rectangular. These outer coverings, which constitute the four gates or means of access to the interior, are inhabited by armed male deities. In general structure, then, the yantra has a male-dominated, square outer perimeter, within which is a female-dominated, circular, and triangular center. The inner petals and points are dominated by female beings, and many of them, particularly in the Bhuvaneśvarī yantra, are forms of Rati, consort of Kama, the god of desire. That is, the inner dynamics of the yantra are female oriented and erotic, while the outer layers or coverings *(avaranas) *are male oriented and associated with weapons. We might think of the overall structure of the yantra as presenting a vision of the world in which an armed, male-dominated exterior protects a female-dominated interior that is sexually dynamic. At the very center, of course, is the *bindu, *which represents female and male (Sakti and Siva) in harmonious tension or balance.
Bhuvaneśvarī’s Beauty, Attractiveness, and Symbols
Bhuvanesvari’s beauty is mentioned often. The *Tantrasara *describes her as having a golden complexion and a beautiful face, framed with flowing hair the color of black bees. Her eyes are broad, her lips full and red, her nose delicate. Her firm breasts are smeared with sandal paste and saffron. Her waist is thin, and her thighs, buttocks, and navel are lovely. Her beautiful throat is decorated with ornaments, and her arms are made for embracing. Siva is said to have produced a third eye to view her more thoroughly.31 In her hundred-name *stotra *(hymn) in the *Sdkta**pramoda, *she is said to be a beautiful young girl, to have a smiling face, and to have an attractive sexual organ. She is said to be the triangle itself (the schematic representation of the yoni).32
The beauty and attractiveness of Bhuvaneśvarī might be understood as an affirmation of the physical world. *Sdkta *and tantric thought and practice do not denigrate the world or consider it illusory or delusory, as do some other aspects of Indian thought. Tantra has a strong strain of world affirmation, which insists that underlying all of reality is the power, the *sakti, *of ultimate reality. The physical world, the rhythms of creation, maintenance, and destruction, even self-infatuation and the hankerings and sufferings of the human condition, are all affirmed to be Bhuvanesvari’s play, her exhilarating, joyous sport.
Bhuvaneśvarī never ceases to attend to the world, and this is the reason, one author states, that she has three eyes.33 She nourishes the world that she oversees and protects. Indeed, she is said to be food itself, on which all creatures depend. Her smiling face reveals her gracious attitude toward the world and all those creatures who depend upon her for sustenance.34 The gestures of conferring boons and removing fear also express her gracious attitude toward the world, particularly toward her devotees.
The goad and noose held by Bhuvaneśvarī suggest control. According to an informant in Varanasi, the goad means that she controls evil forces or inner hindrances, such as anger, lust, and any obsession that interferes with spiritual development. The noose, according to the same informant, symbolizes the different bodily sheaths that hide, and therefore bind, the spiritual essence of a person, the *dtman. *The goddess therefore helps discipline the devotee with her goad, while at the same time she is the power that masks one’s true identity. She is both liberating knowledge and *maya; *she both gives liberation and withholds it. Another source interprets the goad, the noose, and the two hand gestures (conferring boons and fearlessness) in terms of the stages in spiritual endeavor, *sadhand: *the noose and goad help *sddhakas *control their *indriyas *(sensory perceptions), and when this is accomplished through her grace, they achieve fearlessness and receive blessings from her. Dharma, or proper moral behavior, is also a form of control, and Bhuvaneśvarī uses it to guide people. In this sense her noose and goad may symbolize dharma.35
The red lotus and jeweled drinking bowl full of jewels that she holds are symbols of growth and wealth. The jewels represent abundance and riches, while the lotus represents the vigor inherent in the living world.
Bhuvanesvar i also wears the crescent moon on her forehead, which, according to an informant in Varanasi, represents the power of replenishment. This symbolizes that Bhuvanesvar i is the inner essence of the created world, which empowers it to continue to reproduce itself endlessly with renewed vitality.
Like many deities, and spiritual masters, Bhuvanesvar i sits on a lotus. This suggests a commanding position and also the seat from which creation sometimes takes place. Brahma, for example, sits on a lotus growing from Visnu’s navel, and from this powerful and dynamic seat he creates the world. Tripura-sundari, similarly, sits on a lotus and represents the creation as well as the cause of creation. The lotus seat symbolizes spiritual mastery and triumph as well: perfection that is grounded in the world like the roots of a lotus, and yet transcends that world. It is a symbol of authority, purity, and transcendence. Bhuvanesvar i is called She Who Wanders in the Physical World, but she is also called, in the same hymn, She Who Wanders in the Void.36 She is the world but also transcends it, as its source and as its container at dissolution.
Devotion to Bhuvaneśvarī, finally, is said to bring the devotee auspiciousness, the power of attracting and controlling others, the power of *vak **siddhi *(according to which anything one says happens), and victory over enemies. In this respect, her worship emphasizes gaining material success and well-being, which is appropriate for a goddess who is so strongly identified with the physical world.