November 01, 2020

PUTANA

 


Putana (which is a tribal name) shown here is suckling the Krishna babe. As the story goes he sucks all the poison from her breast...and she dies. However it is important to note that she is a rakshasa and they, as a group, are often meant to signify Adivasi  people who so-called Hindu texts meant to denigrate or portray as evil. The both/and nature of Indian religions was misunderstood and Putana was understood as a symbolic bad mother. She is included in a group of malevolent Hindu mother goddesses called the Matrikas and also in the group of Yoginis and Grahinis (Seizers).