| Padmavati | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Padmavati, 10th century, Metropolitan Museum of Art | |
| Personal information | |
| Spouse | Dharanendra |
| Part of a series on |
| Jainism |
|---|
 |
Padmāvatī is the protective goddess or śāsana devī (शासनदेवी) of Pārśvanātha, the twenty-third Jain tīrthāṅkara, complimenting Parshwa yaksha in Swetambara and Dharanendra in digambar the shasan deva.[1] She is a yakshini (attendant goddess) of Parshwanatha.[2]
There is another pair of souls of a nāga and nāginī who were saved by Parshwanath while being burnt alive in a log of wood by the tapas kamath, and who were subsequently reborn as Indra (Dharanendra in particular) and Padmavati (different from sashan devi) after their death.[3] According to the Jain tradition, Padmavati and her husband Dharanendra protected Lord Parshvanatha when he was harassed by Meghmali.[4][5] After Padmavati rescued Parshvanatha grew subsequently powerful in to yakshi, a powerful tantric deity and surpassed other snake goddess Vairotya.[6]
Goddess Padmavati along with Ambika, Chakreshvari are held as esteemed deities and worshipped by Jains along with tirthankaras.[7][8] Ambika and Padmavati are associated with tantric rituals. Both Padmavati and Dharanendra are revered exclusively as powerful intercessor deities.[1] These tantric rites involves yantra-vidhi, pitha-sthapana and mantra-puja.[9][6] Friday of every week is particularly popular day to worship the Goddess.[10]
A snake's hood covers her head, and she sits on a lotus flower. Often a small image of the Lord Parshvanatha is placed in her crown. She may be depicted as four-armed, carrying noose and rosary (japa mala), elephant goad, lotus and a fruit.[4] Yaksha-Yakshi pair sculptures of Padmavati Ambika and Dharanendra are one of the most favoured along with Gomukha-Chakreshwari and Sarvahanabhuti-Ambika.[12]
