The Vedic age and the centuries that followed have always fascinated me. Today, our religious discourses and mythologies have become the primary source of information on that era. This page tries to uncouple the myth from the reality. Our post colonial history is common knowledge but south Asia's classical history remains shrouded. This is because our oral tradition has lead to a loss and corruption of information. The Vedic Age will provide snippets and flashes from the bronze and iron age of south Asia. This page attempts to create original content to pique your curiosity and make this aspect of our history mainstream.
The Matrika are a group of seven to eight goddesses who always appear together. They are Bramhani, Vaishnavi, Maheshwari, Indrani, Kaumari, Varahi, Chamunda and Narasimhi. They were attributed with inauspicious roles in the earlier Dravidian traditions and were even considered dangerous but later during the Aryan age they were worshiped for their fecundity and protective abilities esp. towards children.
There is a lot of evidence showing that before the coming of the Aryans, indigenous populations of south Asia worshiped goddesses. There are temples of Yoginis (“A Yogini is the sacred feminine force made incarnate: the goddesses of mythology as well as the ordinary human woman who is enlightened, both having exuberant passion, spiritual powers and deep insight, capable of giving birth to saints, peacemakers, and Yogis.”) strewn across the Deccan and the Indian peninsula.
These traditions gave rise to Tantrism, Shaivism and Shakt tradition of the later vedic age. They have an unabashed view and depiction of female sexuality.
In a form of Tantric tradition called Kaula, it is mentioned that “Every woman is thought of as a manifestation of the Goddess. No man may raise his hand, strike or threaten a woman. When she is naked, men must kneel and worship her as the Goddess. She has equal rights with men on all levels.” Whereas, Manusmriti the Hindu book of law written by Aryan Brahmins states that a woman’s value is only half that of a her husband’s.
In Shakt tradition, the followers worshiped semen and menses. The various menstrual stages in the life of a woman were accorded with holy power and worshiped, contrary to Aryan belief where menstruating women are considered impure and are to be isolated and shunned.
The power of goddesses was subdued since the later Vedic age and this growing patriarchal culture was reinforced with the advent of Islam and the British.
The Vedic Age 