Kubjika, Kubjikā: 7 definitions
Introduction:
Kubjika means something in Hinduism, Sanskrit, the history of ancient India. If you want to know the exact meaning, history, etymology or English translation of this term then check out the descriptions on this page. Add your comment or reference to a book if you want to contribute to this summary article.
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In Hinduism
Nirukta (Sanskrit etymology)
Kubjikā (कुब्जिका) is explained it as a compound with the meaning “she who is born (jā) from earth (ku) and water (ab)”.—(cf. Saṃvartāmaṇḍalasūtravyākhyā). Another derivation of the name Kubjikā is found in the Kubjikānityāhnikatilaka where we read that: “the letter Ku is the seed-syllable of the Earth which is on a lotus (abjikā)”. In other words Kubjikā is the goddess who, as the divine embodiment of the Earth, sits on a lotus. This etymology appears to be an attempt to integrate the name Kubjikā with Kujā, which is another common name of the goddess. This name is derived from “(she who is) born”—“jā”—from the “earth”—“ku”.—(cf. Mālinīstava of the Kumārikākhaṇḍa)
Nirukta (निरुक्त) or “etymology” refers to the linguistic analysis of the Sanskrit language. This branch studies the interpretation of common and ancient words and explains them in their proper context. Nirukta is one of the six additional sciences (vedanga) to be studied along with the Vedas.
Shaktism (Shakta philosophy)
1) Kubjikā (कुब्जिका) or Kubjinī (lit. “the bent over one”) is another name for the Goddess, according to Tantric texts such as the Kubjikāmata-tantra, the earliest popular and most authoritative Tantra of the Kubjikā cult.—Accordingly, as the God explains the name of Kubjinī: “O Kuleśvarī, you are the one (goddess) and (your) name accords with reality (anvartha). The goddess pervades everything within the gross, subtle, and supreme reality, which, faultless, is both manifest and unmanifest, and she is you. Do you not know that? Just as someone with a big body who moves in a small house must enter it with the body bent, such is she, the Great Goddess (maheśvarī)”.
According to the Ṣaṭsāhasrasaṃhitā commentary: “How is it that she bent over (kubjikā)? Just as one who bends over (kubjo bhūtvā) enters everywhere, similarly, as her form is contracted, she pervades everywhere. Then she is Kubjikā (the Bent Over Goddess)”.
Note: Kubjikā is implicitly identified with the sacrificial fire into which the worlds are offered and from which they arise again. This is the Fire of Kula that burns in the Liṅga. It is the same energy, identified with the goddess who resides in the middle of the maṇḍala, the Wheel of the Skyfarers (khecarīcakra).
2) Kubjikā (कुब्जिका) (or Khageśī) is the Goddess associated with Oḍḍiyāna, one of the sacred seats (pīṭha), according to the Manthānabhairavatantra, a vast sprawling work that belongs to a corpus of Tantric texts concerned with the worship of the goddess Kubjikā.—Note: We observe that the Goddess in each seat is a Śavarī and the god a Śavara. The Śavaras are one of a number of tribes who are commonly associated with the deities, major and minor, in many Tantric traditions of this sort, both Śaiva and Buddhist. Implicit in these associations is that these deities [i.e., Kubjikā], in this case those of the sacred seats, are related to tribal ones.
3) Kubjikā (कुब्जिका) is the name of the Goddess (devī) associated with Kāmarūpa, one of the sacred seats (pīṭha), according to chapter 10 of the according to the Kularatnoddyota, one of the earliest Kubjikā Tantras.—If the scheme in the Yogakhaṇḍa is not the first example of this model, the other most likely candidate is found in chapter ten of the Kularatnoddyota, which is an early Tantra of the Kubjikā corpus. [...] In this set-up each of the four sacred seats corresponds to a cosmic age and has a tree, creeper, cave, monastery (maṭha), goddess [i.e., Kubjikā], Siddha, and guardian of the field. The layout can be tabulated as follows.
Kubjika (कुब्जिक) refers to one of the 62 rays of the Maṇipūra-Cakra which (together with the 54 rays of the Anāhata) are associated with the solar plane called Viṣṇugranthi, according to Śaṅkarācārya’s Saudaryalaharī.—Accordingly, the Goddess is visualised (by Sādhaka) as dwelling above the six Ādhāracakras ruling over the 360 rays which emanate in them [e.g., Kubjika]. These 360 rays represent 360 syllables (i.e., a consummation of the śabdaprapañca or 50 alphabets) as well as the principles of nature. For the 360 syllables, together with haṃ and saḥ, Nyāsa should be performed for Śrīcakrapūjā.
Note: Kubjikā refers to:
One of the 54 rays of the Anāhata-Cakra.
One of the 72 rays of the Viśuddhi-Cakra.
Shakta (शाक्त, śākta) or Shaktism (śāktism) represents a tradition of Hinduism where the Goddess (Devi) is revered and worshipped. Shakta literature includes a range of scriptures, including various Agamas and Tantras, although its roots may be traced back to the Vedas.
Shaivism (Shaiva philosophy)
Kubjikā (कुब्जिका) or Kubjikātantra refers to one of the Tantras mentioned in the Mahāmokṣa-Tantra, a Sanskrit manuscript collected in volume 12 of the catalogue “Notices of Sanskrit Manuscripts (second series)” by Mahamahopadhyaya Haraprasad Shastri.—The Mahāmokṣatantra manuscript, consisting of 3,024 ślokas (metrical verses), is deposit: Dhaka, Vikramapura Majhapada, Babu Rasavihari Raya. It deals with the salvation, cosmogony (i.e., the order of cosmic regions) and contains a bibliography of Tantric literature.—The catalogue includes the term—Kubjikā in its ‘subject-matter list’ or Viṣaya (which lists topics, chapters and technical terms).
Shaiva (शैव, śaiva) or Shaivism (śaivism) represents a tradition of Hinduism worshiping Shiva as the supreme being. Closely related to Shaktism, Shaiva literature includes a range of scriptures, including Tantras, while the root of this tradition may be traced back to the ancient Vedas.
India history and geography
Kubjikā (कुब्जिका) is the name of a Tantric Goddess.—Formed between the 9th and 13th centuries, the cult of the goddess Kubjikā bloomed during the period in which the Tantric phase of the development of the major Sanskritic religions of South Asia attained its greatest height to then succumb to the upheavals and changes brought about by Muslim domination in the north of India. The Kubjikāmata, the earliest popular and most authoritative Tantra of the Kubjikā cult, opens with two myths that narrate how the goddess Kubjikā, the Humpbacked One, manifested for the first time in this form in this age.
Kubjikā (कुब्जिका) or Kubjikātantra is the name of a Tantra categorized as “Viṣṇukrānta”, and is mentioned in a (further unknown) book in the possession of Kamlesh Punyark [=Śrī Kamaleśa Puṇyārka or श्री कमलेश पुण्यार्क].—This book contains a detailed discussion of the basics of Tantra and opens with a list of three times sixty-four Tantras. One such text is the कुब्जिका-तन्त्रम् [kubjikā-tantram] or कुब्जिका [kubjikā].
The history of India traces the identification of countries, villages, towns and other regions of India, as well as mythology, zoology, royal dynasties, rulers, tribes, local festivities and traditions and regional languages. Ancient India enjoyed religious freedom and encourages the path of Dharma, a concept common to Buddhism, Hinduism, and Jainism.
Languages of India and abroad
Sanskrit dictionary
Kubjikā (कुब्जिका).—An unmarried girl of eight years old.
1) Kubjikā (कुब्जिका):—[from kubjaka > kubja] a f. a girl eight years old (personating the goddess Durgā at a festival of this deity).
2) [v.s. ...] b (f. of kubjaka q.v.)
Sanskrit, also spelled संस्कृतम् (saṃskṛtam), is an ancient language of India commonly seen as the grandmother of the Indo-European language family (even English!). Closely allied with Prakrit and Pali, Sanskrit is more exhaustive in both grammar and terms and has the most extensive collection of literature in the world, greatly surpassing its sister-languages Greek and Latin.
See also (Relevant definitions)
Starts with: Kubjikamandala, Kubjikamata, Kubjikamatatantra, Kubjikanityahnikatilaka, Kubjikapitha, Kubjikapujaprakara, Kubjikarana, Kubjikarupa, Kubjikatantra, Kubjikatmaka, Kubjikavva.
Full-text (+7148): Kubjikatantra, Kubjikapitha, Mokshakubjika, Kubjikanityahnikatilaka, Kubjikarupa, Kubjikamandala, Kubjikavva, Kamalakubjika, Guhyakubjika, Nagnakubjika, Kubjikatmaka, Dhavala, Kola, Kunkuma, Capa, Cara, Khanjika, Tara, Kubjaka, Sangama.
Relevant text
Search found 25 books and stories containing Kubjika, Kubjikā; (plurals include: Kubjikas, Kubjikās). You can also click to the full overview containing English textual excerpts. Below are direct links for the most relevant articles:
Soundarya Lahari of Shri Shankara (Study) (by Seetha N.)
Saundaryalahari as an epitome of Saktism < [Chapter 5 - Shakta-Tantras—Saundaryalahari as an epitome of Shaktism]
Devi Tantra, Mantra, Yantra (study) (by Srider Basudevan Iyer)
Worship involving Virgins < [Chapter 4 - Worship and The Worshipper]
Appendix 1 - Sixty-four Tantras
Classification of Tantra according to school’s of thought < [Chapter 1 - Introduction]
Serpent Power (Kundalini-shakti), Introduction (by Arthur Avalon)
Wonderland < [Volume 14, Issue 3 (2023)]
Introduction to “Cognitive Science and the Study of Yoga and Tantra” < [Volume 8, Issue 9 (2017)]
Feeding the Enemy to the Goddess: War Magic in Śaiva Tantric Texts < [Volume 13, Issue 4 (2022)]
Varahi Tantra (English Study) (by Roberta Pamio)
Brief outline of the Vārāhī Tantra
Different lists of Bhairava and Kaula Tantras
Chapter 22 - The the Six Āmnāyas < [Summary of the Vārāhī Tantra]
Agni Purana (by N. Gangadharan)
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