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Tuesday, 14 March 2023

Seven Sisters

Seven sisters or the seven Dravidian deities are Poleramma, Ankamma, Muthyal-amma, Dilli Polasi, Bangaramma, Mathamma, and Renuka. The deities are very popular in South India. The names of the Seven Sisters vary depending on localities where they are being worshipped. Poleramma is the known Goddess that is found in almost every village.
  1. Poleramma: The shrine of Poleramma is outside the village. In some places it consists of stones, two or three feet long that is set upright in the ground on three sides of a small square, the fourth side being left open. A flat stone is placed on the top. Poleramma is considered as the goddess of smallpox in the Telugu speaking regions. She is also responsible to some extent for all other troubles in the village like cattle disease, drought, and sickness among the people. 
  2. Ankamma: Akamma has lot of similarities with Poleramma. She is represented by an unfinished stone image in a little temple outside the village. Ankamma is often described as a household god. As a household goddess she is represented by a pot in which there are some shells, little earthen mugs, and other similar articles. The shells represent the teeth of devils and the pots represent the food which they yearn for. 
  3. Muthyalamma: Muthyalamma is a Hindu goddess who is a form of Goddess Durga or Goddess Kali. In Hyderabad there are several temples dedicated to her. She is worshipped in Ashada month during Mahankali festival in Telangana. It is believed that she is worshipped in order to bring rain. 
  4. Dilli Polasi: Dilli Polasi is a household and a village deity. As a household goddess she is represented by a several pots placed one on top of another. During household worship the mother of the wife sends new clothes to her daughter and son-in-law. The public worship is more often engaged in by one family or a group of related families. 
  5. Bangaramma: This goddess is given less importance as compared to other sisters. She has no temple of her own but her image is also placed in the temple of Poleramma. At times she receives a small share of the worship. Again there are similarities in the worship of Bangaramma and Poleramma. The word Bangaramma means ' the golden one ' that describes her mild nature. 
  6. Mathamma: Mathamma is especial goddess of the Madigas. All castes fear her. Due to this excepting Madigas nobody can take an active part in the ceremonies. As Madigas are poor, her worship is not elaborate as that of the other goddesses. 
  7. Renuka: Renuka is worshiped as the Goddess of the fallen, in the Hindu pantheon. She is a patron goddess of rural folk of Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. Her devotees have revered her as the "Mother of the Universe". She is worshipped mostly in South India, especially in Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra, where the deity is known by several names like Mahankali, Jogamma, Somalamma, Renukamata. 

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