Indian traditions, Nivedita and Coomaraswamy
Manasa Devi
Manasa is described as a daughter of Shiva by a mortal woman and as a goddess and queen of serpents. Unfavoured in the divine household, she takes up her residence on earth. She seeks the worship of the wealthy Chand Sadagar, knowing his devotion could establish her honour. He refuses to leave his worship of Shiva for a serpent goddess, making recognition itself the conflict that drives the story.
Also known as Manasā · Goddess of serpents
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In the sources
Principal account
TraditionalManasa is described as a daughter of Shiva by a mortal woman and as a goddess and queen of serpents. Unfavoured in the divine household, she takes up her residence on earth.
Further detail
TraditionalShe seeks the worship of the wealthy Chand Sadagar, knowing his devotion could establish her honour. He refuses to leave his worship of Shiva for a serpent goddess, making recognition itself the conflict that drives the story.
Context & interpretation
The entry follows the opening of the Manasa narrative in this collection. The parentage and contest over worship are traditional elements, not a complete account of regional Manasa traditions. Both selected quotations are on one reader leaf and count as one distinct cited page.
Original passages
Source 1
Myths of the Hindus and Buddhists
Manasa was a goddess and queen of serpentsOpen this page in the book
Passage & edition details
Location recorded at citation review: Nivedita and Coomaraswamy, Myths of the Hindus & Buddhists (1914), active reader leaf 392
Exact passage checked against the active edition text and original-leaf mapping; whitespace and scan line breaks normalised.
- Edition
- IMJ-0109-E001
- Reader page
- IMJ-0109-E001-P0392
- Original scan leaf
- 392
- Recorded leaf number
- 392
- Current Reader position
- 383
- Reader verification
- Source-preserving update confirmed
Source 2
Myths of the Hindus and Buddhists
secure the devotion of a very wealthy and powerful merchant-princeOpen this page in the book
Passage & edition details
Location recorded at citation review: Nivedita and Coomaraswamy, Myths of the Hindus & Buddhists (1914), active reader leaf 392
Exact passage checked against the active edition text and original-leaf mapping; whitespace and scan line breaks normalised.
- Edition
- IMJ-0109-E001
- Reader page
- IMJ-0109-E001-P0392
- Original scan leaf
- 392
- Recorded leaf number
- 392
- Current Reader position
- 383
- Reader verification
- Source-preserving update confirmed
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