In the Shaivism and Shaktism tradition of Hinduism, the goddess Tara (Sanskrit: तारा, Bengali: তারা, IAST: Tārā) is the second of the ten Mahavidyas. She is considered a form of Adishakti, the tantric manifestation of Parvati. Her three most famous forms are Ekajaṭā, Ugratara, and Nīlasarasvatī (also spelled Neelasaraswati, Neela Saraswati, or Neelsaraswati). Her most famous centre of worship is the temple and the cremation ground of Tarapith in West Bengal, India.
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👉 Tara (Devi) in the context of Mahavidya
The Mahavidya (Sanskrit: महाविद्या, IAST: Mahāvidyā, lit. Great Wisdoms) are a group of ten Hindu Tantric goddesses. The ten Mahavidyas are usually named in the following sequence: Kali, Tara, Tripura Sundari, Bhuvaneshvari, Bhairavi, Chhinnamasta, Dhumavati, Bagalamukhi, Matangi and Kamalatmika. Nevertheless, the formation of this group encompasses divergent and varied religious traditions that include yogini worship, Shaivism, Vaishnavism, and Vajrayana Buddhism.
The development of the Mahavidyas represents an important turning point in the history of Shaktism as it marks the rise of the Bhakti aspect in Shaktism, which reached its zenith in 1700 CE. First sprung forth in the post-Puranic age, around 6th century CE, it was a new theistic movement in which the supreme being was envisioned as female. A fact epitomized by texts like Devi-Bhagavata Purana, especially its last nine chapters (31–40) of the seventh skandha, which are known as the Devi Gita, and soon became central texts of Shaktism.
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Tara (Devi) in the context of Ugratara Devalaya
Ugratara Devalaya is a temple dedicated to Ugratara located in the western side of Jor Pukhury tanks in the heart of Guwahati city in the Lotaxil (Latasil) locality in Northeast India. The Ugratara Temple in Uzan Bazaar in the eastern part of Guwahati, Assam, is a Shakti shrine. Legend has said that the navel of Sati, first consort of Shiva, is related to this temple. Ugratara in Assam is generally identified with Tiksna-Kanta, Eka-Jata, etc., of the Buddhist pantheon.
Kalika purana describes a Shakti peetha called Dikkara vasini. Dikkara vasini has two forms, Tikshna kantha and Lalitha kantha. Tikshna kantha is black and pot bellied, also called as Ugra Tara or Eka jata. Lalitha kantha is gracefully attractive, also called as Tamreshwari.