Shakti Pithas - ("Shakti's benches" or
"seats") A network of places associated with the worship of the
Mother Goddess is referred to as a Mother Goddess network.
Although the number of locations varies depending on the
source—some count 51, while others name 108—in all instances, they are
dispersed over the subcontinent, from Baluchistan (modern Pakistan) to Assam in
the far south.
According to legend, each of these locations represents the
spot where a piece of the goddess Sati's severed body fell to earth, taking on
the shape of a different deity dess at each location.
By conceptualizing them as different expressions of a single
primordial Goddess, this story gives a method to unite the various local Hindu
deities.
It also knits the subcontinent together as a single
conceptual entity, with this network of places connecting it in the same way
that the body is linked by its parts.
It's also worth noting that multiple locales may claim the
same body part in order to boost the religious clout of a specific location.
Sati's vulva, the most strongly charged portion of the
female body, fell at the temple of Kamakhya in Assam, according to most
"official" lists, while the same claim is made in Kalimath in the
Himalayas.
To summarize, no one official list of sites exists, and
opposing claims are fairly uncommon.
