Śākta Yoga: Rituals as Yoga in the Devī Mahātmyam

A common misconception of yoga is that it consists primarily of contorted postures and physical fitness. Rarely does one think of rituals as yoga practice (Sherma 2025), far less of chanting a ritual text such as the Devī Mahātmyam (henceforth DM) as a yogic text that offers liberation. While traditional commentators such as Bhāskararāya Makhin (1768c) and Nāgoji Bhaṭṭa (1688–1755) debate the ontological nature of the world (jagat) as either real (satkāryavāda) or illusory (vivarta), they do not mention rituals or yoga in their commentaries. On the other hand, present-day teachers go beyond traditional understandings of the text, providing interpretations that align with what I argue is a yogic understanding of the text, yet rituals are left out. In this paper, I contend that within the DM is a distinct manifestation of a mānasika (mental) psychophysiological Śākta Yogic framework that combines the visual, acoustic, olfactory, and tactile domains in ritual. First, I show how this form of Śākta Yoga can be uncovered by understanding the allegorical significance of specific Sanskrit terms such as madhu, kaiṭabha śumbha, niśumbha, caṇḍa-muṇḍa, raktabīja, mahiṣāsura, suratha, samādhi, and medhās. Then I show how the DM prescribes rituals such as chanting, offering flowers, gifts, incense, and perfume as yogic means to enlightenment.