Chhinnamatsa

Chinnamasta (also Chhinnamatsa) is a Tantric Hindu goddess. She is one of ten great tantric goddesses, the Mahavidyas, and considered a form of Parvati, the female counterpart of the Hindu god Shiva. The name of the goddess, Chinnamasta, describes the scene depicted in this painting, with chinna in Sanskrit meaning severed and masta meaning the head. As the one with a self-severed head, Chinnamasta symbolises the life-giving and life-taking aspects of Devi, the great goddess. Here she nourishes her attendants with the blood gushing from her neck. Standing above a copulating couple, Chinnamasta also symbolises self-control over sexual desire.