ABSTRACT
This chapter analyses the very important Vedic myth of the goddess Saṃjñā. She is the wife of Sūrya (the Sun) and the mother of Manu. Her story is heavily implicated in the Devī Māhātmya which glorifies the Hindu Great Goddess, Durgā. This chapter debunks Wendy Doniger’s problematic interpretations of this myth cycle to deepen discussion of the Saura–Śākta sectarian symbiosis at play in the Mārkaṇḍeya Purāṇa, and used Indian astrological material (Jyotiṣa) to provide insight into the ritual timing of the Navarātrī (Durgā Pūjā) Goddess festival.
