What makes Hinduism in Bengal distinctive? A history of Shaktism, Tantra and Bhakti

What makes Hinduism in Bengal distinctive? A history of Shaktism, Tantra and Bhakti Bengal's Hindu traditions have been shaped by goddess worship, the influence of Tantra and the afterwards spread of Gaudiya Vaishnavism.

Key points

• 10 min read New Delhi Sep 23, 2026 06: 33 PM IST First published on: Sep 23, 2026 at 10: 04 AM IST.
• Bengal's villages each had their own protector goddess – Jangalasini Devi in Chhandar, Kamakhya Devi in Lakhershole, Sarvamangal Devi in Naricha, Kaluburi in Ajodhya, Ambika Devi in Raipur.
• Bengal flourished as a Tantric centre under the Pala kings (780-1174 CE) – Vikramshila University became a premier seat of Tantric study.
• By the 15th century, the Bhakti movement – which originated in South India – had spread to Bengal, developing a distinct expression as Krishna-centred Gaudiya Vaishnavism.
• Goddess Durga perhaps best represents the convergence of these three historical religious strands in Bengal– Shaktism, Tantricism, and Vaishnavism.

Goddess Durga perhaps best represents the convergence of these three historical religious strands in Bengal– Shaktism, Tantricism, and Vaishnavism. (Wikimedia Commons). Written by: Adrija Roychowdhury.

What makes Hinduism in Bengal distinctive? The question has acquired new urgency ahead of this year's Durga Puja, against the backdrop of debates over meat-eating during the festival and new rules prohibiting DJs and liquor. At the heart of these controversies lies a larger question: why do some practices that are discouraged or prohibited in some Hindu traditions remain an integral part of religious and cultural life in Bengal?

Part of the answer lies in the historical prominence of Shaktism, or the Shakta tradition. Centred on the worship of the divine feminine, Shaktism developed a distinctive regional expression in eastern India, shaped in part by Tantricism and its interaction with Gaudiya Vaishnavism. Together, these influences shaped the particular forms of goddess worship that took root in Bengal and its surrounding areas. The land of goddesses.

For context, the tradition of goddess worship has existed in the Indian subcontinent for a number of centuries before Vedic Brahmanism emerged. Though their religious significance remains debated, female figurines discovered at Indus Civilisation sites have been interpreted as representations of mother goddesses. Goddess worship is particularly long-lived and deeply rooted in Bengal and the surrounding regions, including parts of present-day Bihar, Assam and Odisha. The deities were known by different names and associated with a range of attributes and functions, most importantly the protection of the family or village that worshipped them.

"In Bankura district, for instance, the village of Chhandar was associated with the goddess known as Jangalasini Devi, Lakhershole village with Kamakhya Devi, Naricha village with the deity Sarvamangal Devi, Ajodhya village with the deity known as Kaluburi and Raipur village with Ambika Devi, " writes historian Kumkum Chatterjee in her research paper, Goddess Encounters: Mughals, Monsters and the Goddess in Bengal (2013).

There were additionally goddesses associated with disease and other social fears. While goddess Manasa is worshipped for protection from snakebites, ola Bibi, for instance, is worshipped to ward off cholera.

Goddess Manasa is worshipped for protection from snakebites. (Wikimedia Commons) Kunal Chakraborty, a retired professor of Ancient History at JNU, whose research focuses on the social history of religion, notes that Bengal's association with goddess worship is due to the late entry of Brahmanism in the region. In his book, Religious Processes: The Puranas and the Making of a Regional Tradition (2001), he argues that "Bengal remained outside the sphere of Brahmanical influence for a long time, and large-scale Brahmana migration to Bengal did not begin before the Gupta period (mid-4th century to 6th century CE)."

He further notes that even when Brahmanism eventually seeped into Bengal, the goddess tradition was already so firmly established that it demanded recognition from the Brahmanas. "The newcomers, who had to adjust with the prevailing tradition adopted these goddesses with suitable modifications and transformed them into Brahmanical divinities by means of a carefully constructed Sakta theology, " he writes.

Thereafter, Brahmanists adopted folk goddesses like Manasa and Shashti by incorporating them into the Sanskrit Brahmanical Puranas composed in eastern India from the eighth or ninth centuries till regarding the 13th or 14th century. Meanwhile, there were attempts to offer them Brahmanical genealogies and identities. For instance, the 15th-century Manasa Mangal Kavya identified Manasa as Shiva's daughter. The Mangal Kavyas were a group of Bengali religious texts composed between the 13th and 18th centuries that carried narratives regarding indigenous deities of rural Bengal. Three Strands, One Goddess.

Shaktism Tantricism Gaudiya Vaishnavism.

Goddess worship existed in the subcontinent for centuries before Vedic Brahmanism arrived – female figurines at Indus Civilisation sites are read by some as early mother-goddess imagery.

Other goddesses answered specific fears – Ola Bibi warded off cholera, Manasa protected against snakebite.

Bengal's deep goddess tradition owes much to Brahmanism's late arrival – large-scale Brahmana migration didn't commence until the Gupta period (mid-4th-6th century CE). When it did arrive, folk goddesses were absorbed rather than displaced, given Brahmanical genealogies to match.

As a warrior goddess who slays the demon Mahishasura, durga herself enters the textual record this way – through the Devi Mahatmya in the Markandeya Purana.

"Bengal remained outside the sphere of Brahmanical influence for a long time, and large-scale Brahmana migration to Bengal did not begin before the Gupta period." Kunal Chakraborty, retired professor of Ancient History, JNU.

Tantricism emerged around the 6th-7th centuries, drawing on Vedic ritual as well as yogic and meditative traditions.

Its codes were radically pro-gender – women were authorised to become priestesses and gurus, initiate disciples, and run their own ashramas.

Purity itself was redefined – not fixed ritual categories, but one's own 'bhavana' (emotion or intention).

Bengal flourished as a Tantric centre under the Pala kings (780-1174 CE) – Vikramshila University became a premier seat of Tantric study. Even today's Durga puja mantra carries this imprint. "Tantra took root in Bengal through the goddess culture." Madhu Khanna, scholar of Tantric studies.

It gained particular prominence through the teachings of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu in the late 15th and early 16th centuries.

Vaishnava Bhakti brought an intimate, emotional relationship with the deity – while Shakta and Tantric ideas, in turn, informed Bengali Vaishnava traditions.

Meanwhile, the 18th-century Bhakti poet Ramaprasad Sen recast the esoteric, fearsome Shakta goddesses as beautiful and loving – Kali Ma, Tara Ma – a devotional register afterwards popularised further by the 19th-century saint Ramakrishna Paramahamsa.

"Interestingly, among Gaudiya Vaishnavas, there is a greater emphasis on the worship of Radha than on Krishna himself." June McDaniel, scholar of religious studies.

Taken together, the developments around what makes Hinduism in Bengal distinctive? A history of Shaktism, Tantra and point to a situation that is still moving, and the coming days should bring more clarity.