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Story Of Queen Kuvalayavali Who Became A Dakini


Kuvalayavali was the queen of King Aditya Prabha and through ferocious rituals she became a Dakini – female ghoul. This story is found in the Shashta Taranga of Tritiya Lambaka of Kathasaritsagara.

Queen Kuvalayavali became a Dakini by learning Dakini Vidya and by performing certain terrible rituals. Dakini rituals imparted to her by her teacher Kalaratri refer Bhairava worship.

One day king Adityaprabha, returning from his hunting expedition in the forest, entered his living quarters. There he found his queen Kuvalayavali performing certain ritual.
The stark naked queen was sitting in a magic circle (mahamandala) strewed with various colored powders, her hair standing on end and lips trembling in muttering charms. She was offering the oblation of blood, liquor and human flesh.

She told the king that she was performing this ritual only for his welfare. She explained to him how, when she was a virgin, she saw her friends flying in the air. One being asked they told her that they acquired this occult power, siddhi, by eating human flesh and getting initiated into Dakini Mantra. On the request of her friend Kalaratri taught her Dakini Vidya.

Kalaratri first asked the queen to take bath and then offer worship to Ganesha. Divesting queen of her clothes Kalaratri sat in a magic circle and started worshipping Bhairava. She sprinkled water on her, taught her various spells known to her and gave me human flesh to eat that had been earlier offered in sacrifice to gods. This gave the queen the power to fly. Thus she became one of the Dakinis.