Devotees often find Goddess Mariamman in the form of only
her head. The popular story behind this tradition goes like this: Jamadagni was
a great rishi. Renuka, the beautiful daughter of Varma Raja, married the rishi.
They had four or five sons (there are differences in the
number in various references; and differences in the names too). Thannuva,
Anula, Viswavasu, Parashurama by one account; Vasu, Viswavasu, Brihudhyanu, Brithwakanwa,
Bhadra Rama by another; Som, Ruthu, Turvasu, Megh, Parashurama by yet another.
Whatever the list, the last son was Parashurama.
One day, Renuka was collecting water from the Ganga. As she
was looking at the water surface, she saw the reflection of a gandharva flying
through the skies. Attracted by Renuka’s beauty, the gandharva named
Chithrasena kept circling the same area.
Attracted by the gandharva’s image repeatedly floating on
the water surface, Renuka thought for a second – ‘How handsome he is!’ Jamadagni
immediately knew of the incident through his jnanadrishti. Enraged that renuka
could be attracted by another man, he ordered that she be beheaded.
The elder sons would not carry out the command. The youngest
of the lot, though attached to the mother, agreed to fulfil the words of the
father. And he did so. After beheading his mother, when Parashurama approached
his father, Jamadagni praised him for his vairagya and courage. The son then
sought a boon that his mother should be brought back to life. The disturbed
Jamadagni gave waters empowered with mantra sakti to be sprinkled on Renuka’s body.
Parashuraama rushed to the spot where his mother’s head lay.
He could find the head but not the rest of the body. As he frantically searched
for her body, he was told that her body was thrown in an area where lay the bodies
of several other women. In his anxiety, Parashuraama fixed his mother’s head
over the body of some other woman. Renuka came alive and stood before
Jamadagni, of course with a stranger’s body.
Jamadagni knew of her powers as the shakti amsa. Not willing
to deprive mankind of her grace and benefits, he requested her to reside in the
villages and places of human settlements. Since only the head was that of Renuka,
these temples have only that part of the figurine.
Source – Maari – the mother published in Vedanta Kesari
magazine May 2020.