Lesson plan
Naiṇī Devī
Naiṇī, Nāgnī or Nāginā Devī is the name of nine Hindu Goddesses belonging to the shape-shifting serpent deities or Nāgas, who rule as goddesses and mothers over the lower part of the Pindar river valley in the Garhwal Himalaya region of Uttarakhand, India. Seven of these goddesses establish the rule over their territory through a journey (yātrā) of six months, during which they are carried around, embodied in the shape of a bamboo pole clothed with saris. Through their yātrās, the Naiṇīs re-establish their family ties to those women of their respective village who have married into other villages. In the Indian Western Himalaya, this is a common way of establishing divine kingship and territory. These journeys take place only two times a century: the Naiṇī of the village Ratura went on her journey from September 2010 to March 2011 after 54 years, the Naiṇī of the village Rains "came out" (Hindi nikaltī huī) in September 2016 after 42 years, and the journey of the Naiṇī of the village Bhattiyana started in September 2023, 38 years after her last journey. The main goal of the rituals, festivals and processions devoted to the Naiṇīs is to entertain them, to "make them dance and play" (nacānā aur khilānā) in their bamboo bodies, in male dancers in evening performances wearing cobra-shaped diadems, and in possessed mediums.…
Article summary
Naiṇī, Nāgnī or Nāginā Devī is the name of nine Hindu Goddesses belonging to the shape-shifting serpent deities or Nāgas, who rule as goddesses and mothers over the lower part of the Pindar river valley in the Garhwal Himalaya region of Uttarakhand, India. Seven of these goddesses establish the rule over their territory through a journey (yātrā) of six months, during which they are carried around, embodied in the shape of a bamboo pole clothed with saris. Through their yātrās, the Naiṇīs re-establish their family ties to those women of their respective village who have married into other villages. In the Indian Western Himalaya, this is a common way of establishing divine kingship and territory. These journeys take place only two times a century: the Naiṇī of the village Ratura went on her journey from September 2010 to March 2011 after 54 years, the Naiṇī of the village Rains "came out" (Hindi nikaltī huī) in September 2016 after 42 years, and the journey of the Naiṇī of the village Bhattiyana started in September 2023, 38 years after her last journey. The main goal of the rituals, festivals and processions devoted to the Naiṇīs is to entertain them, to "make them dance and play" (nacānā aur khilānā) in their bamboo bodies, in male dancers in evening performances wearing cobra-shaped diadems, and in possessed mediums.…
Key claims
No claims recorded.
Discussion questions
- Summarise the article in your own words. Which single claim would you verify first, and why?
- Which claim in this article is most likely to be revised as the sources update? How would you check its current status?
- If two sources disagreed about one of these facts, what would you need in order to trust one over the other?
Bibliography
No sources recorded.
Key claims and bibliography are generated from the same tracked claims and sources as the article page.