Parvati (Sanskrit: पार्वती, IAST: Pārvatī), also known as Uma (उमा) and Gauri (गौरी), is one of the principal goddesses in Hinduism. She is revered as the goddess associated with power, energy, nourishment, harmony, love, beauty, devotion, and motherhood. Along with Lakshmi and Sarasvati, she forms the Tridevi, the triad of major Hindu goddesses. In the Shaiva and Shakta traditions, Parvati is regarded as the consort of Shiva and as his shakti, the personification of divine energy.
| Name | Parvati |
|---|---|
| Sanskrit | पार्वती (IAST: Pārvatī) |
| Other names | Uma, Gauri |
| Tradition | Hinduism (notably Shaivism and Shaktism) |
| Group | Tridevi (with Lakshmi and Sarasvati) |
| Consort | Shiva |
| Children | Ganesha and Kartikeya |
| Parents | Himavan (mountain lord) and Mena |
| Earliest goddess form | Epic period (c. 400 BCE – 400 CE) |
Parvati is closely identified with several other goddess figures in Hindu tradition, including Sati, Uma, Kali and Durga. Because of these overlaps, the narratives associated with these goddesses frequently merge, and they are often treated as different aspects of a single divine feminine principle. According to various Puranas, Parvati is described as the reincarnation of Sati, Shiva's first wife, who relinquished her body to sever familial ties with her father Daksha, after he had insulted Shiva.
In Hindu mythology, Parvati is born to Himavan, the lord of the mountains, and his wife Mena. Her birth is primarily understood as a cosmic event intended to draw Shiva out of his ascetic withdrawal and into married and householder life. As Shiva's wife, Parvati is depicted as representing the life-affirming, creative force that complements Shiva's austere, world-renouncing nature. Together, they are seen as balancing the two poles of asceticism and householder life within Hindu philosophical thought.
Parvati's role as wife and mother is central to her legendary persona, in which she embodies the ideal of the devoted spouse who both supports and extends her husband's sphere of influence. She is regarded as the mother of two prominent Hindu deities:
Philosophically, Parvati is regarded as Shiva's shakti, the divine energy or power that sustains the cosmos. In this role she is identified as the source of creative force and fertility, and is held to energise Shiva, who in many traditions is considered incomplete without her. The pairing of Shiva and Parvati is therefore interpreted as the union of consciousness and energy, the static and dynamic principles of existence.
Parvati is associated with multiple forms across Hindu narrative traditions. She is identified with: