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Legends of Korlapati Ankamma
Legends of Korlapati Ankamma reveal her fierce form. Ankamma is an important character among Dravidian gods.

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Legends of Korlapati Ankamma do not appear in all Indian Puranas. Legend of Ankamma appears to be a Dravidian composition. They are of later origin. As Ankamma is the victor and the Brahmans are defeated, there is a probability that these stories are of Dravidian origin. They were composed so that the Brahmins feel humiliated and worship Ankamma. The stage is past when the Brahmans attempted merely to attach the Dravidian goddesses to their own system. The Dravidian Gods have conquered them.

One of the stories is linked to the inability of seven kings. Seven Kings were reigning in a city however they never worshipped Shakti of the place. They whipped her and threw her away. The Shaktis were angry and wanted to make the Kings weak. Shakti took the form of an Erukala woman and went about the village predicting fortunes. The eldest among these seven kings was down with illness. When the woman went to the palace the mother of the sick king asked her to come in and tell about chances of recovery. When she was brought to him, he recognized her and said that she was not a diviner but a Shakti. He drove her away from the city.

As this failed the Shakti took the disguise of Lord Shiva and wearing the lingam came to the king. She was asked about her demands. When asked her request she said that it she desired only to be given a great rock in a desert place on which she would plant a flower garden. The king granted her request and she ploughed planted a garden. From the garden she brought some flowers to the king. She also advised him that Lord Shiva would be pleased if the king would use the flowers in daily worship. The king appointed her to bring him flowers daily. The woman told the king that it would be more pleasing to Lord Shiva if he would come and gather the flowers himself. Then King himself plucked the flowers for worship. Shakti appeared as a parrot and pulled the lynch pins out of the king`s chariot. As king was taking the flowers and considered him as a thief. She yelled and all the other Shaktis rushed in and binding the king put him on his chariot which at fell to pieces.

The village Shakti appeared in her actual form and expressed her anger of being not worshipped. The King was determined that he would not worship her. The seven kings cut down a palm tree and made a sharp stake. Ass the point was conceded and the kings threw themselves on to the spike, they were killed. That place was Koralapadu and therefore the goddess is called Koralapati Ankamma.

This legend speaks for the spikes in the hands of Ankamma. The wife of the head-king brought forth a posthumous son. When he became a bit matured his companions twitted him with being fatherless. He became angry and enquired about the truth to his mother. She feared to tell him in case the Shaktis would destroy him. He pleaded so strongly that at last she told him the truth. The boy was determined to destroy the Shaktis. On his journey he saw a sage. He wanted to ask where the Shaktis lived but did not dare to disturb a holy man. He placed two stones for a fireplace and his knee in the place of the third stone thereafter placed a pot on the stones and his knee. He lighted the fire in the usual manner. When the fire burned his knee, he jerked and broke the pot. The sage got interested and asked him about his journey. He was properly advised.

The boy went to a flat-roofed house. Goddess Ankamma was on the house top. He took out his pipe and played a tune to which Ankamma danced and came down to where he was. The story stops here and the boy ultimately surrender to Ankamma and agree to worship her.


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