60-651: Bhāskararāya Makhin (1690–1785) was a religious exponent and writer known for his contributions to the Shakta tradition of Hinduism . He was born in a Maharashtrian Brahmin family at Hyderabad, Telangana . Bhaskara raya was welcomed by king Serfoji II of Bhonsle dynasty in South India, and thereupon he settled in Tamil Nadu . According to Douglas Renfrew Brooks, a professor of Religion specializing in Shaktism studies, Bhāskararāya
120-555: A pantheon of ten goddesses. The rarer forms of Devi found among tantric Shakta are the Mahavidyas , particularly Tripura Sundari, Bhuvaneshvari , Tara , Bhairavi , Chhinnamasta , Dhumavati , Bagalamukhi , Matangi , and Kamala . Other major goddess groups include the Sapta-Matrika ("Seven Mothers"), "who are the energies of different major Gods, and described as assisting the great Shakta Devi in her fight with demons", and
180-430: A human sacrifice may be performed to please the goddess, but only with the consent of prince before a war or cases of imminent danger. The text also states that anyone who is physically disabled, related to a Brahmin, or "is not willing to die" through the sacrifice is unfit for the ritual. The text describes the rituals associated with a bali , or a rice-paste substitute for enemies prior to a war, but does not describe how
240-508: A necklace of skulls – but inwardly beautiful. She can guarantee a good rebirth or great religious insight, and her worship is often communal – especially at festivals, such as Kali Puja and Durga Puja . Worship may involve contemplation of the devotee's union with or love of the goddess, visualization of her form, chanting [of her] mantras , prayer before her image or yantra , and giving [of] offerings." At Tarapith, Devi's manifestation as Tara ("She Who Saves") or Ugratara ("Fierce Tara")
300-839: A pervasive vision of the Devi as supreme, absolute divinity. As expressed by the 19th-century saint Ramakrishna , one of the most influential figures in modern Bengali Shaktism: Kali is none other than Brahman. That which is called Brahman is really Kali. She is the Primal Energy. When that Energy remains inactive, I call It Brahman, and when It creates, preserves, or destroys, I call It Shakti or Kali. What you call Brahman I call Kali. Brahman and Kali are not different. They are like fire and its power to burn: if one thinks of fire one must think of its power to burn. If one recognizes Kali one must also recognize Brahman; again, if one recognizes Brahman one must recognize Kali. Brahman and Its Power are identical. It
360-501: Is Brahman whom I address as Shakti or Kali. Kalika Purana Divisions Sama vedic Yajur vedic Atharva vedic Vaishnava puranas Shaiva puranas Shakta puranas The Kalika Purana ( Sanskrit : कालिकापुराणम्, Kālikā Purāṇa ), also called the Kali Purana , Sati Purana or Kalika Tantra , is one of the eighteen minor Puranas ( Upapurana ) in the Shaktism tradition of Hinduism . The text
420-586: Is I, it is my greatness dwelling in everything. The Vedic literature reveres various goddesses, but far less frequently than Gods Indra , Agni and Soma . Yet, they are declared equivalent aspects of the neutral Brahman, of Prajapati and Purusha . The goddesses often mentioned in the Vedic layers of text include the Ushas (dawn), Vāc (speech, wisdom), Sarasvati (as river), Prithivi (earth), Nirriti (annihilator), Shraddha (faith, confidence). Goddesses such as Uma appear in
480-417: Is a major Hindu denomination in which the godhead or metaphysical reality is considered metaphorically to be a woman. Shaktism involves a galaxy of goddesses, all being regarded as different aspects, manifestations, or personifications of the divine feminine energy called Shakti . It includes various modes of worship, ranging from those focused on the most worshipped Durga , to gracious Parvati , and
540-591: Is ascendant, as the goddess who gives liberation ( kaivalyadayini ). [...] The forms of sadhana performed here are more yogic and tantric than devotional, and they often involve sitting alone at the [cremation] ground, surrounded by ash and bone. There are shamanic elements associated with the Tarapith tradition, including "conquest of the Goddess, exorcism, trance, and control of spirits." The philosophical and devotional underpinning of all such ritual, however, remains
600-523: Is believed to be worshipped along with her 25 forms. The kali ghat temple is located in Calcutta and Tarapith in Birbhum district . In Calcutta, emphasis is on devotion ( bhakti ) to the goddess as Kali . Where the goddess (Kali) is seen as the destroyer of evil; She is "the loving mother who protects her children and whose fierceness guards them. She is outwardly frightening – with dark skin, pointed teeth, and
660-590: Is called Shakta. According to a 2010 estimate by Johnson and Grim, Shaktism is the third largest Hindu sect constituting about 3.2% of Hindus. The Sruti and Smriti texts of Hinduism form an important scriptural framework in Shaktism. Scriptures such as the Devi Mahatmya , Devi-Bhagavata Purana , Kalika Purana , and Shakta Upanishads like the Devi Upanishad are revered. The Devi Mahatmya in particular,
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#1732847447686720-464: Is considered in Shaktism to be as important as the Bhagavad Gita . The Devi-Mahatmya is not the earliest literary fragment attesting to the existence of devotion to a goddess figure, states Thomas B. Coburn – a professor of Religious Studies, but "it is surely the earliest in which the object of worship is conceptualized as goddess, with a capital G". [T]he central conception of Hindu philosophy
780-450: Is considered in Shaktism to be as important as the Bhagavad Gita . The Devi is revered in many Hindu temples and is worshipped during various Hindu festivals . The goddess-focused tradition and festivals such as the Durga puja are very popular in the eastern India. The earliest archaeological evidence of what appears to be an Upper Paleolithic shrine for Shakti worship were discovered in
840-438: Is held as the liberating knowledge. However, adds Tracy Pintchman – a professor of Religious Studies and Hinduism, Devi Gita incorporates Tantric ideas giving the Devi a form and motherly character rather than the gender-neutral concept of Adi Shankara's Advaita Vedanta. Shaktism is a goddess-centric tradition of Hinduism, involving many goddesses, all being regarded as various aspects, manifestations, or personifications of
900-472: Is most dominant in northeastern India, and is most widely prevalent in West Bengal , Assam , Bihar and Odisha , as well as Nepal and Kerala . The goddesses Kubjika, Kulesvari, Chamunda , Chandi , Shamshan Kali (goddess of the cremation ground), Dakshina Kali, and Siddheshwari are worshipped in the region of Bengal to protect against disease and smallpox as well as ill omens. Kalikula lineages focus upon
960-553: Is of the Absolute; that is the background of the universe. This Absolute Being, of whom we can predicate nothing, has Its powers spoken of as She — that is, the real personal God in India is She. — Swami Vivekananda Shaktas conceive the goddess as the supreme, ultimate, eternal reality of all existence, or same as the Brahman concept of Hinduism. She is considered to be simultaneously
1020-509: Is subdivided into Vāmatantras, Yāmalatantras, and Śaktitantras. The Kulamārga preserves some of the distinctive features of the Kāpālika tradition, from which it is derived. It is subdivided into four subcategories of texts based on the goddesses Kuleśvarī, Kubjikā, Kālī and Tripurasundarī respectively. The Trika texts are closely related to the Kuleśvarī texts and can be considered as part of
1080-466: Is syncretism of Samkhya and Advaita Vedanta schools of Hindu philosophy , called Shaktadavaitavada (literally, the path of nondualistic Shakti). The Hindu monk Swami Vivekananda , remarked thus; about being an actual Shakti worshipper: "Do you know who is the real "Shakti-worshipper"? It is he who knows that God is the omnipresent force in the universe and sees in women the manifestation of that Force." Shakta-universalist Sri Ramakrishna , one of
1140-496: The Kaula (a vamamarga practice) and the Samaya (a dakshinamarga practice). The Kaula or Kaulachara , first appeared as a coherent ritual system in the 8th century in central India, and its most revered theorist is the 18th-century philosopher Bhaskararaya , widely considered "the best exponent of Shakta philosophy." The Samaya or Samayacharya finds its roots in the work of
1200-751: The Shakta Upanishads , as well as Shakta-oriented Upa Puranic literature such as the Devi Purana and Kalika Purana , the Lalita Sahasranama (from the Brahmanda Purana ). The Tripura Upanishad is historically the most complete introduction to Shakta Tantrism, distilling into its 16 verses almost every important topic in Shakta Tantra tradition. Along with the Tripura Upanishad ,
1260-494: The Sri Chakra , is probably the most famous visual image in all of Hindu Tantric tradition. Its literature and practice is perhaps more systematic than that of any other Shakta sect. Srividya largely views the goddess as "benign [ saumya ] and beautiful [ saundarya ]" (in contrast to Kalikula's focus on "terrifying [ ugra ] and horrifying [ ghora ]" Goddess forms such as Kali or Durga). In Srikula practice, moreover, every aspect of
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#17328474476861320-696: The Tripuratapini Upanishad has attracted scholarly bhasya (commentary) in the second half of 2nd-millennium, such as the work of Bhaskararaya , and Ramanand. These texts link the Shakti Tantra tradition as a Vedic attribute, however this link has been contested by scholars. Scriptures such as the Devi Mahatmya, Devi-Bhagavata Purana , Kalika Purana, and Shakta Upanishads like the Devi Upanishad are particularly revered. The seventh book of
1380-547: The Sri Meru . It is not uncommon to find a Sri Chakra or Sri Meru installed in South Indian temples, because – as modern practitioners assert – "there is no disputing that this is the highest form of Devi and that some of the practice can be done openly. But what you see in the temples is not the srichakra worship you see when it is done privately." The Srividya paramparas can be further broadly subdivided into two streams,
1440-513: The Srimad Devi-Bhagavatam presents the theology of Shaktism. This book is called Devi Gita , or the "Song of the Goddess". The goddess explains she is the Brahman that created the world, asserting the Advaita premise that spiritual liberation occurs when one fully comprehends the identity of one's soul and the Brahman. This knowledge, asserts the goddess, comes from detaching self from
1500-617: The Upanishads as another aspect of divine and the knower of ultimate knowledge (Brahman), such as in section 3 and 4 of the ancient Kena Upanishad . Hymns to goddesses are in the ancient Hindu epic Mahabharata , particularly in the Harivamsa section, which was a late addition (100 to 300 CE) to the work. The archaeological and textual evidence implies, states Thomas Coburn, that the goddess had become as prominent as God in Hindu tradition by about
1560-508: The 16th-century commentator Lakshmidhara, and is "fiercely puritanical [in its] attempts to reform Tantric practice in ways that bring it in line with high-caste brahmanical norms." Many Samaya practitioners explicitly deny being either Shakta or Tantric, though scholars argues that their cult remains technically both. The Samaya-Kaula division marks "an old dispute within Hindu Tantrism". The Kalikula (Family of Kali ) form of Shaktism
1620-670: The 64 Yoginis . The eight forms of the goddess Lakshmi, Ashtalakshmi ; and the nine forms of goddess Durga, the Navadurgas , which are mainly worshipped during the Navaratri festival. Also worshipped regularly are the numerous Gramadevatas across the Indian villages. Sub-traditions of Shaktism include "Tantra", which refers to techniques, practices and ritual grammar involving mantra , yantra , nyasa , mudra and certain elements of traditional kundalini yoga , typically practiced under
1680-523: The Devi as the source of wisdom ( vidya ) and liberation ( moksha ). The tantric part generally stands "in opposition to the brahmanic tradition," which they view as "overly conservative and denying the experiential part of religion." The main deities of the Kalikula tradition are Kali , Chandi , Bheema and Durga . Other goddesses that enjoy veneration are Tara and all the other Mahavidyas , Kaumari as well as regional goddesses such as Manasa ,
1740-808: The Kulamārga. Shaktism encompasses a nearly endless variety of beliefs and practices – from animism to philosophical speculation of the highest order – that seek to access the Shakti (Divine Energy or Power) that is believed to be the Devi's nature and form. Its two largest and most visible schools are the Srikula (family of Tripura Sundari ), strongest in South India , and the Kalikula (family of Kali ), which prevails in northern and eastern India. The Srikula (family of Sri ) tradition ( sampradaya ) focuses worship on Devi in
1800-506: The Purana. The text starts off with the legends of Devi trying to bring Shiva back from ascetic life into that of a householder's by making him fall in love again. According to Ludo Rocher , Markandeya describes how Brahma, Shiva and Vishnu are "one and the same" and that all goddesses ( Sati , Parvati, Menaka , Kali and others) are manifestation of the same feminine energy. It glorifies goddess Kamakhya , or Kamakshi , and details
1860-542: The deity is more important than simple obedience, thus showing an influence of the Vaishnavaite idea of passionate relationship between Radha and Krishna as an ideal bhava . Similarly, Shaktism influenced Vaishnavism and Shaivism . The goddess is considered the consort and energy ( shakti ) of the gods Vishnu and Shiva ; they have their individual shaktis, Vaishnavi for Vishnu and Maheshvari for Shiva, and consorts Lakshmi and Sati /Parvati. An adherent of Shaktism
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1920-640: The earliest evidence of reverence for the female aspect of God in Hinduism is this passage in chapter 10.125 of the Rig Veda , also called the Devi Suktam hymn: I am the Queen, the gatherer-up of treasures, most thoughtful, first of those who merit worship. Thus Gods have established me in many places with many homes to enter and abide in. Through me alone all eat the food that feeds them, – each man who sees, breathes, hears
1980-627: The fierce Kali . After the decline of Buddhism in India , various Hindu and Buddhist goddesses were combined to form the Mahavidya , a pantheon of ten goddesses. The most common forms of the Mahadevi worshipped in Shaktism include: Durga, Kali, Saraswati , Lakshmi , Parvati and Tripurasundari . Also worshipped are the various Gramadevatas across the Indian villages. Shaktism also encompasses various tantric sub-traditions, including Vidyapitha and Kulamārga . Shaktism emphasizes that intense love of
2040-448: The form of the goddess Lalita-Tripura Sundari . Rooted in first-millennium. Srikula became a force in South India no later than the seventh century, and is today the prevalent form of Shaktism practiced in South Indian regions such as Kerala , Tamil Nadu and Tamil areas of Sri Lanka . The Srikula's best-known school is Srividya , "one of Shakta Tantrism's most influential and theologically sophisticated movements." Its central symbol,
2100-452: The goddess are widely known in the Hindu world. The common goddesses of Shaktism, popular in the Hindu thought at least by about mid 1st-millennium CE, include Parvati, Durga, Kali, Yogamaya , Lakshmi, Saraswati, Gayatri , Radha , and Sita . In the Eastern part of India, after the decline of Buddhism in India , various Hindu and Buddhist goddesses were combined to form the Mahavidya ,
2160-415: The goddess – whether malignant or gentle – is identified with Lalita. Srikula adepts most often worship Lalita using the abstract Sri Chakra yantra , which is regarded as her subtle form. The Sri Chakra can be visually rendered either as a two-dimensional diagram (whether drawn temporarily as part of the worship ritual, or permanently engraved in metal) or in the three-dimensional, pyramidal form known as
2220-439: The guidance of a qualified guru after due initiation ( diksha ) and oral instruction to supplement various written sources. There has been a historic debate between Shakta theologians on whether its tantric practices are Vedic or non-Vedic. The roots of Shakta Tantrism are unclear, probably ancient and independent of the Vedic tradition of Hinduism. The interaction between Vedic and Tantric traditions trace back to at least
2280-467: The low person of dreadful deeds, and the great person of excellent deeds. I am Female, I am Male in the form of Shiva. Shaktism's focus on the Divine Female does not imply a rejection of the male. It rejects masculine-feminine, male-female, soul-body, transcendent-immanent dualism, considering nature as divine. Devi is considered to be the cosmos itself – she is the embodiment of energy, matter and soul,
2340-499: The most influential figures of the Hindu reform movements , believed that all Hindu goddesses are manifestations of the same mother goddess . The 18th-century Shakta bhakti poems and songs were composed by two Bengal court poets, Bharatchandra Ray and Ramprasad Sen , and the Tamil collection Abhirami Anthadhi was composed by Abhirami Bhattar. The important scriptures of Shaktism include
2400-558: The motivating force behind all action and existence in the material universe. Yet in Shaktism, states C. MacKenzie Brown, the cultural concepts of masculine and the feminine as they exist among practitioners of Shaktism are aspects of the divine, transcendent reality. In Hindu iconography, the cosmic dynamic of male-female or masculine-feminine interdependence and equivalence, is expressed in the half-Shakti, half-Shiva deity known as Ardhanari . The philosophical premise in many Shakta texts, states professor of Religious Studies June McDaniel,
2460-450: The myth of Brahmaputra river; and the claim in the text that Kamarupa was holier than even Varanasi points to the text having been composed in Kamarupa. References to Kālidāsa and Magha suggests that it is not one of the early Puranas. The mention of places and events associated with Ratna Pala (920-960) of Kamrupa region places the text to after the 10th-century. The explanation in
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2520-512: The oneness of the soul and Brahman. — Devi Gita , Transl: Lynn Foulston, Stuart Abbott Devibhagavata Purana , Book 7 The Devi Gita describes the Devi (or goddess) as "universal, cosmic energy" resident within each individual. It thus weaves in the terminology of Samkhya school of Hindu philosophy . The text is suffused with Advaita Vedanta ideas, wherein nonduality is emphasized, all dualities are declared as incorrect, and interconnected oneness of all living beings' souls with Brahman
2580-466: The people, I created Earth and Heaven and reside as their Inner Controller. On the world's summit I bring forth sky the Father: my home is in the waters, in the ocean as Mother. Thence I pervade all existing creatures, as their Inner Supreme Self, and manifest them with my body. I created all worlds at my will, without any higher being, and permeate and dwell within them. The eternal and infinite consciousness
2640-615: The ritual procedures required for worshiping her. It also describes in detail the rivers and mountains at Kamarupa tirtha and mentions the Brahmaputra River and the Kamakhya Temple . Chapters 67 through 78 of the text constitute the Rudhiradhyaya which discusses bali (animal sacrifice) and of Vamacara Tantrism . The Rudhiradhyaya section is notable for its uncommon discussion of human sacrifice. The text states that
2700-403: The sacrifice was actually done. The work belongs to the goddess-oriented Shakta branch of Hinduism . Most probably it was composed in or near medieval Kamarupa (modern Assam ). It is a late work, states Hazra, by Nibandha writers regarding Shakti worship. It is also one of the rare Hindu texts that actually mentions the word "Hindu". According to Hazra, there existed a text that
2760-440: The same supreme goddess Shakti . Shaktas approach the Devi in many forms; however, they are all considered to be but diverse aspects of the one supreme goddess. The primary Devi form worshiped by a Shakta devotee is his or her ishta-devi , that is a personally selected Devi. The selection of this deity can depend on many factors such as family tradition, regional practice, guru lineage, and personal resonance. Some forms of
2820-802: The sixth century, and the surge in Tantra tradition developments during the late medieval period, states Geoffrey Samuel, were a means to confront and cope with Islamic invasions and political instability in and after the 14th century CE. Notable Shakta tantras are Saradatilaka Tantra of Lakshmanadesika (11th century), Kali Tantra ( c. 15th century ), Yogini Tantra , Sarvanandanatha's Sarvolassa Tantra , Brahmananda Giri's Saktananda Tarangini with Tararahasya and Purnananda Giri's Syamarahasya with Sritattvacintamani (16th century), Krishananda Agamavagisa's Tantrasara and Raghunatna Tarkavagisa Bhattacarya Agamatattvavilasa (17th century), as well as works of Bhaskaracharya (18th century). The Vidyāpīṭha
2880-607: The snake goddesses, Ṣaṣṭī , the protectress of children, Śītalā , the smallpox goddess, and Umā (the Bengali name for Parvati) — all of them, again, considered aspects of the Divine Mother. In Nepal devi is mainly worshipped as the goddess Bhavani. She is one of the important Hindu deities in Nepal. Two major centers of Shaktism in West Bengal are Kalighat where the skull of Kali
2940-462: The source of all creation, its embodiment and the energy that animates and governs it, and that into which everything will ultimately dissolve. Mahadevi said in Devi Upanishad, verse 2, "I am essentially Brahman". According to V. R. Ramachandra Dikshitar – a professor of Indian history, in Shaktism theology "Brahman is static Shakti and Shakti is dynamic Brahman." Shaktism views the Devi as
3000-604: The source, essence and substance of everything in creation. Its texts such as the Devi-Bhagavata Purana states: I am Manifest Divinity, Unmanifest Divinity, and Transcendent Divinity. I am Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva, as well as Saraswati, Lakshmi and Parvati. I am the Sun and I am the Stars, and I am also the Moon. I am all animals and birds, and I am the outcaste as well, and the thief. I am
3060-748: The studies of Tantra . Several of his texts are considered particularly notable to the Shaktism tradition, one focussed on the Mother Goddess: His Khadyota ("Firefly") commentary on the Ganesha Sahasranama is considered authoritative by Ganapatya . The important events of Bhāskararāya's life is written by his disciple Jagannath Paṇḍitor Umānandnātha in Bhaskaravilas Kavyam. Shaktism Traditional Shaktism ( / ˈ s æ k t ɪ z ə m / ; Sanskrit : शाक्तसम्प्रदायः , romanized : Śāktasampradāyaḥ )
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#17328474476863120-578: The terminal upper paleolithic site of Baghor I ( Baghor stone ) in Sidhi district of Madhya Pradesh , India. The excavations, carried out under the guidance of noted archaeologists G. R. Sharma of Allahabad University and J. Desmond Clark of University of California and assisted by Jonathan Mark Kenoyer and J.N. Pal, dated the Baghor formation to between 9000 BC and 8000 BC. The origins of Shakti worship can also be traced to Indus Valley civilization . Among
3180-505: The text for the Mlechchha population, and the indication of a parallel explanation in Harjaravarman's (815-832) Hyunthal copper plate inscription places the text closer to his reign. According to Rocher, the mention of king Dharmapala of Kamarupa has led to proposals of Kalika Purana being an 11th- or 12th-century text. However, estimates for different sections of the text range from 7th to
3240-510: The text presents its theological and philosophical teachings. The soul and the Goddess My sacred syllable ह्रीम्] transcends, the distinction of name and named, beyond all dualities. It is whole, infinite being, consciousness and bliss . One should meditate on that reality, within the flaming light of consciousness. Fixing the mind upon me, as the Goddess transcending all space and time, One quickly merges with me by realizing,
3300-457: The third or fourth century. The literature on Shakti theology grew in ancient India, climaxing in one of the most important texts of Shaktism called the Devi Mahatmya . This text, states C. Mackenzie Brown – a professor of Religion, is both a culmination of centuries of Indian ideas about the divine woman, as well as a foundation for the literature and spirituality focussed on the female transcendence in centuries that followed. The Devi Mahatmya
3360-483: The word outspoken. They know it not, yet I reside in the essence of the Universe. Hear, one and all, the truth as I declare it. I, verily, myself announce and utter the word that Gods and men alike shall welcome. I make the man I love exceeding mighty, make him nourished, a sage, and one who knows Brahman . I bend the bow for Rudra [Shiva], that his arrow may strike, and slay the hater of devotion. I rouse and order battle for
3420-469: The world and meditating on one's own soul. The Devi Gita , like the Bhagavad Gita , is a condensed philosophical treatise. It presents the divine female as a powerful and compassionate creator, pervader and protector of the universe. She is presented in the opening chapter of the Devi Gita as the benign and beautiful world-mother, called Bhuvaneshvari (literally, ruler of the universe). Thereafter,
3480-510: Was "not only a brilliant interpreter of Srividya, he was an encyclopedic writer", and that he was a "thinker who had the wealth of Tantric and Vedic traditions at his fingertips". He belonged to the Srividya tradition of the Shakta Tantrism. Bhāskararāya is the attributed author of more than 40 writings that range from Vedanta to poems of devotion, from Indian logic and Sanskrit grammar to
3540-467: Was likely composed in Assam or Cooch Behar region of India and is attributed to the sage Markandeya . It exists in many versions, variously organized in 90 to 93 chapters. The surviving versions of the text are unusual in that they start abruptly and follow a format not found in either the major or minor Purana -genre mythical texts of Hinduism. Various types of animal sacrifices for devi are detailed in
3600-403: Was older than the extant one, and that the origin of that text was Bengal . This is denied by Shastri, who claims that the evidence provided by Hazra for an earlier text can be explained by other means, without invoking an older text. According to Shastri, the local descriptions; the exposition of the myth of Naraka from who all the dynasties of Kamarupa drew their lineage; the description of
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