Ashta Dasa Shakthi Peetha Stotram
By Adi Shankara Bhagwad Pada
Translated by P. R. Ramachander
There was a great king called Daksha Prajapati who was the son of Lord Brahma, He had 27 daughters. Sati devi was one of them. Daksha gave his daughter Sati in marriage to Lord Shiva, During the conduct of a fire sacrifice, when Daksha entered the arena, every one except Lord Shiva stood up to respect him. Daksha felt very insulted by Lord Shiva’s behaviour. So when he conducted a yaga again, he did not invite his daughter Sati and his son in law Lord Shiva. Sati felt sad because of this and went to the Yaga against the wishes of Lord Shiva. She was badly insulted by her father Daksha and jumped in to the sacrificial fire. Shiva hearing this rushed to the place but could not save Parvathi. He cut off the head of Daksha and took the body of Sati in his hand and started dancing furiously. To bring down his anger, Lord Vishnu cut the body of Sati in to 18 pieces and these pieces fell down in different places of India. These places are called Shakthi Peethas. Some people are of the opinion that there are 51 Shakthi Peethas and yet others of the opinion that there are 108 Shakthi Peethas. This stotra written by Adhi Shankara names the places of Shakthi Peethas and the name of the Goddess in temples there. The 18 main Shakti Peethas are[1]:
| Part of the body fallen | Place | Name of Sakthi | |
| 1 | Groin | Trimkomali(Srilanka) | Sankari devi |
| 2 | Back Part | Kanchi(Tamilnadu) | Kamakshi devi |
| 3 | Stomach part | Praddyumnam(Gujarat) | Sri srunkala devi |
| 4 | Head hairs | Mysore(Karnataka) | Chamundeswari devi |
| 5 | Upper teeth rows | Alampur(Andhra Pradesh) | Jogulamba devi |
| 6 | Neck part | Srisailam(Andhra Pradesh) | Bhramramba devi |
| 7 | Eyes | sholapur(Maharastra) | Mahalakmi devi |
| 8 | Right hand | Nanded(Maharastra) | Ekavenika devi |
| 9 | Upper lip | Ujjain(Madya pradesh) | Mahakalai devi |
| 10 | Left hand | Pithapuram(Andhra Pradesh) | Puruhutika devi |
| 11 | Navel | Cuutack(Orissa) | Girija devi |
| 12 | Left cheek | Draksharamam(A.P) | Manikyamba devi |
| 13 | Vulva | Gauhathi(Assam) | Kamarupa devi |
| 14 | Fingers(hand) | Prayaga(Uttar Pradesh) | Madhaveswari devi |
| 15 | Head part | Jwala(Himaclapradesh) | Vaishnavi devi |
| 16 | Breast part | Gaya(Bihar) | Sarvamangala devi |
| 17 | Wrist | Varanasi(Uttar Pradesh) | Visalaksi devi |
| 18 | Right Hand | Kashmir | Saraswathi devi |
Lankayam Shankari devi, Kamakshi Kanchika pure Pradyumne Shrinkhala devi, Chamunda Krouncha pattane
Goddess Shankari in Sri lanka, Kamakshi in Kanchipuram,
Goddess Shrinkhala in Pradyumna and Chamunda in Mysore
Alampure Jogulamba, Sri shaile Bhramarambika Kolha pure Maha lakshmi, Mahurye Ekaveerika
Goddess Jogulamba in Alampur, Goddess Brhamarabika in Sri Shailam,
Goddess Maha Lakshmi in Kolhapur and Goddess Eka veera in Mahur
Ujjainyam Maha kali, Peethikayam Puruhutika Odhyane Girija devi, Manikya Daksha vatike
Goddess Maha Kali in Ujjain Purhuthika in Peethika,
Goddess Girija in Odhyana and goddess Manikya in the house of Daksha,
Hari kshetre Kama rupi, Prayage Madhaveshwari Jwalayam Vishnavi devi, Gaya Mangalya gourika
Goddess Kama rupi in the temple of Vishnu, Goddess Madhevaswari in Allahabad,
The flame gving Goddess in Jwala muki and Mangala Gouri in Gaya.
Varanasyam Vishalakshi, Kashmire tu Saraswati Ashtadasha Shakti peethani, Yoginamapi durlabham
Goddess Visalakshi in Varanasi, Goddess Saraswathi in Kashmir,
Are the 18 houses of Shakthi, which are rare even to devas.
Sayamkale pathennityam, Sarva shatri vinashanam Sarva roga haram divyam, Sarva sampatkaram shubham
If read in the evening daily, it leads to killing of all enemies,
And also curing of all diseases and getting of all types of wealth.