Bhaktamal | Devi Ahalya
Real Name - Ahalya
Other Names - Ahilya
Aradhya - Bhagwan Ram
Languages: Sanskrit
Father - Brahma
Husband - Gautama Maharishi
Children - Shatananda
Famous - Panchakanyas
Ahalya is one of the most revered female figures in Hindu Itihasa, known for her beauty, purity, patience, and spiritual strength. She was the wife of Maharishi Gautama, a great sage. Ahalya is remembered primarily for the episode in the Ramayana where she was deceived by Indra and later cursed to become an invisible or stone-like form (depending on the version).
Key Points About Devi Ahalya
❀ Created by Brahma in many versions, as the most beautiful woman.
❀ Married to Sage Gautama, living a life of austerity and devotion.
❀ Deceived by Indra, who came disguised as Gautama.
❀ Gautama's curse transformed her into a stone/asharira form to await deliverance.
❀ Her redemption came when Shri Rama touched the stone with his foot while on his way to Mithila.
❀ Upon liberation, she regained her divine form and resumed a life of tapasya and devotion.
In Tulsidas’ Ramcharitmanas, the moment when Ram liberates Ahalya is portrayed as the purification of a soul touched by divine grace. It is one of the most emotional and symbolic episodes in the epic.
Where is Ahalya Worshipped?
According to Bhaktibharat Ahalya Sthan (Bihar): A sacred temple near Darbhanga where Ahalya is believed to have lived and where Lord Rama liberated her.
In many Ramayana recitations and discourses, Ahalya is remembered as one of the Panchakanya:
Ahalya, Draupadi, Sita, Tara, Mandodari
Reciting their names is believed to destroy sin.