Jogini

A Jogini is a female figure associated with yoga, spiritual power and the Tantric traditions of India. The term may refer to a human practitioner, an initiate or a deity. In several Hindu traditions, Joginis form groups of goddesses, most commonly represented as a circle of sixty-four divine figures.

“Jogini” is a regional variant of “Yogini”, derived from the Sanskrit yoginī, the feminine form of yogin. Its meaning varies according to historical period, religious tradition and textual context. In its general sense, a yogini is a woman who practises yoga or has attained a degree of spiritual mastery. The word may also be used as an honorific title for a female teacher or ascetic.

In the Tantric traditions of medieval India, Yoginis are primarily powerful female deities. Their cult became prominent during the early medieval period, especially within Shaiva and Shakta traditions. They are associated with Shakti, the active feminine power of the divine, and frequently with Bhairava, a formidable form of Shiva. Depending on the tradition, they may be understood as manifestations, companions or attendants of a principal goddess.

There is no single universally accepted list of Yoginis. Texts and regional traditions arrange them in groups of eight, sixty-four, eighty-one or other numbers. The group of sixty-four is the best known because temples dedicated to these deities were constructed between approximately the 9th and 12th centuries. Surviving examples include Hirapur and Ranipur-Jharial in Odisha, as well as Khajuraho, Bhedaghat and Mitawali in Madhya Pradesh.

Yogini iconography is highly varied. Some figures appear as richly ornamented women, while others have animal heads or formidable attributes. They may carry weapons, vessels, musical instruments or ritual objects and stand upon animals, human figures or mythical creatures. These individual features distinguish each deity and express different aspects of feminine divine power.

Yoginis are sometimes connected with the Matrikas, or mother goddesses, and with Dakinis, another category of female Tantric beings. These groups may overlap in particular texts and rituals but are not universally interchangeable. The term also occurs in Vajrayana Buddhism, where a yogini may be a female deity, an advanced practitioner or a participant in a ritual context.