Among the various paths within Indian spirituality, one of the most important is Shaktism – or the worship of Shakti (Power/Energy) which is personified as the Goddess. The philosophy is known as Shaktism and an adherent of the path is called a ShaktA. Some believe that this branch of spirituality originated at an ancient time from the root idea called Samkhya, which saw the world as a duality between Purusha – the male principle and Prakriti – the female principle. While the term Prakriti means Nature in general, the term Shakti specifically indicates energy/power. Shakti always invariable involved some form of movement, for manifested energy and power is best understood through the sense of movement, while Purusha indicated that point of stillness or immobility with respect to which the movement is perceivable. Shiva therefore represented the ultimate transcendental stillness while Shakti or the Goddess became the sum total of all…