Puranic Encyclopaedia: A Comprehensive Dictionary with Special Reference to the Epic and Puranic Literature c8.2054

c8.2054

Himavān and Menā had three daughters and a son. The devas were watching who among the three—Rāgiṇī, Kuṭilā and Kālī—would become the consort of Śiva. All the three were interested in penance. The devas took Rāgiṇī to Brahmaloka and showed her to Brahmā and the latter declared that Rāgiṇī was incapable of bearing the virility of Śiva. Rāgiṇī got angry and Brahmā cursed her and made her into Sandhyārāga and she took her place in the sky. Then the devas took Kuṭilā to Brahmā and the latter said that she was also incapable of being a mate of Śiva. Kuṭilā also got angry and Brahmā made her into a river and kept her in Brahmaloka. Menā was greatly distressed at the loss of her two daughters and so she advised Kālī, her third daughter to go home, discontinuing the penance. She at first said Umā (Mā=do not) and so she got the name of Umā She was the daughter of a Parvata (Himavān is a parvata (mountain) and so she got the name Pārvatī (mountain-girl) also. Kālī later went home. But after some time the natural inclination in her led her to start a severe penance again.