A Shakta is a devotee of the Mother Goddess and his/her prayer can be described like this verse:

May all my idle talk be your japa, sound divine,
May all my gestures be your mudras,
May all my steps be around your seat,
May all my lying down be your pranam,
May all your oblations be my only food,
And may all acts of mine be in joy for you.

Extracted from a hymn dedicated to Tripura Sundari from Saundarya Lahiri.

Worshippers of Devi are called Shaktas, because they worship Shakti. The concepts behind Shaktism play an important role in the esoteric aspect of Yoga. The worship of God as mother is a very old concept and images of the Mother Goddess are found amongst the relics of many other civilizations.

In one of the hymns of Rig Veda, Shakti is described residing in heaven and supporting the earth. In another passage, The Goddess Aditi (meaning the boundless) is identified with all Gods and all men, whatever has been and whatever shall be.

In the Taittiriya Upanishad the teacher says as his final instruction to the pupil: “Regard your mother as god.” There are many minor Upanishads in which Shakti is worshipped as the absolute Brahman, the One without a Second.

Shaktas believe that the Supreme Mother transcends the divine trinity of Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva. She is Durga or Kriya (power of action). She is Lakshmi or Iccha (power as will), and she is Saraswati or Jnana (power as knowledge).

In tantric philosophy God is worshipped in the form of the Divine Mother, or Devi. She is invoked by various names such as Lakshmi, Saraswati, Maha Kali, Durga or Tripura Sundari.

Aim Hrim Klim