View source for Aranyani

{{Infobox deity
| type = Hindu
| deity_of = Goddess of forests and wild animals<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.wisdomlib.org/definition/aranyani | title=Aranyani, Araṇyāni, Araṇyānī: 9 definitions | date=28 December 2018 }}</ref>
| affiliation = [[Devi]]
| consort = 
| symbols = Anklets, trees, wild animals
| mount = Horse
| texts = [[Rigveda]]
| image = Vanad.png
| caption = Artwork of Aranyani.
}}{{Short description|Hindu goddess of the forests}}

{{use dmy dates|date=April 2017}}
{{Use Indian English|date=April 2017}}

'''Aranyani''' ({{Langx|sa|अरण्यानि|lit=forest|translit=Araṇyānī}})<ref>{{Cite web |last=www.wisdomlib.org |date=2021-08-27 |title=Rig Veda 10.146.1 [English translation] |url=https://www.wisdomlib.org/hinduism/book/rig-veda-english-translation/d/doc840209.html |access-date=2022-11-10 |website=www.wisdomlib.org |language=en}}</ref> is the goddess of forests and the wild animals that dwell within them in [[Hinduism]].<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Murphy |first1=Patrick D. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gw9qkwbIKCkC&dq=aranyani+goddess+of+the+forest&pg=PA317 |title=Literature of Nature: An International Sourcebook |last2=Gifford |first2=Terry |last3=Yamazato |first3=Katsunori |date=1998 |publisher=Taylor & Francis |isbn=978-1-57958-010-0 |pages=317 |language=en}}</ref>

== Literature ==

Aranyani has the distinction of having one of the most descriptive hymns in the ''[[Rigveda]]'' dedicated to her. The Aranyani Suktam (Hymn 146 in the 10th mandala of the Rigveda)<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.speakingtree.in/blog/hymn-to-a-forest-nymph-in-the-rig-veda|title=Hymn to a Forest Nymph in the Rig Veda|last=|first=|date=|website=|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200130052835/https://www.speakingtree.in/blog/hymn-to-a-forest-nymph-in-the-rig-veda|archive-date=30 January 2020|access-date=}}</ref> describes her as being elusive, fond of quiet glades in the jungle, and fearless of remote places. In the hymn, the supplicant entreats her to explain how she wanders so far from the fringe of civilisation without becoming afraid or lonely. She wears anklets with bells, and though seldom seen, she can be heard by the tinkling of her anklets.<ref>''The Hymns of the Rigveda'', [[Ralph T. H. Griffith]], 1973. Hymn CXLVI, Page 640</ref> She is also described as a dancer. Her ability to feed both man and animals though she 'tills no lands' is what the supplicant finds most marvellous. The hymn is repeated in [[Taittiriya Brahmana]] and interpreted by the commentator of that work.<ref>{{cite book|last=Muir|first=John|title=Original Sanskrit Texts on the Origin and History of the People of India|year=1870|publisher=Trubner and Co|location=London|pages=422|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ymLZAAAAMAAJ}}</ref>

Aranyani bears resemblance to latter day forest deities like [[Bonbibi|Banbibi]] in [[West Bengal]], Vanadevata in [[Goa]] and [[Konkan]] region, [[Wanadurga|Vanadurga]] in parts of [[South India]]. Her worship has declined in modern-day Hinduism, and it is rare to find a temple dedicated to Aranyani. However, there is one in [[Arrah]], [[Bihar]] known as the [[Aranya Devi Temple, Arrah|Aranya Devi Temple]].<ref>{{cite book|last=Dalal|first=Roshen|title=The Religions of India: A Concise Guide to Nine Major Faiths|year=2010|publisher=Penguin Books India|location=India|pages=28|isbn=9780143415176|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pNmfdAKFpkQC&q=The+Religions+of+India%3A+A+Concise+Guide+to+Nine+Major+Faiths+page+28&pg=PA40}}</ref>

She is sometimes regarded to be the owner of [[Kalpavriksha]], the divine tree.

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{HinduMythology}}

[[Category:Hindu goddesses]]
[[Category:Nature goddesses]]
[[Category:Animal goddesses]]


[[Category:Rigvedic deities]]