Names
Family
- Parents
- King Renu
- Consorts
- Sage Jamadagni
- Children
- Parashurama
Her sons also include Rumanvan, Suhotra, Vasu and Vishvavasu.1
Worship
Renuka is venerated mainly in Karnataka, Maharashtra and Telangana; at Saundatti in Belagavi district the Yellamma temple draws between 200,000 and 600,000 devotees a year.1
How traditions differ
Epics and Puranas
The Mahabharata, Harivamsa and Bhagavata Purana tell how Jamadagni had her beheaded and then restored her at Parashurama’s request.1
South Indian tellings
An outcast woman is beheaded with Renuka and both are revived as goddesses, possibly the origin of Yellamma and Mariamman.1
Where to go next
Yellamma Temple, SaundattiThe hilltop shrine of Renuka Yellamma, one of the Deccan’s great goddess pilgrimages.
AI-created illustrationRenuka and ParashuramaThe mother beheaded at her husband’s command and restored at her son’s request.
AI-created illustrationYellamma full-moon fairs, SaundattiThe great pilgrim fairs on Yellamma’s hill at the full moons of Chaitra and Margashirsha.
Sources
- Encyclopedia Renuka — Wikipedia · accessed 2026-11-08
- Encyclopedia Yellamma Temple, Saundatti — Wikipedia · accessed 2026-11-08
Researched 2026-11-08 from the cited sources. Community corrections are welcome; traditions differ, and differences are shown rather than resolved.