Traditional Chamunda (Sanskrit: चामुण्डा, IAST: Cāmuṇḍā), also known as Chamundeshwari, Chamundi or Charchika, is a fearsome form of Chandi, the Hindu mother goddess, Mahadevi and is one of the seven Matrikas.

He proposes the fierce nature of this goddess is due to her association with Rudra (Shiva), identified with the fire god Agni at times.

She is described as having four, eight, ten or twelve arms, holding a Damaru (drum), trishula (trident), sword, snake, skull-mace (khatvanga), thunderbolt, a severed head and panapatra (drinking vessel) or skull-cup (kapala), filled with blood.

She wears a jata mukuta, that is, a headdress formed of piled, matted hair tied together with snakes or skull ornaments.

[11] These characteristics, a contrast to the typical depictions of Hindu goddesses with full breasts and beautiful faces, symbolise the inevitability of old age, death, decay and destruction.

[17][18] In Hindu scripture Devi Mahatmya, Chamunda emerged as Chandika Jayasundara from an eyebrow of goddess Kaushiki, a goddess created from "sheath" of Durga and was assigned the task of eliminating the demons Chanda and Munda, generals of demon kings Shumbha-Nishumbha.

[19] According to a later episode of the Devi Mahatmya, Durga created Matrikas from herself and with their help slaughtered the demon army of Shumbha-Nishumbha.

The Varaha Purana text clearly mentions two separate goddesses Chamunda and Kali, unlike Devi Mahatmya.

[11] According to another legend, Chamunda appeared from the frown of the benign goddess Parvati to kill demons Chanda and Munda.

She with other matrikas was created by Shiva to help him kill the demon Andhakasura, who has an ability - like Raktabīja - to generate from his dripping blood.

[23] The text further says that Chamunda does a dance of destruction, playing a musical instrument whose shaft is Mount Meru, the string is the cosmic snake Shesha and gourd is the crescent moon.

The Matrikas are fearsome mother goddesses, abductors and eaters of children; that is, they were emblematic of childhood pestilence, fever, starvation, and disease.

The mothers are described as established by the creator god Brahma for saving king Harishchandra from calamities.

[36] Early Jains were dismissive of Chamunda, the goddess who demands blood sacrifice - which is against the primary principle of Ahimsa of Jainism.

According to this story, Chamunda sculpted the Mahavir image for the temple in Osian and was happy with the conversions of Hindu to Jainism and the subsequent renaming of their clan to Oswal.

At the time of Navaratri, a festival that celebrates the Hindu Divine Mother, Chamunda expected animal sacrifices from Jains.

Jain monk Ratnaprabhasuri intervened and preached her, and as a result, Chamunda accepted vegetarian offerings, forgoing her demand for meat and liquor.