Manasa  the goddess of snakes, also known as the goddess of agriculture. Basically a folk goddess, Manasa was later incorporated into the Vedic pantheon. According to the puranas, the hermit Kashyap, commanded by brahma, composed the snake mantras and out of it was born Manasa. She is the sister of the snake king Basuki; her husband is Jaratkaru and her son Astik. She is also known as Jagatgauri, Shaivi, Vaishnavi, Nageshwari, Siddhayogini etc. She is pictured as a fair-complexioned goddess, who wears a red dress. Her face is round, calm and serene. Mounted on a swan, Manasa is flanked by snakes. Manasa Puja is observed on the nagpanchami tithi (the fifth day of the lunar month) in Asadh.

Worshipping snakes in India is an ancient ritual and is mentioned in the Grhyasutra. Statues of snakes, dating as far back as the Indus Valley Civilisation, have been found all over India. Several statues of the deity, adorned with hood and decorated pitcher, have been unearthed in places such as Satna, Dinajpur, and Rajshahi.

Brindaban Das relates that at the time of Chaitanyadev, Manasa Puja was performed with great fanfare with clay idols of the goddess. It is still customary in many places of Bengal to worship Manasa by offering milk and banana in a pot or at the foot of a tree called sij (euphorbia nerrifolia). In some places, Astamangala is sung for eight days after the puja. Musical plays based on Manasa are also held at other times of the year.

Manasa has had a profound influence on the Hindu community. There are many legends about her stressing that worshipping the snake goddess will keep people safe from snakebites. Conversely, disrespect to her brings catastrophe, usually in the form of the disrespectful person being killed by a snake. The story of Behula-Lakhindar is one such popular legend, narrating how Lakhindar was killed because his father refused to acknowledge Manasa's power. The medieval manasamangal epics, eulogising Manasa constitute an important genre of bangla literature. Famous Manasamangal poets include vijay gupta and bipradas pipilai. Decorated Manasa pots, depicting the snake goddess, are a colourful form of folk art. [Monoranjan Ghosh]