Deities

Bonbibi

Hindu Deities

Citation Formats

General Reference

Divinity Atlas. "Bonbibi." Accessed August 30, 2026. https://dev-divinity.interactiveatlas.org/deities/bonbibi.

APA Style

Divinity Atlas. (n.d.). Bonbibi. Retrieved August 30, 2026, from https://dev-divinity.interactiveatlas.org/deities/bonbibi

BibTeX

@misc{divinityatlas-bonbibi,
  author = {Divinity Atlas},
  title = {Bonbibi},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://dev-divinity.interactiveatlas.org/deities/bonbibi},
  note = {Accessed August 30, 2026}
}

Bonbibi is the forest guardian goddess of the Sundarbans, the tiger inhabited mangrove delta straddling India and Bangladesh, venerated jointly by Hindu and Muslim communities alike. Honey collectors and woodcutters entering the forest seek her protection from tiger attack and from Dakshin Rai, the tiger demon lord of the forest with whom her legend recounts a decisive contest. Her story is recorded in the Bonbibir Jahuranama, and shrines to her stand at the forest's edge across both countries.

Facts

History

Historical Note

Bonbibi's legend is recorded in the Bonbibir Jahuranama, and her cult is one of the clearest living examples of shared Hindu and Muslim religious practice in Bengal: both communities visit her shrines and seek her protection before entering the forest, a joint veneration Annu Jalais' fieldwork documents as ordinary rather than exceptional among Sundarbans forest workers. 1

Identity

Gender

Female 1

Belief

Theology

Debated 1

Bonbibi is venerated jointly by Hindu and Muslim communities of the Sundarbans, so her cult sits across two theological frameworks at once rather than fitting cleanly under either, and scholarship treats her as a shared regional guardian figure rather than assigning her a single settled classification.

Function

Domain / Function

Wilderness and wild animals 1

Attributions

Mythic Association

Bonbibi's legend recounts a decisive contest with Dakshin Rai, the tiger demon lord of the Sundarbans forest, over the fate of those who enter it; her story is recorded in the Bonbibir Jahuranama. 1

Cross-Tradition Connections