Durga is a major Hindu goddess revered as protector and conqueror of destructive forces. In the Devi Mahatmyam (Durga Saptashati), the celebrated Mahishasuramardini narrative shows the Goddess defeating the buffalo-demon Mahisha after other gods are unable to overcome him. Art often shows her with many arms, divine weapons and a lion or, in some regional depictions, a tiger.
Many Shakta traditions regard Durga as an expression of the supreme Goddess; in other settings she is closely identified with Parvati, Shiva's consort. These associations should not be flattened into a single mandatory theological genealogy. Durga's iconography communicates protective power and the overcoming of disorder, yet particular rituals, myths and names vary regionally and across textual traditions.