A key source of mythological knowledge about the shrine is the Sharada Sahasranama manuscript, written in the Sharada script, and communicated by the last Purohit of the Sharada temple.
It recounts the rishi Shandilya as performing a grand Yajna in the Sharda area, involving the local people and hundreds of worthy priests.
During the Yajna, a beautiful woman appeared, introducing herself as a Brahmini who wished to participate.
She said that she and her companion had come a long way and asked for food.
Shandilya welcomed her and told her that the rules of the Yajna forbade him from giving her the food: the Yajna had to be completed, and the Purohits fed first.
The Brahmini grew angry and declared herself to be Vāc, the Vedic goddess and Divine Mother.
She revealed to him that the Paramatman he worshipped was the essence of the goddess.
In her anger, she transformed before him into the divine Neela (or blue) form of Saraswati, with ornaments, weapons, and clouds, and declared that she would absorb the world.
In shock, remorse and fear, Shandilya collapsed and died.
Seeing his remorse, the goddess had him revived with Amrita, the elixir of life, and transformed into a different, graceful form of Saraswati.
Addressing him as "son", she told him that she was pleased with his devotion and compassion and would grant him whatever he wished.
Shandilya, addressing her as the Divine Mother, asked her to revive the dead and restore the village and forest.
Saraswati did so, instructing him to build his ashram at the base of the hill near the Madhumati river (present-day Neelum River).
She took her abode there at Sharada Peeth.

An alternative account holds that Shandilya prayed to the goddess Sharada with great devotion, and was rewarded when she appeared to him and promised to show him her real, divine form.
She advised him to look for the Sharada forest, and his journey was filled with miraculous experiences.
On his way, he had a vision of the god Ganesha on the eastern side of a hill.
When he reached the Neelum river, he bathed in it and saw half his body turn golden.
Eventually, the goddess revealed herself to him in her triple form of Sharada, Saraswati and Vagdevi, and invited him to her abode.
As he was preparing for a ritual, he drew water from the Mahāsindhu.
Half of this water transformed into honey, and became a stream, now known as the Madhumati stream.

A third account holds that during a fight between good and evil, the goddess Sharada saved a mythical container of knowledge and hid it in a hole in the ground.
She then transformed into a structure to protect this container.
This structure is now Sharada Peeth.
A key source of mythological knowledge about the shrine is the Sharada Sahasranama manuscript, written in the Sharada script, and communicated by the last Purohit of the Sharada temple. It recounts the rishi Shandilya as performing a grand Yajna in the Sharda area, involving the local people and hundreds of worthy priests. During the Yajna, a beautiful woman appeared, introducing herself as a Brahmini who wished to participate. She said that she and her companion had come a long way and asked for food. Shandilya welcomed her and told her that the rules of the Yajna forbade him from giving her the food: the Yajna had to be completed, and the Purohits fed first. The Brahmini grew angry and declared herself to be Vāc, the Vedic goddess and Divine Mother. She revealed to him that the Paramatman he worshipped was the essence of the goddess. In her anger, she transformed before him into the divine Neela (or blue) form of Saraswati, with ornaments, weapons, and clouds, and declared that she would absorb the world. In shock, remorse and fear, Shandilya collapsed and died. Seeing his remorse, the goddess had him revived with Amrita, the elixir of life, and transformed into a different, graceful form of Saraswati. Addressing him as "son", she told him that she was pleased with his devotion and compassion and would grant him whatever he wished. Shandilya, addressing her as the Divine Mother, asked her to revive the dead and restore the village and forest. Saraswati did so, instructing him to build his ashram at the base of the hill near the Madhumati river (present-day Neelum River). She took her abode there at Sharada Peeth.
An alternative account holds that Shandilya prayed to the goddess Sharada with great devotion, and was rewarded when she appeared to him and promised to show him her real, divine form. She advised him to look for the Sharada forest, and his journey was filled with miraculous experiences. On his way, he had a vision of the god Ganesha on the eastern side of a hill. When he reached the Neelum river, he bathed in it and saw half his body turn golden. Eventually, the goddess revealed herself to him in her triple form of Sharada, Saraswati and Vagdevi, and invited him to her abode. As he was preparing for a ritual, he drew water from the Mahāsindhu. Half of this water transformed into honey, and became a stream, now known as the Madhumati stream.
A third account holds that during a fight between good and evil, the goddess Sharada saved a mythical container of knowledge and hid it in a hole in the ground. She then transformed into a structure to protect this container. This structure is now Sharada Peeth.
Sharada Peeth