Who is the Goddess Kali: 5 Important Things to Know
Who is the Goddess Kali? How can we form a relationship and understanding with her?
Here are 5 Important things you need to know about Kali. This is part 1 of a multi-part series on Ma Kali!
“She is the highest symbol of all the forces of nature, the synthesis of their antinomies, the Ultimate Divine in the form of woman.” Swami Nikhilananda
Who is Kali?
First, who is Goddess Kali?
Kali, otherwise known as Kali Ma or Goddess Kali, is a powerful Hindu Goddess whose presence transcends time and defines strength and resilience. She is seen as the destroyer of evil, providing spiritual guidance and protection for her devotees.
She is Shiva’s other half as Shiva and Shakti, and a transformative Diety who listens to the cries of her children.
As with any Hindu God or Goddess, she is worshipped by millions of people in India and abroad. You will find a greater concentration of her worshippers in West Bengal where Mother worship is prevalent but there are also many devotees and Kali temples in Nepal and all of India.
There is even a temple here in California, Kali Mandir, that is dedicated to the Goddess Kali and has a thriving community with daily puja, worship, chanting, singing, and monastic members dedicated to Her service.
Kali is famous for her disheveled appearance and garland of skulls around her neck. She is often portrayed as a very fierce goddess but is known as the Loving Mother of the Universe for those who worship Her.
The Goddess Kali is everything to her devotees.
She is the absolute, the Great Cause, and the Great dissolution.
But to those who do not know her, she can appear scary, fierce, or even seductive. She is usually misinterpreted by Western culture so it is important to remember that she is adored and brought back into focus by studying her systematically.
In this way, we can learn much from scholarly experts and intense sadhakas who have delved into Her sadhana with pure hearts and focused attention.
I am sharing my small lens of viewing Kali, I am by no means an expert but I do love learning about Kali, worshiping her, studying her, and making Pilgrimages to India to visit her in her famous temples. This small scope of information is what I have learned from studying her the past 18 years with Kali expert worshippers and teachers.
It is my privilege to study with these teachers and my humble attempt to share this with you…but the one thing I do know for sure is that I feel that she holds me through all difficulties, that she is the one who listens to my cries, she is the one helping me in my spiritual path, she has transformed my life…
There is no amount of repayment I can give to Her for that. I just try to pray to her, please her with singing to her, worshipping her, and pray that I can somehow propitiate her and receive her Grace.
Love, love, love, Mother is nothing but Love!
The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna
Swami Nikhilananda is a famous swami in the Ramakrishna Order for translating The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, which is a detailed account of Sri Ramakrishna’s conversations and life. This is one of the most documented sources that exists on daily interaction with Kali and worship of Her by an incarnation of God.
Swami Nikhilananda wrote of Kali in his introduction describing her as such:
“She has four arms. The lower left hand holds a severed human head and the upper grips a blood-stained sabre. One right hand offers boons to Her children; the other allays their fear. The majesty of Her posture can hardly be described. It combines the terror of destruction with the reassurance of motherly tenderness. For She is the Cosmic Power, the totality of the universe, a glorious harmony of the pairs of opposites. She deals out death, as She creates and preserves. She has three eyes, the third being the symbol of Divine Wisdom; they strike dismay into the wicked, yet pour out affection for Her devotees.”
5 Important Things you Should Know About Kali Ma
So let’s dig into the main points that we have here to learn about Kali and how to form a relationship with Her. She is the Supreme refuge of all…
#1: Misinformation about Kali
If you look Kali up on the Internet or Social Media you’ll find all sorts of pictures, articles, pins and posts, and songs of her on YouTube. You can also find, however, lots of miss information about Kali. So-called experts or people who have not researched her, studied her, nor know her academically or devotionally post lots of inaccurate or a one-sided views of Kali. She is very misunderstood.
They depict her as something of a superhero vixen, or inappropriately, or in her terrible aspect only. Just a note of caution…always vet the sources who you are studying spirituality with. Swami Nikhilananda commented on this in his introduction in Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, “ To the ignorant She is, to be sure, the image of destruction.”
Yes, Kali does embody all of these terrible aspects too. Every single bit of these from the least to the greatest in every single aspect that you could think of. But to those who study her and are devoted to her, this is not the main focus for us nor should it be. This is key.
Kali is worshiped all the time in most temples in West Bengal, India, and many other parts of India where mother worship dominates. But they mostly worship her in the benign and loving form as our very own Mother. There are also different scholarly approaches to her and different ways of viewing Kali according to which school of Hinduism is explaining Her.
Yes, there are saints who have worshiped the terrible in Kali but these are few and far between. These were Super pure saints. Therefore it is wise for those of us who are just studying her, just beginning to understand, and worship her stick to the sattvic (clean) path of study.
#2 Kali is the Divine Mother of the Universe
Ma Kali is the Divine Mother of the universe, the empress of the universe. Her glory is unmeasurable but her love is so tangible for those who want to know her.
Goddess worship is very prevalent in Hinduism.
The Goddess forms are often worshipped in place of or before their male counterparts in many sects of Hinduism. So Kali is the creatress of the Universe, the Power who holds and sustains this universe. This is the Shakta view of religion and one that millions of people follow. To the Shakta she is the same as God is to the Christians' view of religion.
Even Brahma and Vishnu are narrated in the Puranas as seeking the Divine Mother’s blessing and pleading to put the Earth back in order and out of chaos.
And the Universal Mother embodied in the Divine form of Kali is Mother to everyone.
#3 Kali History of Worship
The history of her worship was first known in the Bengal region of India. There are different scholarly approaches to finding her origination but it is known that the exact time cannot be pinpointed when she came into modern religion.
The Chandi is one of the famous scriptures of India that has the story of the Divine Mother Durga coming to save the universe from absolute peril and terrible demon kings. During a fierce battle, Durga turns into Kali and she fiercely destroys the demon armies.
So the Chandi is really a historical mark on the appearance of Kali in Hindu Literature. There are also mentions in the Vedas but it definitely gets a little confusing on the exact dates so many refer to the Chandi as one of her first appearances.
Kolkata (formerly Calcutta) has a rich history dating back to the 1700s and before. And some believe that the name of the city itself is named after Kali.
“The city’s former name, Calcutta, is an Anglicized version of the Bengali name Kalikata. According to some, Kalikata is derived from the Bengali word Kalikshetra, meaning “Ground of (the goddess) Kali.”
https://www.britannica.com/place/Kolkata
#4: Famous Worshippers of Kali
Also with the study of Kali, we need to know some of her famous saints who worshiped her. Note though, in India these are not even considered Saints, some are considered Avatars or incarnations of God. They are just as common to people in India as Jesus is to Christians in the west.
These avatars and Saints who worship Kali have changed the world forever. Their literature and message spread all over the world. Specifically should be mentioned is Sri Ramakrishna, the Avatar who lived in the Dakshineswari Kali Temple near Kolkata, West Bengal.
The Vedanta societies in particular were founded by Swami Vivekananda who is the direct disciple of Sri Ramakrishna and was the first Indian to bring Hinduism to America. He then later went to England and many countries of Europe to continue to be the first Indian man to spread the Sanatana Dharma with a specific emphasis on Vedanta philosophy.
About Ma Kali and Sri Ramakrishna, Swami Nikhilananda wrote:
“ She is surrounded by jackals and other unholy creatures, the denizens of the cremation ground. But is not the Ultimate Reality above holiness and unholiness? She appears to be reeling under the spell of wine. But who would create this mad world unless under the influence of a divine drunkenness?
She is the highest symbol of all the forces of nature, the synthesis of their antinomies, the Ultimate Divine in the form of woman.
She now became to Sri Ramakrishna the only Reality, and the world became an unsubstantial shadow. Into Her worship he poured his soul. Before him She stood as the transparent portal to the shrine of Ineffable Reality.”
These powerhouses are quite popular and well-known all throughout the world.
Here is the soul-enthralling poem Swami Vivekananda wrote about Mother Kali:
The stars are blotted out,
The clouds are covering clouds,
It is darkness vibrant, sonant.
In the roaring, whirling wind
Are the souls of a million lunatics
Just loose from the prison-house,
Wrenching trees by the roots,
Sweeping all from the path.
The sea has joined the fray,
And swirls up mountain-waves,
To reach the pitchy sky.
The flash of lurid light
Reveals on every side
A thousand, thousand shades
Of Death begrimed and black —
Scattering plagues and sorrows,
Dancing mad with joy,
Come, Mother, come!
For Terror is Thy name,
Death is in Thy breath,
And every shaking step
Destroys a world for e’er.
Thou “Time”, the All-Destroyer!
Come, O Mother, come!
Who dares misery love,
And hug the form of Death,
Dance in Destruction’s dance,
To him the Mother comes.
#5: Important Kali Mantras
Kali Sahasranama Stotram
2. Beej Mantra or the Seed Mantra for Kali is important to know. This is the potent mantra that calls Mother Kali
Beej Mantra for Kali: “Kreem”
The Mantra protects you from all the evil forces.
3. Kali Maa Mantra
ॐ
“Om Krim Kalikayai Namah”
Meaning: I bow my head to the Goddess Kali
4. The Maha Kali Mantra
“Om Sri Maha Kalikayai Namaha”
The mantra helps to vanish all kinds of problems, no matter how complex they are.
5. Maa Kali Mantra for Spiritual Growth
“Om Hrim Shreem Klim Adya Kalika Param Eshwari Swaha”
6. The 108 Names of Ma Kali
This hymn is sung in praise of Kali and to please and worship her.
7. Kali Gayatri Mantra
Om Maha Kalyai
Ca Vidmahe Smasana Vasinyai
Ca Dhimahi Tanno Kali Prachodayat
Final Notes about Mother:
Again, this is the first part of a multi-part series on Kali. This is literally an unending subject matter. A complex one as well. But at the same time it is simple to summarize, She is our Mother. We are her children. Kali is magical. She will come if you call, she does listen, she does help and she will transform us.
Jai Ma Kali!
Jai Ma Kali!
Jai Ma Kali!!
Jai Ma Kali!
She is all.
I am cheering you on!
Looking for more resources? Visit my most read blogs and get tons of good info and tips
Meditation for Beginners -Aids to Help you with Your Practice
Numerology 101-How to Lead a More Divinely Guided Life with Numerology
Much Love! Much Light!
I’m cheering you on in your spiritual quest!
Heather Hathaway, M.Ed.
