Resource: Devotion to Kali
Media Type:
QuickTime Video
Length: 2m 54s
Size: 8.5 MB
This video from Religion & Ethics NewsWeekly shows devotees of Kali worshipping her by bathing, feeding, clothing and comforting the deity with a gentleness they would extend a small child or honored guest. Widely worshipped by Hindus, Goddess Kali is considered “prime cosmic energy,” transcending time and representing simultaneous creation and destruction.
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Loading reviews...Teachers' Domain, Devotion to Kali, published July 2, 2009, retrieved on ,
http://www.teachersdomain.org/resource/awr09.socst.world.glob.kali/
- Background Essay
- Questions for Discussion
- Standards
Print Background EssayThe Hindu Goddess Durga is the source of Goddess Kali; Goddess Kali springs from Durga’s brow on specific occasions to battle demons. It is not clear how Goddess Durga came into being. A Sanskrit text of 700 verses composed between 500 to 400 BCE and known as the Devi Mahatyam of the Markandeya Purana, tells of early gods creating Durga to battle the shape-changing, earth-consuming demon, Mahishasura. In a related account, Durga introduces herself in the Rig Veda text as a form of the eternal Brahman or ultimate reality, and the creator of all the gods.
Kali is her own divinity. For some, Kali is supreme, singular and transcendent of a male counterpart, but for others, her divine husband is known as MahaKala(Shiva). Shiva, prostrate on the ground before her, is seen as instrumental in arresting Kali’s rampage. Kali in turn, puts her foot on his chest, regaining control. Many Hindus regard neither Kali nor Shiva as dominant, but view each as ineffectual without the other.
Kali is black, which absorbs and dissolves all color, and has four arms. One left arm holds the heads of demons, and the other a sword or gallant. The two right hands bless devotees, with one giving boons while the other gestures the shape of a mudra, meaning “fear not.” She wears a necklace of 50 severed heads, each representing a letter in Sanskrit. Her name, meaning “time,” is represented in three eyes symbolizing the past, present and future. Kali devours time and then resumes her formless nature. Despite her horrifying appearance, Kali is considered one of the most loving gods. She appears embodied only to restore balance to a world overcome by evil, while providing blessings and protection to her devotees or children.
Worshippers treat Kali with the kindness they would give to a child or a respected guest. The deity is bathed, fed, clothed, comforted, and given rest and prayers. In Kerala, the southern state of India and the region most associated with Kali worship, the goddess is shown through images and ritual performances, or brought to life through kalams, which are portraits of gods in colorful powders.
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