Kali The Goddess of Destruction
They say that Kali is the Hindu goddess of death, time and doomsday and that she is synonymous
with sexuality and violence. Though Kali does in fact have a more inspiring history in the
sense that she is also considered to be a strong and motherly figure as well as being
the embodiment of what is known as Shakti or feminine energy, creativity and fertility.
While there is often depictions of Kali being this soul-devouring monster of a woman with
limbs for jewellery and weapons for every hand, her loving form is often forgotten about
or simply overlooked. You would be forgiven for assuming Kali is solely the goddess of
destruction given the tales that are often spun about her, but she is also considered
to be the feminine form of time as well as the nature that brings things to life or death.
She is also often depicted carrying away the spirits of slain warriors. There are many
tales as to how Kali was brought into existence, though all of them appear to be vastly compelling.
In one version, we see Kali brought into existence by the warrior goddess Durga, who possessed
ten arms that each carried weapons as well as a tiger for which she used to ride into
battle against demons. Though in one encounter, it would appear that Durga became most infuriated
by the demons during one skirmish. She would become so enraged by her opposition that her
anger would explode from her forehead in the form of Kali. Once manifested, Kali appeared
to be a black-skinned goddess that went wild with bloodlust. She consumed the demons on
the battlefield on behalf of Durga and strung their heads on a chain for which she wore
around her neck. Though even after the demise of the demons, her rage could not be sated.
The gods were at loss as to what to do with her bloody outbursts until Shiva stepped in
and laid down in her path. When Kali realised she was stepping on Shiva, she was immediately
brought to her senses after recognising who he was. This story in the mythology serves
to show us how alike the gods are to humans, that sometimes our own rage is so uncontrollable
that we don't realise we could be hurting the ones we love. This is the case for Kali,
who only realises her actions when she has already stepped on Shiva, which is the catalyst
to her calming down. It's easy to see Kali's violent behaviour and epitomise her as a destructive
goddess, but the fact that she is able to see her fault and correct her own path shows
that she is not only a remorseful goddess, but one who is thoughtful and full of feeling
that she is able to pacify herself when confronted by Shiva.
In this story, Kali's association with the battleground is also devised. In ancient
Vedic texts however, Kali is not referred to as a goddess and is simply noted as one
of the seven flickering tongues of Agni the fire god. It's said that Kali is first mentioned
as a distinct goddess around 600AD and that in the texts from this time, she is placed
on the battlefield, much like the story involving her being born from Durga. The story involving
Durga continues where after Kali had consumed the demons, she would be engaged by the demon
Rakta-Bija. Like many of the demons, they were terrifying to comprehend and would cause
much trouble for both the gods and the mortals alike. Rakta-Bija also possessed an uncanny
ability that allowed him to produce more demons whenever his blood hit the ground. This in
essence made him virtually invincible, given that whenever he was attacked, his newly spawned
demons would leap to his aid. Realising she could not destroy Rakta-Bija using brute force,
Kali proceeded to swallow him whole so as to not spill his blood in the process. In
another version, Kali skillfully sliced Rakta-Bija's head off his neck and then drank all of his
blood, ensuring none of it fell to the ground and thus could not spawn any demons.
In this story, many consider Kali to be nothing more than the personified wrath of Durga and
the embodiment of her fury. Other origin stories involve Parvati and Shiva. Parvati,
the wife of Shiva, is typically portrayed as being benign and friendly, one who is often
considered to pacify Shiva in his destructive moments or at least serve as a balance for
his destructive tendencies. In one Shaivism text, Shiva is described as asking Parvati
to help him defeat the demon Daruka, who had received a boon that would only allow him
to be killed by the hand of a female. Parvati agrees and is said to merge with Shiva's
body, a concept often explored in Hinduism to show that Shiva and Parvati are one in
the same, that the masculine and feminine energy form the perfect balance. But in this
story, after merging with Shiva, the form of Kali is born and proceeds to defeat Daruka
and his army. Her bloodlust is said to get the better of her though and it is Shiva who
is described as being the one to calm her down, a contrast to the idea that Shiva is
the one who needs to be calmed down. A different version is described in medieval Sanskrit
text that states when Shiva addresses Parvati, who is in the form of Kali, as the dark blue
one, she is greatly offended. Parvati, as Kali, then performs an enchantment of some
kind that changes her dark complexion into one of gold and thus becomes known as the
manifestation Gauri. Another story involving Kali is her run in
with a band of thieves. The thieves were said to want to make a human sacrifice to her and
so chose a saintly monk as their target, against his will no less. The nature of the monk was
said to have been so pure that it spawned Kali who murdered the entire band of thieves,
removing their heads and drinking their blood. Many might see this as Kali's vengeance,
given the monstrous way in which she disposes of the thieves, but many also see this as
Kali being a protector, as she came in the monk's time of need to save him. It may
also be said that the reason for her tremendous punishment was equal to that of the monk's
holiness and that her treatment of her victims serves to inspire others to make the right
choices lest they feel her wrath. Kali has many different forms in which she
is depicted, but two of the most common is the popular four-armed form known as Dakshinakali
as well as the ten-armed form known as Mahakali. In both of these forms she is described as
having black skin, though in Indian art she is often depicted as having blue skin, possibly
to coincide with that of Shiva's. Her eyes are often seen as these two energetic and
often angry looking eyes, while her hair is usually dishevelled. Often her tongue rolls
out of her mouth and she stands aggressively, sometimes over the passive Shiva. Sometimes
she is naked or seen wearing a skirt made of tiger pelt or sometimes the arms or heads
of humans. Sometimes she is seen accompanied by serpents and jackals. She is also seen
wearing two matching earrings, some saying that these are actually embryos and that they
signify her love of children and that she favours those who have an innocent and almost
childlike mentality. In the Mahakali form though, or Great Kali
form as it is known, she is seen with ten faces, ten feet and three eyes upon each head.
She is often seen with ornaments decorated around her limbs. In her Dakshinakali form
though, the one with four arms, she is seen carrying a sword, a trident and also a severed
head for which she uses a bowl to catch its blood. The sword in her hand in this instance
is said to represent divine knowledge, while the human head is to represent the human ego
which must be slain in order to achieve what is known as Moksha or enlightenment. Many
see Kali therefore not as a destroyer of flesh, but more so the destroyer of ego. The protruding
of her tongue in this form also has some significance where it has been noted that the biting of
one's tongue in some cultures is considered to be an expression of embarrassment or modesty.
For it is accepted by some that Dakshinakali's protruding tongue is actually her expression
of embarrassment and or mortification that she has stepped on Shiva in the first place.
The other two hands are in the form of two gestures in Hinduism, one of fearlessness
and one of blessing which suggests that her worshippers and devotees will be saved as
she guides them here and thereafter. The term Dakshina also refers to the gift in which
gurus receive when performing a ritual and such gifts are often given with the emphasis
of the right hand. With Kali's two right hands held in gestures of blessings, it's
easy to see where the name Dakshinakali has stemmed from. Sometimes she can be seen with
a garland of numerous heads, for which represents the letters of the Sanskrit alphabet, an alphabet
and language that Hindus believe are symbolic for a form of energy or even a form of Kali
herself. In this sense, Kali is sometimes seen as the mother of languages and mantras.
The idea that Kali is more so a protective goddess than a destructive one also links
to a story where Yama, the god of death and the underworld, heard Kali's name. He was
so stricken by the whispers of her reputation that he fled in terror. Thus those who worship
Kali feel a protection from even death itself.
At the beginning of the video, I also mentioned that Kali was associated with time. This is
true in the sense that many compare her to that of mother nature or the idea of nature
and that Kali serves to preserve it. Many worship her not as a destructive force, but
as a preserver of nature, given that her hair flows long and free, to represent the freedom
in which nature has from civilisation. The idea that she is depicted naked also lends
to the idea that she is associated with nature, that she too is unburdened by civilisation
and man-made constructs. There also exists an idea with Kali being associated with time
that her dark skin represents the darkness which has always been present, even before
the creation of life under the sun. This fits in with her preserver role, that Kali exists
not to destroy, but instead to guard and make the most of life itself, similar to the role
of Vishnu, the preserver god. In this role as mother nature, she is referred to as Kali
Ma, meaning Kali the mother, and millions of Hindus revere her as primordial mother
goddess that is nurturing and loving. In terms of worship, goddesses play an important
role, particularly in the study and practice of the Tantra, a collection of ancient magical
stories and folk practices that exist alongside Vedic tradition. Parvati for example, was
said to have received her wisdom from Shiva in the form of Tantra practice. It is also
Kali who appears to dominate much of the Tantric iconography, texts and rituals. In many sources,
Kali is considered to be the highest and therefore greatest of all deities, where one Tantra
states that the three ultimate gods, Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva, all arise from Kali like
bubbles in the sea. In Bengali tradition, Kali has become a central figure since the
18th century. In this worship, the Bengali devotee is said to adopt the attitude of a
child in order to love Kali unpreservedly. Others have it that Kali is confronted on
cremation grounds in the dead of night, so that the devotee may show courage in the face
of the goddess and her terrible appearance. In either case, the devotee is said to become
attuned with death and learn also that death is a natural part of life that is not to be
feared. Kali has since even spread into the western world, where many consider her to
be an exciting figure to learn from and reflect upon. Feminists are a large set of participants
who are attracted to the idea of goddess worship and many resonate with Kali, who they consider
to be an embodiment of female power and sexuality. Despite all that we know about Kali, many
consider her to be the most misunderstood goddess of all. As I've stated, she is most
commonly associated with death, sexuality, violence and paradoxically, motherly love.
But it's also noted that while many modern feminists view Kali as a symbol of sexuality,
she isn't necessarily associated with sexuality in the original stories, where some believe
that she is celibate, practising both austerity and renunciation. But worship of Kali isn't
necessarily divine when we consider a group known as the Phagi, who operated in the 14th
to the 19th century of India. Membership to the group was said to be hereditarily achieved,
being passed down from father to son, although it was not unlikely for particular criminals
to be recruited if they were deemed worthy. Records of the Phagi are unclear, but it is
believed that during their peak, they had thousands of followers during its 600 years
of operation and have estimated to have killed anywhere between 500,000 and 2 million people.
The Phagi are said to trace their origin to the battle of Kali and Vagtabija and considered
themselves to be the children created from Kali's sweat. They would promote the fiercest
aspects of Kali, perhaps embellishing her destructive ways, and believe that in by committing
human sacrifices to her and assassinations, they were doing her sacred work. It's claimed
that they would eventually be wiped out by the British in the mid 19th century, where
others now consider the cult to be something of myth and folklore.
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