the Mother Goddess. A conclusion will address the significance of Kali in contemporary Asian nations.
There are many Hindu texts are works of literature that document the significance of Kali. One in particular shows how she is viewed as beautiful, feminine and motherly despite her often fierce nature and depiction in images from artworks to sculpture. Yet the following hymn that describes Kali by the poet Ramprasad Sen's Kali-bhakti also implies satiating her bloodthirsty nature only makes her more appealing:
Mother, incomparably arrayed,
Hair flying, stripped down,
You battle-dance on Shiva's heart,
A garland of heads that bounce off
Your heavy hips, chopped-off hands
For a belt, the bodies of infants
For earrings, and the lips.
The teeth like jasmine, the face
A lotus blossomed, the laugh,
And the dark body billowing up and out
Like a storm cloud, and those feet
Whose beauty is only deepened by blood.
Can I take much more? Can I bear
As much as Kali is viewed as the Mother Goddess, she is also viewed as fierce protector or her people (i.e. children). Those who worship her often view her terrifying power as beauty since it is that power she wields to protect them. Kali often has three eyes and a frightful glare and countenance, illustrating her fierce wrath. The depiction of Kali seen in the image below is one that was created in Mongolia (1700-1799), and is constructed using ground mineral pigment and fine gold line on cotton:
The Wrathful Black Varahi (Mongolia 1700-1799)
The above image also shows the tradition of the Zhije School that has been adopted by all the Sarma Schools of Tibetan Buddhism, particularly evident in the "skullcup" of blood on the lower right and the "skullcup" of nectar on the lower right of the image that ar...