Kundalini, Kali and Durga!

Kundalini, Kali and Durga

When kundalini has just awakened and you are not able to handle it, it is called Kali. When you can handle it and are able to use it for beneficial purpose and you become powerful on account of it, it is called Durga.

Kali is a female deity,naked,black or smoky in colour, wearing a mala of one hundred and eight human skulls, representing the memories of different births. Kali's lolling tongue of a blood red colour signifies the rajo guna whose circular movement gives impetus to all creative activities. By this specific gesture, she is exhorting sadhakas to control thier rajo guna. The sacrificial sword and the severed head held by the left hand are the symbols of dissolution.

The awakening of Kali has been described in great detail. When Kali rises in red anger, all the gods and demons are stunned and everybody keeps quiet. They do not know what she is going to do. They ask lord Shiva to pacify her, but Kali roars ferociously, throwing him down and standing on his chest with her mouth wide open, thirsty for flesh and blood. When the devas hold prayers to pacify Kali, she becomes calm and quiet.

Then there is emergence of Durga, the higher, more refined and benign symbols of the unconscious. Durga is a beautiful goddess seated on a tiger. She has eight hands representing the eightfold elements. Durga wears a mala of human heads to symbolize her wisdom and power. These heads are fifty two in number, representing the fifty two letters of the Sanskrit alphabet, which are outer manifestation of Shabda Brahma or Brahma in the form of sound. Durga is the remover of all evil consequences of life and giver of power and peace that is released from mooladhara chakra.

According to yoga philosophy, Kali, the first manifestation of the unconscious kundalini is a terrible power ; it completely subdues the individual soul, represented by her standing on Lord Shiva. It sometimes happen that due to mental instability, some people come into contact with their unconscious body and see inasuspicious, ferocious elements- ghosts, monsters, etc. When Kali, the unconscious power of man, is awakened she goes up to meet the further manifestation, being Durga, the superconscious, bestowing glory and beauty.

Swami Satyananda Saraswati.