Look Maa! 2 hands!
Baby Blanket 2
Temples built for Kali Maa
Dakshineswar Temple
In the year 1847, the wealthy widow Rani Rasmani prepared to go upon a long pilgrimage to the sacred city of Banaras to express her devotions to the Divine Mother.
We are told that the convoy of Rani Rasmani consisted of twenty four boats carrying relatives, servants, and supplies. But the night before the pilgrimage began, the Divine Mother, in the form of the goddess Kali, intervened. She appeared to the Rani in a dream and said,
"There is no need to go to Banaras. Install my statue in a beautiful temple on the banks of the Ganges river and arrange for my worship there. Then I shall manifest myself in the image and accept worship at that place."
| Profoundly affected by the dream, the Rani immediately looked for and purchased land, and promptly began construction of the temple. |
Kalighat Temple
The present temple (across the river from Dakshineswar Temple) was built in 1809 on the site of an ancient temple. It is also known as the Kalighat temple. It is on the name of this temple that English gave the place name Calcutta which is anglicized form of Kalikata.
This temple is visited by pilgrims from all over India irrespective of sectarian differences. The thousands of pilgrims who flock daily to the Kalighat temple treat Kali very much like a human mother, bringing her their domestic problems and prayers for prosperity, and returning when their prayers are fulfilled to express their gratitude. Their attitude towards the Goddess is guided by their religious traditions and training, their spiritual and intellectual capacities, and the guidance of their temple priests
Here at Kalighat temple, Kali Maa is represented with 3 eyes and a golden tongue.
There are other temples to Kaali - Sahasrabhuja Kaali, Sarvamangala, Tarasundari and Simhavaahini. Kaali is regarded as the destroyer or liberator and is depicted in a fearful form. Despite the terrifying form, she is considered to deliver bliss to worshippers. The Kalighat temple attracts numerous devotees throughout the year.
Kalighat is regarded as one of the 52 Shakti Peethams of India.
Baby blanket
ORIXA the meaning
ORIXA
An Orisha (also spelled Orisa or Orixa) is a spirit or deity that reflects one of the manifestations of God.
An entity that possesses the capability of reflecting some of the manifestations of the Most High Creator of all things seen & unseen. Yòrùbá Oriṣas (translated "owners of heads") are often described as connections between man and the supernatural. The term is often translated as "deity" or "divinity"
Its a very deep study & powerful spiritual practice to "call on the Orixas" many people worldwide refer to different ancestors & spirits also called "Orishas" through trance, rituals, meditations, dances, prayer & more!
They are worshipped in religions around the world such as Yoruba (Africa), Candomblé (Brazil), Santería (Cuba), and many others. By some counts, there are hundreds of Orishas.
Two of the most famous Orishas include Yemaja (the “Mother of Fish”), Orisha of the Sea and a mother figure for mankind, and Shango, Orisha of thunder and lightning. They are represented in the second and third images on the top row of the image above.
An Orisha (also spelled Orisa or Orixa) is a spirit or deity that reflects one of the manifestations of God.
Photos from Kali Maa's 1st official "Photo Shoot" coming soon!
Many more Pics & Prints available soon!
Kali Maa Orixa Free
KALI MAA the meaning
THE NAME...
Many people have asked 'what does that mean?' , well, it means sooooooo much!
As many words change definitions through translation and over time its important to get to the source also its equally important to consider re-established relative definitions especially when it come to names/titles.
Kemetic (Egyptian) hieroglyph for KA
KA - Life force, spiritual power (also called Chi, Prana, Ether, Nyama)
KALI - (kä`lē) [Hindi,= the Black One]
'Kali Ma' is the Triple Mother Goddess of creation, preservation & destruction in "Hinduism".
Known also as Durga [the Inaccessible] and as Chandi [the Fierce]
KALI
In Sanskrit it means "Beyond Time" or "Black"
In Swahili it means "Fierce" or "Intense"
In Hawaiian it mean "Hesitating"
In Senufo , a language spoken in Northern Ghana & Mali it means "Lively" or "Energetic"
Kali Ma is often depicted Black, Brown or dark Blue with various symbolic features and signs.
There are many stories about Kali Ma (or Kalika, or Maa Kali)
NOTICE THE SWORD IS A FEATHER! (remember that)
Side note: Other names include Kālarātri ("black night") and Kālikā ("relating to time")
In the practice of Tantra Yoga Kali Ma is praised as 'the highest reality' or 'greatest of all deities'.
In most myths and pictures her image is seemingly of death & destruction although Kali Ma is regarded as a most kind & loving mother of the entire universe.
In other words ...Perfect ,complete blackness or MAmma's womb!
THERE ARE MANY , MANY DIFFERENT MEANINGS BEHIND THE DIFFERENT ARTISTIC EVOLUTIONS OF KALI MA
Kali's most common four armed iconographic image shows each hand carrying variously a sword, a trishul (trident), a severed head and a bowl or skull-cup (kapala) catching the blood of the severed head.
Two of these hands (usually the left) are holding a sword and a severed head. The Sword signifies Divine Knowledge and the Human Head signifies human Ego which must be slain by Divine Knowledge in order to attain Moksha. The other two hands (usually the right) are in the abhaya (fearlessness) and varada(blessing) mudras, which means her initiated devotees (or anyone worshiping her with a true heart) will be saved as she will guide them here and in the hereafter.
Kali Ma is also said to reflect or derive from the divine Kemetic Goddess Sekhmet
Sekhmet's name meaning & attributes suit her function and parallels with Kali Ma.
Sekhmet: the (one who is) powerful. She also was given titles such as the (One) Before Whom Evil Trembles, the Mistress of Dread, and the Lady of Slaughter.
Sekhmet also was seen as a bringer of disease as well as the provider of cures to such ills, the name "Sekhmet" literally became synonymous with physicians and surgeons (as Kali Ma is with Yoga & meditation) .
Many members of Sekhmet's priesthood often were considered to be on the same level as physicians.
Sekhmet (also spelled Sachmet, Sakmet, Sakhet, Sekmet, Sakhmet and Sekhet) was originally the warrior goddess as well as goddess of healing.
She was envisioned as a fierce lioness, and in art, was depicted as such, or as a woman with the head of a lioness, who was dressed in red, the colour of blood. Often you will find Sekhmet & Kali Ma with the sun or fire on top or behind them. Sometimes the dress she wears exhibits a rosetta pattern over each nipple, & defined hair which can be traced to observation of the shoulder-knots (braids or dreads) hair on lions. Occasionally, Sekhmet was also portrayed in her statuettes and engravings with minimal clothing or naked meaning purity (like Kali Ma).
Also known as a divine arbiter or judge of the goddess MA'at
"AS WE KNOW, ALL RELIGIOUS SYSTEMS WERE BORN FROM ANCIENT EGYPT OR ETHIOPIA, SO WE CAN DRAW CONNECTIONS FOR DAYS BUT YOU HAVE TO DO MORE OF THAT KNOWLEDGE ON YOUR OWN!"
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MA' or MAA - is a timeless, shortened term for Mother or Mamma
In the case of our little Kali Maa it is also a name short for Maat (or Ma'at)
Maat is personified as the Kemetic goddess of harmony, justice, and truth represented as a young woman sitting or standing, holding a scepter, the symbol of power, in one hand and an ankh, the symbol of eternal life, in the other. Sometimes she is depicted with wings on each arm or as a woman with an ostrich feather on her head
Ma'at is a process not an event....
Here is an actual relief of Ma'at & Sehkmet getting offerings
When the dead were judged, it is was the feather of Ma'at that their hearts were weighed against. If hearts of the deceased are as "light as a feather", they were granted eternal life. The near-weightlessness of their hearts indicated that their souls were not burdened with sin, ego and evil.
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YES! KALI MAA is her name!
Kali Maa Orixa Free’s Birth Story (8.3.11)
I received a text from Michelle at 4:30 that Kanika and Fidel were on their way to the hospital. I got to the hospital at 6:30 and met them and Fidel’s mother, Savannah in the triage room. Kanika was sitting in the bed, breathing deeply and calmly through her contractions. Fidel had some meditation recordings that he played that really relaxed Kanika as she focused on them and breathed with them.
The nurse, Kari, came in at 7:00 to check Kanika’s cervix. She said that her cervix was paper thin, but had 0 dilation. Kari said she tried to get her fingertip into the dimple she felt in the center of the cervix but couldn’t. Keri said that it was unusual for a 1st time mom to be fully effaced without any dilation, and asked if Kanika had ever had any cervical procedures done. Kanika said she had a colposcopy and biopsy some time ago. The nurse said Kanika could go home and return in a few hours, since it wasn’t considered true labor until the contractions produced dilation or they could stay and have Dr. Tanner, the resident on duty come in and try to open the cervix a bit by removing any scar tissue. After Keri left we discussed the options. Kanika was a bit discouraged that she had been having contractions regularly for some time, and being told she wasn’t in clinical labor. I explained that the cervical procedure was important since it could cause a scar that didn’t allow stretching without some manipulation, and the four ways to progress in labor: station (how low the baby was), rotation (moving the cervix in line with the birth canal), effacing (thinning of the cervix) and dilation) opening of the cervix. If they went home for a couple of hours, we knew she would be returning shortly, but she could eat something. But if she stayed, they wouldn’t have the hassle of loading everything back in the car and Kanika wasn’t sure she wanted to be moving home just to return. They decided to wait for a half hour and then decide. Keri then returned and said that Dr. Lawrence, was coming to the hospital to discharge a patient and would come herself to assess Kanika’s cervix. Keri brought in a birthing ball and Kanika was laboring on it for a while.
Meanwhile, Kanika was continuing to labor nicely, but with some back pain. She decided to try a knee chest position to make room for the baby to shift her head and take the pressure off her back. She had some blood dripping during contractions and when she went to the bathroom. Dr. Lawrence came at 8:30 and found Kanika to be at 4-5 cm and 0 station.
We moved from the triage room to room 16 for birthing. Keri said the room had a lot of good karma, since it was where she delivered her last child naturally. She said it was the biggest of the rooms, and it didn’t have any windows which made it nice and dim for natural child birthing. She also said it was the nurses favorite room, and they usually chose it when they birthed their children. As soon as we got everything in the room, Keri started filling the tub. Kanika was able to have just intermittent fetal monitoring, so it allowed for much freedom of movement.
Kanika labored in the tub for about ½ hour – 45 minutes. Being on her back wasn’t very comfortable, so she floated on her side most of the time. At 9:30 she began to vomit, and Keri and I encouraged her that it was good to get it out and was a good sign of labor progressing and the baby moving down.
She got out of the tub at 9:40 and sat on the birthing ball, leaning on the bed. We used tennis balls on her back for some counter pressure as well as back massage. Savanah, Fidel and I all took turns rubbing Kanika’s back. At 10:30 she was checked and the nurse said she was a good 6 cm with a bulging bag. Kanika and Fidel did some slow dancing around 10:45 and at 11:00 Keri introduced Christina, the new nurse.
At 11:00. Kanika went back to bed, and labored on her side for most of the remainder of labor, except for a short time when she walked with Fidel. She went to the bathroom at 1:00, after which Christina checked her cervix and found her to be at 8 cm. Kanika’s contractions began to space out more at this time, coming only every 3-5 minutes, so Kanika was able to get some sleep. She continued to labor very well, using deep calming breaths and listening to the meditation recordings. She liked having someone hold her hands, and rub her back during contractions.
We laughed that we knew when a contraction was coming because Kanika would begin breathing a bit faster and hold out her arms and begin squeezing air with her hands. At 2:00, when Christina checked her, she was still at 8 cm, but there was part of the bag hanging out. At 2:20, Dr. Lawrence checked her and determined that the baby’s head was fully engaged, she was at 9 cm with just a slight lip, and what we were seeing was some of the inner bag, since when her membranes ruptured spontaneously earlier, only the outer bag broke. She ruptured the inner bag, found it slightly stained with meconium and told Kanika she could begin to push, but encouraged her to lay on her left side to help remove the last bit of lip. At 3:30, Jerilyn came in as her new nurse, and they decided to use a scalp monitor since the external monitor was so annoying for Kanika.
Dr. Lawrence suggested a knee chest position to push to help bring the baby down. During these pushing contractions, Dr. Lawrence and Jerilyn both noticed the baby’s head begin to rotate. After about 20 minutes, Kanika returned to her back and pushed on her back.
Kali Maa was born at 4:02, weighed 7# 11 oz. and was 20 ½ “ long. Her Apgars were 8/9 which was very good for a baby needing to be suctioned at birth due to meconium staining. The nurses were laughing because during suctioning and wiping her down, she also pooped again.
Kanika had some slight tearing needing 2 stitches. She was given a pitocin shot to help with bleeding, The placenta was delivered at 4:10. After the stitching was completed, Kanika was able to breast feed for about 15 minutes on each side. It only took Kali Maa a couple of minutes to figure out how this eating thing worked.
Kanika’s dad arrived around 5:30 and I left the hospital at 6:00. The plan was for Kanika to stay in the delivery room for a couple of hours before moving to her regular room.
Kanika showed incredible control throughout the entire labor. She was completely in her “zone” and stayed in it throughout. Fidel was a great source of encouragement and comfort. It was a true pleasure to participate in this special time in this new family’s life!
Doula - Diane Nelson
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