Friday, August 7, 2009

Friday Finds - Kali

I've been thinking a lot about endings & beginnings lately. I've been told for a few months now that things are changing and not to worry about an ending because with an ending comes a new beginning. With all of the layoffs that happened at work recently and the impending threat of more, change certainly does seem to be in the air but hasn't touched me... yet. It certainly does feel, however, that things are coming to a head so only time will tell at this point.

The goddess Kali is commonly known as the destroyer. But, she's misunderstood really. Sure she looks kind of frightening with her four arms (one wielding a sword, another with the severed head of a demon), the garland of skulls, her tongue sticking out, and her girdle of human arms; but two of her hands bless her worshipers and the symbology of her representation isn't quite that scary at all. Her black complexion symbolizes her all-embracing and transcendental nature. Kali is free from the illusory covering of clothing, for she is beyond the all maya or "false consciousness." Kali's garland of fifty human heads stands for the fifty letters in the Sanskrit alphabet, symbolizing infinite knowledge. Her girdle of severed human hands signifies work and liberation from the cycle of karma. Her sword is the destroyer of false consciousness. So even with the death and destruction comes creation.





3 comments:

Bri said...

Love the little skull bracelet. And that painting is so colorful!!!

Athena's Armoury said...

I'm glad you liked my Kali themed finds! Thanks for stopping by!

William said...

Thought Kali destroyed ignorance. Guess False Consiousness falls in there.