The time of the Goddess is arising.

If we’ve been craving an experience of the sacred—feeling a desire to go deeper and seeking divine companionship as we head into our own unknown—it’s time to embrace the intense pull of the mysterious Kali Goddess.

In Yoga, we understand that all aspects of the self are represented in the spiritual realm and that there are prominent energies in the universe we can learn to harness. Kali energy is by far the fiercest. She is the great mother of all—also the great destroyer.

When Kali showed up in my life, everything changed.

At first I was uncertain as to why things seemed to be quickly falling apart. Why were people dropping away, love relationships dissolving and homes crumbling? I wanted to resist the upheaval, but there was no avoiding the endings permeating my world.

I knew I needed to work with these changes, and so I agreed to take Kali on as my new lover. My soul had called to her without my knowing; it desired immediate and massive growth, which is exactly what Kali is good for.

To work with Kali’s power, we must first realize the wisdom in her fierceness, for her ferocity serves a particular purpose.

Kali has learned to fight for the light. Traditionally in Vedic Theory (a precursor to modern Hinduism), she is the great warrior and slayer of all that is evil and dark. Depicted wearing a tiger pelt, carrying a garland of human heads, holding jeweled weapons and open flames in her many hands, she may first appear slightly intimidating.

As I learned, however, behind her warriorship lies an ultimate truth: she is the loving mother and protector of humankind. As I allowed her destruction in, I found a softness and willingness to trust change.

Like the wisest of mothers, Kali demands we do our own work, too. She’s no caretaker, but we can use her energy as a magnifying glass to reveal the places we need to heal.

The arrival of the Kali Goddess demands our self-purification, for there is always another layer to be shed. We can use her power to rise up, to burn ourselves in her flames and to transform stagnant patterns into free-flowing passion.

If we agree to date her, a Kali Goddess will ask everything of us, but she will also lend us her strength unconditionally. There are no maybes in her realm. She can be our companion to our tallest heights, and she will also lead us into our own darkest depths—Kali has no fear of the unchartered and loans us this bravery, too.

In Sanskrit, Kali means “black one,” because she embraces the act of death and destruction. I learned, though, that her taste for battle is not evil, but rather a pivotal step in the process of creating. As my world fell apart, her wisdom helped me understand that death must occur before rebirth. She was here to help me reinvent myself.

She is one of the tantric goddesses of Shaivism, a category of Hinduism drawn to asceticism and wandering. Thus coupling with Kali supports us in travel—not just outward, but deeply inward. She doesn’t understand limits or bounds and is the divine to date when we wish to explore our pure potential.

If we can handle her power in our lives, she will act as a priestess of truth, opening up secrets of the universe.

Kali does not grieve when things fall apart, and she helped me in my own letting go. She whispered to me that things are just as easily created—that destruction and creation are one.

To date a Kali Goddess, we must be ready, for she will surely shatter our world. Often, that is exactly what we need to truly transform.

When we are ready to surrender completely, we may allow this goddess to be our consort. She will lead us toward boundless light, right after she takes us through the dark.

If this is what your soul is asking for, call to her. She will come; she is always ready to be our companion in a purpose-filled fight.

“Just as all colors disappear in black, so all names and forms disappear in her.” ~ Mahanirvana Tantra

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Author: Sarah Norrad

Image: Chelsey Barnes/Flickr

Editor: Toby Israel

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