Kali

The Hindu Goddess Kali is the goddess of time. The weapons she holds in her right arms are reminders of her power to destroy. She wears nothing but a skirt of human arms and a necklace of heads. In her upper left arm she carries a freshly severed human head. No one can escape her clutches, and the arms and heads, are from young and old alike, and are further reminders of the random way in which death strikes. This is emphasised by her black colour, since in total darkness we are not aware of the differences between people. In her lower left arm she holds flames which may be a reminder that she haunts the places where bodies are cremated. Her dishevelled hair tells of her free and continuous activity, while her lolling, blood-soaked tongue is a reminder of her thirst for destruction. She stands on the corpse of her consort Shiva, who represents all that remains at the end of time.
Read less