Conversations with Maa Kali - Part 6

Namaste readers. I know I haven't posted to this blog in Goddess knows how long. There just hasn't been time, between my life going sideways in various ways to a lack of creative spark. But tonight I want to change that. I want to revive this blog and see how far it can go.

Some good things have happened in my life too, to spur wanting to give this blog another go. My blog's writings on Maa Kali have reached the attention of some Shakti devotees in India...not many, but enough to have my writings featured on some Facebook pages. One such devotee even typed that s/he (I'm not sure of his/her gender) wanted to do Dandavat Pranam to me as I have "personally received Maa Kali's grace." While I'm not sure if that's true or not, that gave me some of the inspiration here to proceed.

I meditated on Maa Kali tonight, and She has given me some inspirational information...so this blog entry isn't quite a conversation per se, so much as explaining what She revealed to me.

And what did She reveal? The future of Goddess worship. She told me that for our world to be saved from an imbalance of masculinity, the Divine Feminine must be cultivated. To that end, Maa Kali told me that there must be a revolution in the way people worship Her, much like Jesus brought a revolution to Judaism and the Buddha brought a revolution to Hinduism.

This revolution is nothing less than democratization - opening the gates for everyone to worship Her, not just a select few. Not to force people to worship Her, mind you, as forced conversion is against the nature of the Divine Feminine. Rather, there must be a broadening of ways to worship the Goddess, and the aura of fear surrounding the Divine Feminine must be obliterated. The Goddess cannot be seen as an exclusive deity, hard to please and easy to offend. She cannot be seen as a tyrant any longer, but as the loving Mother She is, even in forms as violent-appearing as Maa Kali.

All the barriers to worshiping Maa Kali or any other form of the Goddess must be torn down. As for my role in tearing down these barriers, She only tells me it will be apparent in time, and to keep my present humility.

My usual disclaimers apply: I am NOT a religious authority. Do not take what I say as a binding truth. Please do not do anything to hurt others with my words. I cannot take responsibility for what others choose to do as a result of what I wrote here.

Shameless Plug Time

Namaste readers! For this blog post, it's going to be pretty simple. I'm going to try to plug two things at once - something from myself, and something from a fellow Maa Kali devotee that I came to know via Facebook.

First, I'm going to plug this fellow Maa Kali devotee's Facebook pages. She runs a couple of Facebook pages that I know of, with more content on other social networks, but it basically focuses on the good of Hinduism, and focuses on its positive aspects to encourage pride among its followers in India and beyond. I know that sounds like a lot of other Hindu social media sites out there, but what's different about this one is that she really puts some effort into her content - she makes videos, writes detailed posts, and chronicles important dates.

Her primary page is the Ancient Hinduism, with a Maa Kali dedicated page called Om Shakti - Om Krim Kali. There are links to her other social media spaces on those Facebook pages, including a beautiful Tumblr page.

As for the thing I'm plugging from myself, well, some listeners to the songs I have posted here have wondered why I have gotten into Carnatic (South Indian classical) music. Well, I explain why in the video below:

In This Moment

Namaste readers. Tonight is obviously a very important night for those of us living in the United States of America. And it may end up being important for the rest of the world too.

It's Election Day.

I'm not going to tell my readers who to vote for. You probably guessed by now who I'm voting for, but I don't want to tell others who to vote for. It's your decision, not mine, who you vote for.

That being said, no matter who you vote for, and no matter who wins, I want everyone to keep in mind this statement, a quote from Alec Empire, a musician known for his band Atari Teenage Riot:

Gatamoha (More Singing!)

Pretty self-explanatory blog post - I do more singing! This song is about Rama from the Ramayana. I might have flubbed the lyrics in a couple of places...please forgive me for that. Other than that, please keep your criticism constructive. :)

Thank You, Ma Kali

Om klim kalikayei namaha...

Ma Kali, so often associated with violence, ferocity and death...and yet with me She has been the most loving, nurturing and caring force of the universe I have ever known. Her presence in my mind is near constant. She has filled me with euphoria and pure spiritual love when my mind was thinking its most bleak thoughts. I merely think of Her and I can't help but swoon over Her love.

How Ma Kali came to be the force behind my desire to live and live fully I sometimes question... But the question immediately changes to why I question this, as She assures me She wouldn't have it any other way. There are some that say those who see Ma Kali's fearsome visage in real life cannot bear the sight and live. And yet I have this feeling that if I saw Her in real life, as unlikely as that may be, that instead of dying I would be so full of life and joy that I would fall to Her feet in genuine worship and gratitude.

She has done so much for me in such a short time. How I lived this long without acknowledging Her presence in my life I can't fathom.

Goddess Kali is Metal as Hell

Namaste readers! Hopefully, if you've read the title of this blog post, you aren't getting any wrong impressions. Obviously heavy metal and Hindu philosophy/spirituality are two very different things - one's a (relatively modern) music genre and the other is a timeless belief system that's helped out millions of people even today, especially myself.

But after reading some news on some scientific studies of heavy metal - especially some surprising ones about how metalheads generally have a peaceful nature, how listening to heavy metal can actually make you calmer and happier, and similar - I've come to realize something: that maybe my love of heavy metal music, and my love for Maa Kali, aren't so incompatible after all. After all, the Goddess Kali, if you examine Her from a heavy metal standpoint, is metal as hell. I mean, come on, look at Her:

She adorns herself with blood and gore (Her necklace is made of human heads and Her dress is made out of dismembered arms, for crying out loud), is regularly found slaying demons, and is generally badass. Images of the Goddess wouldn't be so out of place among the art of death metal albums of such bands as Cannibal Corpse and Cattle Decapitation. But devotees of the Goddess Kali are among some of the kindest people I've ever met, and Maa Kali is seen by these devotees not as a belligerent, unforgiving deity that needs to be propitiated to avoid consequence, but as a caring, compassionate Mother Goddess who would do anything for Her children.

I personally don't find it much of a coincidence that the extreme imagery of heavy metal and the extreme imagery of Goddess Kali have a similar effect on most people - calming them down and making them happy by eliminating their fear of the extreme. I know such imagery can have different effects on different people, as there are jerks among heavy metal fans and Maa Kali devotees, but you could say that about any human identity. All I'm trying to say here is that even though these concepts aren't the same - far from it, as some might say - they both serve the same purpose, and that is to spread happiness and compassion.

Sri Saraswati Hithe

More of my learning and singing of Carnatic (South Indian) music. Enjoy, and constructive criticism welcome.