Right at the time of his birth Kali carried an Upaasthi (a small bone) and his entire body complexion was sooty and dark. This huge-being, with a terrible tongue and an obnoxious smell about his entire physique, chose gambling, liquor, woman (prostitutes) and gold as his permanent abodes. ~ The Kalki Purana
Often it is presumed that Kali, the fierce aspect of the Vedic Goddess, is the divinity ruling over the Age of Iron.
Not so. Our ferocious and merciful Mother has been much maligned. Her role, far from demonic, is in fact that of demon-slayer.
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The Kali Yuga is instead the age of Kali, a demon born in different eras as Ravana ( the bad guy of the Ramayana tales) and Duryodhana.
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Kali, the Goddess, is spelled and pronounced Kālī, with long vowel sounds. It is the feminine form of Kāla, a name for Shiva.
Kali the demon - in contrast - is a snappy-sounding word.
The demonic Kali takes his name from the Sanskrit root kad which means to “suffer, grieve, hurt, confound, or confuse”. (Gwendolyn Taunton, see Source below)
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Some legends say that Kali, the demon, was formed from that portion of the poison, generated by the churning of the oceans, that Shiva did not drink. Others say that Brahma brought Kali into being to fulfil the pralaya (Dissolution) of the last age, and to usher in the age of iron.
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Kali incarnated when Krishna left the earth. Krishna is an avatar of Visnhu. And Kali will remain on his stampede through the ages, until Vishnu incarnates again in his future avatar known as Kalki, at which time a new Golden Age will commence.
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Kali ~ The name of the worst throw in dice, and of the worst of the four ages of the world, personified as a powerful evil being. (Wikipedia)
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Some Sources ~
https://manticorepress.net/tantra-the-kali-yuga-the-occidental-traditionalist/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kali_(demon)
https://kashgar.com.au/blogs/gods-goddesses/kali-a-most-misunderstood-goddess
Replies
The Kalki Purana describes him as a huge being, the color of “soot,” with a large tongue, and a terrible stench. ...a kind of Filthy description for Kali
but interestingly :
The name 'Kalki' is derived from the Sanskrit word 'kalka' (Devanagari: कल्क) which means Sediment or Filth. So, the name "Kalk"+"I" means "Born in (or from) Sediment/Filth'
Oh. Cool. I hadn't looked up the etymology of Kalki. Makes sense though.
Quote about the arrival of Kalki (note Hari and Kesava are fond names for Vishnu)..
I thought I would put in the list of Vishnu's avatars, the dashavatara, dasa meaning ten. They all have interesting stories attached to them in the mythologies, though the ones people might be most familiar with are Krisha, and earlier tales of Rama (and Sita and the forest etc.) from the Ramayana. One of the interesting things I have noticed about the avatars is they include ...hmm...not reptilian in the perjorative sense, but at least the Tortoise is a reptile, and there is first a fish, a aquatic being (our gills in the womb). Then Tortoise / Reptile. And then the avatars move through pure animal - boar, to half human half animal Narasimha, and then it is a stunted form of human, the dwarf avatar, then it is a war-like human, then priestly and princely noble avatars, and related avatars, then Buddha who has gone beyond caste and status, is almost ethereal, and will finally be Kalki, who I have not thought that much about yet. So there is this progression that mirrors our possible evolution, or at least the evolution of our soul essence. Anyways, here are the list of avatars, with Nina Paley's thumbnail illustrations of them. I like her work, Sita Sings The Blues is an awesome piece of animation.
Matsya The Fish
Kurma The Tortoise
Varaha the Boar
Narasimha the LionMan
Vamana The Dwarf
Parashurama The Axe Wielding Brahmin
Rama The King
Krishna The Cowherd Prince
Balarama, Krishna's Brother
Buddha
Kalki, the Future Avatar
Kalki is supposed to manifest in the village of Shambhala. This is not the same Shambhala (in my opinion, so take it for what that's worth!) as depicted by the Theosophists. It is described in the Kalki Purana as being a very beautiful place,
And even though Roerich was very influenced by the theosophists and Blavatsky, here is his image of Kalki emerging from the mountains, on his white horse, in a cloud like form..
Quote about the arrival of Kalki (note Hari and Kesava are fond names for Vishnu)..
this is quite intriguing as many other civilizations associated sword and comet :
Stunning Depictions of Ancient Comets That Scared the Hell Out of H...
we know that the ancient Vedas were familiar with the Great Year and all its astronomical relations ....
When the sky was clear with moon and stars, it is said that Asi (sword) arose, emitting fire. As it arose, the earth shook and the oceans got disturbed. Displaying the sword in the sky, being intent on a battle, (Rudra) moved in various directions. For Asi, Krttika is the birth star; Agni (fire) is the godn Rohini is the gotran and Rudra is the teacher.
as Above so Below
from: Comets in the Vedas
thank you for mentioning
Matsya The Fish
Matsya (Sanskrit: मत्स्य, lit. fish), is the avatar of the Hindu god Vishnu in the form of a fish. Often listed as the first avatar in the lists of the ten primary avatars of Vishnu, Matsya is described to have rescued the first man, Manu, from a great deluge..... following the fall of a Comet maybe or the passage of a large celestial body ....
for a while i wanted to approach the subject of "beings of the water" but did not know how to go about it ..... will follow on it soon
for starter :
Dogon Tribe - The NoMMos are also referred to as “Masters of the Water, “the Monitors”, and "the Teachers”..... in Sumerian : NINAZU - Lord Knowing the Waters
Heh, coincidentally I was skyping on Sunday with a pal of mine in Bulgaria and she told me all about a book she is reading - Beyond Atlantis, by Frank Joseph, which apparently goes in to the aquatic ape style theory. Since then I discovered Frank Joseph is a reprehensible sort, a Neo Nazi with pedophile predilections so I'm gonna completely ignore him. Still the theory is obviously out there.
Instead I will link to Thomas Sheridan's recent video on the Dogon tribe, also coincidental since I just watched it before you mentioned Dogon. Thomas is a hard to decipher chap, grouchy, irritable, a grumpy bollox according to a friend of mine who met him. He lives in a town nearby me, and someday I intend to meet him to see what's his story. Underneath all the hatred for Abrahamic religions, his affection for casting spells and his artistic rage, I reckon he has a good heart. Haha, seriously! At least he is a determined contrarian, which I admire.
thoughtful minds are connected :)
if you don't mind i'll move the discussion here :
Reality is Stranger than Fiction .....
so as to keep the kali talk on the subject
Funny I have managed be to brainwashed into thinking all this Kali business is about a evil female goddess.Thanks Spielberg and G.Lucas..
Kala resembles the term Kolo which means "people gathered in a circle"....or connotes "circular movement or form".
Kali has some resemblance with Koliko...which literally means "how much" and is a question of amount.
Yuga has its resemblence to the word Jug which means South.However looking into older etymology Jug...Iug..iig and other similar forms connotes Yoke.Iug in Sanskrit which might be the root to Yug/Yog connotes "reconnecting"......joining...following.
So today Kolo is usally used when talking about a bunch of people in a big circle dancing or following...joining together...
I leave you be to ponder upon possible implications of this decoding information..
kälä > gal-am=arise, climb up; Hu: kel =arise, cross over (sumerian)
addendum:
a-nun-gal (d) a-nun-ke-ne un galga sum-mu (Temple of the Anunna-gods possessing great power, which gives wisdom to the people)
“un galga’ which can be interpreted as higher(un) wisdom(kalka).
Kes Temple Hymn 9
from The Assemblies in Sumerian and Dravidian