KALI MA OF CULCUTTA
The Prime seat of Sakteism

In the dim past, the site on which the present temple stands was a thick forest. Once, a devout brahmin called Atmaram while praying on the river bed saw a bright ray flashing from a spot on the bank. On the next day he found there a piece of stone carved like a human toe. He picked it up and started worshipping. He was informed in the dream that the toe was that of Mother Sati s that fell when Lord Mahavishnu cut the Sati's corpse with his Sudarsan chakra. He installed it with great devotion and later it developed into a big temple. There is another version, according to which the famous Santosh Ray Choudry, while sailing in a boat with his family one evening, heard the sound of conch from a distance. When went in that direction, he found a Brahmin giving harati to a big image of Kali with the consent of Brahmin he brought it and installed at the present spot. Later Rajiv Lochan Roy erected a temple with the permission of the Collector Elhard. Yet there is another story that a Kapalika kept this huge image in a dense forest to enabling them to offer human sacrifice, but the Roy Chosdrys using their status and influence wrested it from ham and built a grand shrine for Kali ma. The Choudrys conducted pujas regularly and propagated the Sakti cult around 1809, the present temple came up and attracted global attention by the miracles occurred in the lives of adorers. In course of time, it developed in every direction to the extent that it raised the slogan - Jekhane Bengali, Sekhane Kalibari- where there is a Bengali, there is a Kali temple. For Bengalese, she is the Prime deity, and Calcutta is the august seat of Kali Ma. It is the seat of many other renowned manifestations of Sati, such as Sowmya Kali, Hajarbhuja Kali, Sarvamangala, Simhavahini, Bow Bazaar's Firangee kali, Thanthania's Siddheswari, Nimitla's Ananta Mayee, Dhakshaneswara's Bhabatarini, Tarasundari, Adyapitha Adyakali and Billingani, Daktay Kali.

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