Kalo Meyer Payer Tolay: A Song of Nazrul Islam
Kazi Nazrul Islam Kazi Nazrul Islam (24 May 1899 – 29 August 1976), explored various creative and social territories throughout his prolific life. During his youth he achieved fame simultaneously both for his political activity as well as his...
Read MoreIs my Mother Shyama Black? A Song of Kamalakanta
Ma Kali, Dutch Bengali School early 1900s This song was written by a famous tantrik adept named Kamalakanta Bhattacharya (1769-1829). He was the court poet and spiritual guru of the Bardhaman King, Tej Chandra Bahadur. Recently I...
Read MorePatterns in Comparative Religion by Mircea Eliade
It’s no exaggeration to say that Patterns in Comparative Religion is not only one of the most delightfully brilliant books that I have read in a long time, but an excellent introduction to the thought of one of...
Read MoreHow I Lost My Mind and Became a Crazy Kali Bhakta: A Theophany by William Clark
INTRODUCTION The word darshan is a Sanskrit term that means “seeing,” and specifically refers to perception of the divine. In Hinduism, darshan is a broad concept which manifests in a variety of ways. Among other things, meeting and...
Read MoreDrinking from the Fountain of Desire: A Darshan of Ma Kamakhya
Thursday October 17th, 2013 After observing the massive crowds this temple can attract, I decided to do the heroic thing and pull an all-nighter, figuring that an early arrival would insure a quick darshan (Sanskrit word, literally...
Read MoreIt’s Just Begun
July 27th, 2013: It’s been seventeen days since I arrived at my new hometown of Santiniketan, West Bengal. For the most part, it has largely been a perilous ordeal, and if it weren’t for the fact...
Read MoreShakti Pith #19: Kalighat Kali Mandir
Early medieval accounts of the shakti piths (centers of power) cite Kalighat as the dwelling place of a particularly fierce manifestation of the goddess, known as Dakshina (“south-facing”) Kalika. Once surrounded by a dense jungle and accessed primarily by...
Read MoreKali Yantra Variations
I have spent a great deal of time recently learning how to use vector image editing software for geometric design. This is both fun and frustrating since I am used to doing it the old fashioned way––working at an...
Read MoreShakti Pith #47: The Mahishamardini Mandir of Bakreshwar
Bakreshwar: A Conflux of Shaiva and Shakta Tradition Although Bakreshwar, West Bengal is primarily renowned for its Shiva temple and therapeutic hot springs, these attractions tend to overshadow its parallel significance as a place of power for goddess...
Read MoreTarapith: Fire, Blood, Magic, and Sati’s Third Eye
Is Tarapith a Shakti Pith? While Tarapith is often not considered a “true” shakti pith due to its rather curious omission from the list of 51 sacred sites found in the Mahapithanirupana, it most certainly is regarded as...
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