Mahakali

In the Devimahatmya, the earliest and
most important source for the mythology of the Goddess, the three parts of
this text describe the goddess in three
different manifestations: Mahasaraswati,
Mahalakshmi, and Mahakali. All of
these manifestations are extremely
powerful, but Mahakali is the most
ferocious of all. She is said to have
sprung from the forehead of the
Goddess, as a physical manifestation
of the deity’s rage when insulted by
the demon generals Chanda and
Munda, who denigrate her fighting
ability because she was a woman.
According to the story, Mahakali is
black in color, thin, and haggard, with
long teeth and nails, and utters terrifying cries. She defeats the demon
armies by picking them up and stuffing
them into her mouth, consuming them
whole. She later kills Chanda and
Munda by cutting off their heads. Her
final adversary is Raktabija, who has
received the boon that any drop of his
blood falling to the earth will instantly
turn into a copy of him, rendering him
practically unconquerable. Kali
defeats this demon by drinking his
blood as it is shed, until finally it is
completely gone. For more information on Mahakali and all the goddesses
of Hinduism, see David R. Kinsley,
Hindu Goddesses, 1986; and John
Stratton Hawley and Donna Wullf
(eds.), Devi, 1996.