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Re: literatur
Kali Yuga 49950125
mark@jmk.su.se (Tina) writes:
|I need help finding good books on Kali/Durga. Can any one out there help?
Appended.
nagasiva, tyagi@houseofkaos.abyss.com
_____________________________________
From: tyagi mordred nagasiva <tyagi@HouseofKaos.Abyss.com>
Subject: [Kali Reference List]
Date: Kali Yuga 49941210
Om Kali
_Kali: the Feminine Force_, by Ajit Mookerjee, Destiny Books, 1988.
Lovely artwork, limited practice or theory, entertaining reading. The
author is well-schooled in the arts, though I would not say that his
writing is as compelling, even while entertaining. I cut out many of
the beautiful reproductions in this tome and pinned them up all around
the temple. Marvellous.
_Kali: the Black Goddess of Dakshineswar, by Elizabeth U. Harding, distr.
by Samuel Weiser, 1993.
A detailed account of visit to the famous Kali Temple where Ramakrishna
worshipped, good introduction to devotee theory (somewhat extreme and
biased toward the compassionate and dualistic side of worship), well-
researched and quite readable. Much focus on Ramakrishna.
_Kali the Mother_, by Sister Nivedita, distr. by Vedanta Press, 1992.
A brief introduction to devotee theory (again somewhat extreme and biased
toward the ascetic and dualistic), some depth wrt Shiva also, and
connections to world religion through Vivekananda and Ramakrishna.
_Mother of the Universe_, by Lex Hixon, Quest Books, 1994.
This is a book of poetry by Ramprasad, a famous devotee, given variation
and addition by Hixon. Many of the poems deal with aspects or
relationship with Kali, and while there is here the typical dualism and
ascetic preference, many of the poems are quite inspiring.
_The Sword and the Flute_, by David R. Kinsley, (??)
A comparison between Kali and Krishna.... (more? :>)
Related Works
_Ramakrishna and His Disciples_, by Christopher Isherwood, Simon and
Shuster, 1970.
References to Kali are frequent yet always in relation to how Ramakrishna
viewed Her. The index is useful here. Isherwood is a very wonderful
storyteller, and is or was a devotee himself. This book is very important
in coming to understand the lives of many devotees of Kali, as is the
Gospel, which is perhaps more detailed in regards Ramakrishna. Index.
_The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna_, by Swami Nikhilananda, Ramakrishna-
Vivekananda Center, New York, 1970.
Again, references to Kali are many here, though the figure of Ramakrishna
and the daily lives of devotee/disciple living is provided here in astonishing
clarity. This is truly a masterpiece of writing, and 'M', as he calls
himself, was a disciple of Ramakrishna and recounts many of the master's
activities and expressions. Index.
_Sri Sarada Devi_ by Sri Ramakrishna Math, Madras, 1940.
This was written by a devotee of the Holy Mother. Sri Sarada Devi was
Ramakrishna's wife, and was devoted to him. She has some very profound
things to say about devotion, religion, Ramakrishna and her experiences
with him. Few references to Kali and the divine feminine, yet
inspirational all the same.
_Shakti Woman_, by Vicki Noble, Harper, 1991.
If you find her style enjoyable, then you may wish to complete the book.
There are a few references to tantra and to Kali within this tome, and I
include it here as it is one of the few writings I've found in the subject
area by women devotees of shakti. Vicki Noble co-created the Motherpeace
Tarot deck (round, shamanistic and syncretic) as well as founding a women's
spirituality organization in Berkeley. She is a dynamic speaker and her
writing is very inspirational to those who enjoy her style (somewhat
nonacademic, emotional and dedicated). Subtitled: 'feeling our fire,
healing our world, the new female shamanism'. Index.
General Goddess
_The Book of the Goddess_, Ed. by Carl Olson, Crossroad, 1983.
There is a wonderful article in this book by C. Mackenzie Brown about Kali
and tantra. It goes into very rich detail about how tantrics see Her and
even some of the most balanced theoretics I think I've yet encountered.
__The Divine Consort_, Ed. by Hawley and Wulff, Graduate Theological Union,
1982.
There is an article by David Kinsley which is adequate. There are quite a
few references regarding Shakti, Kali, and Durga here. Interesting reading.
Indian Myth
_Myths and Symbols in Indian Art and Civilization_, by H. Zimmer, Ed. by
Joseph Campbell, Harper/Bollingen, 1962.
The index has references to Kali and related subjects of interest.
_Philosophies of India_, by H. Zimmer, Ed. by Josephy Campbell,
Princeton/Bollingen, 1971.
The index has references to Kali and related subjects.
General Myth
_The Hero With a Thousand Faces_, by Joseph Campbell, Princeton/Bollingen,
1973.
Some references to Kali accessible through the index. The whole book is
interesting, however.
_The Tao of Symbols_, by James N. Powell, Quill Books, 1982.
This book had a lot to say about one's RELATIONSHIP to symbols; how they
can function for us. While it does tend to focus on China more than India
(given its slightly taoist flavor), I find that the tantric and taoist are
very close in their polarity-orientation to symbols and consciousness/divinity.
General
You might look up 'dakini' in any or all of the above works. Kali is
considered the Queen of Dakini by some Tantrics, myself included. 'Dakini'
translates as 'sky-walker' or 'cloud-walker' and is at once a Priestess and
an other-worldly being. I think that those Priestesses who became
immortal were called 'dakinis'.
Also, you can reference many books ABOUT Hinduism or Indian Religion
and check their indices for 'Kali' or 'Goddess'. You'll likely run
across all sorts of things about Parvati, Uma, Shakti, and Durga as
well. These are various faces of Goddess which can be instructive.
These are all wonderful words, but if they do not feel right for us, then
we had best follow our intuition to find Her. I have found few words BY
WOMEN about Kali, and few that I consistently enjoyed.
END
