Kalimath, Uttarakhand

Kalimath in Uttarakhand is the sacred shakti peetha in the Kedar Khanda of Himalayas. It is situated on the bank of the River Kali in Rudraprayag District. Even today devotees hear the chanting of Vedic Mantras and see the higher living beings worshiping Mother Kali here.

Kali Devi is the consort of Lord Kedarnath (Lord Shiva). She is one of the Dasha Mahavidyas of Devi. The pilgrimage to Kedarnath is not complete without the darshan of Mother Kali at Kalimath. Kalimath Kshetra is accessible to people of great fortune only. Devotees who visit Kedarnath very seldom visit Kalimath as they are not aware of this holy place.

The greatness of Kalimath – Mahatmya

Skanda Purana speaks highly of Kalimath. It is considered as the prominent temple of Mother Kali. This is also the birthplace of Mother Kali. It is said that Kali Devi killed Raktabija demon in this area and after killing the demon she took samadhi and continues to bless her devotees in Kalimath.

Mother Parvati has named this tirtha as Kali Tirtha and declared it to be a great holy place. Anyone who performs the worship of Devi here, takes bath in the holy Kali Ganga River, gives charity, and chant the stotras glorifying Devi will get all one’s desires fulfilled instantly.

In the prayers of devatas recorded in the Skanda Purana, Mother Parvati is addressed as Kali Devi of Himalaya’s Peetha (Kalimath) – kaali iti naamavibhavaam giriraaja pithe

In another place it is mentioned

krte yat praapyate punyam varsha koti shatair api | tat punyam praapyate traiva tri raatranna samshaya: || Pious credits acquired in Satya yuga for crores of years, are easily achieved just by staying in Kalimath for three nights.

kaaliyan darshanenaapi kaivalya phala daayini – just by darshan of Mother Kali at Kalimath one achieves desired results.

Kali Temple at Kalimath

After passing through the scenic valley of River Kali or River Saraswati and crossing many bridges over the meandering deep blue hued Kali River one comes to this beautiful Kalimath Temple which stirs one’s soul. When one crosses the final bridge to reach the temple, the innumerable bells tied on its railing and the river below will just make us stand still and not walk further.

The temple is not crowded except on Navaratri day when the locals come and worship the Goddess with the best of the articles and pray for a healthy and wealthy life. On a normal day, the temple is a perfect spot for deep meditation and connection to Mother Kali.

The temple at Kalimath is not a very ancient temple. It is a recently constructed circular structure enough for a few devotees to sit and worship the Goddess. Inside the temple there is no Deity to be worshiped but only a Kundi (very small lake) which is always covered with a silver plate.

This Kunda is the exact location where Mother Kali disappeared. The kundi remains closed all through out the year except the eighth day of the sharadiya navaratra. No one knows what is inside this kundi as no one can peep inside it. The elderly pujaris of the temple say that there could be a yantra or a Shivalinga inside the kundi. But it remains a mystery.

Devotees worship the Goddess on this silver plate, perform parikrama and then return satisfied.

It must be noted that devotees just visit the temple of Kali and return without knowing the importance of Mahalakshmi and Saraswati Temples at Kalimath. These temples are as important as Kali Temple. The temples of Mahalakshmi and Saraswati are situated as mentioned in the Durga Sapta Shati. In the center is Mahalakshmi, on the left side is Saraswati Devi and in the south is Kali Devi.

One can also have darshan of Matanga Shila on which Matanga Rishi performed Tapasya. One should also have darshana of Siddheshwar Linga here. Skanda Purana says naamna siddheshwaram khyaatam darshanaat mukti daayakam – just by darshan of this Siddheshwar Linga, one achieves moksha.

Nearby is the divine and mysterious Kali Shila which I shall be narrating as you read further. How mother Kali was born here is an interesting Vedic History from Skanda Purana and Markandeya Purana and narrated below.

The Killing of Raktabija Demon by Mother Kali

Once there was a demon named Raktabija who performed tapasya to please Lord Brahma. Satisfied by his penances, Lord Brahma appeared and asked him to ask for any boon. To which Raktabija asked that he should not be killed by any devatas, yakshas, men, gandharvas, etc and with every drop of his blood touching the ground, another Raktabija should be born. Lord Brahma blessed the demon with the demanded wishes and left to his abode.

Being puffed up of his immense power, Raktabija invited the devatas to fight. Eventually a war took place in which devatas were defeated pathetically, who fled away from the battlefield out of fear for their life. After seeing his army fleeing from the field, Lord Indra attacked Raktabija with his arrows. A great duel ensued between them.

From the wounds of Raktabija’s body, blood started oozing out which created more Raktabijas. Over a period, the whole battlefield was filled with thousands of Raktabijas created from the blood of the demon. Indra became overwhelmed looking at so many Raktabijas. Suddenly, there was a prophecy in the sky that Raktabija could not be killed by Indra.

Hearing this prophecy, remaining devatas on the battlefield fled into different directions and went into hiding. Raktabija took over the heavenly planets and began his rule. For ten thousand years Raktabija ruled the heavenly planets with the help of Shumbha and Nishumbha.

All the devatas approached Lord Brahma for help who in turn took them to Lord Vishnu for the solution. Lord Vishnu advised them to approach Mother Parvati who was not part of any of the living entities enlisted by Raktabija to kill him. All the devatas approached the peak of Himalaya on the banks of River Saraswati (River Kali Ganga) in the Kedar Khand region and began worshiping Mahamaya Devi.

Pleased by their heartfelt prayers, Mother Parvati appeared atop the peak of the Himalayas and gave her darshan. She blessed devatas with fearlessness and disappeared. Narada Muni then went to Raktabija to instigate him against Devi and commit an offense to her. Narada Muni glorified Lord Shiva and his opulence to Raktabija who got very much eager to defeat Lord Shiva.

He went to Kailash disguised as Mother Parvati and tried to persuade Lord Shiva to break his vow of brahmacharya. In return Lord Shiva cursed him to be killed by Mother Parvati. The demon did not remain ideal; he sent his army to kidnap Mother Parvati who in turn burnt away his entire army.

Due to Mother Parvati’s anger, Mother Kali was born from her forehead who was very fierce in appearance. She was accompanied by crores of Yoginis headed by Mangala, Pingala, Dhanya, Bhramari, Bhadrika, Ulka, Siddha and Sankata. Looking at this fierce army of Yoginis, all the demons ran away.

Raktabija then sent Chanda and Munda demons to capture Mother Parvati. But on the indication of Mother Parvati, Kali Devi killed these two demons and came to be known as Chamunda. Hearing about the death of Chanda and Munda, Raktabija gathered all the demons and attacked Kailasha Parvata where Mother Parvati resided.

Mother Parvati also gathered all the shaktis and attacked the army of Raktabija. A fierce battle took place between the two armies with rivers of blood flowing from the battlefield. Eventually the army of Raktabija started shrinking due to the killings by Mother Kali and her army. Mother Durga killed Shumbha and Nishumba demons and later severed the head of Raktabija.

From his blood an infinite number of Raktabijas were born. Mother Durga asked Chamunda Devi to drink the blood of Raktabija to stop it from spreading. Mother Kali expanded her mouth and thus drank away all the blood of Raktabija making the demon devoid of blood. With his blood lost, the demon died instantly on the battlefield.

Thuse, the heavenly planets became free of the rule of Raktabija and all the demigods reoccupied their posts. The remaining demons fled away to different lowly regions of universe and went into hiding.

Kali Shila – a mysterious shila of Kali Devi

Kali Shila is around five kilometres from Kalimath situated at the height as one of the peaks of the mountains in this area. This is a very sacred and mysterious shila. Many yogis have achieved siddhis by meditating or worshiping this shila even during the recent times.

There are many mantras engraved on this shila by themselves (Swayambhu). Sri Mantra, Kali Mantra, Baglaamukhi Mantra, Bhairavi Mantra, Maatangi Mantra, Chinnamasta Mantra, Dhumaavati Mantra, Tripura Bhairavi Mantra, Shodashi Mantra, Kamala Mantra, Tara Mantra and many more mantras are present on this shila. Adi Shankaracharya has described at least 64 mantras being engraved on it in his Sartha Soundarya Lahari.

Agni Purana, Kurma Purana and Shambhu Rahasya also speak of this shila. Even the Megha Duta of Kalidasa mentions it. Devotees practice tantra on this shila and achieve ten mahavidya siddhis here. Even today the sadhakas or the practitioners have seen the higher living beings such as Yakshas, Kinnaras, Gandharpvas, Nagas, Siddhas, Charanas, Van Devi, Yakshinis and many forms of Devi in this holy place.

When the devatas worshiped Mother Parvati, she came darshan to them atop this shila. Even today the devatas worship this holy shila and achieve the grace of Mother Kali.

Temple Timings of Kalimath

The temple of Kalimath is opened just like the other temples in Uttarakhand

Morning – 6 am to 1 pm
Evening – 2 pm to 8 pm

Navaratri festival is celebrated grandly in this temple when it is very crowded.

How to reach Kalimath?

The best way to reach and be blessed at Kalimath is to book Kedarnath Yatra by Tirtha Yatra. All the arrangements are taken care of without being worried about anything.

If you wish to explore it on your own, here are the ways:

By Air – the nearest airport is Jolly Grant Airport in Dehradun. From there take a private taxi to reach Kalimath.

By Rail – the nearest Railway Station is Rishikesh. From the railway station, either take State Transport Bus or a taxi to reach Kalimath

By Road – From Dehradun or Rishikesh take a bus to Guptkashi. From Guptkashi private taxis are available to Kalimath. The nearest accommodation is at Guptkashi

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