BhaktiLoopDipanwita Kali Puja (Deepavali Kali Puja)
Dipanwita Kali Puja is the annual worship of Goddess Kali, primarily celebrated on the new moon night (Amavasya) of the Hindu month of Kartik. This night coincides with the main day of the Deepavali (Diwali) festival in most parts of India. While North India celebrates Lakshmi Puja on this day, Eastern India (especially West Bengal, Assam, Odisha, and Tripura) dedicates this night to the fierce form of the Divine Mother, Kali. It is a night of intense spiritual energy, believed to be highly potent for tantric sadhana and for invoking the Mother's fierce protective aspect. Devotees stay awake through the night, performing elaborate rituals and chanting mantras to appease the Goddess.
Purpose
Dipanwita Kali Puja is performed to seek the blessings of Goddess Kali for protection from evil forces, destruction of negative energies (both internal and external), spiritual liberation (Moksha), attainment of strength, courage, and to overcome fear and ignorance. It is believed that worshipping Kali on this night removes obstacles and grants prosperity and well-being by clearing the path.
Key Rituals
- Altar Preparation & Purification (Shuddhikaran):** Cleaning the puja space, setting up the altar, and purifying it with Gangajal (holy water).
- Idol Installation (Pratishtha):** Invoking and installing the idol or image of Goddess Kali, often adorned with red hibiscus garlands and a new sari.
- Panchopachara/Shodashopachara Puja:** The standard steps of worship including:
- Dhyanam: Meditation on the Goddess.
- Avahanam: Invocation.
- Asanam: Offering a seat.
- Padya & Arghya: Offering water for feet and hands.
- Achaman: Offering water for sipping.
- Snanam: Ritual bath (often symbolic, by sprinkling water).
- Vastram & Abharanam: Offering clothes and ornaments.
- Gandham, Pushpam, Dhupam, Deepam: Offering fragrance (sandalwood paste), flowers (especially red hibiscus), incense, and lamps.
- Naivedyam: Offering food (sweets, fruits, cooked dishes).
- Pan-Supari: Offering betel leaves and nuts.
- Mantra Japa:** Chanting the powerful Kali mantras, especially the Moola Mantra, for an extended period, often throughout the night.
- Homa (Fire Sacrifice):** A sacred fire ritual where offerings are made into the fire while chanting mantras, to invoke the Goddess and purify the atmosphere.
- Pushpanjali:** Offering flowers at the feet of the Goddess with prayers.
- Arati:** Waving of lamps (Deepa) before the deity, accompanied by devotional songs (bhajans) and bells.
- Pranam & Pradakshina:** Prostrations and circumambulations around the deity.
- Bhog Distribution:** Sharing the consecrated food (Prasad) among devotees.
- Visarjan (Immersion):** On a subsequent day, often the next day or a few days later, the idol is ritually immersed in a river or pond, symbolizing the Goddess's return to her celestial abode.
Common Offerings
Red Hibiscus Flowers (Jaba Ful): Highly preferred and sacred to Kali.
Sweets (Mishti): Various Bengali sweets like Sondesh, Rosogolla, Laddoo.
Fruits: Seasonal fruits.
Cooked Food (Bhog): Typically includes Khichuri, Labra (mixed vegetable curry), various fried vegetables (Bhaja), and Payesh (rice pudding).
Water: Especially Gangajal (water from the Ganges River).
Incense Sticks (Dhup) and Lamps (Deepa): For illumination and fragrance.
Betel Leaves (Paan) and Areca Nuts (Supari).
New Red Sari: Offered to adorn the Goddess.
Sindoor (vermilion) and Kajal (kohl).
Animal Sacrifice (Bali): Traditionally, and in some tantric practices, goats or other animals were sacrificed. In modern times, this is often replaced by symbolic offerings like sugarcane, pumpkins, or vegetables, or entirely omitted in household pujas. In some places, alcohol and cannabis (Bhang) are offered, particularly in Tantric traditions, but these are often symbolic or excluded in mainstream worship.
Coconut.
Associated Mantras
Mantra 1
Mantra Text
Om Krim Kalikayai Namah
Meaning
Om, Salutations to Kali, the creatrix and destroyer.
Benefits
This is the Moola (root) Mantra of Kali. Chanting it invokes her protective energy, removes fear, grants strength, and helps in overcoming obstacles and negative influences. It is considered highly potent for spiritual progress.
Mantra 2
Mantra Text
Om Hrim Shrim Klim Adya Kalika Param Eshwari Swaha
Meaning
Om, Salutations to the primordial Kali, the Supreme Goddess. May she accept our offerings.
Benefits
This mantra is often used in tantric worship and is believed to grant immense power, wisdom, and liberation. It helps in realizing the ultimate truth and experiencing the divine presence of Kali.
Mantra 3
Mantra Text
Sarva Mangala Mangalye Shive Sarvartha Sadhike Sharanye Tryambake Gauri Narayani Namostute
Meaning
O auspicious one, who bestows all auspiciousness, O consort of Shiva, who accomplishes all aims, O refuge, O three-eyed one, O fair-complexioned one, O Narayani, salutations to You.
Benefits
While a general Durga/Devi mantra, it is widely chanted in Devi worship, including Kali Puja, to invoke general welfare, protection, and fulfillment of desires from the Divine Mother in all her forms.
Auspicious Days
Kartik Amavasya (New Moon night of the Hindu month of Kartik)
This day invariably coincides with the main day of the Deepavali/Diwali festival.
Regional Variations
Dipanwita Kali Puja is most prominently celebrated in the eastern Indian states of West Bengal, Assam, Odisha, and Tripura. While the core rituals remain similar, regional variations exist in: * **Idol Forms:** Though Dakshina Kali is common, some regions or families might worship other forms of Kali (e.g., Shmashana Kali, Siddha Kali). * **Offerings:** The specific types of cooked food (Bhog) offered vary regionally. The practice of animal sacrifice, though traditionally associated with Kali worship, is now less common in urban and household pujas, often replaced by symbolic offerings or completely omitted. * **Puja Timing:** The puja typically begins after midnight on Amavasya, stretching into the early hours of the next morning, but exact timings can vary slightly. * **Cultural Celebrations:** In Bengal, the night is often marked by elaborate lighting and fireworks, similar to Diwali celebrations in other parts of India, creating a festive yet spiritually intense atmosphere.
Related Pujas
Deepavali / Diwali (Lakshmi Puja)
Durga Puja (as Kali is a fierce manifestation of Durga)
Mahavidya Pujas (Kali is the first of the Dasa Mahavidyas, the ten Tantric wisdom goddesses)
Any form of Devi (Goddess) worship