Kali काली | Witness of the Sri Yantra Altar | Museum Poster

काली | Midnight in the small temple, the storyteller says. The Sri Yantra glows red against the lotus, like a heart still beating. On the cloth lies her khadga, the curved sword of wisdom. The kapala holds the red drink that is both blood and amrita, both death and immortality — the cup that the elders raise on her night. The mala has one hundred and eight beads, one for each name she answers to. Her old jackal-dog keeps watch beside the dried hibiscus. The candle flame leans toward her, the way our hearts do when we are most quiet.