Kali (demon)

Kali (right) wielding a sword

Kali (Devanāgari: कलि) is the reigning lord of the Kali Yuga and archenemy of Kalki.

Quotes about Kali (demon)

Kalki Purana

B.K. Chaturvedi, tr. in: Kalki Purana. New Delhi: Diamond Books, 2006, 2014 (ISBN 81-288-0588-6)

• It was the union of Krodha and Himsa that bred the world-destroying being called Kali (Kaliyuga).
  • In: p. 11

• Right at the time of his birth Kali carried an Upaasthi (a small bone) and his entire body complexion was sooty and dark. This huge-being, with a terrible tongue and an obnoxious smell about his entire physique, chose gambling, liquor, woman and gold as his permanent abodes.
  • In: p. 11

• The army of Kalki soon reached the abode where Kali Yuga lived. The place was haunted and dogs were barking all around. The crows were crowing and the owls were letting out eerie noises. When Kali Yuga learnt about Lord Kalki's arrival, readying his chariot marked with an owl sign, and accompanied by his progeny, he set out to meet him. Soon a huge herd of the dark forces emerged out of that Vishanampuri.
  • In: p. 58-59

• Kali tried to jointly face Dharma and Satya (Yuga) but panicked and fled on his mount, an ass. His chariot having an owl emblem fluttering on his flag was broken to pieces. When Kali entered his citadel, he was a wounded person with blood trickling down his wounds. His blood's pungent odour was filling the entire atmosphere. This way while Kali escaped to save himself, his other lieutenants also fared no better.
  • In: p. 60

• Seeing them coming Kali tried to run away, but since his all body parts had been burnt and his wife and progeny almost dead, weeping bitterly Kali quietly entered his unmanifest years.
  • In: p. 61

Mahabharata

John D. Smith, tr. in: The Mahābhārata: an abridged translation. Penguin Classics, 2009 (ISBN 978-0-670-08415-9)

• King Duryodhana, the foolish, wicked bringer of disgrace to the Kurus, was born on earth from a portion of Kali; he was the man of ill omen, hated throughout the entire universe, who slew the whole world, the base man who sparked off the terrible enmity which led to the deaths of so many.
  • In: p. 22

• When wise Vidura heard what he had done and understood that the gates of Kali were at hand, and that Destruction had shown its face, he hurried to Dhṛtarāṣṭra. Brother approached noble firstborn brother; he bowed his head to Dhṛtarāṣṭra's feet and spoke. 'I cannot applaud this resolve of yours, O king! My lord, act to prevent gambling from causing discord among your sons.'
  • In: p. 127

• Indra now encounters Kali and Dvāpara, who are planning to attend the swayamvara. When he learns that it has already taken place, and what the outcome was, Kali is furious; he determines to possess Nala and ruin him, and he instructs Dvāpara to enter the dice.
  • In: p. 172

Vishnu Purana

Horace Hayman Wilson, tr. in: The Vishnu Purana, 1840

• Then, in the Kali age, shall a man acquire by a trifling exertion as much eminence in virtue as is the result of arduous penance in the Krita age, or age of purity.
  • In: Book VI: Chapter I, p. 626

Varaha Purana

iskcon-truth.com. Retrieved 7 September 2017

• In the Kali Yuga, demons take birth in the families of Brahmins.

See also

• Alakshmi, Kali's second(ary) wife
• Durukti, Kali's sister-turned-wife and queen
• Duryodhana, Kali's famous incarnation from the Mahabharata (Dvapara Yuga)
• Kalki, Kali's nemesis
• Ravana, Kali's famous incarnation from the Ramayana (Treta Yuga)