Question: Are the goddesses working particularly at this time in history?

Sri Chinmoy: There are always goddesses working in the inner worlds, like Maheshwari, Mahakali, Mahalakshmi and Mahasaraswati, the Goddesses of Perfection, of Power, of Beauty and of Wisdom. These four goddesses in particular help mankind, who are their children. There are not only cosmic gods but there are cosmic goddesses as well. It is God in both forms — masculine and feminine — who supports humanity’s consciousness. There are many, many gods and goddesses, but these are the four main goddesses.

Mahakali is my favourite one of the four. She is the Goddess of Speed and Power. Each Indian family has a presiding deity, and this deity can be male or female. Our family deity is the goddess Kali, Mahakali, so she is the one I am extremely fond of. Also, she has helped me many times. In my teens, when I was practising very hard for sports, she helped me considerably. Once, after I had run the four hundred metre race, I lost consciousness and my soul left my body. In five or ten minutes the doctors would have pronounced me dead, but Mahakali took my soul and brought it back into my body. If this goddess had not shown me that infinite Love and Compassion, I would have gone back to the soul’s world. So all of my disciples should be extremely grateful to her.

Like that, there are other goddesses working. It is up to the individual to invoke them. If an individual likes one, then he will invoke her, and if another person likes some other goddess, then he will invoke that one. But in essence they are all one. They are not like four women — if you please one, the others will be displeased. They are like limbs of one body. If somebody needs my arms for some help, if somebody needs my legs for some help, or my eyes or my nose, the other parts of my body are not disturbed. Similarly, these gods and goddesses are absolutely one.