Mother Kali drinks blood¹¹

As you know, a constant battle was always going on between the suras and the asuras. The suras are the divine forces and the asuras are the undivine forces. Most of the time, I tell you, the undivine forces would win. From time to time in those days, the divine forces would win. Nowadays the story is changed. Now we feel that the divine forces win more often than the undivine forces. We believe in the victory of the divine forces.

This mythological story took place thousands of years ago. There were two asura brothers named Sumbha and Nisumbha who were undivine to the extreme! The devas, the divine beings, were all absolutely miserable because they were losing to these two asuras. They were being humiliated by them at every moment, so the devas begged the Cosmic Goddess to save them. The name of the Cosmic Goddess always changes. In this instance, they addressed her as the Goddess Ambika.

Ambika decided to spring a trick upon the two asuras. Instead of showing her destruction-prowess and defeating them in battle, she took the form of an extremely beautiful woman. Then she said to Sumbha and Nisumbha, “Come! Come and fight with me!”

They laughed and laughed and laughed. “Your beauty will fight with us? We shall drag you to our king, and our king will do the needful!”

Once more Ambika challenged them, “First fight with me. Then take me to your king.”

The two asuras and their generals, Chanda and Munda, began fighting the beautiful woman. To their surprise, they were finding it very difficult to defeat her. By this time, Ambika had given up her beauty-form completely and had taken the form of the Goddess Kali. Each time she was able to get a large quantity of blood from one of the asuras, she would put it in a bowl and drink it. All the asuras became very frightened. Then quite a few asuras left the scene because they saw the fate of their companions. Each time Kali’s bowl was full to the brim with the blood of the asuras, she would start drinking. It was too much for the asuras, and eventually they all left.

After a few days, the two brothers, Sumbha and Nisumbha, returned. This time they brought with them their most powerful armies. Then again, the Goddess changed her form. Once more she became the most, most beautiful woman, so Sumbha said to Nisumbha, “Brother, it is not worthwhile for both of us to fight against one woman. Since you like rest, please rest. I shall go and defeat her badly, and then we shall take her to the king.”

Nisumbha shouted, “You rogue! I know what you are thinking. She is so beautiful that you want to get her for yourself. I will not allow you!”

Then the two brothers fought and fought and fought. They did not want to go together to defeat her, but neither one would allow the other to go alone.

Finally, a comrade of theirs arrived, a very powerful asura named Raktabija. He came to put an end to their fight. He said, “How can you fight over this? Both of you are equal. All right, I will make the decision. I will decide who will go and fight with her.”

But the two brothers did not want to listen to him. Finally, Raktabija became disgusted. He said, “Then go on, fight, fight, fight, fight! Both of you fight! I tell you, she will again take a very horrible form and then she will defeat you.”

But the two brothers were not listening. They had gone together with their armies to fight the beautiful woman. Once more she took the form of Kali and started killing the asuras. The fight went on for a long time. Kali was killing and killing so many of the asuras. Even Raktabija joined in the battle. He said to Kali, “These two brothers are useless! They cannot fight with you. I challenge you!”

Raktabija fought very bravely, but Kali killed him and poured all his blood into her bowl. She did not drink the whole amount at once, but started drinking it drop by drop.

Finally these two brothers said to Kali, “It is unfair! Your way of fighting is unfair!”

Why did they object? Because some other Goddesses came to help Kali, including Brahma’s consort, Saraswati, who is in the music-world; Vishnu’s wife, Lakshmi; and Indra’s wife, Sachi. Although they were not fighting, they were all standing near Kali and supporting her with their inner power. Lakshmi is all beauty and she is the mother of wealth. Saraswati only plays on her vina and gives wisdom, music, art and so forth. Sachi also did not fight. If any of them had had to fight with these asuras, they would have been killed. They came only to show their support for Kali.

But still the brothers objected. They said to Kali, “One of us shall fight with you alone!”

Kali said, “No, together you two brothers will fight with me, and these Goddesses will all come inside me, because they are part of me.” Immediately the wives of the other Cosmic Gods entered into Kali. Now she was alone on the battlefield.

This time she was very, very furious. She said, “I cannot tolerate you people any more!” She killed Sumbha and Nisumbha, as well as their armies. Then she went to their king and killed him. The whole kingdom of the asuras she destroyed. She said, “I want peace, peace. My followers, my devotees, will not suffer any more from your undivine actions.”

Such was Mother Kali's power!