The Sword and the FluteKali and Krsna: Dark Visions of the Terrible and the Sublime in Hindu Mythology (Hermeneutics: Studies in the History of Religions)

About this book

Krsna and Kali are two of Hinduisms most popular deities representing dramatically different truths about the nature of the sacred. The cruel and terrible Kali is thought to be born of wild aboriginal roots. She is the goddess of thieves and often associated with human blood sacrifice. Krsna in contrast is the divine lover and inimitable prankster who plays a bewitching flute to draw all to him. But Kali and Krsna have much more in common than their contrasting personalities suggest. Kinsley shows that Krsnas flute can be interchangeable with Kalis sword revealing important perceptions of the divine in the Hindu tradition.