Hymn to Kālī: Karpūrādi-stotra
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- Catalogue identifier
- kali-0011
- Alternate titles and import identifiers
- KALI-0011; karpuradi_avalon_1922
- Author or attribution
- Arthur Avalon (John Woodroffe), translator; Vimalānanda Svāmī, introduction and commentary
- Record type
- Book
- Language
- English
- Date / edition
- 1922
- Source / repository
- Luzac & Co., London
- Access
- Open access
- Subjects
- Kali Library Research Catalogue; Hymns, Prayers, and Devotional Poetry; Tantras and Esoteric Literature; Temples, Sacred Places, and Historical Worship; Translations and Commentaries
Description and curator notes
This volume gives the twenty-two-verse Karpūrādi-stotra together with explanatory material and Vimalānanda Svāmī's commentary. The hymn is traditionally voiced by Mahākāla and addressed to Dakṣiṇā Kālikā. The edition follows the verses individually, unpacking expressions concerning the Mother, her relationship with Shiva, iconography, mantra, meditative identification and liberation. The first verse's commentary interprets the goddess as the giver of enjoyment or release according to the devotee's disposition; the final verse and colophon explicitly close both hymn and commentary. These internal markers make it possible to verify that the online edition supplies the whole work. The volume is especially valuable for tracing how a Bengali Tantric commentary explains Kali's apparently fierce imagery in theological terms. It also contains illustrations of the goddess and yantras. Traditional attribution to Mahākāla should be recorded separately from the historical authorship and date of the commentary. This edition is a primary source for early twentieth-century English presentation of Kali Tantra, and its doctrinal explanations should not be mistaken for a neutral modern history of all Kali traditions.
KALI-0011 — Kali Library Research Catalogue.
Access and reliability assessments below are supplied by the curator's 4–5 November 2026 research release, not a new independent verification.
Author / attribution: Arthur Avalon (John Woodroffe), translator; Vimalānanda Svāmī, introduction and commentary
Publication: Luzac & Co., London · 1922
Tantrik Texts, no. IX. London: Luzac & Co., 1922.
Format / language: Historical book / primary devotional or interpretive source · English; original: Sanskrit
Composition / textual history: unknown
Identifier: karpuradi_avalon_1922
Kali relevance: A complete major hymn to Dakshina Kalika with sustained commentary.
Context: Tantrik Texts series IX; traditional attribution and historical translation are distinct.
Subjects: Hymns, Prayers, and Devotional Poetry; Tantras and Esoteric Literature; Temples, Sacred Places, and Historical Worship; Translations and Commentaries
Evidence / reliability: Primary historical source in a freely accessible transcription; historical claims require comparison with modern scholarship.
Access / rights: Complete text checked 2026-11-04. Historical original and translation are public domain in the United States. Check local jurisdiction before reproduction; link to the hosted edition. Internet Sacred Text Archive requests attribution and noncommercial reuse of its transcription.
Source and alternate access links:
Read complete text: https://sacred-texts.com/book/hymn-to-kali
Alternate / related form: https://sacred-texts.com/tantra/htk/index.htm
Source access
Read or locate the original source at Luzac & Co., London
Rights and reading conditions
Complete text checked 2026-11-04. Historical original and translation are public domain in the United States. Check local jurisdiction before reproduction; link to the hosted edition. Internet Sacred Text Archive requests attribution and noncommercial reuse of its transcription. This library links to the source and does not reproduce its full text.
Citation
Arthur Avalon (John Woodroffe), translator; Vimalānanda Svāmī, introduction and commentary. Hymn to Kālī: Karpūrādi-stotra. Luzac & Co., London · 1922.
This page supplies catalogue metadata and links. It does not reproduce the underlying source text. Historical, religious, healing and interpretive claims belong to the cited sources, not to an independent verification by this catalogue.