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Dakshineswar Kali Temple

Kolkata, Italy

Dakshineswar Kali Temple

Dakshineswar Kali Temple is a Hindu navaratna style temple in Dakshineswar, Kolkata, West Bengal, India, on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River. The presiding deity of the temple is Bhavatarini (Kali), a form of Mahadevi or Parashakti Adya Kali, otherwise known as Adishakti Kalika. The temple was

built in 1855 by Rani Rashmoni, a zamindar (feudal lord), and a devotee of Kali. The temple is associated with Ramakrishna and Sarada Devi, his wife and devotee mystic, both of 19th century Bengal. The main temple was inspired by Radhakanta temple in Tollygunge, built by Ramnath Mondal of the Bawali Raj family. The temple compound, apart from the nine-spired main temple, contains a large courtyard surrounding the temple, with rooms along the boundary walls. Along the riverfront, there are twelve shrines dedicated to Shiva, Kali's consort, a temple to Radha–Krishna, a bathing ghat at the river, and a shrine dedicated to Rani Rashmoni. The 'Nahabat', or "music tower," northeast and beyond the last of the Shiva temples, is where Sarada spent a considerable part of her life. Ramakrishna's room is in the northwest corner of the courtyard, with a semicircular verandah facing the river.

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