Victory! Hail to the Mother of the World! Called Sita, Radha, Gauri and Durga
I bow to you again and again. She who lifts me up and saves me from the fear of this world, Kali Durga, I bow to you again and again.
I first heard this chant in Maharaj-ji's temple in Kainchi, in the Kumaon Hills. It was during Durga Puja — the 10-day festival during which the Divine Mother is worshipped in the form of Kali and Durga. Every day there is a ceremony with chanting of mantras and offerings being made into the fire. Many of Maharaj-ji's women devotees (His Ma’s), stayed at Kainchi for the whole ten days. Every night they gathered in a small room and sang for hours. The sound was electrifying; I was drawn to it like a moth to a flame. The problem was that men were not allowed in, so I would wrap myself in a blanket and sit listening outside the window in the cold mountain air. One day I was caught. Instead of being mad at me, the women cracked open the window a little so I could hear better! Sometimes the singing would be going along and all of a sudden there would be a scream from inside the room: another Ma had gone into ecstacy! It was totally unbelievable. Later, Mrs. Tewari and her daughter, Minnoo, taught me the words.