The sword and the flute : Kālī and Kṛṣṇa, dark visions of the terrible and the sublime in Hindu mythology / David R. Kinsley.

Based in part on the author's thesis..

Includes bibliographical references (p. 161-[168]).

Part I The flute; Krsna's carnival of joy. 1 Krsna and the "Krsnas"; The divine child: the spontaneous and tumultuous nature of god; Krsna's sport with demons: Combat as play; The embodiment of beauty and grace; The call of Krsna's flute The divine lover. 2 Bhakti: from lord to lover; Ananda: The inherent bliss of the divine; Lila: The divine player. Part II The sword: Kali, mistress of death. 3 The prehistory of Kali; Kali in the Mahabharata; Kali in the Devi-mahatmya; The early history of Kali in Puranic and dramatic literature; Kali's regional distribution; Kali's association with Siva; Kali and the Tantric hero; Kali and Bengali devotionalism; Summary. 4 Kali as Mahamaya; Kali as Prakti and Dukha; Kali as time; Confrontation and acceptance of death: Kali's boon; Kali's "taming". Conclusion

'My approach is not to attempt to understand Kali and Krsna by amassing historical data: I seek instead to discern in the "presences" of these two beings, as revealed in history to be sure, hints of the transcendently real in the Hindu spiritual tradition. To put it in very unscholarly terms, my approach is to attempt to understand Krsna and Kali by trying to glimpse Kali's sword and hear Krsna's flute.'

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