In south Delhi, near the Lotus Temple and the Nehru Place quarter, stands the ancient Kalkaji Mandir, a revered Siddha Peetha of the Goddess Kali, worshipped here as Kalka Devi. Tradition holds the shrine to be self-manifested and immensely old, its origins woven into legend as a place where the Mother appeared to destroy demons and protect the gods.
The temple, its present structure dating largely to the eighteenth century, draws vast crowds of devotees, especially during the Navaratri fairs of spring and autumn, when pilgrims throng its precincts day and night. Kalkaji is worshipped as a powerful and ever-awake form of the Divine Mother, and is among the most important Devi shrines of the capital.
