Durga in Sanskrit - She who is not comprehensible to ordinary people. In
Bengal, She is decorated in different forms viz. Parvathi, Ambika, Kali, etc.
She is known in the form of Goddess Parvathi, i.e. the Divine Husband of
Lord Shiva, having two sons and a daughter viz. Lord Ganesha and Lord
Subramanhyam (Karthikeya) besides daughter Jyothi - destroyer of Demons.
Further She is described in different forms in Hindu Puranas and Agamas.
She is supposed to inhabit in the hearts and minds of those devotees of
religious ecstasy. It is also seen in the Puranas that Goddess Kali is the
liberator of Souls. Even today in Kalighat at Kolkatta, Sheep is given as
bali in the temple premises. While Goddess Lakshmi is honoured as
"Ishwariyam Sarva Bhoothanam", i.e. the Supreme Goddess.
Balasubramanian
Ambattur