Kala
Kala is a Sanskrit term meaning 'time' or 'death', personified as a god of death who destroys all things. Often used as one of the epithets of Yama, the god of death. In different Hindu traditions, Kala is associated with various divine forms and manifestations.
↻ synthesized from 5 sources
When
- First attested
- 1500 BCE
- Attested period
- -1500 – 2020
- Historical notes
- Sanskrit term attested in Vedic and Hindu traditions, associated with multiple deities across Shaivism and Vaishnavism.
Relationships
- co occurs with
- Dharmarāja, Pashi, Vasus, Locanā, Satya, Kratu, Kuru, Madravas, Rocaka, Dhvani, Dhuri, Sanjna, Shani, Chhaya, Tapti, Savarni Manu, Ratri, Kalaratri, Ratridevi, Brahma, Rama, Lakshmana, Visvedevas, Daksha, Dhrti, Kama, Pururavas, Revanta, Vishwakarma
- syncretized with
- Dharmadeva, Yama, Śiva
- sibling of
- Yami
- manifests as
- Kala Bhairava, Kalagni Rudra, Vishti
- serves
- Yama
- consort of
- kali
- has aspect
- Kala Bhairava, Kalagni Rudra, Krishna, Sankarshana
Mentioned by
- Brahma
- Rama
- Lakshmana
- Visvedevas
- Daksha
- Dhrti
- Kama
- Pururavas
- Revanta
- Vishwakarma
- Sūrya
- Vivasvat
- Sanjna
- Vishvā
- Śiva
- Vishnu
and 4 more
Sources
Source passages
“Kala is described in 19th Kanda Sukta 53 and 54 in the Atharvaved as a deity in which the mind, breath and name of God pervades. Kala appears as an impersonal deity within the Mahabharata, the Ramayana, and the Bhagavata Purana.”
#13426 · extracted by anthropic/claude-sonnet-4.5
“Yama is also known by many other names, including Kala ('time'), Pashi (one who carries a noose') and Dharmaraja ('lord of Dharma').”
#13927 · extracted by google/gemini-2.0-flash-001
“Vasu Satya Kratu Daksha Kala Kama Dhrti Kuru Pururavas Madravas Rocaka or Locana Dhvani or Dhuri”
#22622 · extracted by google/gemini-2.0-flash-001
“Vishti, who was dark blue colour and a personification of Kala (Time or Death) who dwells in Hell”
#30438 · extracted by anthropic/claude-sonnet-4.5
“The mystics conceived of kala as a personified deity. This, then, gave rise to the idea of the deified Kala as devourer of all things, in the sense that time devours all.”
#30974 · extracted by anthropic/claude-sonnet-4.5