Situated beyond the commercial complex of Nehru Place lies Kalkaji
temple dedicated to the Goddess Kalka Devi. Kalkaji mandir is very famous
and has numerous devotees thronging it on many religious occasions,
throughout the year. Small red flags decorate the temple then, and women
outnumber men among the devotees. Folklore is replete with tales of the
Kalkaji temple, so much so that one does not know where legend ends and
history begins.
This is a very old temple and the oldest part was built up in 1764 A.D. The
Kali Temple in Kalkaji boasts of an existence of 3,000 years, although the
oldest surviving portion of it dates to 1764-1771 when the Marathas were in
power. Looking at the present-day Kalkaji temple one may find it hard to
believe that this shrine to Kali is an antique one, where perhaps even the
Pandavs and Kauravs had worshiped during the reign of Yudhisthir, whose
citadel of Indraprastha had the fabled fairy gates of which bards sang, much
like Homer of old, right up to the time of Prithviraj Chauhan.
The temple is situated on a hill and is dedicated to Kali. There is a very
distinctive feeling there and the devotees are overwhelmed by light, which
stay during the whole night. The power of Ma Kali is ambiguous but powerful.
Devotees also try to meditate there and a spectacular tantric aarati is held
at about 7 pm. The temple is also quite near to the Bahai Temple, which is
just opposite on the other side of a big road.