Consorts of Ganesha

The marital status of Ganesha varies widely in mythological stories and the issue has been the subject of considerable scholarly review. Several patterns of associations with different consorts are identifiable. One pattern of myths identifies Ganesha as an unmarried brahmacārin with no consorts. Another pattern associates him with the concepts of Buddhi (intellect), Siddhi (spiritual power), and Riddhi (prosperity); these qualities are sometimes personified as goddesses who are considered to be Ganesha's wives. Another pattern connects Ganesha with the goddess of culture and the arts, Sarasvati, and the goddess of luck and prosperity, Lakshmi. In the Bengal region he is linked with the banana tree, Kala Bo (or Kola Bou). He also may be shown with a single consort or a nameless servant (Sanskrit: daşi).

Some of the differences between these patterns can be understood by looking at regional variations across India, the time periods in which the patterns are found, and the traditions in which the beliefs are held. Some differences pertain to the preferred meditation form used by the devotee, with many different traditional forms ranging from Ganesha as a young boy (Sanskrit: बाल गणपति; bālagāņapati) to Ganesha as a Tantric deity.

Kala

Kala or Kalah may refer to:

In Hinduism

In popular culture

In music

ʻŌʻōkala, Hawaii

ʻŌʻōkala (also spelled Ookala) is an unincorporated community on the island of Hawaii in Hawaii County, Hawaii, United States. It lies along Hawaii Route 19 north of Hilo, the county seat of Hawaii County. Its elevation is 371 feet (113 m), and it is located at 20°1′3″N 155°17′14″W / 20.01750°N 155.28722°W / 20.01750; -155.28722Coordinates: 20°1′3″N 155°17′14″W / 20.01750°N 155.28722°W / 20.01750; -155.28722 (20.0175000, -155.2872222). Because the community has borne multiple names, the Board on Geographic Names officially designated it "ʻŌʻōkala" in 2000. Although it is unincorporated, it has a post office, with the ZIP code of 96774.

References

Kala (Tarzan)

Kala is a fictional ape character in Edgar Rice Burroughs's original Tarzan novel, Tarzan of the Apes, and in the Walt Disney-produced animated movie Tarzan based on it.

History

In the novel, Kala is a female in a band of Mangani, a fictional species of Great Ape intermediate between real life chimpanzees and gorillas. She saves the infant Tarzan from the murderous fury of Kerchak, the mad leader of the ape band, after the latter kills Tarzan's human father. Kala goes on to rear the human baby as her own while protecting him against Kerchak and her own mate, Tublat. After Tarzan reaches adulthood, Kala is killed by a native African hunter, who is afterward killed by Tarzan in revenge.

Kala also appears in Jungle Tales of Tarzan, the sixth book of the Tarzan series, which relates episodes from the ape man's youth omitted from Tarzan of the Apes. Chapter 7, "The End of Bukawai," relates an episode in which Tarzan is almost killed when he swings so long on the rope that it frays and parts, dropping him to the ground. Kala runs to the boy's aid and he soon revives.