Kalighat is
regarded as one of the 52 Shakti Peethams of India, where the various
parts of Sati's body are said to have fallen, in the course of Shiva's
Rudra Tandava. Kalighat represents the site where the toes of the right
foot of Shakti or Sati fell.
Legend has it
that a devotee discovered a luminant ray of light coming from the Bhagirathi
river bed, and upon investigating its source came upon a piece of stone
carved in the form of a human toe. He also found a Svayambhu Lingam
of Nakuleshwar Bhairav nearby, and started worshipping Kaali in the
midst of a thick jungle.
Kalighat is
also associated with the worship offered to Kaali by a Dasanami Monk
by name Chowranga Giri, and the Chowringee area of Calcutta is said
to have been named after him.