Mother "Shakti" also worshipped as "kali', the Dark Form, symbolizes the eternal force holding the past, the present and the future or "Maha Kal" together. Goddess Durga is also worshipped regularly in various forms and callings, such as "Jagat-dhatri" the deliveress of the world, as the goddess with four arms, sitting on a lion; "Annapurna", the munificent goddess, or Lord Shiva's consort, "Parvati" the daughter of the Himalayas, "Chandi" or "Chamunda Devi", also called "Chhinnamasta" in Haryana, and known as "kamakhya Devi" in Assam.

The inherent "power" of the Trinity is the primeaval feminine power "Adya-Shakti" (Cosmic energy) or "Bhavani" (mother soul of the universe). The great sages variously explained this relationship as the inseparable properties or ideas, like water and its fluidity, like milk and its whiteness, like gems and their glow and like the oceans and its waves. This inseparable identity of the goddess Shakti with the Parama-Brahman is implied in Her being called "Chandi" or "Chamunda-Devi" (which in Sanskrit means Chit- Shakti, or the power of the supreme soul beyond the bounds of time and space). She is also worshipped as "Narayanee", the intrinsic power of "Narayan" or Lord Vishnu. Calling Shakti as "Katyayani" reminisces Her appearance in the hermitage of the very ancient sage name Katyayan in the Himalayan mountains, who worshipped the mother with utmost devotion.

One of the anicient narrative literature entitled "Markandeya Purana" narrates the glory of the goddess in her spectacular victory in heaven-shaking battles against the inveterate demons. The most widely worshipped form is " Mahishasura Mardhini', the destroyer of the demon who took the disguise of a buffalo. In this form, Durga Devi was worshipped by the heroes of two great Indian epics, the Mahabharata and the Ramayana. In Ramayan, Lord Rama worshipped Durga Devi to seek the power for his conquest of Lanka of the demon king Ravana who had kidnapped his wife Sita. In Mahabharat, Lord Krishna advised the eldest of the Pandava brothers, Yudhishthir, to invoke the blessings of Durga Devi at the start of the battle of Kurukshetra. Thus, we can see that in both epics, the victory of "truth" over "evil" is indirectly attributed to the blessings of Durga Devi. In our times, the great celebrations of "Dussera " in the month of October, accompanied by worship of Durga Devi, is the reenactment of Lord Rama's worship and victory with the goddess's blessings.