Location: Eastern banks of the Hooghly River.
Time to visit: 6.00 A.M. - 12.00 P.M. and 3.00 P.M. - 8.00 P.M.
Admission Fee: Nil
Hit the Spot: Besides taxis, one can avail of the various public and private buses, like 47B, 234/1, 3C/1, 1A from all around the city to the Hazra crossing. The temple is a mere 5 minute walk from the Hazra crossing.
Photography / Video charges:Strictly prohibited.
Nearest Railway Station: Sealdah.
Nearest Metro Station: Jatin Das Park / Rash Behari
Nearest International Airport: Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport.
Time required for sight-seeing: 2 hours.

The Kalighat Temple is one of the most popular Shakti Peeths in India.

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 Syayambhu Lingam of Nakuleshwar Bhairav nearby, and started worshipping Kali in the midst of a thick jungle. This shrine grew to its present form over a period of time, thanks in particular to the Sabarna Roy Chowdhury family of Bengal.

It is said that when Dakhsya, father of Sati, held a grand festival for the Gods with a great yajna, he refused to invite Lord Shiva, because he disapproved of his ways and was against his daughter marrying the "ash smeared one". Sati thought she did not need an invitation to visit her parent's place. So, she attended the function and asked for an explanation from her father as to why her spouse was not invited. Dakshya rebuked her and insulted Shiva in the presence of others. Feeling humiliated, Sati immolated herself.

Enraged, Shiva unleashed his followers Virbhadra and Bhadrakali, two ferocious goblins, to wreck the yajna. He himself took Sati's body and went on frenzy. The Tandava, which followed, posed a threat to the existence of the universe.

Seeing this Vishnu, sent his divine circular saw (the Sudarshan Chakra), which cut Sati's body into 51 pieces. The places where each piece fell went on to become Shakti peethams.

Kalighat is regarded as one of the 51 Shakti Peethams of India where the toes of the right foot of Shakti or Sati fell. Another legend holds that Brahma himself had picked up Sati's right toe from the bank of the Adi Ganga (the old course of the river Ganges).

The main temple is a fantastic masonic creation, 90 feet high resting on a square platform, 75 feet on each side. 

Ironically, the surrounding environs of the temple are a sorry tale of sanitation. A crowd of stalls, selling all sorts of religious objects, almost entirely covers the facade of the main shrine. The entrance is narrow, crowded and filthy. Inside, it does not get any better. The canal on its west is extremely polluted. The entire area is in urgent need of a thorough cleaning drive. This has been the state of the area for over decades now. But that does not mar the convergence of a great number of devotees coming here throughout the year.

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