Are Durgā, Lakṣmī, Sarasvatī and Kālī different goddesses or one?

Śākta tradition sees them as forms of one Mahādevī, each showing a different side — strength, abundance, wisdom and fierce protection.

The Devī Māhātmya, the central text of Goddess worship, tells three stories of the one Devī. In the first she is honoured as Mahākālī, in the second as Mahālakṣmī (who becomes Durgā, slayer of Mahiṣāsura), and in the third as Mahāsarasvatī. She says herself that she alone exists, and all goddesses are her forms.

In everyday worship, though, each form has her own season and mood. Durgā is called on for courage and protection, especially in Navarātri; Lakṣmī for prosperity and harmony at home, on Fridays and Dīpāvalī; Sarasvatī for learning and the arts, on Vasanta Pañcamī; and Kālī as the fierce, loving Mother who cuts through fear and ego.

In Vaiṣṇava and Śaiva views they are also consorts — Lakṣmī with Viṣṇu, Pārvatī–Durgā with Śiva, Sarasvatī with Brahmā. Both understandings sit comfortably together in most homes.

Source: Devī Māhātmya (Mārkaṇḍeya Purāṇa) · Three caritras: Mahākālī, Mahālakṣmī, Mahāsarasvatī

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