West. In 1981 he received the UNESCO/CIM prize
for music and in 1987 the Kathmandu medal. In
1992 he was appointed member of the Indian
National Academy of Music, Dance and Theater.
He died on January 27, 1994.
Further reading: Alain Danielou, A Brief History of India
(Rochester, Vt.: Inner Traditions, 2003); ———, A Cat-
alogue of Recorded Classical and Traditional Indian Music
(Paris: UNESCO, 1952); ———, Gods of Love and
Ecstasy: The Traditions of Shiva and Dionysus (Rochester,
Vt.: Inner Traditions, 1992); ———, The Myths and
Gods of India (Rochester, Vt.: Inner Traditions, 1985);
———, The way to the Labyrinth: Memories of East and
West (New York: New Directions, 1987); ———, While
the Gods Play: Shaiva Oracles and Predictions on the
Cycles of History and the Destiny of Mankind (Rochester,
Vt.: Inner Traditions, 1987).
darshan
Darshan is from the Sanskrit root drish, “to see.”
It refers to a most important element of Hindu-
ism—the eye-to-eye contact between an iconic
divinity (see ICONS) or a divine personage (e.g.,
AMRITANANDAMAYI MA, SAT YA SAI BABA) and the
devotee or worshipper. Darshan can by itself
confer grace upon a seeker and result in spiritual
benefit. So, Hindus eagerly visit temples as well as
divine persons for darshan. If during a festival an
icon is paraded through the streets, everyone vies
to catch sight of it, to receive its glance and grace.
No icon in the form of a person is considered an
active divinity until the ritual opening of its eyes.
Further reading: Diana Eck, Darsan: Seeing the Divine
Image in India, 3d ed. (New York: Columbia University
Press, 1998).
Dasha Mahavidya
The Mahavidyas (maha great, vidya knowledge)
are 10 (dasha) goddesses who are grouped together
in various literary, iconographic, and mythical
contexts in India. It is a tantric grouping, though
some of the goddesses are from a nontantric, nor-
mative context.
In TANTRISM, a VIDYA is equivalent to a MAN-
TRA, but used for goddesses (the term mantra is
restricted to devotion to male divinities). It is
understood in the tantric context that the mantra
or vidya and the divinity are identical. Therefore
this group of 10 goddesses can be logically referred
to as the 10 vidyas. Each of these goddesses can in
fact grant the ultimate “knowledge” or vidya that
can lead to liberation from birth and rebirth.
The 10 goddesses constituting the Mahavidyas
are KALI, Tara, Tripura-sundari (Sri Lalita), Bhu-
vaneshvari, Chinnamasta, Bhairavi, Dhumavati,
Bagalamukhi, Matangi, and Kamala (LAKSHMI).
Kali is the fierce black goddess, the ruler over time
(kala), who helped DURGA defeat the demons in
order to restore order to the world.
Tara, known as “She who takes one across the
ocean of birth and rebirth,” is more prominent
in Buddhism. Iconographically, she very much
resembles Kali, as she is depicted seated or stand-
ing upon the supine SHIVA. She is associated with
the cremation ground and images of skulls. Tara
reveals, however, a nurturing aspect that is usu-
ally not found with Kali. At Tarapith in Birbhum,
Bengal, she is depicted nursing Shiva from her
breast.
Tripurasundari is none other than Sri Lalita,
the 16-year-old goddess who is the transcendent
One. She is usually shown with a benign aspect,
although she is in fact the incarnation of all god-
desses, whether benign or fierce.
Bhuvaneshvari, who is often seen as the
embodiment of the physical world, is vermilion in
color, has three eyes, and wears a jeweled crown.
She has a smiling face and a crescent Moon on
her brow. She can be depicted with two, six, or
20 hands holding various objects including the
lotus and a bow. She is usually depicted sitting in
the cross-legged, “lotus position” yogic posture
and is generally shown without clothing. A god-
dess described in the text Prapancasara calledDasha Mahavidya 119 J