Karnataka, in the 1960s. Between 1959 and 1966,
Keshavadas made 47 pilgrimage tours of India,
singing and speaking about his teaching.
In 1966, at the KUMBHA MELA festival in
Allahabad, Keshavadas met the immortal BABAJI,
who encouraged Keshavadas to go to the West
to establish a following for the cosmic religion.
Keshavadas and his wife (called Guru Mata)
took this advice and traveled that year to Ger-
many, England, and New York City to spread
the message of sanatana dharma. Their message
was received enthusiastically in the West and
Keshavadas continued to make frequent trips
across the world over the next 30 years. He
established several ashrams in India, including
his headquarters at the Vishwa Shanti Ashram
in Bangalore, an ashram in Trinidad, and one in
Oakland, California.
Keshavadas taught that mysticism or direct
experience of God is the future of religion. On
the basis of this belief he established the Temple
of Cosmic Religion. He believed that humanity
is preparing itself for cosmic consciousness, but
that the ego prevents each person from reaching
transformation to a higher consciousness. His
main teaching focused on overcoming doctri-
nal differences by emphasizing unity among all
religions. He offered many different approaches
to unity but taught that the path to enlighten-
ment requires repetition of God’s holy name. His
teachings include BHAKTI, deity worship, JNANA
YOGA and VEDANTA as understood through Swami
VIVEKANANDA.
Keshavadas was an accomplished composer
who wrote and recorded over 6,000 songs. He
often used music, storytelling, philosophy, and
humor in his teachings. He spoke eight languages
and lectured widely to audiences in the East and
West. He also authored over 50 books includ-
ing The Bhagavad Gita and the Bible, a work that
explores the teachings of love and wisdom in
Hinduism and Christianity. During the 1980s
he organized construction of the Bhagavad-Gita
Mandir (temple) near his Bangalore ashram. All
700 stanzas of the Bhagavad Gita are carved in
black marble there, in English, Sanskrit, Hindi,
and Kannada.
On December 4, 1997, at the age of 63, Kes-
havadas passed away while on a lecture circuit in
Visakhapatnam. His work of unity and peace is
continued by Guru Mata, who assumed responsi-
bility for her husband’s mission.Further reading: Satguru Sant Keshavadas, Essence of
Bhagavad-Gita and Bible (Oakland, Calif.: Temple of
Cosmic Religion, 1982); ———, Life and Teachings of
Sadguru Sant Keshavadas (Southfield, Mich.: Temple
of Cosmic Religion, 1977); ———, Mystic Christ
(Bangalore: Dasashrama Research, 1972); ———, Self
Realization (Southfield, Mich.: Temple of Cosmic Reli-
gion, 1976); Mukundadas (Michael Allan Makowsky),
Minstrel of Love: A Biography of Satguru Sant Keshavadas
(Nevada City, Calif.: Hansa, 1980).kevalin See JAINISM.
Khajuraho
Khajuraho is a small village near Jhansi in the
state of Madhya Pradesh. Some 22 temples are
located around the village; they are considered
the finest of the medieval period and are known
for their erotic art.
The temples were constructed between 950
and 1050 C.E. under the Chandel empire. They
show murals and a profusion of sculptures that
depict explicit scenes from the KAMA SUTRA. Some
have explained their frank depiction of myriad
sexual positions as being tantric in origin, as TA N-
TRISM is known to stress sexual ritual.
One legend gives a more personal explanation
of the erotic artwork. The mother of the king who
built the temple had been seduced by the Moon god
and became a social outcast. When the boy grew up
to become king, he had a dream visitation from his
mother; she asked him to show all the passions of
love in order that people would learn the goodnessK 234 kevalin