the world (Atlanta, Pittsburgh, Chicago, Malibu, etc.), the “festival” icon of
Vis.n.u is dressed as Mohinı ̄. This is on the eve of one of the holiest days in the
Hindu calendar – the day called Vaikun.t.ha Ekadas ́i. This day is the eleventh day
(ekadas ́i) after the new moon in the month of Margasirsa.
While there are many narratives of Vis.n.u’s incarnation as a woman, the story
of the churning of the ocean of milk is the most popular in performing arts and
in sculpture. The grandest bas relief– one of the largest in the world – is on this
theme at Angkor Wat, Cambodia, and the story is performed over and over again
in Bha ̄rata Natyam and Kuchipudi. When the Asuras (“demons”) and the Devas
(“divine ones”) fight over the nectar of immortality, Vis.n.u appears in the form
of a Mohinı ̄, an enchanting woman. The Asuras, enraptured by her appearance,
agree to let her mediate and distribute the nectar, and she gives it all (with a
couple of minor exceptions) to the Devas. While there are many layers to this
story, at least on one level it deals with the enchanting, seductive form of Vis.n.u
which gives the divine beings a shot at immortality. In a sequel to this story, Lord
S ́iva requests Vis.n.u to take the form of Mohinı ̄. Upon beholding “her,” he falls
in love with her. The deity Ayyappa is considered to be an offspring of S ́iva and
Mohinı ̄. He is called “Hari Hara Putra” or the “son of Vis.n.u and S ́iva.” His temple
is in Sabarimalai, Kerala, and it is one of the most popular places for male
pilgrimage in India. About two million devotees gather there for the peak days
in January.
The importance of the incarnation as Mohinı ̄ survives today only primarily
in rituals where the male god is dressed as female. Devotees retain the ambigu-
ity in their understanding of this ritual. One the one hand, Vis.n.u can take any
form and he is father and mother; on the other hand, he can appear as the
charming seductress if that is how the devotees envisage him. This trope – the
male God as the entrancing woman and the devas (or human devotees) cast in
the role of those who are enamored of “her” – has not become popular in later
Va i s.n.avism, as did the image of a male devotee who adopts a female role. It is
possible that it reflects a time when notions of gender were more fluid than the
centuries when such delineations based on sexual difference were prevalent.
Men wearing female garb are seen in the Maha ̄bha ̄rata as well as in other
traditions of the Hindu culture. During a year in exile, Arjuna becomes a
“female”dance teacher, in the palace at Virata. The male devotees of the Goddess
Gan.ga ̄mma in Tirupati dress as females, emulating and being possessed by the
Goddess during her festivals (Flueckiger, forthcoming).
It is possible that the appearance of Vis.n.u as Mohinı ̄ is not emphasized more
in the S ́rı ̄vais.n.ava tradition because of the S ́rı ̄/Laks.mı ̄’s increasing importance
after the ninth century. The Goddess Laks.mı ̄ has a central role in S ́rı ̄vais.n.ava
theology and is worshiped at home and in temples. She is portrayed as being
inseparable from Vis.n.u, residing on his chest, and we see this in all icons of
Vis.n.u. This inseparability from Vis.n.u is seen in everyday life in the forehead
marks that S ́rı ̄vais.n.ava men and women wear. The white, U shaped mark is said
to depict Vis.n.u’s feet and the red line in the middle is Laks.mı ̄. The inseparability
of the couple who are the divine supreme deities is even more dramatically seen
584 vasudha narayanan