Govardhan Math
One of the four mathsor sacred centers
traditionally believed to have been estab-
lished by the great philosopher Shank-
aracharya; the others are the Sharada
math, Shringeri math, and Jyotir math.
These four sacred centers are each associ-
ated with one of the four geographical cor-
ners of the Indian subcontinent; the
Govardhan math is in the eastern quarter,
in the city of Purion the shores of the Bay
of Bengal. Shankaracharya is traditionally
cited as the founder of the Dashanami
Sanyasis, the most prestigious Hindu
ascetic order. The Dashanami (“ten
names”) ascetics are devotees (bhakta) of
the god Shivaand are divided into ten divi-
sions, each with a different name. These
ten divisions are organized into four larger
organizational groups—Anandawara,
Bhogawara, Bhuriwara, and Kitawara—
each of which has two or three of the ten
divisions and is associated with one of the
four sacred centers. Of these, the
Govardhan math is associated with the
Bhogawara group.
Govardhan Puja
Festival celebrated on the first dayof the
bright (waxing) half of the lunar monthof
Kartik(October–November), the day after
the festival Diwali. The charter myth for
this festival comes from the mythology of
the god Krishna, and this festival is cele-
brated mainly in the Brajregion south of
modern Delhi, where Krishna is said to
have lived. According to legend, this is the
day that Krishna lifted up Mount
Govardhanto protect the people of Braj
from the storms sent by the god Indra.
Indra was angry because Krishna had per-
suaded the village elders to make offerings
to Mount Govardhan, rather than to Indra.
Krishna held up the mountain as an
umbrella for an entire week, after which
Indra admitted defeat. On this day pilgrims
circle Mount Govardhan on foot. The
mountain is seen as a physical manifesta-
tion of Krishna himself, and because of
Krishna’s association with cattle, they also
adorn and worship cowsand bulls. In
memory of the offerings given to Mount
Govardhan in that story, as well as the
mountain of offerings (particularly milk-
based sweets) that are prepared for cele-
bration in modern times, the festival is also
known as Annakut(“mountain of food”).Govinda
(“gaining cows”) Epithet of the god
Krishna, referring to his childhood in
Brajas a cowherd. See Krishna.Govindswami
(late 16th c.) One of the poets of the ash-
tachap, a group of eight northern Indian
bhakti(devotional) poets. The composi-
tions of these eight poets are used for
liturgical purposes by the Pushti Marg, a
religious community whose members
are devotees (bhakta) of Krishna. The
Pushti Marg named all eight poets as
members of the community and associ-
ates of either the community’s founder,
Vallabhacharya, or his successor
Vitthalnath. Govindswami is believed to
have been an associate of Vitthalnath. In
his poetry, Govindswami writes from the
perspective of a companion (sakhi) to
Krishna’s consort Radha, and in this
voice not only gives a picture of the
divine activities, but also an extremely
detailed picture of everyday village life.Grace
The notion of divine grace has been and
remains vitally important in Hindu devo-
tional religiosity (bhakti), although it is
perceived differently among the various
devotional movements in Hinduism. In
the Tamil devotionalism that marked the
earliest articulation of the bhakti move-
ment, the two major religious groups, the
Alvarsand the Nayanars, both stressed
the utter transcendence of their chosen
god and the gulf between God and human
beings. In this understanding, grace
became something only God could give
freely. Only God had the power to trans-
form human beings and bring their souls
to final liberation—a notion of grace not
far removed from Christian ideas. Within
the Shrivaishnavas, a later southernGovardhan Math