particularly the Naga class of the
Dashanami Sanyasis, trader-soldiers
who are devotees (bhakta) of the god
Shiva. It also serves as the winter quar-
ters for many ascetics who spend their
summers in the Himalayas. The pres-
ence of so many ascetics has had a pro-
found effect on the city’s general
character, both in the hundreds of
ashramsthat are spread throughout the
city, and in the prohibitions on the sale
of eggs, meat, and liquor.
Harihara
(early 14th c.) The founder of the
Vijayanagar (“city of victory”) empire,
established in 1336, which ruled over
much of southern India for the following
two centuries. The empire took its name
from the capital city that Harihara built
near the city of Hampiin the modern
state of Karnataka.
As a boy, Harihara was captured by
soldiers of the Bahmani sultanate to the
north, and had converted to Islam in
captivity, which rendered him an outcast
in the eyes of traditional Hindus. As a
man, Harihara was sent to regain the
southern region for the sultanate, but
instead used the opportunity to establish
his own kingdom. After gaining power,
Harihara reconverted to Hinduism,
despite having become an outcast
through his acceptance of Islam. His
example not only shows the fluidity of
religious identity in early medieval
India, but also Hindu pragmatism in
relation to the ruling powers. Although
Harihara had earlier become an outcast,
his power as ruler gave him the authori-
ty to reconvert without orthodox oppo-
sition. See also Vijayanagar dynasty.Harihara
(2) A deityseen as a combination of the
gods Hari (Vishnu) and Hara (Shiva).
Behind this hybrid deity lay the convic-
tion that both of these divinities were
differing manifestations of the same
divine power.
This underlying unity was represented
in several different ways. One way was to
create a figure whose right half had the
attributes of Shiva, and whose left half
had those of Vishnu. Another method,
found most often in modern poster art,
is to display both Vishnu and Shiva in
their full forms, riding on their respec-
tive animal vehicles. Vishnu’s elephant
and Shiva’s bullare conjoined at theHarihara
Crowds gather in Haridwar to bathe in the Ganges River.