Namdev
(1270–1350?) Poet-saint who is one of
the great figures in the Varkari Panth, a
religious community centered around
the worshipof the Hindu god Vithoba,
at his temple in Pandharpur in the
modern state of Maharashtra.
According to tradition, Namdev was a
cotton-printer, considered a low-status
occupation, but the strength of
his devotion rendered his worldly
status irrelevant. He is said to have been
an associate of Jnaneshvar and
Chokamela, two other Varkari poet-
saints. His songs have been preserved in
several different collections, including
the Adigranth (compiled by the Sikh
community) and the Panchvani(a col-
lection of songs by five poets compiled
by the Dadupanth). For traditional
information about his life, see G. A.
Deleury, The Cult of Vithoba, 1960; and
Justin E. Abbott and Narhar R. Godbole
(trans.), Stories of Indian Saints, 1982.
For a more critical look at his Hindu
songs and the difficulties using them as
biographical sources, see Winand
Callewaert and Mukund Lath, The Hindi
Padavali of Namdev, 1989.
Nammalvar
(10th c.) The most prolific composer of all
the Alvars, a group of twelve poet-saints
who lived in southern India between the
seventh and tenth centuries. All the
Alvars were devotees (bhakta) of the god
Vishnu. They emphasized passionate
devotion (bhakti) to a personal god, con-
veyed through hymns sung in the Tamil
language, which transformed and revi-
talized Hindu religious life. According to
tradition, Nammalvar was born into a
princely family, but was completely dis-
interested with life in the world. His dis-
traught parents eventually abandoned
him. Nammalvar crawled into the hollow
of a giant tamarind tree, where he sat in
silent meditation. He remained there
until the arrival of his disciple
Mathurakavi, who managed to rouse
him by posing a question on the nature of
the Self. Nammalvar immediately poured
forth more than one thousand hymns to
Vishnu, each beginning with the last
word of the previous hymn. These hymns
are known as the Tiruvaymoli(“holy
words”). This collection of 1,102 stanzas
is the concluding section of the Nalayira
Divyaprabandham, the collected hymns
of the Alvars. For further information see
Kamil Zvelebil, Tamil Literature, 1975;
John Stirling Morley Hooper, Hymns of
the Alvars, 1929; A. Shrinivasa Raghavan,
Nammalvar, 1975; and A. K. Ramanujan,
Hymns for the Drowning, 1981.Nanak Jayanti
Celebration falling on the full moon
in the lunar month of Kartik
(October–November). This day is
celebrated as the birthday of the
first Sikh guru, Guru Nanak, and is
celebrated largely by members of the
Sikh community.Nanda
In Hindu mythology, the god Krishna’s
foster father, who cares for Krishna as
his own child after Krishna is placed in
his care. Nanda is described as the head-
man of the village. Under his care
Krishna lives a comfortable, if simple,
life. In Krishna’s mythology, Nanda is a
less important figure than Krishna’s fos-
ter mother, Yashoda.Nanda Devi
Nanda Devi is the name for one of the
tallest mountains in India, rising over
25,000 feet, in the Kumaon region of the
Himalayas. Nanda Devi is also a form of
the Goddesswho is identified with that
mountain. With Nanda Devi, as for
many of the other goddessesof India,
divinity and the natural landscape are
inextricably connected. Nanda Devi is a
local Himalayan goddess who presides
over the Garhwaland Kumaon regions.
People in the region consider her to be a
“daughter” of the region, who had to
change her residence when she married
the god Shiva. Nanda Devi’s songs and
rites show strong connections with theNanda Devi