alternate physiological system, existing
on a different plane than gross matter,
but corresponding to the material body.
It is visualized as a set of six psychic cen-
ters (chakras) running roughly along
the spine; two divine principles, Shiva
(awareness) and Shakti(power), reside
above and below these centers. In prac-
ticing this yoga, the aspirant aims to
awaken the latent spiritual energy of
Shakti known as kundalini, move it into
union with the Shiva principle at the
crown of the head, and transform the
perishable elements in the gross body to
become immortal.
Nirmala Devi claims to be able to
arouse a devotee’s (bhakta) kundalini
through an infusion of her own spiritual
power, thus dramatically speeding up
the path to liberation. Her Indian devo-
tees are mainly middle-class, but she
also claims to have a substantial follow-
ing in Europe, North America, and
Australia. For a skeptical account of an
encounter with Nirmala Devi, see
Sudhir Kakar, “Cooling Breezes,” in
Shamans, Mystics,and Doctors, 1991.
Nirmohi (“free from illusion”) Ani
Among the Bairagi Nagas, renunciant
asceticswho are devotees of Vishnu, the
Nirmohis are one of the three Naga anis
(“armies”). The others are the Digambaras
and Nirvanis. In earlier times these anis
were actual fighting units who made
their living as traders and mercenary
soldiers, but in modern times they are
mainly important for determining the
order in the bathing processions at the
Kumbha Mela. Of the three Naga anis,
the Digambaras are by far the most
important and take precedence at the
Kumbha Mela.
Nirriti
(“decay, destruction”) In the Vedas,
the oldest and most authoritative
Hindu religious texts, Nirriti is a god-
dess personifying all the negative
aspects associated with life. Nirriti’s
personality is not well-defined, for she
is rarely mentioned; the hymns men-
tioning her usually express the hope that
she will stay away and allow the speak-
ers to be free from misfortune. For fur-
ther information on Nirriti and all the
goddesses of Hinduism, see David R.
Kinsley, Hindu Goddesses, 1986.Nirukta
(“explanation”) One of the six Vedangas.
These were the auxiliary branches of
knowledge associated with the use of
the Vedas, the oldest Hindu religious
texts. Nirukta is concerned with the ety-
mological explanations of archaic
words. This was apparently a serious
problem, since almost one-quarter of
the words in the Veda occur only once,
and with the passage of time their pre-
cise meanings became either unclear or
unknown. The most famous nirukta
text—known simply as the Nirukta—
was written by Yaska the grammarian,
in about the fifth century B.C.E. His work
was immeasurably helpful to later read-
ers, but it is clear that even in Yaska’s
time the meanings for many of these
words had become uncertain and
unclear. Aside from nirukta, the other
Vedangas are vyakarana (Sanskrit
grammar), chandas(Sanskrit prosody),
kalpa(ritual instructions), shiksha(cor-
rect pronunciation), and jyotisha(aus-
picioustimes for sacrifices).Nirvani (“liberated”) Ani
Among the Bairagi Nagas, renunciant
asceticswho are devotees (bhakta) of
Vishnu, the Nirvanis are one of the three
Naga anis(“armies”). The others are the
Nirmohisand Digambaras. In earlier
times these anis were actual fighting
units who made their living as traders
and mercenary soldiers, but in modern
times they are mainly important for
determining the order at the bathing
(snana) processions at the Kumbha
Mela. Of the three Naga anis, the
Digambaras are the most important and
take precedence at the Kumbha Mela.Nirmohi (“free from illusion”) Ani