the devotional (bhakti) literature,
Uddhava is most famous for the mes-
sage he carries from Krishna back to the
gopis, the cowherd womenof Braj(a
northern Indian region on the Yamuna
Riversouth of the modern city of Delhi)
who are Krishna’s devotees (bhakta) and
who love him more than life. Uddhava
tells the gopis not to be concerned with
Krishna’s physical absence, since as the
supreme divinity, Krishna is always with
them, even though he may not be visi-
ble. The gopis reply that such talk is fine
for intellectual folk such as Uddhava,
but that for simple women like them-
selves, who have had the delight of asso-
ciating with Krishna in the flesh, such
abstractions are absolutely useless.
Uddhava and the gopis are symbols for
two different types of religious life: one
cool and abstract, focused on an imper-
sonal divinity, and the other based on
passionate love for a particular deity.
Differing accounts of this story give dif-
ferent endings, according to the writers’
inclinations. In some of the stories,
including the earliest version in the
Bhagavata Purana, the story ends in a
standoff, with each side unable to con-
vince the other. Yet in at least one of the
accounts, Uddhava is converted to the
gopis’ point of view. For further infor-
mation see R. S. McGregor (ed. and
trans.), Nanddas, 1973.Udgatr
Type of sacrificial priest in the
Brahmanaliterature, one of the later
strands in the sacred literature known as
the Vedas. The Brahmanas largely func-
tioned as manuals describing how to
perform sacrificial rites—which primar-
ily involved burning offerings in a
sacred fire—and the care and attention
devoted to detailing these sacrifices
leads to the inference that these were
the primary religious act. These rites
were so complex that they required spe-
cialized ritual technicians: the
adhvaryum, the hotr, the udgatr, and
the brahman. Of these, the udgatr was
the sacrificial priest who chanted the
hymns from the Sama Vedathat were
used in the sacrifice.Udupi
Town and sacred site (tirtha) on the
Arabian Sea in the state of Karnataka,
about thirty miles north of Mangalore.
Udupi’s most famous temple is to the
god Krishna, but it is best known as the
home of the philosopher Madhva,
founder of the Dvaita Vedanta.Ugrasena
In Hindu mythology, the king of
Mathurawho is the grandfather of the
god Krishna. Ugrasena is supplanted by
the evil Kamsa, who is believed to be
Ugrasena’s son but is actually not.
According to legend, Kamsa is the son of
a demon who has taken Ugrasena’s
form, and who under this guise has
intercourse with Ugrasena’s wife.Ujjain
City and sacred site (tirtha) on the
Shipra River in the state of MadhyaUdgatr
The Mahakaleshvar Temple in Ujjain.
It is dedicated to the god Shiva
in the form of the “Lord of Death.”