The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Hinduism (2 Vol Set)

temple and Aurangzeb’s mosque made
for delicate relations between the Hindu
and Muslim communities, and like
many northern Indian cities Benares has
seen its share of bloodshed between
these two communities. In recent times
the destruction of the original Vishvanath
temple has been taken up as a political
issue by the Vishva Hindu Parishad
(VHP), a Hindu activist organization
calling for the “return” of this and other
northern Indian sites by force if neces-
sary. The VHP’s presence and activity have
significantly escalated tensions between
Hindus and Muslims as a whole. Given
the political gains that these confronta-
tional strategies have brought, it seems
likely that they will continue in the future
and that the Vishvanath temple will be a
site connected with conflict.

Vishva Nirmala Dharam

Religious organization founded by the
modern Hindu teacher Nirmala Devi
(b. 1923), to propagate her teachings
throughout the world.

Vishvedevas

This name can either be construed as

referring to all the gods, based on the

term’s literal meaning (“all the gods”), or

it can refer to a group of deitiesreck-

oned as the sonsof Vishva, the daugh-

ter of the divine sage Daksha. The

number of sons differs according to dif-

ferent texts and is reckoned at either ten

or thirteen. The Vishvedevas are espe-

cially worshiped at the memorial rites

for the dead known as shraddhas,

although the Manu Smrti, one of the

authoritative texts in the dharma litera-

ture, prescribes offeringsto them every

day. These prescribed daily offerings are

said to have been their reward for hav-

ing performed particularly harsh asceti-

cism(tapas).

Vismaya (“surprise”) Hasta

In Indian dance, sculpture, and ritual, a

particular hand gesture (hasta), in

which the forearm and the fingers are

pointing upward, with the back of the

hand turned toward the viewer. This

Vishva Nirmala Dharam

Dancer displaying the vismaya hasta.