create a corps of learned men who
could help to revitalize Hindu life.
Each of the divisions is designated
by a different name—in this case,
aranya (“forest”). Upon initiation,
new members are given this name
as a surname to their new ascetic
names, thus allowing for immediate
group identification.
Aside from their individual identity,
these ten “named” divisions are
divided into four larger organizational
groups. Each group has its headquar-
ters in one of the four monastic
centers (maths) also established
by Shankaracharya. The Aranya
Dashanamis belong to the Bhogawara
group, which is affiliated with the
Govardhan Mathin the city of Puri,
on the Bay of Bengal.
Aranyaka
(“Forest books”) General designation for
a type of literature contained in the
sacred texts known as the Vedas. The
Aranyakas are transitional in nature; in
their content they move away from the
focus on ritual and sacrificefound in
the Brahmanaliterature and foreshad-
ow the later, more speculative texts
known as the Upanishads.
Because of their name, the
Aranyakas are widely believed to have
been composed in the forests, perhaps
by asceticswho had left formal soci-
ety. The tone in these texts is question-
ing and speculative, and in stylistic
terms there is no clear break between
the Aranyakas and the Upanishads:
one of the earliest upanishads is
named Brhadaranyaka (“Great
Forest-Book”) Upanishad, which rein-
forces the connection.Aranyaka
An arati lamp is waved before an image of the god Ganesh before the statue is immersed in water.
The light from the flame is considered a religious offering.