The kings of Madurai have retained their
connection with Shiva, seeing themselves as rul-
ing in his line. However, in the temple precincts
Minakshi retains pride of place in the inner sanc-
tum, which contains a small image of her.
Each year the CHITTIRAI FESTIVAL (in the lunar
month of Chittirai) commemorates the marriage
of Minakshi and Shiva. It is is marked by 10
days of pageantry and celebration; a huge temple
chariot bearing the festival images of Minakshi
and Shiva is paraded around. Because of her status
in Madurai, a great many businesses there, from
tire companies to restaurants, are named after the
goddess.
Further reading: Chris Fuller, A Priesthood Renewed:
Modernity and Traditionalism in a South Indian Temple
(Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, 2003);
———, Servants of the Goddess: The Priests of a South
Indian Temple (New York: Cambridge University Press);
William P. Harman, The Sacred Marriage of a Hindu God-
dess (Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1989).
Mirabai (c. 1450–1547) mystic poet and devotee
of Krishna
Mirabai is one of the great mystic poets of India.
A princess of the Rajput warrior clan in the Indian
state of Rajasthan, she married a great prince of
the famous town of Udaipur but was so devoted to
Lord KRISHNA that she could not play the role of a
proper wife. She eventually became the disciple of
Raidas, a low-caste Hindu who was himself later
worshipped as a saint.
Mirabai was persecuted by her husband and
his family; it is said that they even gave her poison
to drink, which failed to kill her. Finally Krishna
appeared to her and told her to abandon family
life and go to BRINDAVAN, his most sacred shrine.
After spending some time there she settled at last
in Gujarat in Dvaraka, where she died. Legend has
it that she disappeared into the icon of Krishna in
order to avoid a delegation from Rajasthan that
was pleading for her to return.
Mirabai’s works, written in the Hindi dialect
Braj, show a passionate all-consuming devotion
to Lord Krishna as the divine lover. As was the
case with so many Vaishnavite (see VAISHNAVISM)
saints, her songs often depict the agony of sepa-
ration from God (Lord Krishna), who only rarely
visits in mystical union. The mode of Mirabai
very much resembles that of St. John of the Cross
in his famous “Dark Night” (Noche Oscura).
Mira’s songs are known all over India but are
sung particularly in Rajasthan.Further reading: Robert Bly and Jane Hirshfield, Mira-
bai: Ecstatic Poems (Boston: Beacon Press, 2004); Rita
Dalmiya, Meerabai (Calcutta: Writers Workshop, 1988);
John Stratton Hawley, Three Bhakti Voices: Mirabai,
Surdas, and Kabir in Their Time and Ours (New Delhi:
Oxford University Press, 2005).Mishra, Ramamurti (1923–1993) (Swami
Brahmananda Saraswati) teacher of raja yoga
Ramamurti Mishra was an Indian-born yogi
who founded the ANANDA ASHRAM in Monroe,
New York. He wrote many books on YOGA and
AYURVEDA and he commented upon many SAN-
SKRIT texts.
Ramamurti Mishra was born in Benares (Vara-
nasi), India, on March 6, 1923, into a reli-
gious Brahmin family. His mother was a spiritual
teacher with many disciples and his father was
a high court judge and practitioner of astrology.
From an early age, Ramamurti was immersed
in the study of Sanskrit, MEDITATION, and YOGA.
At the age of six, he became ill and apparently
died—for 36 hours, no vital signs of life, includ-
ing respiration, were detected. As his father was
about to light the fire for his cremation, the child
sat upright and declared that he was alive. Rama-
murti always considered this date, March 6, was
his real birthday.
At a young age he left home to pursue the
study of Sanskrit and medicine. He completed his
first medical degrees in Ayurveda and WesternK 290 Mirabai