reflects his marginal, uncontrolled
nature and his utter disconnection with
the conventional values of ordinary
society. It is still sometimes carried by
ascetics, for whom Shiva is the model
ascetic, and a paradigm for emulation.
Khetaka
(“shield”) In Hindu iconography, the
shield is associated with a variety of
deities, including the Goddess,Shiva,
and Vishnu. The shield is often found in
images in which the figure carries a
sword (khadga).
Kichaka
In the Mahabharata, the later of the two
great Hindu epics, Kichaka is the brother-
in-law of King Virata. King Virata is host
to the five Pandavabrothers (the epic’s
protagonists) during the year that they go
incognito after twelve years of forest
exile. During this time, Kichaka becomes
attracted to Draupadi, the Pandavas’
common wife, who serves as an atten-
dant to one of the royal ladies. Kichaka
continues his advances despite her
protests and strikes her when she tries to
escape. One of Draupadi’s husbands,
Bhima, is livid when he discovers what
has happened. He tells Draupadi to
arrange a secret meeting with Kichaka,
on the pretense of surrendering to his
desires. Bhima disguises himself as
Draupadi and when Kichaka arrives,
Bhima kills him with his bare hands.
Kimpurusha
Another name for the mythical animals
known as Kinnara. See Kinnara.
Kindama
In the Mahabharata, Kindama is a
forest-dwelling sage, whose curseon
King Panduadvances the epic’s plot.
Although celibate in his human form,
Kindama occasionally uses his magic
powers to transform himself and his
wife into animals, so that they can expe-
rience sexual pleasure. On one occasion,
as Kindama and his wife are in the form
of deer, King Pandu shoots the copulat-
ing pair with an arrow. In their dying
moments the sage and his wife revert to
their human forms. The sage curses the
horrified Pandu to die the moment he
takes his wife in an amorous embrace.
Since Pandu is childless, he abdicates
the throne in favor of his blind brother
Dhrtarashtraand becomes a celibate
renunciant. Pandu’s wives, Kunti and
Madri, eventually bear children through
magical means. The struggle for
power between their children and
Duryodhana, Dhrtarashtra’s son, is the
epic’s pivotal conflict.Kinnara
(“What, Man?”) Mythical creatures
described as either having the head of a
horse and the body of a human being, or
the head of a human being and the body
of a horse. The Kinnaras are described as
servants of Kubera, a minor deity.
Kubera is one of the Guardians of the
Directions, a group of eight deities
believed to rule the cardinal and inter-
mediate directions. He is the ruler over
the northern direction, and thus identi-
fied as living in the Himalayas, where
the Kinnaras also live. The Kinnaras are
usually considered identical to the
mythical creatures known as the
Kimpurushas.Kiritamakuta
A high crown, sometimes topped with
a knob, studded with jewels and
other ornamentation. In Hindu iconog-
raphy the kiritamakuta is associated
with the god Vishnu, particularly in
his manifestation as Narayana. For
Vishnu, the kingly imagery conveyed by
this crown reinforces his claim to be
ruler of the universe.Kirtan
(“repeating”) A type of devotional
singing or chanting of short verses
which are usually different renditions of
the divine name. This is often done in aKirtan