Mallinatha
(14th c.?) Sanskrit scholar and com-
mentator noted for his commentaries
on the plays written by the poet
Kalidasa(5th c.?); these commentaries
have become sources for interpreting
the texts. Although the subject of his
commentary was largely “secular” poetry,
Mallinatha himself was a Jain, and may
have been a monk. His work illustrates
the important role that the Jains played
in the preservation of Indian literary
culture. In addition to their commen-
taries, they copied and recopied the
manuscripts, a never-ending task due to
the fragile nature of the palm leaveson
which they were written.
Malviya, Madan Mohan
(1861–1946) Hindu activist and founder
of Benares Hindu University. Malviya
belonged to the first generation of
Hindus seeking to reclaim India from
British rule; these men were well
educated, politically active, and pas-
sionately committed to traditional
Hindu culture. Benares Hindu University
was founded in 1916 to uphold Hindu
cultural and philosophical traditions, as
well as to educate students in the sci-
ences, preparing them for the modern
world. Aside from his work in education,
Malviya organized and supported
Hindu religious causes, in particular a
ban on cow slaughterand opposition to
a proposed dam on the GangesRiver at
the pilgrimage city of Haridwar. The
dam would have restricted the free flow
of the Ganges, so in 1914 and 1916, he
spent considerable energy organizing
opposition so that a compromise with
the government could be found. For a
glowing account of his life, see M. A.
Parmanand, Mahamana Madan Mohan
Malviya, 1985.
Malwa
Traditional name for the plateau in
Madhya Pradeshcentered around the
city of Ujjain, the region’s traditional
capital. During the seventeenth and
eighteenth centuries, the Malwa region
was one of the centers for the
Rajasthanischool of miniature paint-
ing. The Rajasthani style is generally
characterized by a flat perspective.
Visual power is derived from bands of
vivid colors that often serve as a back-
drop to the painting.Mamsa
(“meat”) In the secret ritually-based reli-
gious practice known as tantra, meat is
the third of the Five Forbidden Things
(panchamakara); the panchamakara
are used in their actual forms in “left
hand” (vamachara) tantric ritual,
whereas they are represented by sym-
bolic substitutes in “right hand” (dak-
shinachara) tantric ritual. “Respectable”
Hindu society strongly condemns the
consumption of nonvegetarian food; its
ritual use therefore must be seen in the
larger tantric context. One of the most
pervasive tantric assumptions is the
ultimate unity of everything that exists.
From a tantric perspective, to affirm that
the entire universe is one principle
means that the adept must reject
all concepts based on dualistic
thinking. The “Five Forbidden Things”
provide a ritual means for breaking
down duality; in this ritual the adept
breaks societal norms forbidding
consumption of intoxicants, nonvege-
tarian food, and illicit sexuality in a
conscious effort to sacralize what is
normally forbidden. Tantric adepts
cite such ritual use of forbidden things
as proof that their practice involves a
more exclusive qualification (adhikara),
and is thus superior to common prac-
tice. For further information see Arthur
Avalon (Sir John Woodroffe) Shakti and
Shakta, 1978; Swami Agehananda
Bharati, The Tantric Tradition, 1977; and
Douglas R. Brooks, The Secret of the
Three Cities, 1990.Manas
(“mind”) In the metaphysics of the
Samkhyaschool, one of the six schoolsMallinatha