the early seventeenth century Mandu
was one of the important centers for the
Rajasthanistyle of miniature painting.
The Rajasthani style is generally charac-
terized by a flat perspective. Visual
power is derived from bands of vivid col-
ors that serve as a backdrop to the paint-
ing. See also Moghul dynasty.
Mandukya Upanishad
One of the speculative religious texts
known as the Upanishads, which form
the latest stratum of the Vedas, the old-
est Hindu sacred texts. The Mandukya
Upanishad’s underlying concern is to
investigate ultimate questions, in partic-
ular the nature of the Self (atman). The
Mandukya Upanishad is generally con-
sidered one of the latest upanishads,
based on its brevity—a mere twelve
verses—and on its concise articulation
of philosophical monism. The first verse
praises the sound Om, calling it the
essence of the entire universe. The sec-
ond verse identifies the world with
Brahman, the Self (atman) with
Brahman, and characterizes the Self as
having four quarters. The succeeding
verses describe the four quarters of the
Self, each of which removes another
layer of egoism: The first layer is
described as waking consciousness,
characterized by perceptions of subject
and object; the next is dreamsleep,
which is sheer subjectivity; then deep
sleep, which has neither subject nor
object; and finally a mysterious state
simply called “the fourth” (turiya),
which is the Self itself.
Further verses identify these first
three states as corresponding to the
three parts of the sound Om: the vowels
“a” and “u” (which combine to form the
vowel “o”), and the letter “m.” The fourth
state is said to be “beyond all letters”
and without duality. The upanishad
explicitly states that to know this brings
one final liberation, in which one spon-
taneously merges with the Self.
Mangalam
(“auspicious”) Term whose root mean-
ing can be applied to anything believed
to bring good fortune: a benedictory for-
mula, a favorable omenor portent, an
auspicious ceremony such as marriage.
It may apply to an object, such as the
mangal sutra, a necklace worn by mar-
ried womenprimarily in southern India
as a sign that they are married and that
their husbands are still living.Mangal Sutra
(“auspicious thread”) Symbol worn by
married womenprimarily in southern
India indicating their married status.
Married women are considered to be
inherently auspicious, since their
potential generative power can be
expressed through socially sanctioned
procreation. Accounts from several cen-
turies ago describe this symbol as a sim-
ple thread, often colored yellow with
turmeric; in contemporary times the
mangal sutra is often an elaborate neck-
lace. Wearing a mangal sutra indicates
that a woman has a living husband, thus
she is a vessel of auspicious qualities.
For these reasons, a woman must
remove her mangal sutra upon being
widowed, as she must remove all the
other symbols of marriage.Manikarnika
(“Jeweled earring”) Sacred site (tirtha)
in the city of Benareson the Ganges
River in the state ofUttar Pradesh.
The site takes its name from the
Manikarnika Kund, a bathing (snana)
tank supposedly dug by the god Vishnu,
and into which fell an earring of the god
Shiva, thus sanctifying the tank by its
presence. In modern times the site is
better known for the cremation ground
at Manikarnika Ghat. In most Indian
cities the cremation ground lies at the
margin of the settlement, since its asso-
ciation with death makes it an inauspi-
cious place. However, the Manikarnika
cremation ground is in the center of
Benares. Despite the normal humanManikarnika