animals, everyday objects, and the
Hindu deities, to abstract things such as
emotions. In the context of the perform-
ing arts, particularly dance, performers
tell detailed stories through gesture
alone. In the context of iconography,
many of these gestures are traits associ-
ated with particular deities. There
is some syntactic overlap between
the terms mudraand hasta(“hand”);
one of the distinctions between them
is that some of the hastas simply
describe the position of the hand, and
others have symbolic meaning, whereas
mudras always have very specific
symbolic meanings.Mudra
(2) Fermented or parched grain. In the
secret ritually-based religious practice
known as tantra, fermented grain is the
fourth of the “Five Forbidden Things”
(panchamakara), which, in “left hand”
(vamachara) tantric ritual, are used in
their actual forms, whereas in “right
hand” (dakshinachara) tantric ritual
they are represented by symbolic substi-
tutes. Fermented grain may have intoxi-
cating effects, but it is also reputed to be
an aphrodisiac. “Respectable” Hindu
society strongly condemns the use of
intoxicants and/or sexual license. Thus
the ritual use of this substance 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 con-
scious 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 practice. Forfurther information see Arthur Avalon
(Sir John Woodroffe) Shakti and Shakta,
1978; Swami Agehananda Bharati, The
Tantric Tradition, 1977; and Douglas
Renfrew Brooks, The Secret of the Three
Cities, 1990.Mudrarakshasa
(“Rakshasa’sRing”) The only surviving
Sanskrit drama written by the
playwright Vishakhadatta, who is
believed to have lived in the sixth
century. The play chronicles the rise of
Chandragupta Maurya, founder of the
Maurya dynasty, and the machinations
of his cunning brahmin minister,
Chanakya. The drama’s plot is highly
complex, as with many Sanskrit plays,
but its climax comes when the principal
characters are dramatically rescued
from execution at the last moment.
Although the play is based on actual
events, historians feel that the portrayal
of Chandragupta Maurya as a weak king
is inaccurate. The play has been trans-
lated into English by Michael Coulson
and published in an anthology titled
Three Sanskrit Plays, 1981.Mueller, F. Max
(1823–1900) Linguist, translator, editor,
and ardent student of comparative
religion and mythology. Mueller was
an important figure in nineteenth-
century intellectual history. His primary
contribution was introducing Indian
ideas to Western audiences by translat-
ing primary texts into the Sacred Books
of the East series. His work allowed
Hindu and other Asian religious
traditions to show the sophisticated
thought often concealed by popular
religious practice. Mueller began
developing a “science of religion”—
a field of knowledge that could be
pursued as any other. As a professor
at Oxford, he helped to change scholarly
views on Hinduism and other Asian
religions, moving Western minds from
simply dismissing them as polytheistic
“idolatry” to taking them seriouslyMudra