Until the beginning of the nine-
teenth century, the Nagas were fight-
ing ascetics, drawn largely from the
ranks of the shudras, the lowest Hindu
varna. According to tradition, these
fighting ascetics were recruited to pro-
tect the learned ascetics who, because
they were saintly and scholarly men,
could not protect themselves. The
Nagas also had substantial trading
interests. Two and three hundred years
ago, these akharas were very powerful,
especially in parts of the country
where the centralized government had
broken down. The Naga akharas sold
their services as mercenaries, lent
money at interest, engaged in trade,
and often owned large amounts of
property. The one place where the
divisions and subdivisions of the
akharas are still quite important is at
the celebration of the Kumbha Mela, a
bathing (snana) festival. There is a
strict order for bathing, and individu-
als get a place in line based on their
affiliation. Two hundred years ago,
being first in line signified political,
economic, and/or military domi-
nance. The present bathing order
reflects each group's relative impor-
tance from that time.
Alambhusha
In Hindu mythology, a celestial woman
who was the daughter of the sage
Kashyapa. As with many of the celestial
women, she was often sent by Indra,
the king of the gods, to seduce sages
whose spiritual merit was great enough
to pose a threat to Indra’s lordship. The
assumption behind this is that celibacy
builds spiritual power, through which
one can become a rival to the gods
themselves. Sexual activity quickly
drains this accumulated power,
although the release of such power usu-
ally has positive consequences.
Alambhusha is best known for her dal-
liance with the sage Dadhichi, by
whom she had a sonnamed Saraswat.
Alamkara
(“ornamentation”) A term for figures of
speech in Sanskritpoetry, of which there
are more than one hundred types. Many
of these are the same as those used in
English poetics, such as metaphor, simile,
contrast, hyperbole, alliteration, and
puns. The Sanskrit literati distinguished
these figures of speech even further into
more specific types, such as a simile
expressing wonder, a simile expressed by
doubt, and poetic error, which is the
inverse of a metaphor (“that’s not the
moon, but her face.. .”). Other forms are
unique to Indian poetry, such as respec-
tive enumeration, an extended compari-
son in which one line mentions several
referents and the following lines
describe their attributes, always in the
same order as the first line. Another
form unique to Indian poetry is denial in
which the speaker’s real intent is
expressed by denial, but is accompanied
by enough suggestion to indicate the
true meaning. The use of alamkara
marked all kinds of Sanskrit poetry, both
religious and nonreligious, and many of
these forms were brought into the later
devotional poetry in the vernacular
Indian languages. For further informa-
tion on Sanskrit poetics, see Daniel H. H.
Ingalls, Sanskrit Poetry, 1968.Alandi
Maharashtra village famous as the
home of the poet-saint Jnaneshvarand
the site of his samadhi (burial)shrine.
Jnaneshvar was the first great figure in
the Varkari Panth, a religious commu-
nity centered around the worshipof the
Hindu god Vithoba. Varkari religious
practice centers primarily around two
annual pilgrimages, in which all the
participants arrive in Pandharpurin the
modern state of Maharashtra on the
same day. Despite having been dead for
over 700 years, Jnaneshvar still symboli-
cally travels from Alandi to Pandharpur
twice each year; a palanquin(palkhi)
carrying his sandals is at the head of the
procession bearing his name.Alandi