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Udana
In traditional Indian physiology, one of
the five bodily “winds” considered to be
responsible for basic bodily functions,
the others being prana, apana, vyana,
and samana. The udana wind is consid-
ered to reside in the throat and to be the
force that conveys things out of the
mouth—primarily speech and song, but
also burps and (presumably) vomit.
Udasi
Ascetic community founded by
Shrichandra (traditional dates 1492–
1612), the elder son of Guru Nanak, the
first of the ten Sikh gurus. According to
one tradition, Nanak passed over
Shrichandra as his successor because
Shrichandra had become an ascetic.
Guru Nanak disapproved of this, believ-
ing that his followers should live mar-
ried lives in society. The Udasis have
always been an ascetic sect, and since
their formation they have been seen as
distinct from the two other major
ascetic communities, the Sanyasisand
the Bairagis. The latter are separated on
sectarian grounds: The Sanyasis wor-
shipthe god Shiva, and the Bairagis the
god Vishnu, whereas the Udasis wor-
ship the Panchayatana grouping of five
Hindu deities(Shiva, Vishnu, Ganesh,
Surya, and Durga) rather than one or
another alone. During the bathing
(snana) processions at the Kumbha
Mela, the Udasis march third, behind
the Sanyasis and the Bairagis. Through
the legacy of their founder, they have
retained some informal connections
with the Sikh community, but by and
large they have always been considered
to belong in the Hindu fold. There was
considerable friction between the
Udasis and the Sikh community in the
early twentieth century because the
Sikhs were more self-consciously assert-
ing their separate identity. See also
Panchayatana Puja.Udayagiri
Village just north of the city of Bhopal in
the state of Madhya Pradesh. Udayagiri
is famous for its rock-cut cave sculp-
tures from the Gupta era (350–550 C.E),
particularly a twenty-foot sculptureof
the god Vishnuin his form as the Boar
avatar, with the earthbalanced on his
tusk. See also Gupta dynasty.Uddalaka Aruni
A character in the Chandogya
Upanishad, one of the speculative texts
that form the latest stratum of the
Vedas. In the upanishad, Uddalaka is
the father and teacher of the boy
Shvetaketu Aruneya, and the two are a
model for the transmission of secret
teachings passed between guruand dis-
ciple. According to a story in the upan-
ishad’s sixth chapter, Shvetaketu is sent
away by his father to study the Vedas,
and when he returns twelve years later,
having mastered all the Vedas, he incor-
rectly considers himself learned. His
father punctures his arrogance by asking
Shvetaketu questions about the nature
of the cosmos and thus shows him the
difference between memorization and
true knowledge. When Shvetaketu
cannot answer these, he admits his
ignorance and accepts instruction from
his father on the nature of the Self
(atman). This instruction contains the
teaching “That thou art” (Tat tvam asi).
This is one of the “great statements”
(mahavakya) in Indian philosophyand
asserts the ultimate identity between
Brahmanand atman, the cosmos and
the individual Self.Uddhava
In Hindu mythology, one of the god
Krishna’sfriends and companions. InUddhava