northern India, 99–111; depiction of,
51; at Divali festival, 93; festival in
Kishan Garhi, 107; in Holi festival,
102, 104, 106–10; incarnations of,
174–75; milkmaids of, 104; narratives
of, 14; portrayals of, 28n11; pujasof,
59; rasadances, 102; symbolism of,
252; Vrindaban shrines of, 53–59
Krishna Avatar(television serial), 144
Krishna Janma(film), 142
Krsna. SeeKrishna
Kshatriyas(rulers), 13
Kumkum(vermilion), 40; annointment
with, 46
Laddus(sweets), 86
Lahri, Sunil, 145
Laine, James, 27n3; Shivaji, 6
Lakhan, Ram, 210
Lakshmana: in Divali festival, 91, 93–94;
narratives of, 14; in Ramlilasof Ram-
nagar, 121, 122, 126, 127, 129; in tele-
vised Ramayana, 145; visions of, 128
Lakshmi, 8, 161: in Divali festival, 92, 93,
94, 96–97; idols of, 42, 92; in Ramlilas
of Ramnagar, 129; tilakmark of, 41
Land, sacred, 238
Lanka: in televised Ramayana, 152
Lanka Dahan(film), 142
Liberalism: and pluralism, 293; tolerance
in, 294
Life cycles: gifts to deities in, 39; rituals
of, 17–18; Vedic rituals of, 13. See also
Brides
Lilas(performances): of Anandamayi
Ma, 179, 181; astayama, 56–59; of
God, 130, 136; and maya, 124, 125, 135;
piety in, 131; ofRamlilasof Ramna-
gar, 120, 121, 124–27, 130. See also
Performance
Literacy, rise of, 141
Lokacarya, Pillai, 247n6
LoniDevi(goddess), 216n27
Love: in Holi festival, 102, 104, 110, 111;
in Ramlilasof Ramnagar, 132–33
Love battles: in Krishnaite theology, 107
Lutgendorf, Philip, 10, 20Ma, Anandamayi, 21, 173–83; ashram of,
182, 183; biographies of, 175; devotees
of, 175–76, 178–82; divinity of,
178–79, 180, 182; early life of, 175; fu-
neral of, 176; gender of, 180–81; lilas
of, 179, 181; meditation on, 183; rela-
tionship with God, 180; faktiof, 183;
shrine of, 176–77; societal power of,
180; teachings of, 176
Madana (god), 219
Mahabharata: commonality in, 297; di-
vine incarnation in, 174; ritual enact-
ment of, 9; upper caste in, 15
Maharaj, Birju, 56
Maharaj, Pramukh Swami, 4, 5
Maharajas, of Varanasi: at Bharat Milap
festival, 128 ; at Ramlilaof Ramnagar,
115, 117, 124, 125, 126; sandhyapujaby,
125, 126
Maharaj-ji (Parampujya Jagadguru Sri
Purushottam Goswami ji Maharaj), 55,
56–59; and bhramaramiracle, 57, 59;
devotional scripts of, 56; Maharajji
(Charan Singh), 185–95, 187 ; age of,
186; blessing of food, 194–95; darshan
of, 21, 22, 194; discourse of, 188–92;
dress of, 186; on God within, 190–91;
on karma, 189, 190, 192–93; lifestyle
of, 191; mansion of, 194; on marriage,
188; parables of, 191; on suffering,
188–89, 191; throne of, 192
Maharashtra (state), chauvinist organiza-
tions of, 5–6
Mailer, Norman, 293
Malhotra, Rajiv, 26, 28n12, 271; on satya-
graha, 283; “U Turn” theory of,
285n11
Malini (brahmacarini), 178, 182