vairāgin

▪ Hindu ascetic

      in Hinduism, a religious ascetic who worships principally one or another form of the god Vishnu. Vairāgins generally wear white robes, in contrast to the ochre-coloured robes worn by Śaiva ascetics, and are also differentiated by their tilak (sect mark on the forehead), which is never made of ash and is always vertical in design.

      Most vairāgins, when not wandering or on pilgrimage, reside in monastic communities called sthānas (“spots” or “places”); but the nāgā (“naked”) vairāgins, who are also the militants among the Vaiṣṇava ascetics, form their own groups, called akhāṛās. In the past, battles between groups of naked ascetics belonging to different sects centred mainly on bathing and processional rights during pilgrimage assemblies, such as the Kumbha Melā.

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