Khichdi Mela in Gorakhnath Math: Symbols, Ideas and Motivations

Abstract

While laying ethnographic focus on the Gorakhnath Math complex located in the North Indian city of Gorakhpur, this article examines the central role that this institution has come to play over the decades in determining the relationships between political and cultural processes in the region. Detailing the event of the Khichdi Mela as observed in the Hindu month of Magha every year, the article looks at the activities of the participating devotees and at the strategic role played by the Mahant of the shrine, Yogi Adityanath, in the organisation of this event. It is argued that Yogi Adityanath’s presence inside the Math, on one of the most sacred days of the Hindu calendar, and its meaning shared by devotees, is very complex and multilayered. The sacredness involved in offering Khichdi on this day is not limited to mere symbolism. In addition, religion as a resource for power is reinforced by shared meanings and collective sentiments.