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Encyclopedia of Religion entry forBairagisA general term for Hindu ascetics of any Vishnuite sect who are accustomed to go about naked, and pride themselves on having destroyed the power of sexual passion. This latter they are supposed to do either by practicing great abstemiousness in eating and drinking, or by the use of drugs, or even by means of some such mechanical contrivance as a heavy weight fastened to the generative organs. Russell and Hira Lal note that usually the term Bairagi is not applied to the Kabirpanthi, the Swami-Narayan, the Satnami, the Sikh religious orders, or to the Chaitanya sect of Bengal. See J. A. Dubois and H. K. Beauchamp. citations: Encyc. of Rel., Canney
article created 2006-04-12 , last updated 2006-04-12 |
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