When a Goddess Dies

Ma Anandamayi is generally regarded as the most important Hindu woman saint of the twentieth century. Venerated alternately as a guru and as an incarnation of God on earth Ma had hundreds of thousands of devotees. Through the creation of a religious movement and a vast network of ashramsunprecedented for a womanMa presented herself as an authority figure in a society where female gurus were not often recognized. Because of her widespread influence Ma is one of the rare Hindu saints whose cult has outlived her. Today her tomb is a place of veneration for those who knew her as well as new generations of her followers. By performing extensive fieldwork among Ma''s current devotees Orianne Aymard examines what happens to a cult after the death of its leader. Does it decline stagnate or grow? Or is it rather transformed into something else entirely? Aymard''s work sheds new light not only on Hindu sainthoodand particularly female Hindu sainthoodbut on the nature of charismatic religious leadership and devotion.Table of ContentsContents Acknowledgments Introduction Chapter 1: Aspects of the Postmortem Cult of the Guru Chapter 2: The Cult of Relics in Hinduism Chapter 3: Death of the Guru Chapter 4: Presence of the Guru Chapter 5: Sustainability of the Postmortem Cult Conclusion Appendix Notes Glossary Bibliography Index