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{{Short description|Religious superior of the temple}}{{other uses}}Mahant ({{IPAc-en|m|ə|ˈ|h|ʌ|n|t}}) is a religious superior, in particular the chief of a temple or the head of a monastery in Indian religions.New Oxford American Dictionary (2nd ed., 2005), p. 1020. James Mallinson, one of the few westerners to be named as a mahant,NEWS, The making of a mahant: a journey through the Kumbh Mela festival,weblink Financial Times, 8 March 2013, 19 September 2021, 16 June 2021,weblink live, describes the position of a mahant as a combination of an abbot and a brigadier.WEB, Roughton, Nicole, "Attending the Kumbh Mela at Nasik: some reflections from a SOAS mahant" by James Mallinson – South Asia Notes,weblink 2021-09-16, en-US, 2021-09-16,weblink live,

Etymology

The Hindi word comes from Prakrit , Sanskrit (accusative case: ) meaning "great".Webster's Third New International Dictionary, p. 1361.

Hinduism

Other titles for the word Mahant, serving in the context of a well known religious place, include priest or pundit—generally always being a gyani or pastor.{{cn|date=February 2022}}Brahmins with Mahant surname are also found in Himachal Pradesh region. They speak local dialects of Pahari and Hindi and read and write in Devanagari. They are vegetarians. The Mahant are monogamous and marriage is by discussion. They make their living from the temples.WEB,weblink Brahmin Mahant in India, 2022-12-01, 2022-12-01,weblink live, In other branches of Hinduism, the mahant is an ascetic who is the head and leader of the temple and has religious responsibilities as a preacher.BOOK, An Introduction to Swaminarayan Hinduism,weblink registration, Raymond Brady Williams, Cambridge University Press, 2001, 239, 052165422X, Mahant is a title of Bairagis and Goswamis. However The post of Mahant can be achieved by a person of any caste, even today many castes are involved in the Mahant/joggi post.

Sikhism

In Sikh history, the mahants (Gurmukhi: ਮਹੰਤ; mahata) were the hereditary managers who controlled and held the door keys of Sikh gurdwaras. After the creation of the SGPC and the Nankana massacre involving Mahant Narayan Das, a law was passed handing over gurdwaras to reformer Sikhs.Mahant {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090223195609weblink |date=2009-02-23 }}

References

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External links

• SGPC Glossary, "weblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20090223195609weblink">Mahant."