Avahana Akhara

The name of a particular group of the
Naga class of the Dashanami Sanyasis,
which is comprised of renunciant
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Avahana Akhara
ascetics. The Dashanami Nagas are
devotees (bhakta) of the god Shiva,
organized into akharas, or regiments,
on the model of an army. Until the
beginning of the nineteenth century, the
Nagas’ primary occupation was as mercenary soldiers, although they also had
substantial trading interests; both of
these occupations have largely disappeared in contemporary times.
The Avahana akhara is one of the
seven main Dashanami Naga akharas,
but for organizational purposes it is
considered a subsidiary of the Juna
akhara. Its name, which means “summons,” supposedly comes from its status as the first organized ascetic group,
formed in response to the call from the
philosopher Shankaracharya to revitalize Hindu society.