Sharmita Bhattacharya. Student ID: 202308431.

Evolving Devotion: The Cultural Significance of Laddu Gopal Worship in

Contemporary India

Keywords: Ishvara, Bhakti, Care, Hindu Woman, Karma, Vatsalyabhav

Background Context

In India, religion and religious beliefs have played a major role in shaping the society. Looking back
into the past to the modern India we see today, India has traditionally promoted religious diversity and
various cultures. Deities have been accorded great significance in the Hindu religion, as well as Indic
cultures and civilisations. A deity is treated by Hindu devotees as an incarnation of God or Godlike
beings of cultural importance.

In the Indian bhakti tradition, there have been various forms in which God is visualized, worshiped
and approached by his devotees. These bhavas and rasas of bhakti are: Madhuryabhav which posits
God as lover and husband; Dasyabhav, where the devotee assumes the role of a servitor to the God
implying complete surrender, humility, service and a sense of belonging; Shantbhav wherein the
devotee contemplates the incarnate form of God; in Sakhyabhav God is approached as a friend and
companion; in Vatsalyabhav, the devotee envisions God as a child and while identifying with the role
of a parent or an elder finds joy in his childlike innocence.

Like any religion, Hinduism has assigned a woman her place in the complex structure of society.
According to the Codes of Manu, a woman should be dependent either on her father, her husband or
her son. In traditional Hinduism, the attachment to Ishvara, not only within the family but also within
the wider community. With popular Hinduism, especially in Bhakti tradition, a devotee is passionately
attached to his Ishvara and that attachment is expressed through devotions which is the path of self
realization.Visistadvaita emphasizes a devotional attachment of cit(soul) and acit(matter) to Ishvara,
as an organic unity between the three based on their mutual dependency. The story of Meera Bai, a
mystical poet in the 16th century is a classical example of this unity grandfather. She got attached to
Krishna as her lover and would compose poems and sing them in public.

Recently, a new phenomenon has emerged in Central and Eastern India where devotees worship
Laddu Gopal, inspired by the Vatsalyabhav of Krishna, treating the idol as their own child. Activities
such as feeding, playing with, dressing, and even taking the idol on local transport excursions have
become popular. While the worship of Laddu Gopal has existed for a long time, this trend is
increasingly gaining traction, especially among women who are actively embracing and worshiping
the idol.

Research Objective

● To explore the historical evolution of the worship of Krishna/Gopal as a child in Indian

religious traditions.
● To analyze the socio-cultural factors that contributed to the popularity of child-Krishna
worship, especially among lay devotees.
 ● To examine how the worship of Krishna/Gopal as a child shapes the relationship between the
devotee and the divine, emphasizing ideas of care, nurturing, and protection.
● To investigate the role and position of women in this devotional framework, particularly in
the context of caregiving and nurturing roles.
● Examining how regional variations and socio-economic factors influence devotional
expression of Krishna/Gopal child-worship practices.

Methodology

Textual Methodology: in this context refers to the analysis of written, philosophical, religious, and
theoretical texts. This approach will allow the researcher to engage with historical, philosophical, and
cultural discourses that have addressed similar issues of complexity, uncertainty, and the limits of
human knowledge. The goal of using a textual methodology is to understand how different intellectual
traditions have conceptualized difficult questions and to identify recurring themes or patterns in the
treatment of uncertainty.
The textual methodology involves the selection of a range of texts that address themes of questioning
and inquiries. Once the texts are selected, they will be subjected to thematic analysis to identify key
patterns, concepts, and arguments that relate to the difficulty of answering certain questions.
Using the textual methodology, the study will perform comparative analysis across different
traditions, identifying how various intellectual, religious, and cultural contexts treat difficult
questions.

Fieldwork will be conducted in regions like Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Gujarat, and, where
child-Krishna worship is prominent. Key methods include:

Participant Observation in temples and festivals (e.g., Janmashtami) to observe devotional practices.
Semi-structured Interviews with devotees, particularly women, as well as priests and artisans, to
explore personal experiences, theological insights, and economic aspects.
Focus Groups with women to discuss their caregiving roles in devotional contexts.

The Theoretical Framework

The theoretical framework for the exploration of the idea of care — particularly in relation to the role
of women and the various forms of devotion — can be rooted into several sociological and
anthropological theories.

Foucault’s idea of power relations can be applied to the religious discourse surrounding gender roles
in Hinduism. The construction of religious texts and practices, such as the Codes of Manu, reflects
and reinforces systems of power, while bhakti traditions may serve as a form of resistance or
reconfiguration of these roles.

Religion serves to maintain social order by uniting individuals through shared beliefs and rituals.
Hindu religious practices, including the bhakti tradition, foster social solidarity and the integration of
individuals into a larger moral order. Rituals like Kanyadhan can be seen as institutionalizing the roles
and responsibilities of women within the family and society. Durkheim’s distinction between the
sacred and profane can be applied to the veneration of deities and the specific roles that different
bhavas play in the worship of God. These distinctions provide meaning and structure within society,
guiding everyday actions and relationships.
The concept of Bhakti, with its various emotional and relational approaches to God (e.g.,
Madhuryabhav, Vatsalyabhav, etc.), can be analyzed through the lens of symbolic interactionism. Each
devotee constructs their relationship with the divine, imbuing it with personal meaning and
significance. Also we can apply CH Cooley’s looking glass self theory where one really looks unto
themselves how society perceives them and bases the theory on that. Weber’s concept of charismatic
authority may apply to the divinity vested in deities and how gender roles, as outlined in the Codes of
Manu, reflect and reinforce power structures within society. The Ishvara symbolizes authority and
patriarchal order, shaping the identity and role of women within a traditional Hindu society.

Structuralism may be used to understand the dichotomies in Hindu religious thought, such as
male/female, servant/master, human/divine. The bhakti tradition, with its various relational forms,
represents a symbolic structure where these binaries are negotiated and reinterpreted through religious
practice.The symbolic significance of deities, rituals like Kanyadhan, and the hierarchical positioning
of women within these traditions reflect broader cultural myths and structures that perpetuate social
roles.

Also Feminist theory offers a lens to critique the patriarchal structures embedded in religious
doctrines, such as the Codes of Manu. The assignment of roles to women in Hindu rituals,reflects
traditional gender norms where women are viewed as subservient or dependent on male
authority.Conversely, certain feminist interpretations might explore how bhakti movements,
particularly those led by female saints (like Mirabai), challenged or transcended traditional gender
roles by envisioning God in a personal, egalitarian relationship. The bhavas, especially Madhuryabhav
and Vatsalyabhav, might be viewed as spaces where women find personal agency in their spiritual
lives.