Kalamukha
The Kalamukha were a medieval Shaivite sect of the Deccan Plateau who were among the first professional monks of India. Their earliest monasteries were built in Mysore. Origin and etymology Information regarding the Kalamukha sect takes the form of inscriptions relating to temple grants and texts usually written by their opponents. They appear to have been an offshoot of the Pashupata sect, about whom more is known. Their name was derived from which has multiple meanings namely, 'facing the time' or 'facing the death' or 'black-face'. Their rituals using "yantras" were more of time based so, we can safely assume the meaning would be one of the first two rather than last one. Evidence from the Puranas and similar ancient texts makes it clear that they were also known by other names, such as Laguda, Lakula and Nakula, and associated with other words meaning black-faced, such as Kalanana. The rise of the Kalamukhas to a position of influence coincided with the popularisation of the agama texts of Shaivism, and they are shown in the Tirumandiram as one of the six schools of thought to emerge from the agamas. Theirs was not, however, a school based purely on the agamas as