Mahima Dharma is an Indian religion practiced primarily in Odisha and nearby states. It was started by people from the underprivileged castes in a caste-based Hindu society as a social reform and protest against the dominance of Brahmanism. The religious movement was based on the condemnation of all religious customs set by the rich and upper-class society generally.

Founder

The founder of Mahima Dharma was Mahima Swami, or Mahima Gosain as he was also called. The first known report of Mahima Swamy's existence was in 1867 in the newspaper Utkala Deepika in Orissa.

For many years, Mahima Gosain was in deep meditation in the caves at Himalaya. From there, Swami travelled to many regions and at last appeared in Puri (Odisha) in 1826 as Dhulia Gosain, where Swami settled on the dusty roads of Puri. People used to ask him queries on their well being and, surprisingly, it all happened to be true. It is believed once Swami was invited to Puri Mukti Mandap and there he confirmed Brahma is Nirguna and Sunya.