A mahant heads a math, a Hindu monastic institution, or an akhara, one of the organized ascetic orders whose members participate collectively in major religious gatherings, most visibly the Kumbh Mela, overseeing the institution's property, its resident monks or ascetics, and its religious functions and public representation. The office combines spiritual authority within the institution's own tradition with, in many cases, substantial practical responsibility for temple or monastery property and finances, since a math or akhara often controls significant land, buildings and endowments accumulated over generations, making the mahant's role considerably more administratively weighted than a purely devotional or teaching title would suggest.
Selection of a new mahant varies by institution: some maths follow a designated succession within a specific guru lineage, the outgoing mahant naming his successor from among his senior disciples, while akharas, particularly the larger ascetic orders active at the Kumbh Mela, often use more formal internal election or council processes among senior members to choose a new mahant, reflecting each institution's own governing traditions rather than any single uniform Hindu practice for the office.