ISSN 0392-4866 UNIVERSITA DI ROMA «LA SAPIENZA» DIPARTIMENTO DI STUDI ORIENTALI RIVISTA DEGLI STUDI ORIENTALI VOLUME LXXIII Fasc. 1-4 (1999) ESTRATTO PISA - ROMA ISTITUTI EDITORIALI E POLIGRAFICI INTERNAZIONALI® 2000BL TANTRIC GODDESSES AND THEIR SUPERNATURAL POWERS IN THE TRIKA OF KASHMIR (Bhedatraya in the Siddbayogesvarimata)' The bhedatraya or ‘threefold division’ is a characteristic that has been at- buted to the Siddbayogesvarimata both by the Malinivijayottara and the yadrathaydmala. In this study, first I intend to investigate what the threefold vision means in the Siddbayogesvarimata. | shall give examples of the way in rich it permeates various levels of the doctrine and the practice, namely the sualization of the three goddesses (1), the characterization of various abstract res that govern the universe (2), the classification of female spirits (3) and e classification of supernatural powers (4). Then I hope to demonstrate that spite of the existence of this triadic pattern - which seems to be based on the ree principles, Sattva Rajas and Tamas of the Samkhya ~ the doctrine of the idbayogesvarimata is in fact the result of the fusion of évo opposite streams: e that attempts to subjugate and control impure forces related to the cult of > Eight Mothers, and another that mainly conforms to orthodox Hindu rms of purity adopting in its cult the orthodox goddess, Sarasvati. Finally, I I argue that this syncretism or inclusivism — which is present already at this ly scriptural level of the Trika — has relevance and importance primarily for dhakas, aiming at the attainment of various supernatural powers through ntrolling al! domains and powers acting in the world. The Matinvijayottara, which claims to be a shorter version of the Sid- ayogesvarimata, mentions two facts about its alleged source. One is that the dhayogesvarimata consists of ninety million verses, the other is that it has * This analysis is based on the text of the Siddbayogetvariata, which is probably the oldest tural source of the Kashmiri Trika (see SapeRsON 1990: 31). The critical edition of the short redac- of the text is being prepared by the present author. All the references to the text are based on the cal edition. Variants, tantric usage and related textual problems are only discussed here if they are vant for the argument. On the two redactions of the text, see e.g. SANDERSON 1990: 31. For the manu ats used, see the list of references at the end of this article,been formulated in / with bhedatraya, ie. in three chapters or three versions”. The Jayadrathayamala, which includes the Siddbayogesvarimata in its descrip- tion of the canon, states it more clearly: it says that this text has come down to us in three parts or pethaps redactions’, taught by three masters: the first part called Para was taught by Avarendra’, the second called Pardpara by Bhisma and the third named Apara by Siddhayogin’. These statements about the three chapters or divisions are not necessarily meant to be understood literally, just as the improbable length of the Siddhayo- gesvarimata referred to in the Malinivijayottara. Although I have found no trace of the existence of three chapters, there is another interpretation ot meaning of bbedatraya that may characterize the Siddbayogesvarimata: the threefold classi- fication of deities, female spirits and supernatural powers. Moreover, this three- fold classification can be seen as derivative of the distinction between the three goddesses, and this seems to be the main feature of the Trika and what actually gives the name Trika to this tradition, as the Jayadrathayamala suggests in its description of the ayatikrama®. 1, BHEDATRAYA IN THE VISUALIZATION First, I would like to look at the visualization of the goddesses and see what the basis of this classification is; what these deities look like and in what hierarchy they are arranged — if there is such a hierarchy, The description of the goddesses seated on the three prongs of the trident can be found in Siddbayo- gesvartmata 619-27: daksine tatra Silagre nyased devirg pariparam i astatriméams tatha varnan jualatpavakasamanibham (7 kapalamalabharanam netratritayabhasuram / sastlakhatvangadbaram mabapretakrtavandm // vidyujjibvim mabakaydm mabasarpavibbisitam / vikaralam mabidametrin mabogram bhrukuttksanam // mabapannagasamvitam Savamalavibhisitam / mahasavakarambbojacarukarndvatamsakam / 2 Siddhayogetvartmatam navakotipravivtaram: / yat tvaya kathitam piiroam bbedatrayavisarpiiar’ (Malinivijayottara 1.8ed-9ab} > ‘That ‘redaction’ may be meant here has been sugxested by Prof. SANDERSON, + Not by Mahendra as in Dyczxowskt 1989: 111 5 parakhyam amarendrena bbigmena ea pariparam / avataritam tatha tantra apararr siddbayogind Uayadrathayamala, 1st satka 174v) © CE. footnote 5 above. pralaydmbudanirghosam grasantim iva cambaram // idrgriipadharam devim pranatartivinasanim / Salagre vinyased vame tryaksarim aparam puna // vamam daksinam evitra daksinam cottaram smrtam / paraparoktariipena vidyaisa krsnapingala // me vinyased devim sarviksaramayin Subbam / Sphuratsiiryayutaprakbyam dyotayantim idam jagat // nyaset tasyab Sikbagre tu astapatram sakarnikam / karnikaydm nyased devim param ekaksaram subbam // utkrstasphatikaprakhyans samantad amrtasravam / apyayanakarim devim param siddbipradayikam // There, on the right prong, one should place the poddess Parapard i ofl hinyeight slabs, eed a blaing fie wenting seater of ale ek three eyes ie. with three glowing eyes). With trident and skull-stuff in her tai alts on [Sadasival the Great Transcended. Her tongue is [flickering in and out] like lightening, she is gross-bodied and is adorned with great serpents. Her mouth yawns wide, and she has huge fangs. Ferocious, with her eyebrows knitted [in rage]. ‘wih asa cred thread in the form of a huge snake, adorned with a garland of human cospses, with the [severed] lotus hands of a human corpse as beautiful earrings, her voice like the thunder of the clouds at the world’s end, she seems to swallow space itself” ought ie suru sould place the odes of thee slabs, Apr, destroyer of ihe ins of the humble, vith the same appetince on the let prong of the In this description, ‘left’ (from the point of view of the mandala] means ‘right’ tom ths point of view othe performer ofthe tual ad ight means in fact] ‘lef’ 6 tema This female mantra fie. Apa] looks lke Pardpar [except that] she One should place the beautiful deity of all letters [the Alphabet Goddess, Malin] on the middle prong. She illuminates this world and is beautiful like myriads of shining suns. Then one should place atthe top of her hea! crest [a lotus] with eight petals and a Bevicap. On the pericarp ofthe los, one should place the beaut onesable god s, Para, She is [white] like the best crystal and she pours out nectar everywhere, Th goddess Para promotes welfare and bestows success, “ In this visualization, while Para is above th " e other goddesses as a higher fon of the Alphabet Goddess related to the brahmanical goddess Sarasvatt®, ee and Apara are not arranged in a further hierarchy, but are treated as equally ferocious Kapilika deities, The equality between Parapara and Apari is 7 Thi : ge basse of the translation is almost identical with SANDERSON 1990: 51. SANDERSON 1990: 43-51.also suggested by their position in the Trisalabjamandala in the Siddhayoges- varimata and the Malinivijayottara, where the lotuses corresponding to these two goddesses are at the same level, slightly below the lotus of Para’, However, there is a threefold hierarchy, suggested by the attribution of the colours white, red, and tawny-black. In both the Siddhayogesvarimata and the lost Trisirobb- airave™®, the hierarchy suggested by the colours — corresponding to the pan-In- dian colours of saitva, rajas and tamas — is further supported by the hierarchy of these deities in the placement of their mantras. For in the widydtrayanyasa, one is to place Para, Parapara and Apara on the head (or the top-knot), heart and feet respectively!!. Marcover, this ‘ordering’ of the goddesses is reflected in the scant remarks in the Malinivijayottara on visualization, where Para is mild, Parapara is a little ferocious but not frightening and Apara is terrifying”. 2. ABSTRACT ECTYPES OF THE GODDESSES The triadic arrangement can be observed in the classification of the ab- stract ectypes of the poddesses. These female spirits (fakt-s) called auspicious ot mild (aghorah), terrible (ghora}), and more terrible than the terrible, or sur- passing the terrible (ghoraghoratarah or ghorataryab)” are in fact three kinds of forces that govern this world. Among the scriptural sources, it is the Siddhayo- gesvarimata (2.23-31) that gives the most detailed account of their func- tion. yogesvariti vikbyatd tasyé muartis tridha priye / tasim bhedane pravaksyami yatha vitve vyavasthitah // pramrjydjhanatimirant pasudehe vyavasthitart / yah Saklayo ‘nugrbnanti agboras tab Sivapradah (/ rudras tabbir aghorabbib saksibbib samadbisthitah / sadasivarpitadhiyo bandhanan mocayanty anum “e 9 The two mandalas are almost identical, see Tantraloka and -viveka 31.155 ff, The detailed de- scription of the mapdala of the Siddbayogesverimata can be Found only in the Tantdloke, mot in our mss. {© For the colours of the deities in the Tritirobhairavatantra, cf. Tanstritoka 31.115-118 and Sax DERSUN 1990: 52-53. 1 CE, Malinivijayottara 8.37 12 Pardpardm svariipena raktavarndne mababalane / icchariapedbarins dhyatea kimcid- ugriim na bP sana / apararn vamasrige tu Bbisandm krsnapihgaline / iccharipadbarira devime pranatarinsinasinit: ¢ param cipyayanim devint candrakotyayuteprabbim. (Malinivijayottara 8,72¢8-74cd) 1B Ag Prof. Sanderson has pointed out, the two designations reflect two interpretations of the third unit of the Aghora mantra: (1) ghoraghoratarebbyas ca (2) gbora (vocative] ghoruterebhyas ca. The second one is followed by Kaundinya ad Pasupatasitra 3.23. muktimarganirodhinyo ghorataya tu tah smrtah// Gvistah Saktibbis tabbib sargapralayakarinah/ hridante vai tanan radra bala mrdvrsabbair iva // adhabsrotavidbayinyah pudgalam rafijayanty apt / bhogesv eva pasutve ca pudgalary ratijayanti yah // muktimarganirodbinyo ghorataryas tu tah smrtah / upodbalitacaitanya rudras tabhir adbisthitab// — pasubbogesu samsaktan adbo 'dhah patayanty api / Saktitrayasamaveso yasmat sarvatra Sankarah // ghoraghoratardghoraghoras tab pavikértitah / evan bhuvanam paleytt rudrataktivyauasthitab // (The power of Rudral is called ‘Yogesvart’ and her form is threefold, o Beloved One. Now I will tell you their division as they exist in this world. The powers / Sel who bestow grace by clearing up the darkness of ignorance which resides in the bod, of the bound soul are called ‘the Auspicious Ones’, they bestow Sivalhood]. The Rudess governed by these Auspicious Powers and focusing their minds on Sadisiva, release the soul from its bondage. .. [other powers / Saktis] who obstruct the way to liberation are known as ‘the Terrible Ones’. The Rudras who are possessed by them perform creat wad dissolution, they play in the body like children with clay bulls, Those Tpovers] who a downward flow [of the souls into lower levels of the universe] and grati sou wb mk it indulge in objects of enjoyment and in the condition segieacn ene the way to liberation and they are called ‘the Ones Surpassing the Terrible’ Rudras whose minds are empowered by them and wh aed by them, throw down and down those who are gi 4 sures ofthe beandsval Scene Rarer and down these ‘s siven to the pleasures of the bound soul, Since the fo eee te of] powers is always beneficient / [leads to] Siva{ness] eee they ate cal the ‘Ones More Terrible Than the Terrible’, the “Terrible ue “and the picious Ones’. Thus, ruled by the Power of Rudra, they are to go- “4 so a Sips ett triad goes back to a Vedic mantra of Rudra, which is also ire: i Bs uupata practice and is the mantra of the Aghota face in Saiva Bee antras . Without suggesting any direct connection, it is of some . Bevan v in the context of the Trika that Sayana in his commentary attributes “ ‘As Dr Isaacson has poit § 4 Bead nats DY Isaacson has pointed out to me, there is pun on the name of $i 7 Sai ‘sient’] here, ho denied “ith the hrce hinds of Powers, Aluhough the cree Padas of the ia i ih names of Siva, but of Raa (ce the sates below namaste adaripeyab, they ate ~ shorebhya ‘tha ghorebh: 30 ‘tha ghorebbyo ghoraghoratarebhyah / sarvel . (Tatteirtya Brabmana X45 and Fi at igo mma i iieens sattvika, rajasa and tamasa nature to the three elements of the Vedic mantra’, for the same association is made in Trika scriptures and exegetical works as we shall see. ‘Although one could easily associate sattva, rajas and tamas with these three groups of Sakis, the Siddbayogesvarimata does not explicitly make this connec- tion. However, the Malinivijayottara, the Jayadrathayamala and the Tantraloka add further triadic sets in association with these powers, as summarized in the following table"”: ‘Aghorah: auspicious / mild, Parah [Malinivijayottara], lech / Siva [Jayadrathayamalal, Stati / nonduality (abbeda) /knower (pramatr) (Yantraloka 372-74, 3,103-104) Ghotab: terrible, Paraparah [Malinivijayottara], fina / Sakti Uayadrathayamala], Sthiti / duality-cum-nonduality (bbedabheda) / means of knowledge (pramdna) (Tantraloka] Ghoraghoratarah / Ghotataryah: more terrible than the terrible / surpass- ing the terrible, Aparah (Malinivijayottaral, Kriya 7 Nara (= Agu) [Jayadrathayamalal, Samhara / duality (bbeda) / abject of knowledge (prameya) {Tantralokal. 3. FEMALE SPIRITS The Siddhayogesvarimata is chiefly concerned with how to attain supernat- tral powers, usually with the help of female spirits called yoginis, dakinis ot ‘akinis. This topic occupies almost two thirds of the text, the remaining one third mainly describing mantras and initiation. The way in which a Sadhaka is to perform these, is given in chapters 10 and 13. First, he is to perform an ob- servance called widyavrata ot vidyarigavrata, associated with the ‘ancillary mantras’, This includes besmearing the body with ashes, wandering in uninhab- ited places, laughing with boisterous laughter (aftahdsa), and reciting the ap- propriate mantras loudly. After this, he is to perform a worship of the deities (yaga) with the arghapatra. This is followed by the recitation of mantras (apa), accompanied by the prescribed fire offerings (agn/karya). “Then he is to perform ‘worship again and finally, invoke the appropriate goddess and / or Yoginils whose power he wants to employ. ‘The Siddhayogesvarimata gives details of numerous groups of female spir- ° aghorandmako daksinavektraripo devas tasya vigrabi aghorzh ‘sdttvikatvena santa / anye hora rajasatvenoyrah / apare tw tmasatvena ghordd api ‘ghoratardh. Sayana ad loc. 7 See SANDERSON 1990: 35-58 its (yogintcakra- . its Qosinteras) tobe worshipped and it also describes various ways in whi thes sie an be summoned "his latter must usvally happen av cishe whe rinapakse), in a cremation : ak : ground. The Sadh on eared wh avs ne shoul re eae pis by sllecnes of in ; a or the ‘perfect nectar’ (siddhai = i 1 sexual fluids), Heist offer his own blood from his kita eanaige) eee Soe epithe (vdmanga) to tame sam Pattlt.26 we in a brie claificnon ofthese “ating ens’ A fom inci such as goddess yogints (dovait) and haman. youn mins) seria thee dasificnton within the on sai cd vith acts or deeds (karmayogints or dakint): auspicious, fightful and an (vt dain drain a dine hyn ‘ ei atons loreover, there is another passage i j he se in Payala 2 i sean‘ have a similar classification in mind, However, ho the ah vedsldche ication applies not only to dakinis as above, but to all yoni, They x ee . They are asso- ciated with three different parts of a Sa ee parts of the day, three colours and three types of su- etavanto mababbagah pirvabne Sasisaprabhah / madbyabne lobitakara indragopakasuprabbab // Arsnaé caivipartbne tw abbiciraphalapradah / Santipustivasyakarsavidvesamaranaprajah // These pre-etni in f At midday mn cy ares ie are s me as the moon at the first part of the day. ! , indragopakas (red ants]. At the li , are bila . At the last watch ck and they bestow success in black magic They {the whit ol one. ive rise to pacification and welfare, [the red . ones] to hypnosi i to the faculty of arousing enmity and of Tiling, ‘nd anne ana be Black nee The tea . the fe ee in the Trika scriptures can be found in enon ent o ne 4. Although the Tantrasadbhava’s Yogini nat eho a arc ete of the seven mothers (saptamatrkab) eagles these others (caisika, cumbika etc.), in one passage heavenly Yasin sven un let three groups: the first group is one of of ria nate and the tied consis of Monster uEatespocis of tone nature, However she Tantrsaave dior in that does oe aceon iP ma sepia by etab sattvarajasatamasah / by at as " etab si prabminyar raindryanssa al “ng eh ane a en tatto classify supernatural powers on the basis of the three classes of Yo- pins. 4, CLASSIFICATION OF SUPERNATURAL POWERS On the basis of various passages on supernatural powers (siddbis) scat- tered in chapters 11-31 of the Siddhayogesvarimata, it is possible to reconstruct the three groups of siddhis which seem to be attributed to the three classes of creatures". 1. sattvika siddbi-s: well-being / being well-fed (pusti / apyayana), expia- , [saving things] in case some disaster occurs (upa- ering death (mertyamjaya), eloquence / poetic talent finitely small, big ete. (amimadigunab), final re- tion / pacification (santi)” sarge samutpanne)”', conqut (kavitva)”, the ability to be in! lease (moksa)”. 2. rajasa siddhi-s: subjugating people to one’s will (vasya), attracting people (esp. women, akarsana)*, going to the underworld (patalecaratvam), flying (bhecaratvam), disappearing (antardhanam), ‘pill-Siddb?’ (the pill, put in the mouth is said to make one invisible, gulikasiddbi), and a Siddhi with the magic wand and a bowl (siddbakasthakamandaluy. 3. tamasa siddbi-s, twelve kinds of black magic (abbicara-s) listed in chapter 24: murder (marana), expelling someone (uccatana), annihilation (jambhana), paralysing (stambbana), benumbing (mobana), ‘nailing down’ (éflana), taking away someone's speech (vdcapahara), making someone dumb 8 ‘The list I have reconstructed follows the logic of the Siddhayogefvarimata along the lines of the above mentioned threefold pattern, Nevertheless, mention must ‘be made of the fact that in the classifi- canton of Siddhis, although the pattera is present, itis not perfectly systematic or consistent, eg, attrac ting of hypnotizng people can be classified under any of the three categories, depending on ‘one's aims. Hramer think that in spite of these inconsistencies, the classification is present - though not always explicitly - in the Siddbayogesvarimata, 2 The first two are associated with the White Yoginis in Siddbayogesvarionata 28,29 cited above and with the white Para eg. in 6.27 (where she is called apydyanakari) and in 14.5. 2 This ig mentioned in 7.36ed with reference to the white Pari. 2 Conquering death and eloquence are obtained through the Sadhana of Para. B ‘The last ewo ~ classical youic Siddhis and final release ~ are categorised as the Highest Siddis in 29.8¢d 2 These two are associated with the red Yoginis in 28.29. % The last five are listed in 29.9-10b as Middle Siddhis. (mikatva), deaf (badbirya), blind i cre Torn Cpanel nel impotent (sazdbikarana), changing Although various other Tantras also by ave a threefold classification of Si dhis the Seschondebbairaatrine, 2145), he details ae cue atime The bof letfenion fers, too for they tend to asf Sdahis accord culty and the kind of mantra recitation one should : te Schade a mental recitation for expiation or pacification ae me ting for well-being (pust#) and loud recitation for all iddhis, which : the other Siddhis, whi i csgorized a black magic (abbicara), The closest parallel to the Stltbone esvarimata is perhaps a passage in a later compilati i i the irate is ipilation of is, i Indraialaviyasenarab, Although the clsicaion of Siddhis felons rhein bypes of recitation and not the thee Gunas, the text prescribes mental jution for pacification, expiation and final release, muttering for subjugati and at traction of people and loud japa for the ‘lowly’ Siddhiy” 2 ‘WHERE THE THREEFOLD CLASSIFICATION FAILS The evi yet evidence spown so far suggests a systematic arrangement of goddesses sea Sid Soe . ara and her ectypes promote the ‘white siddhis’ Parapara ~ i ‘red’ ones and Apara with her ectypes the ‘black’ However, ii . ra ne owe look at the observances, the mantras and visualizations ae gscociate with various superhuman effects, the whole triple system = ees PI ec ice, it is almost exclusively the mantras and dhyanas of Para oak ont that recur regularly, and defying the logic of the postulated tte ystem, it is Parapara and not Apara who is associated with all the dark Siddhis. Belo thie dark Sdn panels to demonstrate the association of Parapara with sid not Apard fen iat in spite of our expectations ~ Parapara ination ah visu ized for killing (arana). The second one teaches the vi- een i. portant group of Yoginis, whose names correspond to the ob blind Gogh concn Gambbana), benumbing (ohana), making some- the same fern te ee text prescribes that they are to be visualized with ic of 0 te Ocd-11 also includes various kinds of subjugati 's wil {ial , of ubjummion people to one’s will, which shows that 2 3! ire Jaan fcaetay —___——- japet paréparam devin sampasyed raktalocanam / “atam astottaram yavan nitfivans kurute bbesam // One should recite Parapara and look at her, who has red eyes. After 108 recita- tions, one will be able to kill immediately. (7.34) jambbant mohant vam andbint kartrr eva ca / kilant damant caiva tatha pramath- aniti ca / pardparoktaripena pijya dhyeyas ca sarvada Destroyer, Stupefier, Left (2), She Who Makes One Blind, and She Who Cuts (?); She Who Nails People Down, She Who Tames and the Killer - [these Yoginis] are al- ways to be worshipped and visualized with the form of Parapara, described above. (Patala 25) This disappearance of Apara — or, rather, her merping into Parapara — in the context of magic could explain the Piigalamata’s unusual attribution of colours. That text, while keeping Para white, attributes the colour black to Parapara, while Apara is said to be yellow”. Moreover, the Sadhanas of Para, aiming at conquering death, gaining well- being, and acquiring poetic talent, seem to follow a very different pattern from that of the attainment of other Siddhis. For in these Sadhanas (Siddbayogesvari- mata, patalas 11 and 12), Para is visualized as a solitary deity, without a retinue of Yoginis, as in the kavitvasadbana below. fenu devi param gubyam gihaniyare prayatnatah / kavitvam jayate yena tam Srausvaikamanast Me arcayitod prayatnena devyah samyak svariipatah / butvagnint ca yathanyayant dhyanam pascit prayojayet aA dhyatud param svarapena vyomapadmasane sthitam / vamabastanivistena sarvajfidnamayena tu “ pustakena vararobe daksinena tatah punah / sphatikenaksasitrena divyena pravarena tu // kadambagolakakaraily sphurajivdlavaltdbaraih / granthitam divyaripam tu malam bi galasamsthitar // apadalambani casau sphatikabba samantatah / sravantin amrtam divyam kadambavanamadhyagam // udgirantim mahd-oghath sarvajianamayam tatab / mukbe svake visad dbyayet tadriipam caiva-m-atmanah // evan ketvd tatah pascat svavakirac camrtam maban // oghat caiva tu Sasirandne cintayet sadbakottamah / 2% See SANDERSON 1990: 52 evam dbyanam prayufifita tatas tasya prajayate // havitvam masamatrena salankdramanobaram / jayate niscitam devi sarvarthapratipadakab // sadbbir masaih svayam karta Sastranam jayate tu sab / fardmalakavad vettd SAstrindm caiva sarvatah // yat kimeid varimayarn loke vettavyam yat prakirtitam / tat sarvam tasya devesi granthatas carthato ‘pi va // _ Listen, 0 Gases, to the highest secret, which i tbe proteted with care, by which poetic talent will come about; listen to it attentively. Alter worshipping the deities properly, with their own forms, maki i ; Se ee making effort, and after making fire offerings as One should visualize Para with her own form, sittin in the air, wit _ book ofall knowledge in her let hand, o Beautiful said tolling enka ‘. me cal rosary oferystal inher right hand. One isto visualize garland on her neck, a gar “land of heavenly beauty, made up with beads which are round like the buds of the Kadamba tre and which shine forth lke fte. This garland reaches down tober fet anc is as spotless as crystal all over. One should then visualize het as pouring out the divin fectar of immortality, in the middle of a Kadamba grove. One should see her pouti : forth the nectar of all knowledge in great floods and one should see this nectar ‘ane in 40e's mouth, and that one's self has the same form, After this, the best of Sadhakas uld visualize that this nectar comes out of his mouth as a flow of Sastras. If he does visualization, he will be able to produce fascinating ornate poetry ith a month. will be a teacher of all doctrines; and after six months, he will be able to produce 8 Sastras himself. He will know all the sciences as the fruit of the Myrobalan in the hand ie. deal as iftey were self-evident truth]. Whatever has something to do with words : oe meets e known in this world, will be his, both as to its formulation and Baas tale other hand, for the attainment of more violent Siddhis the Saidhaka a no aah a very differen ane he should summon Yoginis in a crema- : in the way described above. i it i para 1 op the way desc above. In this context, it is the Parapara a fellowing pamcpe ules dane chen baths ia ¢ fol he actual be ~ svets of Sidadhis are the hordes of Yogint isn cabo zation ss of Si ginis, and ther al isgualizati unlike in the case of the Parasadhana. releno daborate visualization rsnapakse caturdasyam trirdiram ca upositah / iS gatud Smasanam tu sabayath partvarfitah // nagno muktasikho bhava kauberyabhimukhabsthitah / tirdhuakayo japen mantri suniskampah paraparimn Mu ehacittasthito virah sa mahatma prasannadbib / ORPRL Stavad yavat samayata yogesvaryah samantatah / tasdm caiva tu riipani bbisanani babiini ca / drstva naiva bhayan: kuryad vidya eva -m- anusmaret // On the 14th day of the dark half of the lunar month, after fasting for three nights, one should go to the cremation ground without companions. Naked, with the top-knot untied, facing North, with erect body, the Mantrin should recite Parapara [mantra] fearlessly. The high-minded hero, concentrating and with tranguil mind, should per- form this till Yoginis gather together on all sides. Seeing their various frightening forms, he should not be afraid, he should mentally recite the female mantra [ie. Parapara]. (1311-14) The contrast between practices associated with Para on one hand, and with the other goddesses and Yoginis on the other, suggests that we may have two entirely different sources for these practices. Para as an ectype of the brah- manical goddess Sarasvati is a solitary, mild and ‘orthodox’ deity; in patala 12, the optional observance (vrata) associated with her involves a strictly vegetarian diet with fruits, roots, vegetables, barley-meal and milk products””, Altogether we may say that this deity is associated with brahminical learning, welfare and orthodox purity. On the other hand, the cult of Yoginis is not a cult of one or two specific goddesses (Parapara and Apara are just two representatives of them), bur that of a whole horde of female spirits who indulge in impure sub- stances and are associated with witchcraft, Although some of them may take up mild forms in the first watch of the day’®, their main occupation is getting in- toxicated with blood and ampta in their frightening forms. Moteover, if these Yoginis are classified or mentioned by name, they are divided into cight and not two or three. This eightfold division is present at var- ious levels, The female mantra with which one invokes the Yoginis, the Para- pari mantra, is divided into eight segments, each representing a goddess: ‘Aghora, Paramaghora, Ghorariipa, Ghoramukht, Bhima, Bhisana, Vamant and Pibani*!, These eight Yoginis of Parapard are also placed on the body from top to toe, similarly to the three main mantra goddesses”. The Alphabet Bhairava (Sabdaraéibhairava) bas a retinue of eight goddesses, cach representing a con- sonant group: Brahmi, Vaisnavi, Mahesvari, Yamya, Kaumasi, Vasavi, Kar- namoti and Aghores??. The typology of worldly Yoginis in chapter 29 - from ® Siddhayogesvarimata 12.15cd-16ed % See Patala 22, teaching the mixed nature (misrakanr rapa) of Yoginis. 3 See the mantra given in 3.23-39, 3.21 refers to these cight Yoginis as parts of Parapata’s body (anges). » See eg, Siddbayogesvarimata 7.2627 » Sce Siddhayogesvarimata 1641-43 which a substantial portion is certainly lost ~ is also based on the typology of the eight Mothers (astamatykas): Brahmani, MaheSvari, Kaumart, Vaisnavi and ‘Yamya (the descriptions of Aindri, Yogesi and Camunda are probably lost)™. Finally, while the mandala drawn for the Samaya initiation is empowered by the three mantra goddesses placed on the three prongs of a trident in the middle, ‘the Initiation Mandala has an eight-petalled lotus in the centre, representing a group of eight goddesses starting with Aghort”. The Siddhayogesvarimata seems to try to fuse the system of eight Yoginis / Mothers and the cult of the pure goddess Pari in its cult of the three goddesses by placing two representatives of the Yoginis as Parapara and Apara into its triad, thus attenuating the fundamental differences between the solitary Para and the Yoginis™. The threefold classification in fact serves as a very good de- vice to merge the two cults by superimposing the classification of Gunas on them. However, even though this triple classification (bhedatraya) is reinforced gt several levels, it cannot conceal the underlying bifurcation, the contrast be- tween Para and the Yoginis. , io me conclusion I would like to draw on the basis of the above consists of “1. T propose the hypothesis that the cult of the Trika from an exorcistic base, dominated by the worship of eight ee eee ition of the cult of the Fight Mothers, in which pethaps the pure goddess, Para. Was also a leader of the eight impure Yoginis™, It is also conceivable thet Para had a separate cult, for which the Pardtrinesikd may be an additional testimony, This system was then te-arranged by the superimposition of the threefold clas- sification borrowed from the Samkhya and related traditions™. ae M ‘The first four are named in Siddbayogesvarimate 29.25, 32, 39 and 45, Yamya is not mentioned, Bazt can be idenified fromm the descript if ription of the last Yogint, whose si the F: 7 Bod ded sich are the rib of Yan sls sn bengten cetbe shea ee and t compound Yamada. The teaning Yogin-families can be supplied from a ist inthe ‘Mali. ‘ i est Brabrmani caiva Kaumart Vaisnavt tatha / Aindri Yamya ar a ime (7 Hawes is don posible tba the ening thee ene aa eae ae Ashore ju ain tie case of the consonant-deities of Sebdarasibhairava mentioned above. __ unis can be inferred from Siddbayogesvarimata 6.55 and 8.10. This mandala dent bial the te goddesses, but it is not clear from the very cxyptic setae tea per 8 | ie fact that Para has a Yogini retinue dé ch it . he fact | has a Yogi joes not change the fact that it is her solitary fo which dominates in visualizations, Her Yoginicakra is formed probably to ‘integrate’ her into the Yopint 7 This is a role reminis f th iyanir i 1353, iniscent of the god Aiyapar in Tamil Nadu as described by Dumont £ By, Tris, of course, also possible ition wis if tbecut also possible to presume that a tradition with a threefold classification adopted thar the he eight Yoginis and that of Pasa, or that these cults merged in some other way. ‘The pont ee 7 here. le triadic arrangement is not the only - and not necessarily the first and foremost — constituent lm2. Through the adoption of the iconography and powers of the orthodox goddess, Sarasvati, into the figure of Para, an element of the orthodox domain was also colonized and combined with the features of the popular goddess of illnesses”. (Cf. Para’s double role as Sarasvati to bestow learning, and as a god- dess promoting health in separate Sadhanas.) This adoption of the orthodox goddess in turn served for Kashmirian brahmin exegetes as a basis to colonize the root texts of the Trika ‘from above’. 3. In the Siddbayogesvartmata, this colonization of a brahmanical deity and the identification of the Yoginis is important primarily for the Sadhaka. For it is the Sadhaka’s aim to control all forces of the universe, including the orthodox domain with its sastric knowledge and purity. At this point, the cult was inclu- sivistic for the Sadhaka’s sake. On the other hand, when later exegetes assimi- lated the texts of the Trika, the process was reversed: the exegesis was done for the sake of brahmins seeking liberation (reumuksu), and it was the inclusion of Para-Sarasvati that made the cult particularily susceptible for a brahmanical colonization which saw Pard-Sarasvati as the centre of the cult, and ‘absorbed’ the texts through her in order to control impure forces through the pure“. In this sense, the story of the Siddhayogesvarimata and the cult of the Trika is a story of competing forces attempting in turn to conquer each other’s domain. 4. The Siddhayogesvarimata represents an early stage of the cult, where certain inconsistencies still reveal that there is a twofold classification of the Yogints and Para (bbedadvaya) behind the threefold one (bhedatraya). The Malinivijayottara, however, seems to make a further step towards systematization, and there the threefold classification seems to be perfect. Therefore, I propose that in the Malinivijayottara, the visualization of the deities (Para — mild, Parapara — slightly ferocious, Apara — frightening)"* has been adjusted to accord with their places and hierarchy in the placement of their mantras (mantranyasa, Para on the head, Parapara on the heart and Apara on the feet). In the Malinivijayottara, the goddesses exist almost exclusively as mantra deities and they do not figure in Sadhanas or yogic practices (dharand-s). Just as the Malinivijayottara has a more systematic way of presenting the parts of the alphabet goddess Malini (from ‘top 49 Tp this latter role, ber function may remind us of the popular goddesses of illnesses sul tala (also assoi th the white colour and the ‘cooling’ nectar) or Mariyammap, although no relation can be she between them. © On ‘purity and power’, see SANDERSON 1985. “ Malinivijayortara 8.72-74 2 Oxford, - _ toe’, fom na to pha, nadipbanta)”, it seems to have attempted to st a letail of the visualization — making Parapara just a irttle ferocious, that it should not contradict the triadic arrangement. Jupir Torzsox ‘This was demonstrated by Somdev Vasudeva in a lecture, in May 1996, at All Souls College,REFERENCES: Abbreviations KSTS = Kashmir Series of Texts and Studies; NAK = National Archives, Kathmandu Sanskrit Indrajalavidyasaregraba [Indrajalasastram + Kamaratnam + Dattatreyatantram + Satkarmadipika + Siddhanagarjunakaksaputam] Calcutta: Wacaspatya. 1915. Jayadrathayamala, NAK 5-4650 (satkas 1 & 2); 5-1976 (satka 3); 1-1468 (satka 4 A 151-16) Tantrasadbbava, NAK 5-1985; NAK 5-445. Tantraloka by Abhinavagupta, with the commentary -viveka of Jayaratha, Ed. with introduction R.C. Dwivedi and N. Rastogi. Delhi: Motilal Banarsi- dass. 1987. (The text is a reprint of KSTS 1918-1938) Taittitirtya Brabmana of the Black Yajurveda. Ed. V.G. Apte. 3 vols, Pune: Anandagrama Series 37. 1934-38 Pardtrimsika with commentary -Vévarana by Abhinavagupta. See Gnoli 1985. Patupatasitra with Parcarthabhasya of Kaundinya, Ed. R.A. Sastri. Trivan- ‘drum: The Oriental Manuscripts Library of the University of Travancore. (Trivandrum Sanskrit Series vol. 143) 1940. Malinivijayottaratantra, Ed. Acharya Krishnanand Sagar. Varanasi: Krish- nanand Sagar. 1985. (1st ed. Madhustidan Kaul, Bombay 1922 KSTS 37) [The 1985 edition contains more typographical errors than the first edi- tion and shows no improvement on the text] Maitrayaniya Samhita 4 vols. Ed. 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SANDERSON, A. 1985 «Purity and Power among the Brahmans of Kashmir» In: The Category of the Person, Ed. M. Cartithers, §. Collins and . Lukes, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. pp. 190-216. : ; SADE, a eg rhe Visualisation of the Deities of the Trika» In: L’Image Nivine: Culte et Méditation dans V'Hindouis is: Edi Divine Clie Meiation U'Hindouisme, Ed, A. Padoux. Paris: Edi-