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@ CosmoPublications CONTENTS
FirstPublished1999
Meaning ol TantJa
(set)
ISBN81-702G863-7 - ClassiticationoiTantras
81-702G8ff'5(volumel) - Antiquityand continuityof Tantra
OriginalHomeofTantra
- Contents of Tantra
- HumanBodY,A l,4icrocosm
KOSzl
Nadis
SahasBHPadma
- HumanNature
Published br Sadhana-Pafrcalattva
MRS.&qNI KAPOOR Kundalini-Yoga
foTCOSMO PUBLICATIONS Div of Puja
GENESISPUBUSHINGPVT LTD. siddhi
24,B,AnsariRoad, Purcscarana
Daryacanj, Yoga
NewDelhi-1
10002, INDIA KaYa(or Deha)-Siddhi
Natureof TantricDoctines 3l
Theoryof Creation-Siva,Sakti
- Tantraand SaktaWorks
- Dasamahavidy,r
ACEQ
Gut!, SisYa, Diksa, Abhiseka
 Mull ra, Mandala,yantta, Nyesa HolyCompany
Sava-Sadhana
Holyt\ren(l)
CakraBjja Holylt en(ll)
Waysto Liberation Human Birlh(l)
BhakliinTantra
Human Birth(ll)
Yuganaddha
NumberofTantras lmages
SaktaSect-a generaiview lmmediate
ScienceinTantra InnerAnd Ouler(l)
Causesof CompositjonofTantras InnerAndOuler(ll)
LrleraryValueofTantra lnnerTrulh
Tantrabeyondjndia Intellectual
Knowledge (l)
TantraandTimaeus lnlelleclual
Knowledge (ll)
Tantraand Christianity
Japa(l)
TantraandJews
WasTantraot ForeignOigin?
Japa(ll)
Japa(lll)
3. VedicOriginofTantricpractices
85 Japa(lV)
Whatis SivaLinga ? JapaAndDhyana
i01
JapaAndStotra
5. TantricPracticewith Maktras
117 JivaAndShiva
6. Gradationsot Approachingthe Divine JuslUse
r33
Karma
Gradalionsof Approach Kaula(l)
curu(t) Kaula(ll)
Guru(ll) Sell-Revealing
c u r u( i t j ) Shiva-Shakli
curu(lV) SinsOlTheDisciple
Guru(V) SupremeTrulh
Guru(Vl) TanlraSadhana (l)
Guru(Vll) TanlraSadhana (ll)
Guru(Vlll) TanlraSadhana(lll)
GuruandGod TanraSadhana (lV)
Guru andParents Upasana
Gurus Word Upasana Gradalions
nere
 VedaAndTantra
VerbalKnowledge

Worship(l)
Worship(ll)
Worship(lll)
Worship(lV)
Worship(V)
Worshjp(Vl)
Yanlra
YantraAndI\,4antra
YOga
Yogin(l) Chapter-1
7. Glossary orTantricTerminology 195 Meaningof Tantra
Chapter-1

Among thevariousmeanings ol fanlra. loundin lexicons

the followingmaybe noted:s/iidhdnta(conclusion), stutisekhe
(a branch of sfurl, i.e., Vedas),itika avya6 (sel of duties),
pfubandha(composilion),seslravrbesa (a parlicularszistra).
'Tantra'issometimesusedlo denotegovernance. Kdliddsa
'prajahtanttayiva'
usesthe expression \havinggovernedlhe
subjecls)in lhe Abhinanasakuntalam (V.5).
ln lhe Vedas\e.9.,RgvedaX. 71.9. Atharvaveda x. 7.42)
'tanlra'appears lo be usedto denolea weavingmachine,a
loom.The samesenseof lhe wordis foundalsoinlhe Taitti ya
Bftthnana(11.5.5.q. fhe wordlarlrakaoccursin lhe Astr4dhy.iyi
as a derivaliveol the tantra,and meansa cloth taken trom
lhe toom.
lnthe SatapathaBftihmanaand TendyaBHhmara,'tanlra'
denotesthe chiefporlionor ihe essenceof a thing.Perhaps
in thal age,Tanlrawasconsidered to represenl lhe quinlessence
ol Sastras.
Thelerm lanlra'hasbeenusedal severalplaceslodenole
a syslem of lhought,a set of doclrines,elc-, e.9., Kapilasya
Iantra(i.e..Sdmkhya), usedby Samkara. The word'tanlrais
used by BhaskaraRayalo denote lvlimdms;i'sristra, etc.
Tanlra,when denotinga kind of Sdslra,standsfor a sel
of dockines, practices,mysticsyllables,
metaphysical speculations,
magic.elc.
'Tantra'is derivedfrom lhe rool tan 10 sptead. Tanyate
vistatyetejnefiam anera - knowledgeis increasedby il. In
this sense, any branchol knowledgeis called Tantra,e.9.,
Sdmkhya andNy:iyaphilosophical systehsarecalledrespeclively
Kapilatantrc,Gotama-tantrc.fheAyurvedic work,sitributedto
Agnivesa,is cafiedAgnive'alantra.'fanlra', derivedlrom lhe
sarneroo1.is takenby some1odenolea Sdslrawhichdilales
 Chapler-t
uPon lattvas and mantfas.
Accordi withpractrce or cuslom,lhe workconcern€d is Safiolherwise
"""iii"'il'i;nJl"L"!"*i:l::-l:l l:-l'""s sho'enins
rl
"",,1,Y;,X a work is Asat.
wh,chwourd ll""T::l::n l!"
",;il;;";;l;ilt"X; "'n;o;;;;,"",.i
Tanlrasare also classifiedas isrka {Vedic)and Ne ka
(non-Vedic). The works of the former class are divided,
ran,ra
"" ,l!l""""oilll"oltiT,l?&,i11#:::,
,ssoca,,ed accordingto the predominance
Saura Genapalyaand Vaisnava.
of the deily,as Sekta, Sajva,

rojfl,J;'i;j,_::1,rrom
fa,fra
?l:, denore,r,i, ro?r.,iii,S"riiifli,ili,j"li
r.arrrosdver.
ja",l'"'',i,i[T andlare TheSdklaTankasaredividedintotenclassesin accordance
wilhthe namesof len Mah6ldyes.Of these,the Sodasi-tantra
rs known as Sflvldfi.
Anothermode of classificationis inio S/otas, pilha and

#:*iit1#*ti'i,ii$i*iry;i#1,
#
Classification orTantras
Anraya.3
Tanlrasare also classifiedinto Kddi, Hedi and Kaha\diol
SadF.This classifjcaiionappearsto havebeen in accordance
wilh lhe injliallellersol mantrcs.ThemanttahavingKa as lhe
inilialsyllableis Kedl,lhat with Ha as the iniliatletter is Hddl,
and that beginningwith the unionof K:idiand Hediis Kahadi

i$nfr ft,qnHl
tri*tinsii,ffi
Sakt is supposedlo be inherentin Siva as the properly
of burninginheresin fire.
Thefollowing fivefacesol Sivaarelakenas representing
the five functionsof Saktl,jn the spheresnotedagainstlhem:
Isena - Cit (consciousness),

,i::Jx##[11i
,",llii'!:*l{",:kffi
eft Tatpurusa- Anahda (bliss),
Sadyojyoti- i cchd (witl),

;l;:x",j;;""T3,;:1;:1',:.,
"", f "!::,!:r::
i,,f ii.l.
Vemadeva- Jheha lknowtedge),

{:::: Aghota-K y6 (aclion).

The five houths of Siva are said lo have originally
Tantrasare believed producedten Agamas,viz., KAmika,yogaja,Cihtya,Mukut;,
regi;:ly-four to bet{Jngro eachof Ihese
Ansumdn, Dipta,Ajita, Siksha, Sahash, Suprabheda

tr-i;#'rd*ilhfr:t?,,",;,{*tii'l,ril:*** -.
.These-in lheirlurn,ledto ihe composilion
erghteenRaudraAgamas:
yraya.Nihsvasa(ot Ptodgita\parcmesvara,
of thefollowing

Mukhabjmba,
stddha.Santana.Narcsmha.Candramsu,lor, Candahasa)-
 Ctlager-1

Viabhadta lot, Bhadra), Agneya, Svayambhu, Visata lo(. dividedinto lwo classes viz
ln anotherway,Tantrasare
Virckta).Rautuvalot Bau@vya).Vimatalor. Mukutq. Kiena,
Kalikuta a^d St)kula
Lalita, Saumeya lo(, PaG). four broad
SomedivideTanlricworksintothe lollowing
Theabovelwo classestogelherconsliiutethe lwenly-eight classes:
Saiva Aoamas.
A. Agama
Anot-hertradition makes the DaksinaMukha ol Siva oy
NarratorSiva' lisienerParvali'approved
represenlnon-dualily;il is calledyogini-vakra.The otherfour Vdsudeva lts conlents are usually as
facesarestatedto represent thefourcondiljons,
viz.,Denotaljve. DevArcana'
iorfow"'- sr"ti' PBlaYa'
Denoted.Extinguishihg and Extinguished.Theworks,produced satktma' Dhyanayoga
Purascanrana,
bylhese,togelherconslttulethe64 BhaituvaAqamasclassified
into lhe followingoctads: B. Ddmara
1. Bhairaviislaka: Svacclanda,Bhairava,Canda,kodha, Narratedby Siva Six kindsof Ddmaraare
Brchme'
iig,", sui' Durye'sarcsvata'
Unmatta,AsitAffga,Mahocchisma,
Kaht6li6a. Ganclhalava
2. Ydmafdslaka: B'ahtrA, Visnu,AthaNan,Rutu, VetAta, C. Yamala(lii meaningpair' couple)
lncl@,Svacchanda. s,ix'viz BrchM Visnu Budta' Ganesa
Again,Tantrasare divid€dinlo Hinduand non-Hindu. Those Ravi, AditYa
ol the latlerclassare BuddhistandJaina.BuddhislTanlrasare Generalcontents: Jyotisa' AkhyenaNilya
divided,accordihg to thelhreebroaddivisionsof laterBuddhism. Karna, kama"tttra Vanabheda Jatibheda'
as vayaydna.SahajayanaandK|tacaknana I hereis a sectarian Yugadharma
classificalionof Jaina Tanlrastoo. Both Buddhistand Jaina
Tantrasbelongto the ltrisfika class, mentionedabove. D. Tantra
A hode of classification is basedon lhe hythologicalages; Sdkiasastra Also cailed Nigama'Rahasya
e.9., vatahakalpa,KAlakalpa,etc. SamhitA, Arnava' etc GeneralConlents:
Sarca Prctisarya Devala'samslhana
The Veahitant@menlionsa classof work"scalled Upatahln. Tnfuvarmna,ls ranp'dtan1a \enta' ntMya
Thereis a lradition(e.g, Etahnayamata, Ch.XXXTX Sroionimava Jvitis PurAnakhyAna ' Kosa'varnana vrata
Sectlon)ot classifyihgTantricwotks as Daksina,Vemaa;d vivarana'Saucae'auca'Naraka'Stti'purusa'
Madhyama,also calledDivya,Kaula,and yama,each beinq laksana,Baiadhama' Dana Yugadhatma
sub dividedas Harda(inner)and BAhyaloutet\. etc,
A divisioninto Astaka,Mafigah, Cakraand S/khdis also Saktatantrasare by lar lhe most well_
lound (Jayadratha-y{nala,1.47). known
A class of Tantrasis called ydmala. Besidesthe well,
kna n RudhtAnala, thereareYdmalasassocialedwilh Ganesa_ Antiquity and continuity of Tantra
Visnu, Sakti and severalolhers. lt is given
It is nol knownpreciselywhenTantraoriginated
#
the slatus of Srull in some works. ll is slated bv H:irita. as
quoled in Kallukabhallas commentary on Manu (ii t). as
Srutisca dvividhe prcka vaidikl tant k tathe
The earlieslrecordof Tdnlricelementsis lhe Atharvaveda
fn lhis Veda,we find, intet alia,abhic'tika practicesdesigned
lo causemischief to olhers.Thereare olherelements of white
and black magic.These foreshadowthe Tanlras.
The myslicsoundp/,at,so familiarjn Tanlra,occur in the
VejasaneyiSamhita.ln the ApastambaStautasttrc,phat is
used in offeringSoma stalks in abhidra.
The numberol exlanlTanlEs is large.ll maybe presumed
lhal severalcenlurieselapsedbeforethe Tanlrasgrew into a
hugebulk.
Manuscriplsof some Tanlrasreveal palaographyof the
Gupla Age.5The oldestof lham is the Kublkdmataoreserved
in AsjatrcSocielyCalcutta. The Southlndian SaivaAoamas
-dating
are mentioned in an insc ptionol Rdjasimhavarman,
backto the sixlhcenturyA.D.in Kaildsan:itha Tempte.
Al feastfourTantras, viz.,Sircscheda,Vinasikha,Sammoha
and Nayotlarcare known hom th€ inscriplionot Sdok-kak-
Thom,to havebeeninlroducedinlo Kambu,a(Cambodia) about
800 A.D.by a Brahmin.
The oldesl BuddhistDh{rcnts ot Tdntric characlermav.
perhaps.b€ supposedlo datelrom the 4th centuryA.D.
Tibetanlranslalaon only is availabteof lhe BuddhistTdntric
worksby severalBengalischolars inctudingSdhtaraksita(70S-
762 A.D ) and Alisa Dipamtarawhoare knownlo haveset ed
in Tibel.
The earliestNepalesemanuscriptsol Tanlrasappearto
havebeencopiedbelweenthe sevenlhandlhe ninlhcenluries
The faler porlions ot lhe MaldtbhAtata,lhough relerringto
Ilih'sa, PutAna,arc silentaboulTanka.Noneof the well-known
Chinesetravellers, Fa,hien(401,410), HiuenTsang(630-649)
Meaningol Tanlra
and llsing(675) relerslo Tanlra
c. Tuccilhinks6thal Tanlrashark back to the limes ot
Harivarman andAsanga(4lh cent A D ) Hisopinionis based
on the facl that they allude lo a Somas/ddhdnlawhich he
identifies wilh lhe Tdnlricsecl ot the K:iPdlikas.Winternilz
ho!^rever. does nol accept Tucci's view- No Buddhist Tantra
650 A.D7
appearsto haveexisledbefore
The {irst clear referenceto Tanlric lileratureappearslo
occur in lhe Bh gavata'purana(nol later than 800 A D
accordingto some). These reasons led some scholarslo
conclude thalTantradid noloriginate probably
earlierthanlhe
lifth or sixlh cenlury A.D. lt may be Pointedoul that the
Devipuhna, aBengal work of aboutthe sevenlhcenturyA.D.,
reveals deep influenceof Tantra.
Those.whoadvocate a highantiquilyol Tanlra,holdlhat,
in the slanzas ol lhe Devisina (Rgvedax. 125) there are
coverlreierencesto Durgddeviwho represenlslhe earlierform
of Sakiior Kdli, lhe principalgoddessol Tanlra.lt ls also
pointedoul that the ,gatrisuha(Bgveda\ 127)reters10Durg.i
Somethinkthal Rdlri is the precursorof Kali.According lo
olhers lhis Stikfais a supplement(Khila)inlerpolaled into the
Rgveda.
l1is also poinledoutthalrhe M*fuandeyaand Lingapuanas
revealTrinlric inlluence.Theoldeslpad of theformer,according
lo Pargitermay datebacklo the lhirdcenturyB.C.or even
Samkarac:irya (C. 8lh cent.) has accepledTantraas
aulhorilativein his Anandalahatland S:ikldmoda.The six
Cakrasof Tantrahavebeenmenlionedby himin his griakabtrsya
(7thcent.)and Bhavabhfii(C. nh
Theworksof B6nabhatta
or 8lh cenl.) refer lo Tantricviews and practicesu.
ll was poinledout by JogesVidyanidhilhal lhe names
Br:ihmiand Devaniigari, appliedlo Indianalphabel,betray
TanlricinlluenceBrdhmiis one of the Mdtrkdsot Tanlra.He
lhlnks that, in ancienllimes, lhere was lhe practiceol
 10 Chapler-l

worshrpping painledsymbols of thegoddess. Onesuchsyrnbol

was Devanagara(abodeof god)trom whichDevanagarisctipl i hat neither I he SuvartapBbha\sanotlhe Mahem4yti is a lrue
Tantra. He comeslo theconclusion thatTadricelemenls occur
was so cailed.
in eallierwoIks.
ln lhe Yasatilaka-canp, (AsvasaV) Bhdsa,whoflourished Themainargumenls, pul forwardto establish a laleorigin
earlierlhan K:ilidiisd,
is statedto havesaid.wilh the Tilnlric ol Tanlra,are as lollows:
Vdmecerain view that one should drink sura and put on
grolesq!edress. (i) Tanlra, as a S:istra, has nol been mentionedin lhe
famouslexicon N6naliiganusAsanaor Amarakosa.
The Lalitavistaraof aboutlhe first cenlury A.D.appears
lo referlo Tdnlricelemenls. (ii) The Srtasamr,ilS (mukli-khanda) stalesthalthecustoms
of Paicar6tra,etc.,willbe beneficial lo lhosewho are fallen
Amonglhe relicsof IndusValleyCivilisalion, there are fromthe Vedicwayof lile.Thisindicates thalTanlraaroselong
lerracottaliguresoI natrkAsand male figuresin a si ing
posture.Somescholarsthinkthat, even in thosepre-Vedic afterthe VedawhenVedicaulhorilywas on the wane.
limes.Durgdas Molherof the universeand Sivaas Fatherlsed (iii) The Naryasaslra, which,in ils presenlform,is generally
lo be worshipped. Thus the germof Tanlrawas there. supposed lo haveoriginated aboulthe fifthcenluryA.D does
nol menlion Ndd/,Caktaot Ni\daatisinglrom them;this tends
B. Footeclaimsto havefoundphalliamonglhe neolithic lo orovelhai eilherTanlradid nol existbelorethis workor was
rematnsdiscovered by him in Deccanr. noi yel eslablishedas authorilative.Ever since ils inceplion.
TheGaigddharaStoneInscription (424A.D.)of Visvavarman lhe Tdnlricfaithhas inspiredto composition of Tdnlricworks
menlionsMdllsor Mothergoddesses and Tanlra. n some lorm or olheri il will be evidentfrom the chapter
Ihe BrhalsanhitA(57. 56) ot variihamihira(C. 475 550 describing lhe conlentsof the workson Tantra.The flow oJ
A.D.)meniionslhe groupof Mdhs. Tdnlricwrilingsconlinuedrighldown1othe 191h.cenlury.
fhe Visnupurana, one ofthe earlieslof lhe extantpuriinas. ln conclusion,we cansaylhal lhoughTAntricworksappeal
speaksof ihe Saktlol Visnu.lt mentionsseveralnamesof lo havecomeinlobeingprettylohgafterChrist,Idttrlcbeliels
Durgii.andsialeslhat.it worshipped and oracliceswereDartof lhe livesof a seclionol lhe Indian
withwine,llesh. etc.,She populalion
lulfilsall desires. as earlyas lhe Vedictimesand evenearlier.
Whaleverlhe date of originof Tanlramay havebeen,il Somescholarshavepointedoulthattherelicsof the Indus
appearskom spigraphical and ljleraryevidences Valleycivilisalion(C.3000 B.C.)containtlAtrh'nittis. Ihey
lhat Tdnlric holdlhal yantras,mud6s (finger'pose), the mysticmonosyllabic
praclicesprevailed widelylongbetorethe sixlhcenluryA D
ll rs nol unreascnable Bijas like KLIM, KRIM, e|c., testify lo the primitivepictorial
lo supposethal cenlufleseldsped
belween lheperiodof Ongin wrilingand languageconsisling of singlesounds.The black
ot Tankicdeasandthetrcodit'cal.on
and evenlualelaboralion. riles of Tanlrahaveparallelpraclicesin primitivelimes.
Abundanlevidenceis availablelo
provethalTanlrareached lhe zenilhol popularitVin lhe period li seemslhal Tantacaraot F'nltic practices,whichform
belweenlhe seventhand the lweltthcenluryA D. a bulkol Tanlraliterature, werederivedlromveryearlytimes.
Winiernilzi0concludes Wilh the progressoi civilisation, sophisticated philosophical
thatno realTanlra canbe provedlo speculalions
haveexisledbeforelhe 7th centuryA.D.He is ol the opinon gol inlo lhis lilerature. Thal is why we find a
curiousmixture of proloundphilosophy wilhlhewildestsuperstitions
 .- Chapler-1
MeaningolTanlra 13
and most confusedoccultism,of a faul ess social code
ol
moratrtyand rigidascetjcjsmand a cull disfiguredby wild and was deslrovedin Gujarat Gaude
orgiesinculcating
extremely i. ota.eso' lvlahdraslra
'/acahtd
reprehensiblemoralsi rdva ma hilaih abaliktlakvaci kvactnmahaaslre
gutjarepnlaYam gatla/
OrigihalHomeof Tahtra The Bengalwork,P/iinaloslriquolesthe Varcdatanlra(x)
Nolhingdefinaleis knownaboul the regjon whereTantra whrchis staled lo containa descriptionof somesoundsol lhe
originaled.some believethal Tantrasof ihe Agu.u iii"" NitgaraalphabetFromthisdescriPlion we learnthat tprecedlng
originatedin Kashmir.Whal is knownas Tantramai travefeen y is pronoLrnced as./h.Again,h preceding v is pronounced as
producedfor the trrsltime.In Bengal.Thisoprnionis b, Iniliadlyy is pronounced like/. Thesecharacteristics are
staieJ nolablein lhe dialectsof Bengal,and,in somecases.in Easl
oy.wrnlernitz An evrdencethoughnol conclusivF. rn sLrpporl
or rheafrovehypothesis is lhatmanuscflpts Bengal.
ol Agamas,wt:|en .r.enlions
In sardoascflpl aboundin Kashmir. and lhoseoi the ,anlrd The colophonlo the Mahekaulaihana vinirfia\ya
ciass.in Eengaliscript, are availablein abundance in Bengal. Gaudadvipa as tts provenance,
Theworksol theSamhilaclassarebelieved to haveoriginaied lheoriesalsopoinloulthalmanyof lheold
Thepro'Bengal
in differenlparlsof India,parlicularlyin Deccanana dengai parlicularly
Buddhist Tanlra,havebeenlound
worksonTanlra.
K:im.ikhyd,r,in Assam, is a slrongholdof Tanlra. ll is n Bengal.Moreover. the Tantric works of delinilelyBengal
knownthat Saiklismwas preachedthere-bythe BengaliSdkta. provenance containmore of riles and thanof philosophy:
rituals
Krsnar;imaNyiiyav;igisa. TheAhomking,Rudrasimh;.became lhis is a sign of theirearlier oragin.
hasdisciole Many oJ the Sdkla Pithasare in Bengal.Thoughnot
The EengaliTiinfrikscafijedTantrato the tar-offHiml:ijin situatedin this province,the Pilhas,kdmardpa,Srihalla.
^Baluchistant
, (Orissa,according lo some)and Purnagiri arein lhe
lheBengatiBrahmiinandaandhisdiscipte Jiiiiniin;da Oddiyana
preachedT;inlricphilosophyand Sadhana:c]'ete. neighbourhood of Bengal.
TantrrcSddranain Nepalappears lo havebeenInlJJenced
by Benqalsjdhakas,r Contenlsof Tantra
Tiinlricismin Chinaand Tibet is believedto haveowedils TradilaonallyTantradeals with live topics- Crealion.
Dissolution.
Worshlp.Acquisilion powers.
ot supernalural Communion
orrgrnlo spreadof Buddhismtrom Bengal.Alisa Dipamkara
(980-1053 A.O.)and severalother withlhe SupremeBeang
schol;rstromBenqalwenl
overro Ttbel.seltledlhereand wroleon Tantra fhe Varahi-lantra slales the conlenlsof lhe difterenl
In supportol lhe Bengalofigin c asses of Tanlricworks as lollows:
ofTanlra. a furlherevidence.
polniedoul by some,is lhal lhe Mah nitv6na-lantra mentions i\gama - ststi,pralaya,devapLijA,
adhana, Wtascarana
(vi.7 3 )lhree kindsof tishfor use in riluatsilneseare tound salkatma,(nAana, uccAtana,stambhana.
n ptenlyafd widelyconsumedin Bengal,,. vasikatana,vidvesa,santi)
An anonymo!sverse stales thal lhis Sdstra. having Y Amala- srsli,jyotisa,ekhyAna,nityakarma,karma'
ongrnaledjn Gauda.developedanl\,4ithil:i. existedat som-; sitstra,vamabheda,i1tibhecla,yugaclharma
Tanlra-_ srsli Walisrsti,tantla'nirnaya.devatAkrlt
 Chapter,l ij.,' 'oo l" l. 5

trrtha-esrana, BAhmana. pani -la ksana,yantra, HUMAN AODY,A MICROCOSM

devotpa tti, kaIpa vrksa, jyoti sa,p ranAk'hyena,
kosa, vrata, saucA-sauce, naraka icAra,
strtpurusa Iaksana, rajadharma,denadharma, The body s supposedlo consislol five kosas (shealhs),
yu9adharma, vyavaharavidhi, adhyetma ! t. amianaya (madeoi iood), praramaya(consistinqol v tal
varnana, elc. fiea\h) nanomaya (made of mind), vtjn^namaya\canssltng
The conlenlsof a completeTantricwork rnay .1 speca consciorrsness),Anandamaya(conssting of loy)
, be broady
divided as
Jiana at Vdva - (nowjedge.n,,,d ng p,
osophral The body s be eved to conlan lhree crores and a hali"
ano nerapFysica I do. trinFswlh d To, otnF ,Uc
tendencyand sometjmesa rorr sr c otas ol r.:d,s {arleries and verns). Of these, seventy'two are
This part contains occulltsm Lrcruotnga rcgarde.las prominenl.of theseaga n, Iourleenor ten are the
knowledgeof the myslic bas Ths part t)f fr pal ones.ol theseiourteen,the mosl prom nenl are /da
. o n r a , n sf o | t r t a e a , o L g u r e . . I'r)oa/iiand Sus|/rrni'".
2. Yogaot Upaya - means ot mind-conlfot. The ast and the ongesi one exlendslrcr]. mhhdh,ra lo
especralty 8/nlrr'arrrdhraln lhe head.Alsocalledbrahmanedi.at moksanr;rga.
w t r ht h e o b l e L o r t d c q u ,n g n a q , cp o s p r .
r s be eved to contarnlhe universe.Throlgh \ Kundaliit ts
3. Xrya - containjnginslruciions for makrngrdotsand ior s!rplr!s-.dto rnoveupward./de is on the eft side o{ lhe spinal
conslrucltngand consecfatng rernpes. r]or.l A symbol ol lhe moon, it is while, and represenlslhe
Carya ot Siddhi- rutesabout flies, lestivars Amfii aspect of Sakti.Enterng Suslmnd, ils exit s lhrough
ano soc a
duties. llre eft nostril Pingala s an the righi side oi the spinalcord
-Ih Ris f! irom \he \|ibdh'ra. t ends in the righl noslr . Aso
s tourfolddivisionol contenlsis generar
oul does nol ca ed Srrya N;jdr, il symboliseslhe waking condlion. and
appry to each and every Tanlncwork.
a.is persons10 v olence.
A>-re9d_rds worshto,lhree asppclsoi ,Fe dF y. wo,,hippoo _
L. Cir{/as The body is believedlo conlain six Cakras
a.e recogn,seo.Tnese are sllrura ,,-nage
:i,:_":":'":
s u K s . mt am a 1 t r aa) 1 dp a r ar h r g h e s r . .boe a o o , a ' e - d e o ic r. € or nerve-plexus). These afe as fo ows:
by.,. - n the middleol lhe body,silualedin the lowest
l'.4uladhAra
Broadtyspeaking, l a r t o l t h e s p n a c o r d , l r a n g u a r n s h a p ew l h i l s a p e x
lhe contents
ot Tantratleralurelall into dowfward ll s like a red lotus wlth lour pelas. Kundaltniis
two classes,
onephrlosophicaland
spiriluallne oiher popular
a o prdcliLal Tne latter includes .raqL,
s r r p p o s etdo c o a r o u n di t .
mandata, nya9a, cakra, yantz. Sva.lhislhana ' abovelhe milAdhara,brl belawlhe navle
elc
.s ke a lotusof srxpalals.presidedover by GoddessRakin
The principataimotTantrais trberatron
and S/ddhl(supernalura
I'lafrlpufa I the navel.It is like a lotusol len pelals eacrr
rr(rlafofta n ng a leller.Also calledNabhicakra,it conlarnsa
lrLrn(re o i t h e c c l o u fo l t h e n s n g s u n .T h e o u l e rs d e s o f l h e
lr irrr(.lLe
a.e representedby lhre€ Svasilka symbos ll s
 Chapter.l ol Tantra 17
Ntreaning

presrciedovef by a goddessLakini.
o n T a n l r aP
. .251)
AnA.hAb- in the region of lhe heart. lt is like a deep red SfrraAra also called Sttyanlaor lrpuacakta connecled
. .
lolus with lwelve pelals. Seal of air, it is presadedover bv lhe
wlh S/rv,dvd has been descnbed in verses quoled in
goddess Kdktni. p and
Samiara;Fya ot A^a.dagirtrBib Indlcaed 1868) 255
V;sttddhaot Bhaatt - n lhe rFgronof lhe nech Sear ol i\ I.he Selubandha commenlary on lhe NilyAsodasikarnava
fhe
Sarasvati.il is grey and Ike a lotusof stxleenpetals Dresided it.:t-sa) quoting lrcm Yamala (prchably Budrcyamah\
over bV goddess Lakinj. rauncta,yalahart {verse I1) also describesil A somewhdl

iTnd between the eyebrows. Also ca ed paramakatAol dillFienl des.ripllon oLcurs In a work called Deviahasva
Muhlatuvent.tl is lthea lolus of lwo pelals whtre n .olour .r (DeccanCollegeMS. No 49Oot 18s5 98) A descriplionol lhe
's from lhrs batra is as lotlows.A Cakrais lo be drawn wilh lhe bindu In
caftla thal lhe lhree nadls, /dd, el(. soaeadoul
lo diflerentdrreclions.Svmbolisedby the letlersHa and A.sa a small triangle The birdu slands for Sakfi or Mtlaptakrtt
rl rs lhe seal of mind. presrdedover by goddessHahrn| Ihe solidrlied. The;eare ninelrianglesfiveof whichhavelheir apex
woroA/nameansorder orderof guruwhois supposedto restoe downward:these represenls Sakll and four, represenlingSiva
tn tl. have their apex upward The b/rdu is situaledin lhe smallest
t ar,qe po'.llinqdownwardThere are two parls of ltiangles
. ^Caktabheckat Satcakrabheda(lilerallymeanrngpenetralron rnen'14irianqles lhen elghl_pelalled lolus l6 petalledlolus
or cakras) means lhe manifestal|onor acltvaltonof Cakras. lhen 3 circles.thenlhree boundary lines wilh four gales lhese
rl rs necessarylor keepingthe body fil and for the dttainmenl of the yanlra and lhe loluses
ten laltertJeinglhe ouler section
of Siddhls. lhe stx Cakras are idenltlied in sor.le fa.tflc works ol 8 and 16 pelalsbeingthe innersection of the Yantrc'Ihete
withthe five elementsand the mind,s. Thjs idea appearslo have is a lotal of 43 angles The parl of the Cakra inside lhe
been based on lhe ancienl Upanisadiclheoraesifor example. boundary lines is called bhupura- The worship ol Yanlra is
the hearl is comparedto a lolus, and il is statedlo have 1Oj bahryaga Anlarvaga is laklng awakened Kunda'ni lhrough lhe
Nadls; one ot lhem penetrales the crown of the head: a man Calrasl rrorn Muladhardlo i/racaita and lhen unilinq il wlth
movingupwardby il reachesimmortalrty. In this,.onnextol,.he S va in the Sahasfara-cakra lhe six Cakras are identitied w h
rollowlng Upanlsadsmay be consulted: Chandagya IJpansad the five elemenlsand the mind.
Vlll. l. l. viii.6.6.Katha vi.16, prasna iii.6. Ceriiin diagrams
also are called Cakfas. Diflerenl works differ in the name: and Sahasfiira Padmd'
number of Cakfas.The S//bak,a is oflen menlioned,,.A
Tantra At lhe cenlre ol lhe head is localed lhe Brahmarandhra
called Caktabheda (Deccan College MS. No.962 ol tBa4-87)
menlronsthe followingfive Caklas used in Durgdpiij:iaccording throuqhwhich vital brealhor life is supposed10 exit al dealh
b Kauhgama. li is c;nceived as a mullicolouredlolus of a lhousandpelals'
facingdownward.
Raiacakra, Mahecakra, Devacakra, Vhacakra, pasucakra
The Cakras, accordinglo the Kaula syslem are as follows
\see Catalogue,vol. XVI on Tantra, p. .163). In anolher
m a n u s c r i p(lD e c c a nC o l e g e M S . N o . 9 6 4 o f t A O T9 l t s o m e in lhe ascendingorder : NadicaktainlheianmasthanaBased
Olner OaAlas are described as Akactamacakz. nnaclhand ort il is M yecakta in the navel (lrom here il prevaoes
Sodhanacakta,Rasicaka, Naksatftcakra (Catatogue. vol everwhere). iogacaka (in the hearl, centre ol yoga\. Bhdanacaka
XVi (in lhe ti/u regi;n). Dipticakta\Bindusthenainbelween the eye'
 19
18 Chapler1 Meanlngo! Tantra
shamehalredfamllv
brows),Sanlacakfa (in lhe niidaslhdna). ,h4rpllersol klndnesslnlaluallonleal
'i'""I'"i over
''",}ili'"" r" hrmlhrlA rs elcpssol Fdl;s gulU
an
fhe SAdhakarealisesil as lustrouslikea croreof suns "r.i" "r" idleanddrowsy He has no lairh in
andcoollikea croreof moons.8y rousinglhisenergyonecan ',11n'irr)it.'a. '"l"'n"itr, lo Tanlra
iuu*es vedrcpraclicesAccoldrng ro rhF
reachthe higherslate of exislenceWhen it is roused lhe
::'-';;;";.;;; '"" A pelson wrrhvrrabhavadue lead
enlrrebeingof a personis {loodedwithverydelicaleambrosia "i qualiiyol Falas doessuchaclsas
ll";:".,""""" ol1"e
oi music lhis music is called Kundalini-kujana(sang of
::"":.'j' 3?;;;l ;;';a'va navins
"i,n" tnepreoon"nance
pule l r u lhlul
^",]i,^, I s t h e b e s lH e i s k i n d p i o u s
Rele idenlifiesKundaliniwilh the righl vagus nerve.Bul. " i . s r r r t , alriluderowardslrrendsand loes
:;: :-::;;";"
Woodroffe (Avalon)discardsthe view:he sayslhal I is not
a nerve.r any olherphysicalsubslance or mentaltacullyiii SADHANA- PAftCATATTVA
rs ratherlhe groundsubslanceol bolh Kuvalaydnanda also is the meanslo lhe
rejecisReleslheory.The Rudtayemala (XXXVI6 168)gives Sddhanelworship propitiaiion)'l wavsol sadhan;
- ^ o' s/ddhr{successpowerr he
1008namesof Kundallni. allbeginning wrlhKa Sabdabrahma ol saslras /apr
ls supposedlo resideh Kundalint. :':' ,;," ,;,;,;r' or rnenlal)knowledge
"r".ini
(incanlar'on) e'c
i"
' i,oas {penance'manrra
Besideslhe individualkurda lini,fa .amenlionsaMalakundali "'i.''noi:"""'i and sedhlkasare divided in accordance
loJl
The formerdevelopspersonalexistence.By gellingupon
"uon"r""
n,',, n.ri-pnys'cat menlaland moral qualrl'esr'\'o l a l
Mahakundalione canlranscendthe narrowpersonalslale.and A d h m d t t a h aan d
eslablishhimselfin lhe wideuniversal slaletMahi\kundaliis . , " r , * . r ' i . r r f M d u t 2 l M a d h y a nB a)
al lhe rool ol lhe universe.
Tanlia lhe sadhaKas
Accordinglo the Kaulaschoolof
HUMANNATURE are ol the followingclasses:
1 Pr2k I- yirdcdlrn- engagedin sacrilrce and olhel
In accordancewiththe preponderanceof ihe qualilies
rllualsand resorlinglo pancalallvas
ol Sattva.Rajasand lamas,humannalureis dividedinlo three
lhe dilJerence
classes.On lhe basisol lhesequalities, humanpropensilies 2 MadhyamaKaulika- llke Prakrii wilh
have been dividedinto three classes,v1z Divyabhava that his mindis moreattachedlo med[aton'
Vtrabhavaand Pasubhava. knowledge and concenlrallon'
Ihe i"4ailryupanisad
\vi. 21) menlionsSusumnaNadi as 3 Kautikotiama - lhose who go beyondritualism and
movingupwardfhe BrhAdaranyaka \11.119)speaksof72.000 meditaleon the SupremeBeing
ol
ln I antricworship.patcafaltva' also calledKuladravyarole
The Cakrasare somelimesidenlifiedwilh lhe nerve Kulalall;a. denotingI i\te Mararas'plays an imporlanl
p exusesoJ modernphysiology. muda
Thrsappearslo be wrongin rt l7)rJy*'t*i"e) rr,amsa(meal)'matsya\fisl'')
vew of the lacl thal, in Tantralhese are inraginary
lhings """ "i.
(linger'pose). ;aitilna (sexualinlercourse)'
belonging1olhe subtlebodyand nol the grossbodyso that sexualintelcourse whenthe
lhesedisappear with the deathof a person. SomeTanlrasrecommend energy
t"."r" f"ri""i i" i" n"r monlhlyillness and hersexual
A personwilhthepreponderanceof Pasubldva1stiedwith
 2A 21
Chapler-1 MeanlngolTanlra

ti:ffi;";
il:[1 ",,iTill
,i ijrjr:
;tri,i?fu"]i''*i
i a Kautika.but nol in a devole of the pasu lype Maithuna
;ymbolises
ever!'1hing.
lhe basicunilyunderlying the aPparenl dualityol

^
ji::
As regardsthe modeo, Tanlric
se)

fi,:"',,""'i,:#t',"1;t{*t*ni5ii*t*'*ii:T"r
fhe Maftanitvana
Ithree sweet
iallhu,'ra it
\\iii. 170 173)recommends
subslances)
substitutes
as
medilaiion
substilutes
on lhe
lot
feel ot
madhuratraya
madya Fol
Deri andiapa

qt:,.##i".*q#.i,1"ffi
higfr frli,."d
ot lhe desired marha.
Paicatattvais not prescribedfor all S:idhakas.One who
hasreacheda highslageof spirituallife,canlakea paicata va
andlhal alsounderlhe guidance of the gufu Asa saleguard

j;;
::,Jl:ffi,rid,.r,eJi:,:i:"f,,,i"xli,:x..;r_
againsl unreslralnedenjoymenlof pancalatlvas,alletnaltve
ailiclesare prescribed Jorthosehavingan excessof animal

;drn';x.:";* ryfi
*' ;i'i.:::.;*rJ
5i j::ii:.'
propensities, and, as such, lackingin the requisileselt
@sl(ain|.Pancatattvaiscommendedlor Sadhakasal the Vira
type lhey are possessed of selfconlrol.Some explainthe
:;',**l*,g'*lhz* h""
:::"":,.-"
l ii the brain-cavity.
js
makdrasas follows:Madya the slreamof neclarissuingfrom
the abodeof the soul.Ma,syastandstor
i'Ji:l:;
;f n.f ";i;"y,lfiii{,#:H'"":iff""lffi suppression of vilalarr.
Mdmsameansvowof silence-Mirthunameansmeditation
;::t;::"
::1.,,ii',i
T*:rff i;:hTgilift. :i'l: on creationand deslruclion.
Ihe Kaularchasya2s appearsto describehow lhe three
L4akards,Madya, MAmsa,Maithuna,were enjoyed by the

*"Jjli{iffH""4.ff$:[+#Fil"iiiil#,j commonpeople.li speaksof drinking wineup lo throat.eating

lnealandenjoyingbeaulifulwomen.Ouolinglhe Kaulatahasya
1heHamsaviksa(p. 104)says thal bhogaand moksado nol

nli{ii":rft
fr;}tillx',l;"#irp,=##li' coexislBut.for one,whoenioysbeautilul

All ffom Brdhmanas

women.bolhlhese

to low-classpeople,are entitledto

'"iidrillfi
#lll
il#i*r"#"4;:1,+i*,,-l,l=ni;
:lx
Kauladharmaaccotdingla the nah,nirv4na \ti't 144)
TheKaukvali'nimaya \V. 113-123)
subslitulesfor lhe Maka\rcs.A Bdhmana
suggests
can
lhe following
use
in a
ioney In a
bellmelal
hxr:;;i'li*:1:*#Tili?i
""n'"*j
coppervesselor cow'smilkor coconulwaler
vessel.ln lhe absenceol meat. garlic
and ginger can be used

;"*xT,,:rffi
ffi";Jj ri;"Hi,g#fitr
:,;:""""',',T BullalomilkorlhaloJlhesheepmaybe used
lru ls and rools may be usedIot Maithuna.
lorfish Roasled
 22
Chapier-1

, r : o t r h e o p , n t o n, h d t l h a s , g n t l i c d n c e jewe n
,..,1or"
rt4atdlaswas detiberdtelvpreverleobv viuiouspeople. I n e
ot s rhe like the quest ot glass ignoringthe Kaustubha
pula
one s own hand Se l_surrendercharacierst cs fenltic
,",^",11;"'-"il' o*,li",l::
;:fl,'ff,i'i,l,,[XT""""
sugges|ng
*::l"J
i;: symbolcinrFrprelations
siddhi
S/ddhl.allainablethroughsddhara,may be ol many k nds
ffi'_t'n9'n''.'ut,"o ol
e a.. mantrasiddhi(Successin mattras), vaksiddhl(success
-speech).
d 'ecogntsesrhe fdcl that.for progress !n By lhe lormer,manlra s madeto secureihe desired
, .Tant drongthe polL
one has lo prFpa,ethe boOV.
inO minc result. By the latter, the speech becomes infallible Aller
,r.1e
bod! Ldn be made it by dtfferenlposturos
";ratOrearr.
,usanasl Tor' reachng lhe peak of spirtla I fe, one can posses lrle e gnl
pr6pa n9 lhe v,rdJbrearl-.onp
has to pract( a p € nol".u ino siddhis.vlz, anlma (power ol assuming an atomic lrg!re)
ts ptepatedhy bhavana(contemplationJ nahime lpawe( of increasing one's size al wilt) laghtme
Three stagesof sddhana are rientioned (assLrming excessiveLghtnessal will),lsilva (acquiring superonly
Ihese are over olh;rs), vasliva (subduing all to ones wt ) Praptl
1. Suddhi _.ridding oneself of pnysrcat w
(irresistible l) kamavasayita
and mental (obtalninganyllngai w ll)prakamya
impurilies. (suppressionoi Passon or des re)
2. Sthiti _ gelting rid of the darkness mantrasled
ot dejusion and According1oihe Mah6nlrvdra(1114_15),Vedic
lhe tight of knowJedgeshining. \o deslredresuls n Salya and other Yugas But, in Kali Age
3 Arpana_ realisationof ore,s identtty these are ke serpentsw lhout venom or ike dead berngs' In
with the objecl yield quick resLllts, and lead lo
ot meditation ths aqe. Tentrc manlras
entiatarenana,taryana,sandhyA,ptijA sa vation.Th s Tantraprescribes(iii 14) that lhe mantra Om
loj,rlrirrrr*r, """ sac-cid'ekambrahma in lhe besli mere perfecton ln ths
"nO manta causesthe soul to rnergein Brahma'
Kundalini-yog.irz sometimes,the repett on 01a mantta s recommendeo lor
a lac or even ilve lac times to ensure great ellect like conlro
,n" basicrhingfof Tiinlricsdonara.rhe
-^,",lll: energv
splflrudl : is supposedlo corlroundnutuanura dormant ol even a klng
serpent,' lis gradual lir:i a
ascenl
by penettali ln some cases,Tantricmantrasate requiredlo be recited
rheap.^rbrahmatanon*,
" i,i"'",,".,i1i13,1T
3:ff;:" " ke a Veclicone, wrth the names oi the sage' the meter,tlre
de ly and Viniyaga(aPPllcallon).
Some Ved c maniras also are used in Tantra, bul lor
Tanlraprovidesrhatone must tdenttfy purposesotherlhan thoseln lhe Veda.For example,lhe manlra
. - - *9*n'q: onesettwtlhIhe de,ry
:::
Nvasa dhydna.japa ate ;mporrant
etemenlsin jatavedase sunavamalRv l.99 1), thoughaddressedlo Agn '
pLla_lhe olfeflngs mav be fivF to IFn in number.
Jn lanlrd. is employedin invocation10 Durge.
.1:1:., p't. rmental worship)
,s regaroeo as sLrpFflorlo Mantradllerc irom prayer in that, whle the forrner has
erld..1he sahtananda.taran\tni
:J-:l:aj
searci tot god lvrr saysrnai rnI lixed syllables,the latter may be said in any form The
oulsjde havrngdis.cga'rdedgoOwtlf;n
onsell syllable; of a mantra ate regardedas the manilestalionoi
 ChapleFl 25
Meanrngol Tanlra

Sakti.
aryenava, v l. p.41g' Ke!ivilas
Pu rasc a'knlra lv'6-7'Krsnananda's
Varielres ol manlradre calledby vaflousname! luch a TantGsata.
_
Aavaca,Hrdaya,Astrc, Raksa elc.
Raqhavabhalta,in his commenlaryon lhe Saradalilaka
As seedis sownon a soilwhichis cultivated wrlh detailsol
,xvr-56i.dedrs e)(haustively
andwalered,
pul a disciptes r,ea wr.,i,n,, p ,,e ARE cornmon 10 al\ manlras.
:2:
ano ::f
nas .!:!'rj "
been drenched .inlo
by lhe walero, Cod.smercy.Ihe 11is regarded as indispensabletor making the
manrfa
MahAnivana(V. 1a-19)statesthal gr.aslike Hrim, Kri; in the grip ot a
the form of the deityvisjble. make eflectiv;. R;ghavabhatiasays that as a man'
do anything,so a manlrawiiholl Putascarana
Jisease,cann-or
Mostol lhe Tanlrasparitcutarly lhe pdlasuF'ma katpast)tra ls abortive.
,_
Jnanatnava tne SandAtttakahold thal marllas possess place -ver
wondedvl T n e D l a c p ss, J l a o l e i o r l h l s r i l e a r e a h o l y
andincomprehensibie power.The pafas lop ol a mounlaln conlluenceol nvers' rool ol a
,]-l-111.,1""1:9":.rarrh ", ".u.k;tr;;;,; o"n*
as lhe cause ot this power rhe Bilvatree,temple,seashore,any placewhereone leels
"ri" happy
s.aradautahd (ll 57.59)divtdesmanlrcsr:|lolhreerlasses
lood oblalred
vrz. masculnefemjnine andneulerThoseendtngIn Hum One. periormlnglnrs nle is requlredto eal
Phalaremaje.thoseendingin lhaarelemaleanOihose and bv bpqglnorfor E.ahrnacatinandYatl havisyan4d
vegelables
enOlng
In /vamasate neuter fruils. nilk, bulbous rools, Darley
The practices,to be avoided'are sexualintercoursemeal'
w ne, speaklngwilh women and Sudras'
." ^,tJi.",]:ll.T":* o:n:rmjngor carryinsourbetoresomethrng Japa should be done lrom mornlnglo noon'
^utarlava{xvii 8/) stales,hal purdscafana
,:ll
oecausF.
ts so called
DVlt e live-loldupasara lhe desrreodehy moves Aiter lhe rite is commenced'the devoteemay encounler
obslacles, disiurbancesand terrible sights.lf he
remains
'?!* conterrhg herfavour
onnrm.Accordrns results.ll he sticks lo
1":f
*1",r:',f." l9r the pedellinq
to t".e vayavtya-samhltii. unmoved,he will achievemiraculous
o, lhp p,ocedures oj' lhe prescribedlong time' he will get joy, see pleasantdreams,
lhe,MuhmanttaE Lalledpunscatana: because lhe
pertormedbeforelhe acts in whichil rr has to be hear sweel musicand enloylragrance;theseare someol
is to be empjoyed. In signs of the perlectionof lhe mantta'
lanlra,it meansa rile in whichVedicandTdnlric
mantras are
repealed pulascarunaol a mantrc
has lhe lollowina There are varying modesot Purascaranain accordance
,The,,
rn^n,
"-.onstrtuer']1. pula ldpa.horna taryana.abh9ckaana with the natureol the devotees'Pasu' Vira and Divya
t-eut I rranmanas lr d shoder fo,.n lhe rtr!l ,hree
per,tormedDasarga puescatana are
conststIn lhe lollowtng Yoga
?11."'11"11:.:-iq"r,?rrsana
surl,2tshvaptp,7712
tKautdatn,ma,: ln Tantra, yoga is mainly lwoiold, hathayogaand
| -as Deendeall w;rh In many lantras ot in physical
lot;er consists pavlng
discipline
!\v, whrchthe sanadhiyoga.lf,e
M;hantuanatv-
7b85).Kurarrva lhe way lo mind_conlrol.
l,j.Y
,, /zl 5arodr,lokd(.t1-1381|4AtAhtrbudhnya,r.X (xv
) | 'i?"":::?:il,:li
J tvahhrasamhta(pal;la jq versej 5p 53). HalhayogahasIhe lallowingfiveaccessoriesinsleadol lhe
13-331.ia, !9amgama Patanjali
sunddri lll 1rS 56 XIV 45 46.
G a n a h a t v a\ x | l l l 7 . g
eight prescr;ed in lhe yoga syslem of
 26 Chapter-1

Yama- conlrcl ol the senses, non,violence,etc

Prcvtnirese bhitanem nivtttistu mahephab/
sludy ol Saskas, meditationon God. oJcreatulesfor thesethings;cessatrlon
Thereis inclination
- controloi brealh. leads to gleat result'
of des re, however,
- wrthdrawlof lhe sense lrorn lhe wordly Whlle orthodoxlndianphilosophyis concernedmore wrln
philosophyvigo'oJsly
sd\alion .n I_e other world. Tdntric
Asana - advocaleslvanmuktt (liberahon in lile)
a particularpostureoi lhe body
SamAdhiyogais sixlold: A schoolol Tdnlric'Alchemic lhinkersused 1obelievethat'
bv certaln yogic processes mantras and chemicaldrugs lhe
Dhyena, NAda, Basenanda, Layasiddhi, Bhakti, RAja. blood could be made imperishableso that
oiav ot iteitr-ano
The iundamentaldrlferencebelween the yoga of lhe ,Lcor.o de'v deat^.1\e KAbdahana ana Mtlyuniaya lanltas
Yoqasaslra ol PalaFjali and yoga in fanta is this. In Tantra. to .ont"in tethods ol Kayasiddhr (makingtne body
there is no driterencebelweenSakli and Tatlvaso lhat Sakt "'" ,t"t"d
fit or unconsclonablylonglived).
surrnountsattobslacles,and effectslhe unionol the yogl, wilh
lr LsbeLieved lhai when keyaslddhilakes place,the Eooy
lhe SupremeSiva.Pataajati,however,does not recogniseany full ol yollhful lustre,does nol become
slronq as Valra and
Supremepower exceptingprakrll so lhal lhe yogl/r has no and death.Theconceplionis nothrng
'arrllla.irv w'll^ subie;t lo decay, disease
any Saklt beyoao pGhtn. the Buddhists and Alchemistsin whose lreatisesit
new wilh
KAya (ot Deha) - has been deall with in delail.The power oJ yoga in rendenng
Siddhi
the body lree irom ihe i1ls,to which it is ordinarilysubjected
A lundamentaldillerence betweenthe BrehmanicatSdstra has bee; clearly stated in the iollowing lines ol the Svetasvalara
and Tanlia is thal, whilethe formerordatnsphysicalsuilering Upanisad \2, 12):
or sell-moftificationas a means to lhe goal. the la er
na tas|a rogo na iara na mrtYuh /
emphaslsesthe valueof the body as meanslo sadhana.Th s
is nol lo say ihal the BriihmanicalSdstra neglectsthe body pnptas|a YogAgnimavamsairam /
On the contrary,it regardsthe body as the very firsl means One. havinga body conditionedby yoga' has no orsease'
lot lhe ptaclice ol dharma As Kalidasasays (Kumarasambhava, no decrepitudenor death
V.) sariram adyam khalu dhatmasadhanam.fhe Smlti_sasl/a
containselaboraterules lor havjnga good healthand recipe The oreal eJlicacyoJ mercury and mica, in imparting
for long |ie. But, it lays a great stress on long last, arduous adamantiie strength io the body and preservingit for an
and slren!ous rites and rituals,abslenlionlrom wtne, elc.. rncrediblelengthof time, has been recognisedparlicularlyin
conlinenceand restraintin enjoymentsot the objeclsoi sense lhe works on;lchemy. Mercury is called Pa@dde o( Rasa ll
rs be leved to be Slva's Sernen (Slva-vlrya) and mica is
Tantra,however,allowsthe devoleeto indulgein enioyrnent supposedto be derivedtrom Sakti
ol the objectsoi sense, ol course within timits.The core 01
TantraSadhanais muklllhroughbhukli,a conceptabsolulety 1 is intereslingto note that the Nalha seci oJ Yogl's
tradlionallyorigrnatedby Adinathaand inkod!ced amonglhe
lorergnto lhe orlhodoxreligionand philosophy.ManLrunwquivocally
leople by i,4atsyendranalha,laler inlluencedby ihe Baulsand
sIaIes
Sahayrya-sadhakas, iollowinglhe Vajrayanamode' vigorously
 theNarhas
berieved
inaprocess
which J,4SA XXVI 1930 pp. 129 Ll.
lJx?i:",if
fii]i.'ornr 6
O n l h e q u e s t i o n o i l h e p r o r i t y o i B u d d h i s lT a n l r a o v e r
The rhousand-petalled
lotLrswtlhinIhe heao N nd! Tanrraor !ice versa see B Bhanacharya Saclhananala
,"
'"J#il3.',1
;ff#; i'.:"":ff
ts lLrneddown.
( n l r o , I P L X X V I I) a n d W i n t e r n i t zH L L l p 4 0 1
f:i,J,i:l*1"5:,1;?:
I Om{a.arrs to be mFdjtaledupon.I he gatewav
oI Behmatanclhta
8 F o r e x a m p l e ,H a r s a c i t a ( e d K a n e ) , l . p p 1 0 2 s 5 0 e l c '
Kadanbari lett Kale) P 56
rhese thrngsberngdoie. lhe downward
l1: 9:,:h.rr ftow ol 9 Uide Foate Collectian al lndian Pre'histoic and Prato
amotosra ls checked.Thts process ts called
Aiasacandta- h i s t a . i cA n t t q u i t i e s ,M a d r a s , 1 9 1 6 K R S u b r a m a na r n
Yog;na.tt is supposedthar tho Arigin af Savisn and its Histary in Tanil land' Madtas
91:d,:,,:u
wnhrr lhe lh". lurce axuded
body is drilled upwardOylhe.rpotow,ng 1 9 2 0 . l y e n g e r S t a n eA g e i n / n d j a , M a d r a s
winA,anJ
slored In Sahas/ara The believersIn rhtstheori
'c
lk,')ds admil lou. 10 H/L i p. 635.
of Candra(moonl vt/ . Adicandta Nlacanaa.
Unmadacarnta W i n l e r n l z . H , s r o r ya l l n d i a n L i t e n t u r e , l , 1 9 2 7 p . 5 9 1
N.iiacandra
which;sor rhenaru,eoi rujce
?::^?:,:!::::":1 12 A c c o r dn g l o s o m e , t h e n a m e i s t h e H i n d us e d i o m 0 1 k a

:ri!l.-.',{3:1,:l# min-ina
?,i:l,.xTl?,1_,?[,]:
i,i"i,",iiil1,xJl,ff
invisorares
rhesysrem
r n e - k h a t, h e n a r n eo i a g o d d e s sw o r s h i p p e db y l h e K h a s
trbe n rhe iorm oi a yoni \lelr'aleorgan) see N N.
l:.J[li:ryano
ilT [#: Bhairacharya Histary at Tantric Religion, p. 143
i3 Vide Vanglat Sadhana by K. [,'1.Sen, pp 47 43
BuddhislsandVaisnava
Sahajivasbelievein Kayasiddhi
.The
as the W e s h a l s e e t h a l i h i s T a n l r a o r i g l n a t e di n B e n g a l
obiecl ol sadhana
15 A c c o r d i n gl o s o m e , 7 2 , 0 0 0 .
*'i?"S;Jfl i"l?.',ifl
,",iifi""l",'IJ,"ilii",,,li"Sil::#
lo refer to a body oblainedby some sort
16 See Pranatosni, l. 4 9alcakranirupana, Raghavabhaltas
corirn. on Sarcdatlaka xxv. 38
ol kayasajhana.
17
18 E g Saundaryalahati, v. 9
Foolnotes
l l r . - b e l i F \ , e oh a ' l t , e s e , e g o - s w e
19 See Sakrl and Sakia by Woodrolle (3rd ed ) p 399 G
'^" " so lrnoo dcco.dtng Kav ral describes the syslem ol Cakras according to
o r L a n s p o , r u s e o r . h e r | v 1 , ,J L 1 d ' h a G o r a k s a n a t h lan S a r a s v a t i b h a v a nsat u d i e s ,l i p p 8 3 9 2 l n
A s vl la" :. :L, "; .a b n e a - . a s p € c t , v e . ys e a - q o , n q
t h e l r a n s a r i o n o 1 S a t c a k n n i r u P a n a{ p a t e s i v i ) A v a o n
h o r s ea n d e t e p h a n t .
l 1 ! s l r a t e sl h e s i x C a k r a s a n d S a h a s r a r a( p l a 1 eV l ! L )a l o n g
F o f l h e r e g i o n s i n d i c a t 6 db y r h e s e n a m e s
see ctossary w r h t h e i r r o o u r s e l c F o f C a k f a s - w i t h i l u s l r a l o n ss. e e
2 V i d e T a n t r i kl e x t s , V o i . 1 , e d A . A v a t o n C W. Leadbeatet, Cakras.
tnrro, pp r-rv
l V i d e P C . E a g c h i , S t u d i e si n T a n t r a s p 20 S e e P V . K a n e H i s t o r yo f D h a r n a s a s t r aV, p t . 2 p p 1 1 3 7 _
, .3 4 3B
See Bahvrcapanisad _ Saisa para saktih
21 S e e s a l c a k f a n i r u p a r aX L I X L l l
hadividyeti va sadtytdyer; Atso see comm
5 22 Somellmes called Sura which, aceording to l"'latrkabheda
V i d e H . P S a s r r i N e p a l C a t a t o g u e I, p p 1 0 ,
Bs ti7 l a n t r al i 4 0 ) i s s o c a l l e d a s i l i r n p a r t ss u r a l v a( d i v i n i t v a
)s
23. A c c o r d i n gr o s o m e , a p r e p a r a r b no t h e m p c a r t e o
V/ara ol

24.
I:f::l!: y1"- atsoot the Kaulainana M. .tB.1s)
nnnaya
a n o B r a s k a r a r a y aI n h r s cornm on the Lal asahasra.nana
( v 6 r s e s8 7 - 9 1 ) .
25 D - € c c a hC o € 9 6 V S . N o . 9 5 9 o t 1 g 8 4 . 8 7 r C o p r € o
Srnval
1 7 9 0 - 1 7 3A 4 D)
E.g. D. N. 8ose, Tanttas - then phjtosoprl 6rc. p. jto
27. F o r . t h € s c i € . t i . i c b a s t s o t K r r r d a l r n ra - o t L e
a l r r r u d eo l
noo€rr screntits to L se€ cop Krishnr A/orogrcal
Easrs
a I H e h g t o na h d G e n t u s .a n d i l s n t , o d u c t r o -o y W e r z s a c k 6 ,
24. l l s e 6 m s l o b e a ^ t t c r p a l e do y s a r p a l a / n{/ s e , p e n . . o _ e € - ,
the Fgvada
o. Chapter-2
29. ay copinalh Kavnaj,repuredas a Tanrric Sadhaka
at
hi9h ord6r, He not€s thal o n e , R a m a t i n g a S a s t r t n a Natureof TantricDoctrines
Cidambaram,Madras (Tamil N a d u ) , w h o t i v e d a b o u t o t
a
hundr€dyears ago, atlain€dKayasiddhi. See G.
Kavnaj,
Tanttic sadhaha o siddhanta, |', p 166
Chapter-2

I hese dre Adlalia (1o.-dualistrc).Dva,la(DuaIslrc)d_d

64 BhairavaAgamas,
Dvaitadvaita(dualislic-non-dualistic).The
stated to have emanaled Jrom lhe mouth of Siva arc Advita-
Ten Saiva Agamasa e DawG. ln l8 RaudraAgamss lhere rs
a mixlure ol ditterentdoclrines.

Theory ot Creation - Siva, Sakti

The SupremeBrahmanis eternaland unchanging.He is
both niskala and sakala: ka6 mea s Ptakrlt.
The Saktiof Brahmanis eternaland inseparablekom Him.
This saklr is nifgura (without altribules)and saglna (wth
aitributes).As goddess in lhe torm ol consciousness,she
manifeststhe being and, throughher as goddessin lhe lorm
ol bliss (dnanda).
ErahmanmanilestsHimself.Sakti pervadeslhe universe
likeoil in sesamum-F om Brahma-Sakti aroseNadalrom which
ptoceeded Bindu.
The subtlebody of the goddessis reJe(edto as mularnantatnikal
(consiituledby the basic mantra).
Siva, enlangledin the web ol Maya, and the lalent Sakli
are conceivedas the supreme8/ndu.
The Bmda,circularin shape,is boundedby lhe circumJerence
oI Maya. Al ils cenlre is lhe place ot Brahman,the abode ol
Prakrti-Purusa.'lh\svety Bindu is Prakrti-Purusa,Sabda-
Brahmanor Apara-Brahman.
As a result ol the union of Siva and Saklj, lhe goddess
becomesinclined(unmukhl)lo Siva.Then the web of M6ya is
snapped,and crealronproceeds,
The relaiionshipol Siva and Saktiis conlroversial.According
10 lhe Kularnava(i. 110), some advocalenon-dualily,others
desire duality.
 35
Chapter-2 Natureof TantricDoctrines

Sabda,Brahmanmanifests itseti in lhree Sakl/s,

viz., <he rs believed lo have exlsled belote crealior' As lhe
Jtiira (knowledge), /cchii (desire) and Kriya (actian) Powe'
;anr'eslar o^ ol C,l,n Prakrti she rs cal'eoI^e Denoling
iollowinglerms are used lo conveyrne compteteness (v;cakasakll. Eeing in the lorm oJ Clt' she is also the Denoled
. -The
ol S va. Pawet \v6cya'sakli)
Syata?,rdla ttndeoendencer. nrlyJtarete.na.tlyt
. nt!,a-trptdld Atman\slo be conceivedas Devi So Devi or Sakli is but
Amb ka
{oUaiirvOl ba'ng ever COrlentedr,Sarla/rala rOrt-,SCrenCe/. a manifestalionol S va in the Jorm ol mother'She is
FromParamasiva a ses Sambhu,from SambhuSadasiva. and Lalita.
,
lrom Sadasrvatsanaand Rudra,Vishnu,Siva arise As Parabrahmna, Devi is beyondtorm,beyondqualily She
wrth lhe|l lorm she
own Saklrs wiihoul which they have no power. s conceivedln lhree {orms ln ihe lirst or supreme
is bevofd knowledge Her second body is sublle' belng
Inlhe AlahAniry'anaSiva has been ca ed Sambhu.Sadds va medilation Her
^ consiltuted by mantra, lhis aspect is beyond
Sankara.lvlahesvara, etc., each lerm indrcatng the d Lerent
con0[tons, qualitiesor rnanifeslalion it'ira tottt i" in" gross body which is easily comprehensible'
of the single srva.
As lvahadeva,Sakliexistsin dijlerenifofms,e g Sarasvati'
gr ooth Meya and Ay'utaD.a^.t, thtaJg^
.-^::u'
Ire powe." olln:.fo'.n
Maya. B.ahna- corLeat5 Hrs ow. .o,.r, a;d Laksmi, Durga, Annapurna'etc As Sati, Uma' Parvali'elc'
as
appea'c,n dllferenlmanleslations. she s ihe c;nsort of Siva.As Sali she maniiestedhersel
Mutapta^ r rs Jnn an .6s.ed. she renouncedher body Siva carrred
'n rna rranttesl.ondition,she restde!in thc urrverseconstsl,ng ier MahatvdyAs.When
ol diverse names and iorms. the dead body which Visnu cul into 51 pieces which fell at
ditlerentpLaceswhlch came lo be calledMahe'pitha'sthenas
Siva-Saktr resides in lhe maadhara and Kundatini within At eachsuchp ace,Devialongwlth her Bhairava,is worshlpped
Ine human body.In all processes,Sabda grahmanresides
llre lorm ot Kundatiniand in rnanifestedas aksaras(tetters).
n Despiteher endlessiorms, in which she resides In tfe
objects ol the universe,she is in realityone As the single
The orderof creation,accordingto Tantra,is as iollows m;on, reflectedin the waves, appears to be many' so lhe
Mulaprakrti-Sak|,(resor|ng to S va) single Sakli has diverse manifestations.
tMahat Sakli conslantly resort io Siva. She lirst maniiesled
- hersell when lhe universeemerged.Belore this Saktr
was
Ahamkara t"i;""! o,. r"illk" dormanl in Siva.
(Vaikarika Rajasika conditlon
The existenueol ParamaSiva in an atlrlbuteless
Ahamkara is oenerallv called Sunya in Saiva Agamas' lt ls oeyono
Sallvrka beings coripreheniion.lt is also calledas it is beyondall detinrtions
or kn0wleoge.
Pancabhuta
S-.aft, is var ouslv catled Maya, Mahdmaya Dev,, pahnl Tanlra and Sekta works
elc.
.5hF
s ltoth Vdya aad Awdya. A< Avtdya \he LaL<eq These iwo kinds ol works have many things In common
or Devi
o,ondaoe. and a< Vtdya she desl,oys rebr,lhs dnd gtvFs The chlei dillerenceis that, in the Sakta works' Sakli
l r b e r d ' o r . S l e . s c a l l e d, 4 d ' € S a k r , . h e p n n e v a t But' in Sakti
Tantras' may not
E.c.q;) as s the higheslobieclol worship-
 36
Chapler.2 Narureoi TantricDoctrines

be l,ealed-ds rne h:grest o,v n,ry.-lhese .nay oe

^::::::, Veda
agnoc',c .Y Acdra
tic or Sankhyatre - ou, ook. B. B,arr"cnarya
( n lntro. lo Sadhanamale//) may have overemphasised In Tantra,var ous modesol saidhan:i are recognisedThese
the n ne accordlnglo offlers
npo.tdncr!l SJll, bV laytng rnat a rearJanrramus, r are sevenaccordingto someTantras'
ava a.r lollowing modes are menlrone0l
e erienl ol .9dlt lr sho j,o be noleolFat Srklr s lh. lnlhe KuEmava lchap.ii),lhe
oc\,gndtton
atso ot the woman (one,sown wrteor wtle ol anotherp;rson) t) Vedace!a.| ) Va'navacera |t) SaNacata\''tl Da|sinacata
wlth whom qexual,ntercourse
lmalhuna as one o, the ,ve \\l iamavarc tv ' SddhanhceG Nr) Kaulacara
ma^aras)t> to be had in a T anlrtc te She rs arsocalled preceorng
and lhls rilual ts called La6sedhana (L4ahenirvena.
I ald Each succeedlngin the list is higherlhan the
1.52). yedicara consistsin an abundance oJ Vedic riiuaLsln lhe
one.
gives Llp a blind fallh, and has lirm
DASAMAHAVIDYA secondone, the Sddhaka
iailh In lhe savrngpowerol Brahman li is lhe way of devot on
I' Tdnl'a, Sa{/l is also careo yidya o. into the way of knowledge
(arre 5a{/i r/ho ,s se,o-d ln lhe thirdone lhe devoleeenlers
to none,haSbeen Lnit, he comb nes bhakljand sakljw th iaith;he triesto acquife
a.oerr< So trey are coltecttve'yknown as
sak, ln the lourlh mode, lhe sadhaka becomes able lo
rne narnesdrtferin difierentworks
medilale upon the three saklis ol ktiyii' iccht; and JiAna ol
ln the CamundAlantra, the names are as io ows
: Brahman.and acquirelitnesslor the worshipol the three viz
Brahman-Visnu and lvlahesvara. In the lifth one lhe sidhaka
Kali,Ta.a, Sodast.Bhuvanesva. Bharravr.Chtnnamaqtd. 'rorn (cessatlorol desire)
^,
unurnavalr,vagala, I\,4dtanqr, Droceeds pravrriirlacllvrly) t,vrlli
lo
Kamata. ol delusron. shamo etc witl_wFich a
in rt he cJls Ihp bondc
Ihe Malint-vijaya gives the fo owing list : oersonol pasubhava is tled According to lhe Patananda-sutra
Kdll,Nilri,Mahiidurgd, io.o. 1'3. 13), vemecAta \s ol two kinds' vz Madhyama1r
. Tvaritd,Chinnamasiakd,
Viigviidini,
Ann-aDr.na, P atya19,.as.Kamd\Lya.Vasa,. Ba a. Nfatangr *ni"r, a tt e iiue l''talaras are resorted io, and Ulfama in which
r a r a v a s t n t .h e n u m b e r s 1 3 M"&a drd \Aai'Jna ate teso.Ieo lo The v\ord
on.y lvaoya.
Va-a appa"nl'r n'ars lelf as drstingLs'eo l'om DaAstna
The ils! in the Mundameb-hntratatles wrth lhal rn ' ll as yjmi (worran):
-.. lhe rohl, D'lislndadtd So'ne ta\e
Cemunda-lanlraabove.
VJmaca,a,ac^o,ot^q\o them,mea's lhat acardwhiche'nphas5es
^,.-.r.::
y"n^"!Ov1t
.n"ve
beFnd,vided.in some rantrac.e.g . woman as an essentialelemenlin sddhana The way to lhe
/v/.uld,d.(r 6,8) Inrolwo groups_ thoseDeto^gtngloKahAuta alta nmenl oi Sivahood,got in this acara is compleledIn lhe
l'::^_:T]_,"t,K"")
ano lnose betonginglo Sr \uJa r,d.n y o, srxlh He can now,wih lhe help ol lhe guru, teach Kailacara
La{sml rothe .ortre' belongKati.Tara.
ChinnamastaBhJvanes;dr. ln thLscond lion, he becomesliberatedin life (Jivanmukta)and
Mahrsarra.di^., Tr.pura, Tvar:la,Durga.Vidvaand pja,va-gr,as. withthe knowledgeolBrahman'reacheslhe siaieol Paramahamsa
ro rne a|,er.lreto-gSundar..Bhairavr.Bara.Vagara.(aiata
lhis is the hlghesl goal ol Tantricsidna'a
unLndval. llatangt,SvaD.avalt l\ladlrmat and
Va,dvtdya fhe MahenirvAnalxl l2) holdsthat one does nol become
lhe lolal number is 20
Abhiseka
a Kaulaby merelydrlnkingwine' but by unde.goi.,g
Some scholars are ol optnion lhal lrom the y'worsnip wlth lh; live Makaras is knowr as Kulecata
Buddhisi Genera
SedhanamataI appears lhai lhe rdea ol I\,4ihavidyds
derivedlrom BuddhisiTantra.
was Accordinglo rhe Mahenitvena(vii 97_98)'Kula is the
Akdsa'
desrgnalion; lhe in,iividualsoul, Prakrti space'time
 Narureol Tantrr(Doct nes 39

earth.water,lireandwind.Thewayof life,by which SomeTantras,e.g. Ntrvanatantrc, menlionfour c asses ol

one tooks
upona| lheseas Brahman,ts calledKubcera. outu<,\t2 , qutu patanaguru patapatd'gLtru andpaQmcsth-
.". ir,,,, ncco orrg to lhe Ntlatanlra{V T3l Ooddess Sa\l' 's
ktsamgamd tK atikhandd,Chap, . 32)
-..,j:-"1!i9
'Parapara-guru,
AU;a ]"
mears Upjsalas", lworshipDers) SLvaisParetuesthi-guru' one's preceplor is his
ol Katt.ltspKutatnav,a Sore works /e g
srarFsrhatKuk meansgatq. a^o that artsesf.o,r gu, t, aadou,Lts gutu s Pataot
-Ntlatartta Patamagutu
Srvaand !!.65. 66, drvrde gurrs inlo lrree classes vi2
ra(r. A Tan is called Kaultkarr ne alows .rlar
Moksa $ Slddhalgha (sages) and Menavaugha
attainedlrom that,i.e. Sivaand Sakr. Siva is ca|ea Divyaugha(d! nebe ngs),
iiuli, (humanberngs).ll appearsto dividegultrs.in anotherway rnlo
- orna,wor(s,e.s iwo ctasses.vlz . TarAguru(V 64) a.ld Devaguru lv 71) Some
K^r//d
aresuggesreo otherTanlras(e g., Syemairahasya) alsogivethe aboveclassilcation
^LutuasamaB
...9:-11.-'tpalata
ll_lir Lp
" 61.prelace.
p v riot lr^eSau,songan).
ta-a\nandd. In sone Tanlrastf.erearelhreeMargas aI gurus.
viz. Daksina,Vamaand L|ltara,each succeeotng rp-alhs,. ll ls slaied lhat the names ol male gurus should end in
one betng or r)zitha(e g , [.'latsyendranatha,
superiorto the preceding one. Daksjnamergais thatwhtchii ;nanda (e.g.,Brahmananda)
declaredrn the Veda,Smrtiand purana.yrma is Minanalha),and those of the lemale preceplorsin - amba'
declaredn
theVeda,SmrtiandAgama.Ufiarars wharrs dectared Alter naming some gulus, lhe Nilalantracharacterises
wordsol the Vedaand oI the Gurr. by the
lhem as belongingto Tarinikala,i e , a lrneol g{rrusrmpanrnq
In some lexts,Acjras are broadlydivided Tatini-mantralV6a)
.Aghotaara Yoga.Agharc,s lhe nane ot rne The positon o! lhe grru amongthe TantricSddhakasis so
oy Agfo ns, a satva sect exaitedlhat he s regardedas even superiorlo ones lather'
Ihe Nilatantra.lornstance,ciles the verse (1i 146) ol Manu'
Guru1, Sisy+, Diksa!, Abhisekaa
which extois the pfeceplor,impartlngVedic inlllatronlo a
Tanlra beltevesthdl one can fake lo sjdDana person,as superlorto the progenitor;obviously,i1 substrlutes
,,
'' .lraledby lLe gu.rr o-ty when ThisTantra,in anolhercontext
The guru rnusl have cerratnquat.tes. de Tanrrc dlksi for Vediciniliation.
w oecloerhe sL labir:lyol a manttalot parttcJ,ar 1V.68) declareslhalthe manlrada (giretol ma,lra) issupenor
. a dtsctplF.
A Ie.n.aleguru is highly suiiabletone,s to one's iath€r \janakedadhika). Indian culiure does noi sel
molher rs one,s best
guru.Inrliationby one,sfalheris torbidden.
The husbandis nol musl slore by the physicalbirth ol llesh and blood which is
arowed Io initiatehis wlfe. commonto loweranimals.ll lays greaterslresson inlellectua
andspirluairegeneration as morelmporlantthan meregenerating
conceptoi Dlks;iis Vedic.Vedicrnrltattof
.- _The F:gl-ercastes.I was, was a rnust the mass ol Ilesh. The wise Indians ot old expressedlhe
:'l:..!h:"" however.oenredlo women subllmeldeathatthe body is sureto perish(ekenbvidhvamsD
rn smrl. tant.ic D/ksi rs more elaborate.
ro women and Sldras
and rs allowedeven whereas merits lasl through ages \Kabenta-slhAyina guneh)

o,erson,ltt for beingGuru,mustbe calm,ol unjmpeachable Among olher qua ilies ol a Sisya; he must be respecllul
^L-A
c-drarter, vers€di. SJst,a,lree i.on\ avaflce.trJthlul and ook upon lhe Guru, Deva6 and Manlra as one ll ls
lanrras. llke lne Jhanastddht,rdenlrty
Buddr sl lncumbent upon h m to keep secrcl lhe manl2 and puja
lhe Gul, wilh the mpartedio hrm by his Gulu He should surrenderhis body.
Euoona, and regard hrm as omn,scrent.
In sone Ta^tras, wealth and even lile to the Grru.
warningagainsthypocritjcalGurl?shas been
sounded.
 40
Nalureol Tanlrc Doctines

The positionof the Tenhc Gutu ts so rmporlant

lhat he is rhe Saltv/ra ieelng is aroused by il.
consrderpdas capabteof appeasrngeven
Srva,l ," u;;ry.
bul thA'e s no nea-s Io pacifytne lnd.gnan, ""As mantra AntatdiksA- it helps ln the awakeningot Ihe kundalin)
Gu,r,.
was o6trovedto be erl.e.nelyDowey'Lt. energy
lhe p"rron *no g"u.
I Came lo occupy an exalted postlion. Accordingto some, diksziis ol three kinds viz.
paranandasutla(pp jS-j6,
,ro_rrh,.nr-
.Ihe Sukas 56,63)cteartysets Sembhavi- by it the mind is purilied
funcrronoi a Grruwno. amo,q ur-er Dra.trce! s,o
asx rne eophyte,who has accepled the ,,o Sakl)- by ii the spirilualenergy aroused.
r,.e" Mafa,as ol
Madya and lUalthonaoflered by him, to tollow rhe ^,|anlri - n arouses the power ol manaraano goos.
iauia
eMudra Ihe Visvasara-tantraprovides for four torms oI tlikse' viz
Ihe l\,4ahenirvana
slales (V 201 202) lnat lhe person of the Kriyavati, Kaaval) Varnamayi and Vedhamayl These have
s?me sect, Saiva, Vaisnava,Saura or canapatya, as been defined in lhe Glossary.
^S;kti,
thal ol lhe S/sya can be his Guru. The Kularrava (XVl) stales seven kinds, viz Kriya, vatna'
s o r m o o r l a ni L
, d tr n e K U l a / n c r d , , t , , b J Kala. Sparsa, Vak, Drk, Manasao
- - , Kthp
a-o a u l Mahantvana
acatawas
|v.42r nald rnat o-e Ltno nds stroreo According to lhe Rudrayemabe, dlksa is oJ three kinds.
lhe Vedab-.ul is ignoranlol Kuladharma, is nteflorto a Candata. vz.. Anavila, Sekti and SdmbhavA.
awateot Kutadharma,
is supenorto a
A:"l;;f"*"n, The otherlorms oi diks:i arc Krama, Pancayatana Ekananlra"
elc.
lo the Mah6nituena,a)|, itom Btahmanas
_.nccording
untouchables, to the
have right tO Kula practices.Some, however. By dikszia person advanceson the way lo salvationby
hold lhat^one,who has nol conqlered gellrngthe malas (impurilies)in him removed The malas are
one,s senses,has no Anava - \l causes the rise oJ the narrow/Jvahoodof Siva,
rhepara
;:ilJ",i,lXH:""'. "ommentatoror suramakatpasutra. wllhoulits remova the realisationof the identityoi Saktlrs not
possible.
has been exhaustivetydeali with in some
,,-Drksa6
(_own ldntras.e.q..prcpahcasaratv.v,t,Kutarnava
well Buddhigala -by rcmoving il one acquires real knowledge
la SS tt)
5at,adat,tta^a. ,Palala4r. Jnananava tpalata Mdyiya - i\ 's the cause ot Ahamkdra,tne 'ool ol
1 t ) . - M G n a r t r v alnXa. 1 1 2 - 1 1 9 ) . 24t p!anabstnt
l t h a s b e e nO , s - J s s e o ,t1n e the knowledgeol vlsayaand vlsayln Salvalion
,4
u,AsapraA,)sika is not possiblewiihout ils removal.
ot vrsnubha d, pt,prt ol satyan"noanathd.
composedin Sakt j7j9 (j797 A.D.).
Accordingto Ihe Ke vi6sa Tantra\vi 3'4),lhe besl lrme
Dlksd is generaltyderivedrrom lhe root
dd (to for Diksa is Svati Naksalraon Fridayon the ftlh tilhi of the
^ ^11"-y9rd
grve). and ks/ (to destroy).Thus, it rneanslhal
rl conters on dark hal ol Phalguna.
the drsctplea dtvineslale or knowledge,
ano oestroyssins fhe Saktisamgama \f dr,ikhanda,xvii.36-38)holdsthal an
Diksb is ol two kinds, viz. eclipse oi ihe sun or the moon, parlicularlythe latter,is lhe
- consisttngoI puja, homa best t me when consideralionii necessaryregardingihe week
and olher eriernat day. tilhi,naksatn, month,etc.The Jnarartava (quoted n ihe
r.le€ahlrdiksa
Srnrli-digest,Ninayasndhu p. 67) prelers lhe solar eclipse
 :Chapter-2
The Yogini!anlra,quoted in the same worx, conoemns
Dlksa
on a lunar ecliDse,
The conceptot Djkszj(initiation) is not new in Tantra.lt has
.
oeen an age-otdone havingprevailedsincevedic limes.
Rgveda, lhe wotd djksd is used as the name oi the
In the
wife of
Soma.In lhe Purdnas,it rs the name ot the wile ot Budra
uora
o RLdraVamadeva.In the Mahabhetab.Har,vamss.s1".,i61
wo'OOenolesany seriouspreparalton(as tor oa le). lr
words
rKe ,teha.otAsa, srngara-diksa,etc. diksi rneans seli.devo
o'r
lo a person or god, complete resignalionor restricllon
to,
exctuslveoccupationwith. eic.
ln the Vpdic sacra,nenlol lJpanayana,Inrt,altonby
lhe
4ca.ya i essentjal. The idea u')delytngA,lsa is regenerat,o".
's
ln s./s c,ear tron lhe word d/lva ttwtce-bornl.By upanayana
one is born lor the secondtime;that is, alter receivingphys
cal
bi-lF lrom th4 parents, a persor gets lhe second o rlr.
. e.,
Inrelec'Laland sprritualb,rlh lrom lhe preceptor.
AnateyaBrehmana(i. 3) cleartybr,.gs oJt thF tr<e1es!
. .fhe
or tne 'egeneralionot a perconby updnayanawttFrhe brrlh
ot
a chrtd lrom lhe embrvontcstaoe
Ine same tdeaappearsto be at ihe root of lhe provisron
or an ectipseas th6 most suitabletime lor Tanlric dlksa.
Jn
an eclrpse,the sUnor moonrSSupposed to die to be bornagain.
The regeneration of a T;intricinittateis also indrcaledby
a new narne given to him by the Galu.
ll is inlerestingto note that some tflbes,both in lndla
and
some other counlries,perpelualingprimilivecustoms,fegard
In|t|alronas essenlialin cerlain malters.For instance,among
sorne libes ol Central India,one, who has nol observed
th;
pube(y fltes,ts subiecledto sociatostracismr,. tn Fiji,youlhs,
who do not undergocircurnclsion, are debarred trom manv
socialprivtleges,3. Socialopprobriumand tabooesare attache;
lo the uninitialedmembersol some Cenlratand Soulh-East
Auslralianlribesi4.In some primitivesecrel socrel|es,
wlh
lrbal chiefs at the head, initialion pa(icularly jnlo lrbai
Denavrour, customsand sex-life,is regardedas inclispensable,5.
Natureol TantricDoclrines
The BuddhistsTantra,enlilled Guhya-sam'ja' t€minds one
it
.t lhe aforeasaid secrel socielies. In this conneclion,
general ol
principles initialion
Buddhist
;eselves nolicethatthe
lribal
,re fe euea lo have been influencedby the systemof
nilialron'
lnit ation ol a special type is called abhiseka. Abhisekas
oi drllerenlkindsate applicableto disciplesin ditlerentslages
ot spiritual lile. These arc \i) S1ktebhiseka' (ii) Pitnebhiseka,
,, ji K'amadiksabhtseka. (iv) Sdmdiyabh6eka lv)
MahasamraDabhtseKa \\i) YogadtksabhEeka lv l)
M
Pranacliksa bhiseka l\iiiJ aha p u na' d i ksebhiseka.
The lirst lwo are lhe mosi important.Abhlsekaconsists
n sprinklingholy waler on the neophytewhile recrlingmanlras
ro Dropliate dilferentdeilies,especiallytor warding oll evil
spirits,For Purrabhlseka,one has to undergosevereoroeals;
t rs beiievedto confer divinityon the devolee
Mudre, Mandala, Yantn, NYAsa
Mandalas ot diagtams are an indaspensableilem in Tanlric
worsho. ll also becamean essentialteaturein some orthodox
Brahmanca rites and rituals-
Ihe JfrAnernava(xxiv.8-10,xxvi. 15-17) holds thal Manclala
and Cakra ate svnonymous. lt describes seve?l Mandalas
f h e S e r a d e i h A a( l l l . 1 1 3 ' 1 1 8 1, 3 1 - 1 3 41, 3 5 ' 1 3 9 )a n d s o m e
otherworks describesome Mardalas.
Both Hinduand BuddhistTantrasattachgreai imporlance
\a Mandalas. Some Tankas, e.g., Mahenirv^na (X. 137_138)'
telq \a Mandatas drawn with coloured powders ln lhe
Maitiusrinfrtakalpa, Mandalasare describedwith speciald irection
lor painling Ihe.r'.fhe GuhyasamAjaspeaks ol a Mandala 01
s xleen cu6its wllh a Cakn inside. fhe Nispanna'yogevali oI
Abhayzikaragupta of the lime ol the Bengal king Rimapdla
(111h-12th cent-) describeslwenty'six Mandalas,each in a
separatechapter,
Some of lhe Mahadalas are SaNatobhadrc' Caturlingato-
bhadra, P reseda-vestu-mandala,Grhav6stu-nandala, H ai hara'
 Chapler-2
Nalureoi Tanlrc Doclrines
mandala.Ekaljngato-bhadra.IheSarvatobhadra(auspcrouson
all srdes)has been common to all ktnds of worship. relers(verses46, 47) to nine Mudrasfhe Nlyesodesika
-.. Son" olre, noledTanlras.oedr'ngwilh IVLdrdt
The wo"d ldandalaalso denoles a gatheringof T;jntric " "nr,on" " (xv 90_931KaulavatLntnaVavii5'14\'
-.; e KuE'nava
devoteeswho collectrvely perlormflluals involvingpancama,
MahenirvAna 1Y177)
karas. They, along with lheir female partners,surroundlhe
ead-r tndal,a) wFo. dccorrDa.iedoV tss conso,..s,,: - ,.e fhe nne Mudras,describedin the Saftdatilaka'r ' ate
':gdle- The Kautavaltnnnaya
\V|t, and the Manant^ana\vt,l
I54 56) deal w)lh Mandata. 1 AvehanA- Foldingboth hands in a hollow Lllrngthe
MudrA is one ol lhe Makans ot padcalattvas, essenlial lor hollowlullY with llowers
Tanr,rc
_Sddhalia.lr
gener.lly means poses o ne nano or 2 Sthepani Same as lhe above,bul the lolded hands
r_ger esotenc rneaningsot lhe woro nave oeFn s.aled are held upsldedown
rn
connex/onwith Paficatattva.IheKubrnava (xvll.S7) derrves
l. Sannidhepana-fwo handsformedinto a closed||sl,
the word irom rool mud (to give delignt,pleasurelanO.dravay'
and joined togetherwith only lhe lhumbs
(causalrveor.dru), and says thal ii s so called
as il grves raLseoup.
oerrghlto gods, and rneJtiheir mjnds
I Sannipdhani- Same as lhe above with lhe lhumbs
Slt:de kkl (XX 106) atso gives rhe erymotogical closed inside lhe list
^-:,h: or th: wolg as that by whrcha gods are detigliled.
TjanrnS
r ne commentalor, a Sammukhikaani Two closed tisls hed upwards
Rjghavabhaltam der veslhe wordas mudam
rati daddti \that which g'ves detight). 6 Sakaiikrti- Action ol maklng lhe Nyasa ot the srx
a greardivergenceamongthe Tantrasregarding limbson ihe limbsol the imageot lhe de ly
."^
rne Il-.-r:'.
names,numberand deltnilionol MudrAs.fheTbntric wofsnppeo.
Texti
(l p.46{) containalislol f,4udreswtthnames 7 Avagunthana- Closingthe f ngers he d straightand
and delrnritons.
l r _ , s l d t e d. n a rA v d D r naj n d e t g h o
t l h e r sa r e r n en r - ec o T n o n turned downward'wavingthe hand rouno
tvtuot.aslhen nrneteenMuorras lne lmage.
espectallysuttdbp lor V sn.r
wors- o are me.ltoned.Ten M{rdlas.sutlable
lor Srvd, d.e a Dhenu - Pultinglhe right small tinger over lhe nghl
enumeraled.One lor lhe worshipof lhe sun and seven inlertwininglhe lormerw lh the
for lhal ring_irnger,
Lranesaare rnenlionedThe i/tudramghantu
alsa, a.res ano lelt ring-linger,the left smalllingef,as it s,
oF'lnes nlne Mudrcs r'cludT,g Avahant. Then
,l , are<, 19 to be inlertwinedwllh the right I ng-linger,
tutuotas.I be Natadatanlra, quored:n tne VatsaKnraAaumdt ol the left linger to be passed over the ell
u,ovlnoonand6,desc,tbesthe ltludtas specatty
sJ,ldote !o. midde fingerand the lefl thumb' and lo be
intertwned withthe righthandmiddlefinger
,,
fhe Serade hka (XX t. 106-114)namesand deJrnes
nine broughtto lhe right side ol the leli index
Mudras.fhe.Jhenernava (iv.3j _47,S1-56,XV.46_68) nrenlrons lingerand ihe righthand indexlingerlo be
over lhl.fv Mudras TtseJayakhya-samhla {palala8) ncnrrons joined with lhe leil hand middle lrnger'
Il'IV elgnl. lhe ViSnusa4jhtlalv 45) says lhat A,lttJtas ate I Mahemudre- Inierlwiningthe lhumbs ol both hands
lnn!meraoe, I namesan.r,jefinesaboltthirly.The Kamakalavjtasa and holdingthe other lingers slrarghl
 Natureol TantricDoctrines 47

^. )ieats ssn2(DeccanCollegel\4S.No.29.jor t887

.Ihe,Mud.rata4
9r wrthMud.zisappropnatefor ile worshrD j. Tarka- Bighthandraisedto lhe chestand slighlly
ot V.snuand conskicled.
I -
Sarana (Of refugeor prolection).

H:fr
:i:J:ilEi:;;:: * ri::i,T;!' I!i.i!,,!i!t',:
; g. - (PoseoJ higheslperfeclion)
lJttarcbodhini
It is, perhaps,not an accidentalcoincidence that both
emproyed:
e,s..s"*"-s.^*"olia-*.Jii,i"t"1l*l'j,,
l:i:"';: Hinduand BuddhistTantrasmeniionninecommonMudris-
j!-':;':;':::'#r:::i1;ff
i.: JH::,l-,:JI#1':'l;:11#
Dossesslonto alll Unmddinilcausingiunacy;.
'lhe _unbe' rs nrnein bolh.thoughlheir namesvary
ln some cases,lhe term mudd appearsto meanYogrc
postureof the body-Twosuchmudfasareverylmportanl. One
y:i,1'f"
i:-ifi!!i'ii!1il1"tr1#:ni';:ixx::t:
(c. 4lh, cent. A,D. accordjnglo
is Khecariand ihe otheryonl.Thesehavebeendescribed
G ossary.
in

somej is the eart:eslexlanl

descnbe
(chap.ri) vanous lhe Jainasalso had Mudriis-They had lwo works23 on the
;:il:,:fJ: poses
s, rr,g subjecl.calledMudreviceradesctibing73Mudas and Mudravidht
ffji".
d e s c r b i n1g1 4 .
*!:iTi,i\:f
:]zlli:;,i:I;i:"##*::'#':"1","i:Tii yarlE is anotheressential itemin Tantricrite.Sometimes
alsa calledCakra,it is diagramor figureengraved,drawnor
painled on metal,stone,paperor othermaterials.The difference

;"fi:il:J,:'.":'J,i:;
:#isy:-,!:.:jT!il":r::#13ffi
srghtty ditfer lrom Waddells descnptroi:
n the applicalional Mandalaand Yantrais that, while the
iormermaybe employed
s appropriate
in lhe worshipoi anydeity,the latter
lor theworshipof a parlicular deilyor employed
1. Bhim6prc ot Bh1misparasa,j_ An Ior a particular purpose.
attitude oi Sdkya
Buddha (makjngthe earth a witness) fhe KulArnavadetives Yantrafrom lhe root ol yantt. At
2. Dhatmacakra - lfeaching attjtude) anolherplace,r1slatesthatyartrais so calledas it savesthe
3. nbhaya (ble.:1s,];,The. tetl hand worshrpper fromYamaor Godof Dealhand goblinsand other
rs open o, ltse Jap
Ine flghl nand raised In lronr ot dangers.Again,it saysthal yattra is so calledas it removes
lhe chest yanlranasot painsatisingfrom suchfaulls as loveand anger.
wlrn lhe ttngersand lhumb ha,l
exlenoed
and with the palm facing lorward. ThisTantrastates(vi.85)thatyanlfais a developmenl or
4. Jnana (Dlvena?) ot padmasaDa(posture ptodrcl ol mantra.Ihe Kaulavalinitnaya holds that worship
of comemptatlon). wilhaul a yantra is lutile. Some wo(ks, e.9., Merutantra
5. VaG or Vatada,2- Right hand hanging
down over lhe {XXXlll. 13) evolveda yantrc-gayall. lt appearsthal yantra
Knee,the paln turnedoutwardsyrrboltstng wasdesigned to facililate
theconcentralion of lhe mind.yanlra
cnafllv, s regardedas ihe body ol lhe deity.
6. Lalila - (Enchanting).
The followingare sone ol lhe well-known Tantraqwhich
deal with yanlras.
 49
NatufeoJTantricDoctrnes

Prapafrcaserc (patalas 21, 34), Sarcda hka Nii. 53-56. to be al one place.
XXIV\, Kdmak'lavitesa 1VV.22..26. 29, 30, 33), Nityasoclas e,i,ava yanlra,see Glossary
ll. 31-43), Nttyalsava|p.p.6.64-65), For var ous meaningsof lhe lerm
Tan!Hrcp-tantra\|.44.51 (to cast)
viil. 30,f. xxxiii),Abhlbudhnya \Chaps. 23-26),Man!@mahodadhi The term Nyzisais derived frorn the rool as
'rl, and ljterallymeans plac ng or depositingin
(20th Taranga), Kautajnana,nhnaya precededby
\XJ, KaulavaliDirnavaliii.
105-135).Meru(Prakasa 33), Mantra-maharnava(Ultarakhanda. or on somelnlnu
T a . a r g aI I ) . Accordinqto lhe Kubnava' Nyasa is so called because'
way are
Yantra,drawnon cloth,leal, stone,melal,etc., is a svmboi in it. lhe ric-heslhal are acquired in a righleous
prolection is
or geomet'icalligure representtnga oetty.It ts conceivedas deoosiied,placedwith personswherebyall-round
limbs wrth
lhe body or abode ol a deity_In some cases, il is taken to noi- So uu t'" rilual touch oi lhe chest and other
with
represenlmentailaculliesorpure consciOusness, and microcosm it. r"o"irlp. and lhe palm of the rghi-hand along
mrdsl oi bad
ol lhe human bodv. -ant.ai. tne worstrippercan acl fearlesslyin the
people and becomes like a god fhe layekhya'samhttA \Palala
Someyanlrasare prescribedfor malevolenipurposes.For
example, lhe Seraddtilaka (vii. 58-59) prescflDes an Aqneva_ x . 1 3 ) a s o e x p r e s s e sa s l m l l a rl o e a
yanlra lo be drawn on a garment gatheredlro,n a p,;e ,n
a Nyisa rs an imporlanlparl of Tantricriies ll means lne
body
cemeteryand buriednearthe houseofhis enemvtor lhe laiter,s rnysti;a sanclilcationof the severalparts or limbsol the
destrucllon.Two yantas tot lhe destrucnonot ihe enemy are
described (xxiv. 17-18, 19-21). The p G pa hacasera ]Xxxi;.3g) It has been dealt wi1h,inter atia in the tolLowingTanlras:
proytdes a yantralor rousing passion jn a woman, and (vl) Kuta'nava
makino Java| hva'samhla \Palala xl\ ' PGpahcasan
her run lO lhe persor concerned.Some orherTa-tras.Oealini tll ''l
tN 181h.SaGdautdka(|v,29-a1 V 5'Tt Mahanttvena
wlh yantta, ate lhe candhaya. pti), Uatr*ameOa Vt A li s TantBsa'a
43.V 1 3 1'8, Gandha ttx
rua'tanlQ 2) K64ananda
Kula.nava (vi. x\ii). Sakttsatngama, TaG. x 2A3. LL2, P 93, fa^Gn an.3. TarrsaktrcudhanavaV o 169 Puuscarvatra'a
Purascaryafiava.lvi), Ianlrasafaol Krsnananda,Saundarvalaheri
xii.p. 1166.Someol lhe well-known Nyasas ate Hamsanyasa'
lxr) Anganyasa
Pranavanyasa,Matrkanyasa,Manlanyasa' Kannyasa
Besidesthe worship of yartras, there is provision{e.o.. p'tn"iru""u.Each of ihese is accompaniedby a manlra Fal
Tant6Hlarantra,Patale8. verses30.32) tor wear -g thern;r om
examie, in Anganyasa, one has to rc'ile lhe mantra
Ine neao, arms, nec,\,warst or wrisi h,Clayayanamah am Strasc svaha elc
A very interesting yantra is thal called S/r. lt symbolises Six kinds ol Nyesas are applied in regard 1o VidyAs
Kelt'
crealion There is a cenlraldownward-pojnting is two_lold according as I is
irianglewhich Tzire,elc. ln Metkenyesa,which
rs red. There are several interwovenlriangles, four male letters (Matlkas) are 10 be
antah (inlernal)or bahih The Sakti
pornlrngupward,and tour female pojnling downward. rectum (84a)
Their e"i"rnrty te t on tl" f'ead IBSI),lacelchandas)'
Inlerpenelralion resulls in circuils ol lesser lriangles,which leqs (Saktr)the enlire body (Kilaka)
appearlo showlhe subdrvision ot the ofigrnatcreal,vee-e,gies which
'nlo more deftnle forces.
There are outer ctrclesand r 'rgs ol the MahAniNena|V176'178)specitiesthe limbson
letters ol lhe alphabet This is
lotus-pelalssymbolisingthe !niolded beauty ol the w;fld. there should be Nydsa ol the
or"""riU"O a"o in lhe Serad6tilakalV 58l' Reghavabhana's
Thus, all lhe differentstages ol the creativeprocessapoear quolesverseslaying
iommeniaryon v +ol ol the same work
 51
N a l u r eo l T a n l f r cD o c t r i n e s

down how each leter is to be meditaled

upon. Woodrof,e Ihe l.\ahanirvana prcvides lot Bhairava and Tattvacakras
pp.LxxrLxxvrl) corroaresNyasaw\n
::,:,:,i!":
'-e ",Tante.
Unrslra- Oracticeoi ma^,nglhe s g- or tFe cross. Ways to liberation
SAVA.SADHANAA Ihe Per'nanda-sitra (Gosed; pp. 1-3 13) stales lhree
paths lor lhe attainmenlof lhe goal These afe :
Some Tantras prescribe Saya sadhana The
Kaulavali-
ntrnaya\nv.75-260), Tzirjbhakii,sudhdrnava
(x. pp. S45 ff.) O Daksina prescribedin the Veda,Smrti and Purana
(vr. rs.28) erc.. oa, w l I Ar.rone (ii) Vama declaredin Agamas. lt is so cailed elher
Z'^o^^:._!-ii::":--":/
benqa ianlras l\e Tanlraseato Krsna.andadesc,tbes
,1. becausewomen(yAmzi)p ay an importanlrolein il or because
fhe Kautavelidescribesit as lo/lows : It s a crookedway practisedsecretly ll is ol two krnds vrz
Madhyamainwhich all lhe makarasare resortedla and Utlama
go to a cemelery or some ortse,tone,y rn which one madya, maithuna and mudra are used
. ^^ll:^o-"."""]"," :i*'d
tn: trrst warch or lhe nighr.a.rd secure a corpse.
:?:rjtli:
Ine oe"d Oodyshouldbe ol a youngra-dso.ne {iii) Ullara- shownby the word of lhe veda and lhe Guru
warro., k,rreo wha is Jivanmukta.
l'or ov Ine devolee)in ba'l'e.He shoutdwast lhe
corpso,oi,er
and ro Dursa. and ,epear rhe mantra om dlttsp A iew more paths are suggestedby some Tantras The
::.:::^1.
uuree ra^sant] svJ/ri.
lf lhe devoteers not scareOoy rerrroie Kutanava lii.7-8) rnentionssix paths,viz., Vaisnava'Saiva
srghlsthal he .nay see. he securesmanlrasldd,i/ Daksna, Vama, Siddhenla, Kaula: each succeeding is higher
aller a lono
orocedLre lt rs statedthat manttasjddhiispo."ioi" than the precedrngone,
Lv
sadnana even in a single night. "r-uri The above palhs or modes (icdra) are dividedinto lhree
groups according as the aspiranl has Divyabhavaldivine
Caknpijds
propensites). varcbheva (hercic mental stale) ot Pasubhava
ll means worship in a cicle. Cakra-puja may (animality).The mode, ptesctibed lot Divyabheva is Kaulecaa
. be brieity
describedas lollows.The Devrts represenreo
In a lanlla.There fhose lot Viabhava ate Siddhen6ce? a^d Vamacara fhe
s-ourooe a teaderot lhe Cakra.On,ype,sonsol mades lat Pasubhava ate Vedecera,Vaisnavdc^ra,Saivecara
lhe y//a slate
are lo be admlled, and lFose or ll-e pasu type and Dakstnacara,
are to be
excluded_The women,who assemble,shoutdpul ofl lheir jnner
upper garmentsin a receplacle.Eachoi men, who Tanlra recognises Jivanmukti llibetalion while a ive) For
assemble, examp\e,lhePerenandaholds(p. 9, sul/as3_8)thalit consists
should secure a iemale compantonlor thal ntght by ,ol.
oy raxrnq a tadys bodtce out oJ lhose contdrnedin
Le., n visualisingthe deityworshipped.A person,who is liberated
the n lile, is nol atlecled by Kaman, meriloriousor sintul.
receplacle.Thus,promjscuous sexualinter_coursewas a owed
tn a Cakra_
Bhakti in Tantra
lr ,s ordained te.g . Kutatnava,x,. 79. 84.
. B5J Inal the The Vaisnavawotks, patliculatly lhe Bhegavata,lay slress
actvrt es rr a Ca*ra rnuslneverbe disclosed:these should
be on bhaklias a meansto the highestgoal The Bhegavala\vii
tike rhe pregnancyot one.s morher caused
l::'-:,::"*t
ner paramour by 5-23-24) slales nineJold bhaktl towards Visnu. These are
savana (heating),kirlana(recitingnames),smarana(remembering),
padasevanad (shamposingthe ieet) arcana (worship)' vanda,a
 53
Nalureoi Tadrc DoclrrnPs

/salulalloll drsya tServtce],

satrya (he-Oshtpt,alma-nryectana I o h a v eo r o dl c e d6 4
V : - r . d l d a _ d A s v a ( r a n l ar s b e l i e v e d
lserrsLrrrenoer). Tanr.as fant a: a'
-e Yamala class are usuallv'eqarde'' as
sources
Some Tanlrasalso recognisenine modes ot bhakli. Far erghl i 'umDcr. the names drller In drllete'l
example the Rudrayemab (xxvij. 103-104) mentions Accordlngb the SammohaTantra'Cina has 100 ma
n
nine
nodes wltn 5jigFlvar,ations.lt p,ov.oesmanana tot Tantrasand 7 subsidiary ones,Dravidahas 20 principaland
stavana, and 5O0
onyanatot sakhya lt may be notedIhal the lanlra tedveg
our 23 secondarYworks.Kerelahas 60 chiel works
rnp worOVrsnu.me'll:onedIn the BhagayaiaIn rhrsconnexro- sLrbsldiarY ones Accordlng to the Nihsva salattva'samhtta,lne
tlral
Ihp PaGnandasutfa{pp. 6-;. Sut/as 35. 38. 59J A g a m a sa r e 1 8 in number.The l\leru'ta ntra lells (i 2l ) us
.-
,,? dccords Siva composed108 Tantras
h,ghesrposirronamong the mears ro rhF goat.
::.1:r_,:a
n says bhoqa-svary;pavarga-kamkstndm bhaAtt
cva ekah lhe VaemtantQ menllons54 Tanlras
panlhah, bhakt; ,S Ina so,e mears iof
r-ose w_o oesr,e fhe SiddhanlaAgamasol SouthIndianumber28; lhere s
enloyment,heavenand salvation.
drlierenceoi opiniontegardingtheir numberand exlent
Yuganadc!ha The numberal PancarataAgamasis generallyslated to
rl s a symbo ooinr,nqto lhe Jn.queFarr.rony be 108. Their number is actuallyovef 200 The number ol
or, rnascut-.ly and tenininrry.ot btunllrJl.r dno
and Jno- ValsnavaTantras is 25, according lo the Agnipurana fhe
symbotrctruth Kautavah-ninaya enumerates numerousTantras(1_7)includlng
or rnrelecl and humanrly.
Yamalas\2'14).
lt representsthe r.rnionoi l\,4ate and Femajeprincipteirt is lrrere
..-
'"e_no.
dua' 5la e of lhe lnny al SLthyataandKaldnaaccorotnq Accordng to the Tantrcloka li lB) ol Abhinavagupta,
are qroups oi le;1,eighteenand sixlyjour Saiva Tantras
lo BuddhrstTanlra,6
ln hlsrbook.enlttledYuganadha. GLe-tFer o, lhe basrsol Sikla Secl - d general view
^EUOOn,St
lanl'as, t.|es to show .nat Buddh,stTantflkd!
upon a life as a whole. They do nol advocate
,oo( The worshippersol Saktias lhe FemaleEnergyare ca e0
p"::
excessive Sdkias.Sakti has been conceivedin dilierenttorms,ol whrch
1or do rheyreac'rrejecron or o, escape
;,::'s:1.:.1 9*
requtrecomplete.econcrt,arron Kali'?sis lhe commonest The other well known lorms are
to lFe fdcls ol Tripurzi,Lohita,Sodasrk:i,Kaimesvari.
rre. | -e cexudtasoecl,foJ-d In Tanlras.
ts a corectir'eaga,ns,
inle ecluatismand ralionatismoi philoiophy Sakla worksand Tanlrahave manythingsin common The
l:: :ne-srded
wnrcn rs not capabteol lacklinglhe probtems
or oay,lo-daytite. lundamentaldiflerenceis that while,in lhe lormerSaktior Devr
s worshrppedas lhe highestdivinlly,in lhe latterthe w0rshrp
Number ot Tantas is not conlinedto Devi Tantra may be agnostic,Vedantc or
There_isno consensusabout the number Samkhyaitein ils phiiosophicalapproach
_- and names oi greal
lanlras. Accordjng 10 the Nityt4sodasikamava
\.22), lhe That lhe S;jktasdevelopeda philosophyhavrnga
nJnber rLnslo .rtlliors.The orthooor
s!t-o d,s gtver.F n-noe. mpacl on lhe sociely s proved,lnier a/ia by lhe lact lhal the
ph losophLcaL
In somF Tdntras.lhe rJmber is 64 As
we Viyupurana (104.16) includes il among the
n a v e s r a t e d , n c o n r e x t o nw , l h t h e
c , a s s t l t c a t t o tn T d - l r a q , schools.There are evidencesto prove lhal the Sikla cult
eacn ol the lhree geographicaldivjsions,
cajled Fathakranla, prevalledlong belore the eighth cenlury A D especiallyrn
 Natureol TantricDocvines

Assam. the lwo s.rongho,osor Tanr,rcrotrgror.

:"^1gr--il9
I g-I 5aktd Kset.dsare mentronedin Bathabparya condemned.ll is statedthat ihe S:istras,noted below,which
123-124).
sa ; \, . are opposedto Veda and Smrti, were propogaledby Devi n
order lo coniirsethe people,and were based on gnoranc€
word Sakli occurs severaltrmesin the Rgveda 3/rrhata
--The (e.g., These Sastrasarc Kepeb, BhairavaY;jmala,Vina,
t.t:3: ' 4 u 31.6 v . 20.1O,x. 88. t0l, our
'-e Fne gy rs co.rca.vpdas Like the iollowersol Tantra the Saktas also developed
o' qods alo nol as a seDerdteL,edttveo. rc.p.e.
A.V. v. 47.4 (Catuea im bjbharti. erc.) certain debas ng practices,For example,the Kaulavali-nirnaya
ls rnierpreted
relerringlo the S.ikta doctrines.But thrs rnlerpretation as declaresthat all women are tit for inlercourselo a Sakta
acceptabteto a .
is not exceptng lhe wives of his Guruand oi lhose Saklaswho have
altained the slate al Vira. ll goes (viii. 223'225) so tat as ta
Some UpanisadsmenliorlSaktj,Forexampie, allowincestuoussexualunion.The Kalivlasa'lanlta\x 20'21)
the Svelasvatara
says lhat the Brahmavadinshad a vrston allovlsi licit sexua relationlo a Sakta pfovidedhe does not
ol Sakti as nol
diilerentfrom cod. lt holds(vi. B) thai Branmanpossesses c o n t n u e u p t o t h e e m i s s i o no f s e m e n ;l h u s h e c a n h a v e
h gtsesl,Sakll the
wLrcn,sv€r,ou(tyr.ea.d Syabhav,h; na nabdta^nva masteryover supernaturalpowers.
t
l:r'rl1 li?wreqse andactron,r- rhr|onno).ronr
_st,ensrh LrkeTantraagain Saktasastradeclareslhai the pr nc pa
rhal p V Xane pornrso r, thdl Upan,5s6',1,^" ainr oi a Sakta should be 10 realise his identty wilh Yantra,
;:I :: "oo"d
'abr'cared
bv ie sdkrds
rop overhe Mantra, Guru and Devi.
:;,:;:ffili'::fl IiJ"
You,lhe omnipotentone,are indeedSakliof the wor d. You
L,he,Tanr,d the Sakra cu,t orovidFs,or
both yoga dno are lhe cause of everthing.You sport in the web ol de rs on
"" lh" .ranner ot Tanrrd ir p,e5croFs worsnrp creaied by you, as an actor in the dramaticrepresentatron
?i?9j-.1.
pancatattva, wrrl
and holds ihat there is ro means greaier createdby himself.
happrnessand Iberationlhan lhe lifth lallya ot
or sexuatIntercourse. A popularSAktasupersiilionis thatjackals(Slv;) are Sakli
conceived as the o|mord,a or n.rpie ncarnateiofferingsol iood to lhem are supposedto be highly
.^..S:ll
acr v os n:,lhe i'ltverse.The basi. do.tIne or at,
uo c to be concFived ts Inarcod ts one.
as mother as we a! destroyF.,Sd(li
rs ger]eraly,calledDevi who has been Seklavidyes lmantras) ate divided into three c assesrc,
eutogtsedin some v 2., Kadi lKA, E, I, LA, HBIM, Hedi WA, SA, KA, HA, LA,
e:9 V:nma:18-ist. Devibhasdvat.f" |, | 27) Btahmancta
:::y: afi ng l - HRIM and Sedi \SA, KA, HA, LA, HRIM.
tarnt a a mahatmva. M ats va t xi 24- 5n,. X L,,.
-l a rt. t i
t'o al .he Markandeva.puftna,s Ona ol I Siklism developedin Eengaltoa greatextent.In the Sakta
-Ucwmanatm|a
prncrpa lhe
works.ofthe cujt. In the puranas-Saffi Taftras of th s regionthe main idea is lhai Sakli s the pivot
ls vartusli
* Mahisamardini,
Kunda/ini,
Dursa,Katyayani, round which Sakta philosophyrevoves. She ls both manifest
A:::i"n: (yyakla) and unmalnfesllAvyakla).Evetyihingtrom the principle
dockine that Brahmais one ano ihat al f,4ahatup to ihe m nulesl atom is her creaton, Creatures
a^,r ^The-V-ed.jnta
powtersmight have suggestedthe he has are.r nafiow manlieslation of Sakli by worshippingwh ch they
uniiy and o.nipo;;;;
can realiseMahasakli,and thus rea ise lhe Supremeprinciple
and ultrnately attain Sivahood.The main object of Saki/-
rs int€restingto nole that, jn lhe Kurma
.lt \1.12.261-262J, sadhanais to realisethe deniily of J va and S va.
certatn Sislras, including cerlain classes
oj Tantra, are

It should not be supposed thal the worship of Female
Energywas an isolatedphenomenonin Indraor an absolutely
novel conceptionin Tantra.
Researchesinto the socralcond lions arnonglhe primitve
people,rnc lding the lribes of lndia, revealthe domrnalionof
temaies3r. This appearsto be projectedrnlothe conceplionol
the superiorty ot MoiherGoddess.In manyprimitrvesocieties.
lhe pflestessis regardedas superiorto the priesl.Amongsucf
people,descenlis kaced throughthe mother,and lhe r ght to
propertydevolvedthroughher.
In the religionof lhe Semitesof oid, the superiorityol the
motherwas recognised.Frazerlhinks3,that, in ancientlimes,
rl was widespreadthroughoutAsia Minor.He poinls out:3that
rne anc ent systemoi mothersuperiorrty lingeredon n Egypt
down lo lhe Roman limes (4th,Sthcentury).
Brifiaull is, perhaps, fight34tn thinktng rhat, wrh the
progressol agriculture,the matriarchalslatus ot women as
ownersand heiresses of cultivabJe
landsand alsoas prieslesses
lunclroningin magic rites lor securingfertiliiy,was bolstered
up,
Thoinpsonthinksthat,in the huntingstage,whitemenwere
engagedin kilhngbeastsand birds,the comparalivetysolter,
yel essentral,work ol food.galhering was enlrusledlo women.
So ong as lhe socely dependedlor lood on garden-tiage, rt
was w thin lhe sphereol women'saclivily.He thinksthat,wilh
garden'lillagereplacedby tield cultivationand ihe hoe by the
catlle'dnven plough, the work oi agriculturebecame the
exclusivework oi men.lhus, matria-potestas yietdedplaceto
paltia-potestas. Tracesol woman-superiority still inger on ln
s L c h r i b a r r s l t l Lo n s a s m a l r , r o c am a r r ' a g e a v J - c r a l F
temale dominaledreligion,elc.
He holds thal all induslriesin ancienl linles were
Industries.As such, il is but natLrral lhal wonrenprayeoa vrlal
role in them. With the growlh of large,scaleinduslries
perhaps,look lhe eadingpalt in industrres.As in the lields,
Nalureol TantricDoctrines
so n the lactoriesrhey tiguredwithoultheir temale partners
or w th lhem playingonly the roleof assistantsand associates
In anothercontext,we havedisc!ssedthe wide prevalence
ol the cu t 01 lvother Goddess in various counlries.
In India,the relicsol IndusValleyCivilisation revealfemale
perhaps, idea ot Sakli as the
Iigurines which, testily lo the
Supreme Deity.
In the Simkhya philosophy,as we shall see, Prakrti,the
femae principle,is all-imporlanl; She is Pradhdra.Thus, she
aoDearsto be a retlexol the dominanttemalein the natriarchal
The dominalion oJ temales is undoubted in lhe Slri-rAlyas
(womens kingdoms)in ancientIndia.Suchkingdomstlourished
ma n y in the north-eastern and north-western bordersof Indla.
l\,ieqasthenes,iollowed by Arrain and other, refer36lo lhe female
rulersol the Pindya country in the soulh.Tracesof mother'
superiorityare still Jound in the region concerned.Such a
countryIn the Kumaon'Grahwalregionis referredto by Hiuen
Tsang3' (7th cent. A. D. ). in the Garuda Prr.jna (ch. lV) and
B hana's (11lh-l2th cenl.J Viktamdnkadevaca ta \xviii.57).
The Chinesepilgrim-traveller also records36 a Slri-rajyanear
Lingala n modern Baluchistan.Varihamihira(5th'6th cenl.
A D.) appearslo reler lo it. (Brhatsamhita, xiv.22) as located
n norlh-westernIndia.Woman'srule prevailedin lhe Nu-wang
tribe oi Tiber3,.
V:itsydyana speaks oJ Sfrilalyas among ihe Vahlikas'o.
l^ lhe Mahabharata(Vlll. 45.13),there is the pracliceol
a man's inheritlngthe propertyol his maternaluncle.
Bes des ierary relerencesto malriarchyand the superionly
ol lemales,we Jind the survivalof lhis system among some
peop e. particularlylhe lribes,even loday.Among such tribes,
the prominenlare the Khasisof Meghalayaand the Garos'r.
Among the lormer,lhe priest (Lyngdoh)acts as lhe agenl oi
 58 Chapler-2
Among the Ndydrs,the joint family(lalwad)is conslituled
by a woman and her daughters.A woman is allowedlo have
more husbandslhan onelr.
Inherlancelhroughthe motheris widelyrn voguein South
India" and MadhyaPradesh"5.
So are matrilocatmarrage and
Tesrdence.
Ehrenlelsis ol lhe opinionthai femaledorninatron
in Indran
socielywas widerand deeperthan in any other countryot the
world. According10 him, this systemreceiveda jon, and was
overthrown throughlhe instliutionsoi hypergarny,
childmarlage
and Sa, (burningoi widows).The system was, however.so
deep-rooledthat, despite the above unlavourabtetaclors, I
survrvedamong the aboriginesand also some peopleof the
civrlisedsociely, as shown above46. The greal imporlance
altachedlo womenin Tanlra,remindsone ol lhe abovesyslem.
The cult ol vfigingoddessis, perhaps,the resuI oi fernale
superiority.
The worshipof Kanyjkumiri in lhe extremeSoulh
ol lndia, whose shrine ts mentionedin the perplus, and the
provs on ol Kumeri"pijein Tantricrites are remjniscenloi the
pracliceot looktngupon women as powerlul.
It may be addedlhai the A.yansof hoaryantiqurlyappear
lo have altachedgrealer impodanceto women lhan lo men.
ll we go deep into lhe slgnificanceol the words ptt6 ard meb.
lhe desrgnalions ot lhe iwo principalpersonsin the lamity,we
lrnd thal lhe latterappearsto have been more imporlant.She
s ma-ta, t.e., nirmata(Ihe builderol the chjld) or one who
measureslhe lood lor her child4?. Thus, hef lunclion s vita .
whereasp/ta (from root pa- lo protector rear) js so calledas
he prolectsor lostersthe child (palanatpila)aBt thus. the word
does not hind at the lalheis role as the maker ol lhe chitd.
ln the Veda (R. V X.85-46), a bride is exho(ed by lhe
husbandlo be santrejfiiinhis house,havingto look after her
lather-in-law, mother-in-law, and sister-rn-taw.
brolher,in-taw
ln lhe Manu-smrti (ii. 45), the oldesl and lhe most
authorilatve ot lhe Smrtis, the mother is stated to excet a
lhousandtathersin poinl ot honour.
Natureol TantricDocirines 59
A I lhese atiitudesseem lo testilyto lhe lraditionot female
superiorly n the lhen society.
Sikia philosophy,in courseol time, developedsubtleties,
and became complex.The basic elementsof lhis philosophy
are the lolowing 36 Tattvas:Siva, Sakli, Sadasiva,lsvara,
Vtdya,Mey6. Avrdya,Kala, Raga, Kala, Niyati,Jiva. Prakrtl,
f.4anas,Buddhi, Ahamkera, Panca,tanm.ilra,Dasendriya,
In Sakta philosophy,Siva is the Supfemeprinciple.Though
he is Advaita(non-dualislic), yet He is coupledwith inherent
Sakt . He is beyondall guras, wilhoutdesire,wilhoutvibrationl
yelHe is Saccidananda (Sal-existenl, C/t consciousness,
Anarda - bliss).He s Nirylsesa(withoutallribules).Saktl is
the nherentpower ol S va, which underliescreation.Sakli s
the manilestatronol Sivaas the raysare ol lhe sun,the burning
power o{ tire and lhe eflulgenceot a jewel.
The iniernal parinema ol Sakli consists in Sadisiva,
svara,Vidya,el.. Ftom Meye,(illusion)the externalparlndma
ol Sakt. emanale lhe %ltvas up to five gross elements
lpaicab huta). Ihe Tattvasf(om Maya lo Niyati pattake ol ,the
'dlure ol borh exlernaldnd inle'nal parinama.
Jiva, dependenl on Mi;y!i, Avidya, Keld, Rega, Ki;ta ard
Nryali,is nothingbut a part of Siva, bul coveredby Katcukas
ll-ollers) and Mala limput,ly). The gross body of Jiva is lhe
bhoga-dehathe basis ol which is Prakrti.Thus, everything,
from Sivalo Jiva or createdbeingsis dependenton Sakti.The
manilestalionoi Sakti is somelimesdorraant,sometimeslike
a dream, and at other times, grossly active, Sakti resides
wlthln the body as Kundalini.
Sdkla sedhane has Jiva at lhe centre.As staled above,
J va is S va, but coveredwith M:iye,subjectto attachmentand
fate and full ot suffering. Sekb-sedhane aims at the redemplion
al Jiva hom the clulchesoJ sulJeringand eslablishinghim in
everlastingb rss and consciousness.
In order to reach lhis goal, the characterislicsol the body
ol Jtva have been analysed.lt is a microcosmwilh a tegion
 60 Chapier-2
ol vernsand arlerieswhich go Onacling,and the internalvital
breath continuesto blow incessanlly.There are, withtn the
Dody,stx lotus-likeCakr'asand one ln the head; ali these are
stringedby lhe centralnerve,Susumra which has one nerve
on each side, the ieil one being called /da and the righl pingala.
The Supreme Siva resides in lhe sanclum sanctotum 01 lhe
Sahasrala lotus at ihe apex. Kundalini being awakened,
residing at ihe M{i/rdh.ira Cak a at the base, beginsthe upward
march;rt graduallypenelratesthe Cakras,and linallyreaches
the Sahasrarawhereshe is unitedwilh Siva resuttingin pertect
inexpressiblebliss, the enjoymentof which is Ihe summum
Bonum ol Ihe aspirant's devotionai life.
Szikla philosophy advocales parinema-veda according lo
which the unmanilestSakti Herselfis evolvedas the maniiest
objects. ln the Nityasodsikarnava(vi j6), it is slated ramate
svayam avyakta t pura khyatimagata at vyaktimagata.
The doctrineis also called Sa*etyaveda, i.e_,the eilect
rnheresin the cause as the sprout in a seed,
Accordinglo Vedzinta,the world is unconseioLlsll!sion.
The illusion created by Brahman, who is the conscious
principle,is false and devoid of consciousness.
Accordingto Tantricphilosophy, however,the power.MbyA,
oi the conscious Brahman, is also conscious as there ts
identilyof the Saktim:inand his Sakti.
The doctrine oi Saktipa nema s also calledAbhasavada;
it rs lhe manifesiationol objects by the consciousprrnciple
which itself remainsunaitected_
fhis SAdhaneis rntimatelyconnectedwith ihe Iaftvas by
crossingor oblleratingwhichthe asp rant is eslabtishedin the
ultimale Taltvaol Siva.
fhe Sedhaneof Sakti has siages and its mode varies
accordjng lo the propensityand capacily of the devotees
Eqlal place is accordedin il10 Jfrena(knowledge),Karma,
(action)and Bhalll (devotion),which are, n fact, ro ed into
one. Slartingwlh Bhakti,il requiresthe aspirantioact n lhe
Natureol TantricDoctrines 61
' , l a l l yh e r e s l sw l l f ' t l ' ek n o w l e d g oe f
ptes Ioponcnne a_d,
nor dLahly oJ Srva and Saklr. As stated In rhe Inlroduclion
dependng on the nalure and capabilityof the aspirant,lhere
are seven modes (ac;ira).Ol lhe aspiranis,one wilh Divyabhava
is ihe besl. He is a voiaryol knowledge,(jtzinayogin)For his
SAdhane,Ihetes no need oi an image,nor of exlernalriles.
Absorbedin Anlatyega,he medilatesupon Mother Goddess
whose maniiestationis the eniire warld, Pancamakara in i1
does not mean the gross substances,bul has a spirlual
srgniiicance,As has been indicatedin the iniroduction.The
atlillrdeoi such an aspiranl has been declaredas lhe best
lsarva-bhevaltama).
fhe Sadhand lor one, who is endowed wllh VircbhAva,
conssting in exiernalritesand fast, etc., is exkemelydrtficult
as the aspiranthas to iace severetesls.Sucha personresorts
la lhe live Makaras in lheir gross forms, and Sadhana is
pedormedrn a cemeleryor olher lonely spots. ll necessrty
arses, the personconcernedresortsto the six Tantricacls ol
M4rana, Uccalana. elc. Such a Sedhane, as the name Vira
suggests,betits one who is, indeed,a Via, slrong,learless,
self-conlroled, activatedby the inculcatronoJ the power of
The worship oi Tripura,Tripuresundarior Mah;jiripura'
(SuprcmeConsciousness)
sLrndar,who is identifiedwilh Pare-samvit
wh ch aga n is conceivedas Erahmanwho is beyondthe 36
Ialivas, is twofold, viz.,
Antaryega \ nle.nalJ and Bahiry6ga (exlernal). She is
worshlppedn three forrns,viz., Sthula,Suksmaand Para.lA
the flrslform,she has anthropomorphic
iraiis,and is accessible
to the eyes and hands oi those possessed al mantrasiddhi.
The secondone,consislingin marlla, is comprehended by the
ears and speech oi the holy persons.The third lorm is
comprehendedby lhe mind ol holy devolees.
The first and the third are sarupa and arupa respectivey.
The second one partaking oJ lhe nature ol bolh is nol
consideredseparaley.
 Chapter2
In lhe externalworship,dirlerentsvmbolsol lhe coddess
are worshipped. Ol these, Stiyanta ot Sricakra is the best.
St;kta-sedhanehas been more haled than understood by
the commonrun ol people.Devoteesol low propenstties and
vrlementaliiyuse it as a prelextand coverJorse{t-rndulgence.
Hypocritical gulus exploitthe naiveand lhe guilibte,and earn
a living. Generally,Tankic rites are tooked down uoon bv
people, especiallythose who are staunch tollowers of the
orthodox.Brahrnanicalreligion,as encouraginglevity.lecherousness
and debauchery. In reality,however,Sakt/-sadhana aims at the
elevatronol man lrom animalttyto; a spiritualheightthrough
the reslrarnedenioymenlof worldlypteasuresand nol by therr
ascetrcden'al.l(espectiveol casteor colour,everybody,male
or lemale,can take to ii lo appeasehrsor her spiritualhunger.
while living a worldly life and nol renouncingit. ll synlhess
all modes ot approach, and aims al the singte object of
realrsrngnon-dualismso that there is no scope ior communal
drscordor disharmonyand narrowness.
There are pillallsin this Sadhar.i. But one who, resorting
10a true guru,slrivesunwaveringly for lhe goa , can enloylhe
blissand the wealthot detachmenlby securingwhich one can
do good to olher people.
This topic may be concluded with a quolaton ot Sr
Arabrndo's conceptionoi Sakti,as expressedin this cetebrated
wotk, The Mother. Says the savant:
Eachol lhe worldsis nolhingbut one play oi lhe Mahasakl
ot the sysiemof worlds,who is there as lhe cosrnc Soul and
Personalityof the lranscendenlI\,4olher.
Eachis somethrngthat
she has been in her vision,galheredinto her hearl ot beauly
and powe. and caealedin her. Ananda.
Science in Tantraae
[/any thrnkthat Tantrasare merelyspeculativeworks,But,
a carelulsludy ol Tankasrevealslhal some scientilicelements
are lhere. Some s/Udhis(powers)includeseeing and hearing
lron atar, medicalttealmenltrom a greatdistance;these are
NatLrreol Tanlr c Doctrines
statedlo be attainablethroughsedhane ll seems ihal these
Dy
s,ddhlscouldactomplishwhat can be achievednow_a-days
means oi lelevLsion,radio telelhetapy elc'
ln Tantra.each deily has a particularcolour.The Buddhas,
n lhe Dhyanaposture,are representedas havrngsome co our
or olher ln regardlo creation'BuddhislTanlraadvocaleslrle
theoty ol nihilism(sinyaveda\ Ftom lhis lacl as well as lrom
were
lhelr knowedge ol colourssome think lhai Tantra_wrrlers
ol the ighl and its diflusionin the primordial
slate ol
aware
rnaler a woro.
the
What ls called cosmic ray was nol, perhaps,unknownlo
ihem The scientilicbasis ol Kundaliniisrecognisedby some
Tanlras. e.g., Matkebheda Tantra, lay down a process of
preparlngrnercuryash
To med cal sciencethe contribuiionol Tantraappearslo
havebeen considerable. Accordinglo Tantra'lhe humanbody'
ihe m crocosm, s all importanlTo keep il tit nol only varlous
asaras were dev sed.Variousdrugs were also discoveredior
preservaton oi youthand vir lrty Medicinesfor cur ng diseases,
reluvenalionand counleraclingpoisonswere also invenleo
The TanlrlcFasa schoolof alchemyplayeda greal role In
the soc e1Y.
The very namesof ihe eightprincipadiv sionsol Ayurveda,
\te Salyatantra.SatakyalanlG,Kaya'cikitsalantra Bhulavidya'
Ianta. Kumarabhtlya-tantta,Agada'IantG' vaii'karanalanlra
Rasayana-anlra,appearlo hini at their Tantricorrgrn
Thesemean respeclivey healingol woundsand dlseases
cf ower lmbs ihroughsurgery,ointmenlsand drugs;healing
oJwoundsand drseasesof upperlimbs;healingof exlernaland
nterna diseases ol a general nature; dealing wiih mental
diseases;dealingwilh diseasesol chlldren;lox cology;prescnplon
1lrrenchancingsexua vigou( elc,;scienceof chemlcalpreparatons
Iof medicinesand other purposes.
Some texts, dealing wilh Hasayana slill survive whre
othersare known only trom relerences
 Natureof Tantic Ooclrnes

A type of Tantrickeatmenl,calledAvadhautika-clk/tsa.
siitl Sanskrit,but also in vernacularlrleralures.
survivesin some pafts of Indja.
ln the analyss ol humanpsychologyand in lhe deprction
Causes ol Composition ot Tantrasso ol the conditlonoi humanbeings,deludedby wrong ideasand
subjectedto sulferng ol various klnds, Tantra exciies our
Severalfactorslead to the composition of Tanlras.The admiratlcnand pity.
Vedas,lollowedby otherworks,weretoo learnedtor the oeoole
at large.Theorthodox philosophical systemsweretooabstruse the Sakbnanda'tarcnglni (l) of Brahm:inanda of Bengal
ior ihern.The ritualistic worksprescribed ritesand fitualstoo bea!lifullyexpresseslhe miserableconditlonot humanbeings
eraboraleand requiringrigorousdisciplineand meliculous sullerng from s n, atiachmentto worldlyobiectsand consumed
aitentron to delails.The Smrtiworksdeniedthe riohtio the by lhe lire of hostilityor halred :
oerfo..nance ot importanl religrous .iteslo Sidrasandwomen. pepa-sila-vinihhinnam siktam visaya'satptsa /
The Buddhists advocaled ascelicism. The Brahman cal works regadvesanalaihpakvam-mrtyur-asnetimenevam //
laughlrenuncjalion as the highestidealjn liie.
Thus,r,1eneedwas gradually Death devours man who is pierced by the spear ol sln'
. teltlor easierwor^ctaying \ryetiedby the clarifiedbuiterin the torm of the oblectsol sense
oowr 0octflnes more;ntelligible lo commonpeope, p.escribtng
lesscomplicated practices and cooked by the iire oi ailachmeniand animosity
andgivingfreedomof religio!sritea
to Sidras and women No less atlraciiveirom the literarypolnt ol vlew are the
h nl, conlained in Tanlra, at mystic praciices based on tne
The resultwas lhe composilion of Tantras. biologicalrelationshipo{ man and woman and the ensulng
.These works hold that the praclices and precepts, taughl feelingwhich beggarsdescriplion.
a lhe Veda.are loo drtftcult for our age.Insteadof rigoro-us T erlia Savasedhana,Latesedhana,hufian sacl'ilice,oiier
ascercrsm anOrenuncialion, lheTanlrasallowpaop,eto Iollow
lheirnaturalpropensilies ol human blood to ihe goddess,the grotesqueand hideous
likedrinkingwine,enjoyrng women, practicesof some Tentric sects, etc, have motivatedsome
etc Mukrl{salvation) is possiblethroughbhu&1, rentoynenrJ
Whileserl-morl later wrilers in their portayalo{ liierary picturesevokingthe
ltcationwasadvocaled bylhe o,thodoy Saslraq,
lheTantras laildstresson the preservation sentlments of gibhalsa (disgust) Bhayenaka (fierce) and
of the bodyandthe Adbhula(rnarvellous). We have dealt with Tantricelemenlsin
marntenance ot health.ln fact,the bodywas regardedas a
mrcrocosm; literaturein a separatechapter.
whatts not in the bodyis not in the universe, The
body is the bestmeansol sadhaDa. Tantraholdsthat the body Poetic beauty flashes ai some places of the Taintra
containslhe highestpowerwhichcan makeone capabte; literature.For example,the descriplionof the six Cakrasllke
conlrolling the universal energy. ioiusesof varyingcoloursand varyingnumberof petals Some
mudras ard mandalas arc arlistic both in conceptlon ano
Literary Value ol Tantra descripton. SomeT;intricscholarsappearto have had poetc
Tanka is partly philosophical, abilityol no mean order in their descriptionoJ Kundaliniand
par y ritualistic.So, we lolus supposedto be within the head'
cannotexpectmuchliterary lhe lhousand-petalled
valuein it. But,it mustbe admiiled
thatTantrasuppliedsomethemesto lalerwritersnot oniy in These pen-plcl!res are beautifulin lhelr use of flgures oi
speech and the mode ol expresslon.
 Nalureol Tantrc Doclrnes

Tantra poetically concerved /dziand p/ngalA

as lhe moon Meghangim sasi -sekhara4
m trinayanem aklambara m bibhtal im
ano rhe sun fespectiveiy.The fo owingdescriptrcn aI Susumna penibhyamahayam varamcavikasad-aktaavinda slhitam nrtyantam
ca s up a vrvid imagery. purato neiya madhurammadhvika madyammahe-kelamviksya
_vtdyunmela-vilAsa m unima nasi las anantu rupa sus i ksma vikAsite nanavarem edyem bhaje kelikem //
ltLea gaaand lor a sor as) or ,g-l- ^qs Mahanitvana tantta, v
e ' l . , d o ' t r e s d g e e x t r e m e t y s r F n o e . r , \ e a s n , n , nr.g.si f
r-l r.R-esole.de-t
,."o ( worshipAdy:i Kali;Her body s like c oud, She is moon-
The lottowrngdescripton ol Kundatjnis a prece
ot frne cfesled.three'eyed,clad n red clolh. ln her two hands,there
poerry:
a.e lhe poses oi boon and lreedom tear.Slandingon a red
tasyarddh e wsa_tanl u sodara -lasaI suksma lolus.She has Her lace laughingat the sightol lvlahakala
who.
Fganmoh jnj
brahma-dvara-mukhammukhenamaonuram sacchadayantL hav ng dr!nk Madhvrkawrne5'.is dancingbetore her.)
The IollowLngdescriptioncan comparefavourablywrlh a
Sankhavart anibha navina-capalamata _vjlasaspada veTseor any gooo poem,
supta sarpasama sivapari lasat-sardha-trivrttakrtih
// Vahantistndua m prabala kavaribharalimi ra
kulanli kulakundatinica madhuram ma atj-sphutam
vacan komata-kavya -bandha-racanabhedalt bheda-k dvtsam vrndai-vandikrtam iva navinarka-kranam /
ramah tanotu ksemam naslava vadana-saunciaryalahati
sa nuhmDuta_qahvare wlapatt proddama diptava
i 1/ panvaha sralah satanir iva simanla-saranth//
Satcakra_nirupana.11 12.
A D o J ei t . r h e e n c F a n t eor t t n e w o r , o ,s n r n , n g lSaundarya-lahari, verce 44)
,, a.rorL5-rbre d-d stFnder (CJCoddess,may lhal parlinglineol your ha r, wh ch looks
,race,
(a l - a v , - gc o v e r e oI n e B r . h n a d v d . aw : l h t s
tres asteep,like lhe circularmarks on conch-shel ke lhe overilowingwatercourseof the wave ol the beally ol
and y o u r f a c e , w h r c h ( . e . , p a r t i n g l i n e ) , b e n g s m e a r e dw i t h
ha cortstrkea se,pe')r,on S,va Corpo,,nq
:]ll:_,_* "10 t
irnpoopmsIn vartousrnetfes,hurrrri-g swee y verm ion, il seernsas lhoughthe mornrngsun capt valed by
ttte lor , o.ed
o e e s d - d s J s l d . r n gl h e l r e o l a c r e a t L r E the darknessin lhe lorm of ihe mass ol hairs ol the enemy.)
In erFdalo- a,o
inhalalron.She shines tike a seriesoi very power,ut lasat -samkha -cakra-calat-khadga-bhima
tighlsIn
rhe cavily of the lotus in lhe shape al Mitddhaa nadat sim havaha-jv alatt ungamauIih /
o"to,rl elfecrrs cna,rr,rg dravad daityavatga stavat siddha-samgha
-5d/).s';/a I n t h e d e s c f i p . o ' lo t r , e
wFicFhas InoJsanOpe'd,s,wnicl-,s l^hrr. .p tvamevesi dutgapi sargadihine //
IUllnoon r whtchlhe potrensa.e ocd\.rr fhe Prapancasa ra-tanlra, attr butedto Samkaracarya
r_t .ka th6 ,
ewlyr sa I
rs decoratedwilh divine trees eterna y bearing (O goddess,you Durga,too devoidoi creation,etc., have
iiil-1n'"n
rrowersand iruits. a shiningconchand a disc,you are lLercewilh a mov ng sword,
lines.sraphicay presenlthe rmaseor Ady;- haveyour lion-mountroaring,your hrghheadis brrght,fromyou
oevr betore our minds' eyes:
"^..t|:,1:!"y'* lhe host of demonsare runningaway,a group of Siddhasare
euloqisingyou; you are rndeedlhe SupremeGoddess.A vivrd
descripton in lhe malodiousBhujafiga-prayata melte-
 68 Chapter2 Nalureol TantricDoclrines

wnh
Thereare a so instancesof arlil cial and labouredcomposition P C. Baqchi has soughl lo idenllly MahecinaqrA
Si;dha N:igrrjuna is said to have recovered lhe
wh ch characlerisesSanskritpoetry oi the decadentperiod. Ekajata53.
Wh le such composttions testily to the tearningof lhe author, Ekaiataculi in Tibel
these are jejune and as insipjd as poetjcatpieces. In the is similarto that ot Mahdcina-
The descriptionol Ekaiald54
lollowinglines,everywordcommenceswithlhe letterKa whtch krama-tdre.55
ls the initial lettet tn'Kei and the first consonant of the
alphabel. The Hindupanlheonhaslhe tollowinggoddessescorrespondrng
lo lhe above divinilies:
Kamale KAIi -darpaghni Kapatd isa Krpanvia,
T;irzi, Ugralzir;i,Ekajatd' [/|aha'Nila'Sarasvali'
Kdlike Kebnab ca Kahnala.samadyutih / goddesses
11should be noled thal lhe dhyrinas ol lhese
in HinduTantra,agree verbatim wilh those lound rn
Tanlra Beyond India occ,.rrrlng
BuddhislTantra
We do nol know whelher lantra was importedinlo india t'Jgratar;i
or exporled trom lhis country to other coLlntries,Tantric Ihe Sammaha'tanlrastatesthat Nila Sarasvatior
west ol Meru which
nlluenceis, however,cleariar beyondthe limitsol lndia,China was born in the lake, calledcola, on the
and Tibet are the lwo mosi prominentptaces beyond India. was a Parl ol Ci,tadesa.
perhaps' to be
whrchreveaithe inJluenceol Tanlra.SeveralSanskritTanlras Baqchi is ol the opinion lhat Cola is'
word lor lake Kul
are preseruedonly in Chineseand Tibetanlranstations,the conneciedwirh rhe Kol or Col, lhe common
lakes to lhe west and
originalworks beinglost. Evidencesare avaitabtethal Tantric cJ, f"r"o wilh ihe names oi many
philosophers and scholarsfromIndiavisjtedthe abovecounlries. "r
north of T'ien_shanin Mongolra
Sammaha
GoddessTriri, in her Buddhistgarb, got a niche in the At leasl iour Tantras,viz ' Sirascheda,Vinesikha'
lhe Inscrlpllon ol SdaL_Kak-
panlheonol Tibetwhereshe is knownas Sgral-maor Dol_ma. antl NdvallaQare known irom
(Combodia)aboul
lrany lorms ot lhe deity have been conceived. ih;m to hdve been InlroducedintoKambula
Simkaivalya, is slated lo
The Tir;i cult travelledalso lo Chinaas Sakli of Avaloktie ioo n.O..;.fnu Royal High Priest'
named Hiranya
svara. lt is inlerestingto note thal, under the pre-Buddhisl nave oeen initiatedio Tantraby a Brahmana'
Taoismand Confucianjsm, which recognisedIVotherGoddess dama.
Sa'va
as lhe representalive ot Yin (Femaleprinciple),
Avatakitesvara.2 Some other Cambodjaninscriptionste{er to lhe
was iranslormedinlo a goddess.By the 7th and 8th century r"nti", siiraga.u. An Angkorvat on relersto lhe
inscrlpl
A.0.,Tarawas complelelymergedwithAvalokilesvara who to; Paramesvara'lanlra.
hrs male character,and was transmutedinlo goddessKuan_ in Cambodra
lmagesol lheTantricGanesahavebeenlound
yin ol Chtna.
where
Monaoliaand Japanare someof the othercountries
The double lotm ol Iete became very poputar in lhal Ganapatitattva' an
Tanrraw;s introducedOl theTdntricwork,
counlry.GraduallyTaoistritualsmade lheir way into lhe Tara
old Javanesetext only ls availabie
CultandYlnismor Exaltation ol the FemalePrincipleInTaoism
(5th Cent-A D ) ol Champa'there
ln the [4vsonrnscription
This, in its turn, inlluencedIndian yemAcjra in bolh its are lound
l..utriarronio Manesvaraand Umi lmagesol Devi
Buddhisticand Hinduforms_ {\,4aalrngeslara'
in variousptacesin CnampziShe is vadouslycalled
 7A
ChapteF2 Natureol TantricDoctrines 71

Gauri, l\,4ahadevi,
etc. Woodroile. Baplism includes a iormLra similar lo Tantric
Jn.Java, rmagesof Siva, both in manlra.Baptism s supposedlo ensure|ie n heaven,whereas
^ ' ,^":.*"" iound. his calm and iurious
In lt e Funous aspect.he rc ca eo lhe unbaptisedhavea dubiousfulure.Sim larly,Tanlrabelieves
3.^"^:.^1.-
atso aooears.. lwo aspe.ts. l. t1e rn the atlaintmentol lhe spirrlualend lhroughphyslcalmeans.
/vLsel-n. lheredre sone :magesof IVah,sarnarOtnt.Barava n the Roman Chruch,the rite includesexorcismand the use
o- tJnirravaor \,4ahakdJa I ne Sahlr
ts Bnatrav:or\,4ahakatr. She ts sealed ol sall, oil and lights.This is very much like s rnilarpractices
o..: with hLl an sku s In her nec^ drd Fead in Tanlra.
q a a a::.or:
n do l h U m a ns k u l l sO n h e r and ;
body..
The /mage of Ganesa, iound in Java, Tantra and Jews
shows the deity
seaiedon humanskullswhich leave Like the tollowers of Tantra, the adherents oi lhe Kabbah
no oout'taboutHis Taniric
characler. doclrine oi the Jews believe in the myslic power of lelters,
mag c, amulets,the unlly ol microcosmand macTocosm, etc.
Tantra and Timaeusss These deas probablypassedfrom Indiato Egyptwhencethey
C_erld n sr'tkingstrri,antiesare noticeaote spread about lhe ninth centuryover Europe.Indo European
and 1tne t nmacust at pao t42B-348 between Tantra contacts,long belore the above date, have been proved.
B.C t.
P alo_op-at,sro lwo .onou,ls
on lwo s,oe! 01the ve(ebral Was Tanlra oI Foreign Origin ?
L o u n n l t e s e a p p e a rt o b e s t r r r ' d rt o
l h e Janl c tda and India had commercial,culturaland religiouscontact with
Ftngab an lh" rwo sides o, rne
Susumqa. many loreign couniries,easlern and weslern,ln very remote
-..,_P19jo
9on""lu"1 the earthas a cube,nre as a rrjanguJar
as octahedrat and wateras tcosaheOra/.
llSTlq,rtr
app_earto corresprnd1otheT anlic mandalas Tiese (C.3000 B.C.)reveal
The relicsof IndusValleyCivilisation
rflangte,,lwo wf,icnare squJr"el pottery,etc., whch tend 10 indicatelinks wlh Sumeria and
equiJateral
triangles,oneupontheotner,cresceni
noon;etheris represented I\,'lesopolamra.
by a cirCleis,
Tho,,obovestn:'aril|esrn,ghlbe acctoentd, Indias contaci w th toreigncounlrieswas not a one way
., ^
r o igF co,ncroence, tratfic.Therewas a give-and-lake relationbetweenlhis country
ooss,b trv or lhe one counl,y Itr Jencrng
.dnnol ,lf'e
be,ruleoour CultJ.atconta.tbat;een
lhe othe. and the ioreignlands. Besides lrade and commerce,Buddhisnr
Indraand creeLe was a potent faclor fosteringexlraterritorial
contacts.In ihe
a pelod much anter'ors ro A'exnder 'nvas,on
:.';;t:ti,t s realmof art and archilecture,Indiahad some linkswith certaLn
foreigncounlries.
Tantra ahd Christianity Amonglhe Asiatrcneighbors,Indiacame into contactwilh
Accordingto C. Eljol,
urj there China, repositoryoi a very old civilisation,particularlyin lhe
uiereare some parallelisms
paralleli between
jn poslBuddhistc per od, but long before Chrlsl.
l::11:,-T9,Ch'",]a."fliuals.Even rhe AnsrJcan
"' *",",'"
chruch
111;.;^s ifl:."'.i;i[,1"]
ilj Xli",fjjJ'l; That Chinesesilk was importedinlo India,and was very
s-si,,.,Ia.
ro Aol,;";; ;"; J; popularis amp;y'borne out by literaryreierences.
iii::l:;;::
of l:":l::
the Christian _ra"lr"
cross resembtestanir;;r;:;,";;;"J.;";:: Buddhisrnsirengthened the lies betweenIndiaand China.
 7? c|,^^t-,-t
Natureoi TanlricDoctrines 73

Conlrarylo the generalimpressionthat Fa,hlenwas ihe ljrst

wentto Tibet,bul alsosellledthere,andwrotemanylreatises
Chineseto get himseliinterestedin Buddhism,and to come
in Sanskril,especiallyrelating1o TantricBuddhism- The
to Indiaas a placeof pilgrirnage,
severalChinesecame to lhis or g nas of manyof suchworkshavebeenlosi;lheirTibetan
country before him.
translatonssurvlvedin lhe Taniur.Of lhe galaxyof Indian
Some BuddhistSanskritworks,particularly on Tantra,exist schoars,who chose Tibel as the land ol their scholarly
only in Chinesekanslation,the orlginalworks berng lost. actv I es,manywereiromBengal, Amongthe Bengali scholars
In connexionwith Tanlra Beyofd India,we have reierred agan, ihe mostrenowed wasDipankara SrijnanaAtisa(980or
10 ChineseTaoismand IndianTantra.The Chinesefecognised 982 1053or 1054)who,at ihe imporlunate req!estof thethen
Tibeianruler,visled (1042)thatlandior reformjng thedelinqunt
the Male and Femaleprrnciplesrespectlvely as yang and yin
as underlyingthe creation.This naturallyled to the sexualrites. Tlbelansocietyand the degenerated Buddhislreligionthere.
The Chinese recogniseHlse, (immortalily)ihrough certain He livedtheretill his death.
disciplinarypracticeswhichinclude(1) regulation oj respiration, The deep nterestoi Tibet in Indiais reflectedin Lama
(2) gyrrnaslictechnique,{3) sexualtechnique,(4) atchemrcal Taranatha's(b. 1573) learned History of Buddhismin India
anq pharrnaceuljcai technique,etc. These have parallelstr ( 1 6 0 7o r 1 6 0 8A D ) .
Tantraalso.For example,lhe respiratorypracticecorresponds Thereis enough oi evidence of closeIndo-Egyptian contact
la Prcnayama, the gymnasiic technique to hatha-yoga and s nce pre Chrlstian itmes.fheChendogya Upanisad lvllj.A.S)
KAyasedhana. Alchemtcallechniquehas close simitariiywith seemsto reler to mummiiicalion; perhapsit retersto the
lnd an Tantricsystemwhjchproducedseveralworks on alchemy_ Egyptan praclice.Egypiran colonieswereset up in Indiaand
The sexual praclice,as we have seen, is a very important
lndlancolones in Egypt.Amongotherthings fromIndia,Indian
paraletisms
laclorin lfdianTentricrites_Whiie do notconclusively womenwerea parloi lhe procession of the Egypttanmonarch,
prove oorrowrngon any side, yei the traditionol Chinese
Plolemy. The pleasure'boat of PtolemyPhilopatore (221B.C.)
lniluence on lanl'a, Cinacara, etc. seems to be rendered
was decorated withIndiangems.Thesymbolsof a wheeland
probabe by the above stmiiarities.
tridentover a graveappearto be mute witnessto lndian
Besides China, wilh many other Aslatic countriesIndia ini uence.An Indianidol,discovered ai Memphis, testifieslo
came tnlo contact through kade and commerce as well as lhe same influence. An importantpointerto this iact is an
Buddhsm, e.g. Babylon. lndian'sdedication60, to the deityPan,ot a templeo{ Rhodesia
The land of Snow, Tjbet, became very lamilar to India on ine deserl-route lowardslhe red Sea.Hultzschinlorrnsus
lhanksio the advenluresoi SaratDas (1849-j917)who,defying thata s lvercoinoi an Egyptian King,ptolemywasdiscovered
the reslrclions imposedby the mlghtyBritishRaj, and braving n a marketof Bangalore,
the inhospitableweatherand lhe hazardousrnountarnroute, FromPlinywe learnthattheEgyplian king,ptotemy (285,
went overto that counlry,and wrotean illuminaling
monograph 247 B.C.)sent an envoylo an Indjanking.
on it. Indras contaciwithforeigncouniriesin Asia,Europeand
Ceniuriesago, culluralandcommercialiniercoursebegan Africahas beendiscussed. We shallexaminewhetheror nol
betweenihese two countries.Like China, Tibet also tooied Tanlrismof Indiawas bo(owedfrom externalsources.
upon India, the birthplaceol the reveredLord Buddha,as a
Fromwhatwe haveseenaboutSino-lndian ties,Chinese
place of pilgrmage.l\,4any
Buddhislscholarsof india.noton y ' 1 ' i e - c eo n I n d t a -T a - l r at s n o t
Lnlikey.
 Chapler-2
Woodroffe(Avalon)does not subscribeto the theory thal
the fundamentalprinciplesof Tantrawere importedinio India
lrom China.The pro-Chinatheoristspoint out, among other
th ngs, thai the ,gudraydmala,a noted Tantra, mentions Ch na.
Buddha (Buddhistdoctrine)was establisnedrhere.
The sage Vasistha is sialed to have been initiatedto
Pancalattva by the Buddha himself.The same story occurs in
lhe Teretantrawherc the sage is staied 10 have brought home
the cull ol l,lahecina-krcmecara prcviding lor lhe worship oi
MahecinaUrA.
The above story appears, with a little var/alion, n ihe
Brahma-yamala (Palala l).
Apart from lhe mythicalnature oi the slory, a few potnls
are significant.ll should be noted ihal Vasisthawas a Vedic
sage. He at firsi characlerises Cincara tiles as Vedavahiskrta
(opposed lo the Veda). Vasistha'sconversionto Tantrism
appears lo be the symbolicalexpresson ol the lusion ot
Vedrsmor orihodoxBrahmanismand Tantrism.
The relerenceto Vasistha'sperformanceoi Tdrri r tuals in
miiacara, lhe seai oi Kemdkhyzi,may hinl at Assam as the
homelandof Tanlra,A Vasisth;israma near Gauhat seernsto
conlirmthis irnpression. The wordsTA-RA,RU-D-RA,used in
Tantra, are believed lo be loan,wordslrom lhe Chinese
language.
Anoiherargument,thoughnot very convincrng,in support
oi Chineseorigin,is lhat the flowerJay;i, regardedas highty
suitabe in Sakti worship,is called Chinese rose.
There s a work called Mahecin4cerclantra.
China may or may not have been the originalhomeand of
Tanlra.The fact, however,remainsthat Tantricdoctrinesand
riteswere widelyprevalent,for a longtime, in lhe regioncalled
Mahacna. lt is iderlifiedwilh ArabiaFelix(i.e.Aden)by some,
with China by olhers.
The pro-Chinatheoristsput iorwardsome morearguments.
The myslicsyllableshrim, krim, eIc.,tegatdedas so rmportanl
Naiureol TanlricDoctrines 75
in Tentric practices,show the predominanceof the nasal
sound,a characteristicof the Chineselanguage6l. The Tantric
diayams (Yantra,Mandala) remind one ot the piclorial writing
of the Chrnesealphabet.A mode ol TantricSadhara is called
Cinacara whch, accoding lo Ihe Taratantra,came from Mahacina,
The FemaleEnergies(Yoginis), mentionedin Brahmanical
Tanlras,includeLzim;i6,.
In Tibetan,it is Lhamo or Shedevil.
This word has been taken to denote Devi or Sakti. The
Jayadratha-yamala mentions lwenty'four types of Lamas.
The wordsD:ikini,Hikini, SekiniandLaikini,63 etc.,afe also
exot c, and appear to point to their foreign origin.
Ihe Sammohalantra mentions thal Tankic culture of
loreignlands lke Bhalika(Balkh),Kirz,ta,Bhota (Tibet),Cina,
P:jrasika(Persia),Airiika (lraq), Kamboja,HLina,
lvlahzicina,
Yavana,Gandharaand Nepala.l\,4ay be that these couniries
had sorne esoterc practicesknown by Indiansas similarlo
their Tantric practces; borrowing on any side cannot be
established.
Accord ng to the Tibetan Pag Sam Jon-Zan, Buddhtsl
Tantraoriginaledin uddiyanas'. Accordingto B. Bhatlacharya,
VajrayanaTantraarose in Uddiy.ina65. Thls place (also written
as Oddiyana,Odry;ina)is identiiiedby some with Udyana in
or near the Swal Valley,while others place it in Kashgarh.
HaraprasadSastriand some otherscholarslocateil in Orissa,
wh e others th nk lhai it was a part of Bengal.
Lokesh Chandra lhinks lhal Oddjyanawas lhe name ol
Kanc,
In considering oi loreignjnlluenceon Tanlra,
the probability
we shoud thinkof one thing.Of Kemaripa,PUrnagiri, LJddiyana
and Ja andhara,as many as three ate situatedon long roads
connectingIndiawith loreigncountries.Kamarupahad been a
centre ol loreign aclivitiesfrom very remote times.
The locatronoi the above Sekta,Pjthasmay tndtcateeither
loreign nlluenceon Tantraor the passingof Tantricrdeasto
1l-re
loreign counlries.
 76
Sorne scholarsthink thal the conceptionand worshp of
Sdlli ,s un-l.didn TFLs, Tanrrais exol,c.
H. P Sastri, on the basis of a verse66in the Kubjikenata-
tanlra,believedthat Tantrawas ol foreignorigin.He thought
that the idea of Sakti, the worshipof which js the kernel of
Tantra,was borrowedfrom WesternAsra rrom wnere rl was
broughi by the Magi priests of ihe Seylhians.
Woodroifeis of the opinionthal Tantrawas mportedlrom
ancient Chaldea,the regionaroundwhich, accordingto h m,
was Szikadvipaof Indiantradition6T. In this conneclion,it s
Interestng to note that Goddess Nana-Nina,Nansia_lnanna,
who was originallythe crty-goddess of Urk, was, al a tatert me,
rdenlifredwith the molherof Attis and the lran an Anatila.The
cull of lhis Goddessspreadto India.Her name is foundon the
corns of lhe Kuszinaperiod.Na na Devi of Kutu Va ey, Na ni
Devi oi Narnila etc. are nstances of the iniluence of the
goddessol the Nana group.
Accordingto a Tbetan iradition,T;intric princpes and
pracliceswere introducedby the BuddhistAsanga nlo Ind a.
P V Kane does nol altach much jmpo ance of lhis lraditron
based as it rs mainly on the Hlslofy of Buddhism by fa.anatha
(b. 1573 of 1575) who wroie over one thousandyears afler
Asanga.
Some seek 10 esiabiishlhe loreignorigin oi Tantraon lhe
groundthat ihe exaltedposition,accordedin Tantrato Guru,
has nothrngcomparablein lhe Vedaand pur:ina.Othersrejects
lfrs lheory on the groundthat a high place of honouris given
lo Guru rn the Nirukta (ii.4), Svetasvatara lJpanjsad (vi. 1A.
23), Lingapurana,Devibhagavata,elc.ll may be noted thal ihe
Mahabhatata(presenlfrom C_4th cent. A.D./ mentionsguru
as a hrghlyrespeciableperson.
Towardsthe end oi the 191hcenl.and the beginningof the
20th., rnany peoplebelievedihat lhe cull ol Mothercoddess
onginatedin Phrygiaand spreadin difJerent counlres.This led
B. Bhattacharyato poslulatethe theory of the fore gn origin
ol Sakli worship6s.
Natureoi TantricDoctrinec 77
Aiter exam ning the differentviews, P V. Kane concludes
that cerlain mystic practices like Kulacara, Vamacarc r",ghl
have been borrowedirom outside,bll lhere is no conclusive
evrdenceoi Tantfahavingbeen borrowedin lolo irom fore gn
counlres. On the conlrary,he thinks thal Tantricdoctrlnes
rnrgraledto toreigncountries,notablyChina and Tibet. P C.
Bagch puls forward6e some evidencesot loreignelemenisln
Tantricdoctrines.
Againstthe view that Tantrawas borrowedby lndia trom
ouis de, it may be pointedout that, whereas many Sanskril
TantrasweTelrans aled into Chineseor Tibetan,there is no
evidenceoi any Tantfic work of lhese places having been
lrans ated lnlo Sanskrit.
In discussng the questionol Ch nese iniluenceon Tantra,
we shou d conslderthe pointof similariiybetweenthe Taoism
ol China and the Tantraol lndiaTo.
The Taost doctrinerevolvesround the pivotalconceptoi
yang and yin. The former is the Male positivepower of light
and heat, and the latter the Female negative power of
darkness.The harmonisation oJ lhese two powersis believed
to enableand cold.These lwo underlreeverythingin life and
beng man lo lranscend his physical limits, to reach lhe
sp ritual plane lo acquire preternaluralpowefs and even to
ach eve mmortally in this very liie. For.acquiringmudane
r.no'alhy (H ,S,en).rFe rojlowingpraclices- a'e ^ecessdry
O respiratoryexercise,(ii) heliotherapeuiiciechn ques,
(ii) gymnaslicsn lhe prescribedJorm,(iv) disciplinedsexual
intercourse, (v) achemicalandpharmaceuticaltechniq!es, (vi)
reguated dlet.
A comparisonof the above with the principlesol Tantra
clearly reveals close similarity.Tantric philosophyhas the
centralprinciplesoi Siva (Male)and Sakti (Female).
Physicaland mentaldisciplinesare ordainedin Tanlra,too,
powers,physicalfilness
for acquiring superhuman and longevily;
- racr. la-lra look<Jpon rhe humanbody as a nicrocosrn50
thal good heath is a sine qua non in TanlricSadhana.The
 7A Chaprer2 Nal!reol TanrncDoctrines

resprratoryexercise,advocaledrn Taoism.has ils oarallelin Promscuoussexual intercollrsewas a featureof a Greek

fanltrc pranayima. The heltotherapeuliclechntqJe ot tle lesliva in hono!r oi the goddesses,Demelerand Persephone
iormer has its Indiancounierpartin a series of solar nluals. The riluals connected with the union ol Cybele and AllLs,
The gymnastictechniquesoi Taoismare matchedby Tjntr c Aphroditeand Adonis,lshtarand Tammuz,Demelerand Zeus
Halhayaga and Keyas;idhana.Stress on dietary is common io were marked bY sex-riies.
bolh. The alchemicai-pharmaceutical lechniquesare found in
both the syslems;in lndia we have severalworks on Tantric Frazer te ls us?5about ihe lact thal [/olher Goddess,
alchemy.ll is significantthat, accordinglo tradition,Bhoga symbo isinglhe reproductrveenergiesol nalure,was worshipped
(Bogarin Tamil),a ChineseTaoislloundeda seci ol the South under difierenlnames, by many peoplesof West Asia.
lfdian TantricS/ddhas(Silfarin _Iamil)
who cultivatedaichemy Hogarth describesT6 how pervasivewas the worshLpot
vigorously. MotherGoddessin Asia Minorand aroundthe lvlediierranean.
The emphasison sexualpracticesis remarkablys rnilarin R. P Chanda poinis oul77the slmilarityol Sakti cult with
Taoismand Tentrism. the rnoclesof worshipol the lemale deity in Asia Mlnor,Syria.
fhe Sammoha-tantra statesthat,in Chinaalone,there are
one hundredma]ofTantrasand sevenminorTanlrasllJDatanten\. Footnoles
Some scholarsT, have pointedout the similarilvof the word 1 See Rudrayanala,Uttara ll, KularnavaXI, Xll Xl XlV,
Tara,aa.ne o' an imporlantTant c goddess.with'lhename ol xv 1,Pnn atasinill. 2. lll.1, V14, KularnavaXl Tantra'raja
Astarteor lshlaror Ashtaroth,the renownedMothercoddess GandharvaUl, XXUI,Saradatilaka ll, esp ll 143_44
oi WesternAsia, though no definiteconclusioncan be drawn a 2 0 0 _ 0 1X Vr 3 9
( R a g h a vsa c o m m . ) ,M a h a n i r v a nX
aboul the tntluenceo, one on the other, PrcpancasaraXXXVI,
In consideringioreign influenceon Tanlra, il deserves K.snananda'sTantusara,p. 3, Kanakhya'tantta1V,
notice thal, according to the Sammoha-tantta, goddess Njla- Kaulavalinirnayax, Parasuranakalpasutrax 75
(Famesvara s comm).
Sarasvatiapprovedat a placesupposedto have been included
in N,4ongolia73. 2. SeeKulanava,Xl,XlV Rudrayamala, L)\lata,llPtapancasara
XXXVI.50, Krsnanaflda'sTantnsatap. 3. Satadatilaka,ll
It is curiousthat the ancient religioussyslems of manv 745-50,153 Tan!rcraia l.23-24. Rudrayamala, U\latall
countfies,especiallythose systemsin whichthe cuttol lVothef Kulanava xll Kaulavatinirnaya X Parasurcmakalpasutra
Goddess played a vilal role, reveal belieis and practrces x.74.
srmliar,to a greatextenl,lo those in IndianTantriccults,4.As 3. See Pranalosinill. 4, p- 118, Kulatnava,xlv.
inslances,we may cite the galliof the Syriantvlothercoddess,
Astarte of Hierapolis,the Eleusinianand Phrygian. 4. See SandatilakalV1 (Baghava'scomm).Pranalostni| 5,
p. 143,SaktEangana,Kali Xl, 29-37.
Phrygian mysteries, the Dinonysian riles, the I\,4ariarr Namesof someSouthIndianladies,nol necessarily Ianlr c
5.
secreis,eta.Secret,orms of worship,resemblingTdntricrites. S a d h i k a . ,e n d i n - a n b a , e , g , R a m a c h a d r a m b a ,
prevailedin Phrygia,Syria, Lydia, Cappadocia,Ponlus and Tirumalamba, elc.
9alatia, in all ihese regionsthe cult ot N4otherGoddesswas 6 For delails, see SastramutakBhatatiyaSaklisadhanalin
ooDUlat. Bensalr),lsl ed., ChaP-14.
 N a l u r eo 1 l a n l a c u o c l n n e s a1

7. See Pranalosini.
27 F o r i n s t a n c e ,r h e N i t a s o l l a s i k a r n a v(a1 . 1 3 0 2 2 ) m e n l r o n s
L See ctossary. 64 Tanrras. See Tanlra in lhe lexicon, Sabdakalpadruna
9. See Pranatosini,tt.4. rhe Saundaryalahati, attribuled lo Samkara-carya, lhe
g t e a l A d v a i t a p h i l o s o p h e r ,a l s o m e n l i o n s 6 4 T a n l r a s i n
10. See clossary.
1t. tbid. 28. See Chapler on Kali.
12. W Crooke in Jout of Anlhropatogicattns ute. XXV| p- 29 r s c o n c e p l i o no i S a k t i i s s e t l o r l h i n l h e l o l l o w i n gl i n e s ( i .
,
246 1 42)
13. B. Thomson,The Fizians,p. 1|6. tvam saktireva jagatan akhilaptabhava
B- Spencerand F.Gillen,NativeTribesaf CentratAustratia, tvannimittam ca sakalan khalu bhavanatram /
p.401.
tvan k dase nija-vjntmita-nahajate
A.W- Howi , Native Ttibesot S. E. Austatia, p. S3O.
natye yatha viharate svakrte natavai //
15. H. Webster,PrimlrlyeSecret Societies,pp. 34-35, 49-66.
Y o u , l h e o m n i p o l e n lo n e , a r e i n d e e d S a k i i o f t h e w o r l d .
16. SeeCha[opadhyay. lokayaia.p.485 .: N.N.Bha.ra.ha,/a Y o ! a r e t h e c a u s e o f e v e r y l h i n gY . ou sporl in the web of
Ancienl lndtan P,rrsls, pp. 78-80. delusion crealed by you, as an actor in the dramalrc
17. As describedby P V Kane. r e p r e s e n l a i i o nc r e a t e d b y h i m s e l i .
18, fhe Auddhismol Tibet ot Lanaisn, 1895, pp. 336-337. 30. See Bahvrcopanisad, p. 62.
19. lA, vols.xxvi, 19a7,pp.24-25. 31. See Ency. of Rel. and Ethics, V, p. A2A.
20. see P v Kane, Hist.of Dha.nsastra,v pl. 2, 1962,p. 32. Adanis, Attis Osirs, p.p. 394-95.
1 t29 33. lbid, p.393.
21. See A. Coomaraswamy, Buddha anc! Gospet of Buddha 34. T h e M a t h e t s ,l l , p . 2 5 1 .
rorrls represenlationin Ceyton(t8th cent.AD) Grunv/edet,
BuddhistAtt in tndia. (rrc. A. C. Gibson),rigure 126 B 35. A s c h y l u sa n d A t h e n s , p p . 1 5 - 1 6 .
Bha acharya.Buddhisttconog,aphy ptate xxv t: \. K. 36 R. C. Majumdar, Classical Accounts of tndia p. p. 222-
LJnanashati,/co,iog.aphy o{ BuddhEt and Btanmanrcat 223,456-454
Su/plures,ptate V l. 37. wallerc, On Yuan Chwangs etc., . p. 330.
22. See N. K. thaitashati,opi clt.,ptatesXX, XXt. 38. lbid, . p. 257.
23. See P.Shah in Jour of Orienlal/nstitule,vot. vi, No. 1, pp. 39. C . A . S h e n n g , W e s t e t n T i b e t ,p . 3 3 8 .
t-35.
40. K a m a s u l r a ,V a n q a v a s ie d . , p . 3 5 8 .
24. For^Saya-sadiana accordingto Bengatiwfiterc, see Chapier
on BengalTanlra_ A . p l a i j a i r , l h e G a r o s ,p . p . 8 0 f . f .
25. S_eeKautava-ninaya, V|t,76t Kutarnava,xi, 79, 84, 85i 42 P R . T . G u r d o n , T h e K h a s i s ,p . p . 6 2 L t .
Tanlrcia-tantra,
XXXV 6. E. Thursron, Castes and Tribes af Southetn lndia, v, pp.
26. Saclhananata,|, p. 5o5. 294-323; L.K.A.K.lyer, Cochin Tibes and Castes, ll, p. 49,
K. M. kapadia, Marriage and Fanity tn lndia, pp.386 t.r.
 a2 ChapleF2 Nal!re of TanvrcDoclrnes

lyet, op. cit, . pp. 28-29, 76, 98. Ianta p 7. See Bergaignna, lnscriptian de Canpa et der
T h u r s l o n ,o p . c l . l l . p p . 6 6 , 2 9 6 , / 1 ,p p . 3 3 , 7 4 , e t c . : t V , p p . Canbodya, 1, 157, 384, 389'92.
3 5 0 , e r c . , V l l , p . 1 6 3 i H . V . N a n j u n d a y y aa r d y e t , I l t y s o r c 57 See F C. lMaiumdar Ancient Indian Colanies in the Fal
T r i b e da n d C a s t e s , L p p . 3 , 7 , 1 0 8 ; l l l , p p . 1 4 9 2 4 7 , e I c East, l pp. 2, PP. 102-103.
r V p p . 1 0 , 1 3 8 ,4 2 2 .
58. O n t h e t o p c s , s e e J F i l l l z a t ,C l a s s i c a lD a c h n e o f l n d i a n
R. V Russell, Tribes and Castes of Centrat prcvhces af M e d t c t n e ,p p . 2 3 4 ' 3 5 .
l n c t i a ,t l p . 2 2 1 : l l l , p p . . 1 , 3 9 ,2 9 9 , 3 9 4 , l V 6 5 1 8 7 . 4 0 8 .
59 See A Avalon Tantraic Texts, vol. ll
46. O. R. EhrenielsM , o l h e r - i g h ti n l n d i a ,p p . 1 A ,I t . 1 Z t - 1 2 9 .
60. S e e C h a r l e s w o r l h ,T r a d e ' r o u t e sa n d C o n m e r c e a t t h e
201-4
Fonan Enptre, p. 59.
The rool ma may means to bulld or to measure.
61 see Matrkabheda-tantra, Parala 12.
48. K a l r d a s a ,w h i l e r e f e d n g t o t h e g o o d q u a l i l i e so t a k i n g
62 See c, Tucci, J4SA NS, LXXVI, 1930, pp. 55ff. Lama
says - pralanan vinayadhanad raksana(t bharanadapi
( T l b e r a nA / a - m a )g e n e r a l l yd e n o t e ss c l r o l a rH
. e r e ,h o w e v e r
s a p / i a ii o r t r a n i n g ,p r o t e c t i n ga n d m a n l a i n i n gl h e s u b j e c l s ,
i l r e f e r st o a g r o u p o f e x p e r t sw h o h a d t h e i r o w n e s o l e r i c
h e w a s t h e i l t a r h e t .l R a g h u v a n s a ,i . 2 4 ) .
a n d m y s l i c p r a c l i c e s ,L lw a s b e l i e v e dt h a l a s s o c i a l r o nw r l h
See B. BhaltacharyaS , c entiiic Backgro!nd of Auddhist t h e n r e n s u r e s s p i r i l u a l p r o g r e s s .T h e s e L a m a s a r e a l s o
Tanlras /HO, xxxl, Nos. 2, 3. For scienriiic bass oi known as Eup,ka(ass!ming difterenlforms dur ng nlerco!rse
Kundaljni Yaga,see c.Ktishna, Bialagtcatbasis af Retigion wth men) and Cumbika (Kssing men at the very trrsl
and Genius and ils iflro. by We zsacker. m e e r i n g ) .S e e P C . B a g c h i ,S t u d i e si n T a n t r a s p , p.49 5a
50 S e e G . K r i s h n a ,o p . c t r . 63. T h e s ew e r eo r i g i n a l l yh u m a nl e m a l e s ,a n d l a l e r o n e l e v a l e d
51. S p r i t u o u sl l q u o r ,d i s l i l e d i r o m t h e f l o w e r co f i h e M a d h u k a l o l h e s r a l u s o f d i v i n l i e s . F o r i n s l a n c e , i W e s t e r nT i b e l ,
rree or rrom grapes. a c l a s s o l s o f c e r e r sa n d w i t c h e s ,c a l l e d L h a _ K a , e d l o
I h e r i s e o l t h e d e s i g n a t i o nL a k i n i . S a k n i i s b e l r e v e dt o
52. S e e S . K . C h a l l e r i e e ,J , 4 S ,l , 1 9 5 9 , p . 1 8 0 h a v e b e e n d e r v e d f i o m S a k a s ( S c y l h i a n )a n d D a k r n it r o m
53. S e e S a d h a n a n a l a ,N o . 1 2 7 . D a s s ( p e o pe o f D a g s l a n ) .
54 /b,4 Nos. 123-128. See P C. Bagch. Studies in the Tantns, pp 37'40
55. i b i d ,N o s . 1 0 0 1 0 1 . Grosset /|l ir€ foolsleps ol the Buddha, pp. 109_110i /HO.
X , pp 142,144;B. Bhattacharya,Inrro.ro BuddhlslEsloertsm.
56. S e e B u l l e t i nd e E c o l e F h n c a i s e . . . O r i e n t X V , p p I O - 7 j l
B B. Chatterji, lndian Cuttural lnfluence in Canbocjia,
pp.273-74. 65. l n t r o . t o B u d d h i s tE s o l e r i s m ,p . 4 6 . S t e r n b a c hF e l i c i t a t i o n
Volune, , P. 491 fl-
F o r n f l u e n c eo l T a n t r ai n i h e F a r E a s l , s e e P C B a g c h i s
66. gaccha lvan bhasrate vaBe adhikarayrl sarvatah /
Studies in Tantraq R- C. Majon'dat, lnscriptions of Kambuja
anci JAS, 1950. Also6ee S. C. Banetji's Sansk.it Beyand p l r h e p i t h ek s e l r e s m i nk u r u s r s l i r n a n e k a d h a/ /
See Neqal Catalogue
l l r s I n t e r e s l i n gl o n o l e t h a t s o m e s y m b o s i n i h e n a l u r a l P.LXXIX.
c a v e r n so i P a l a e o l i l h i cE u r o p e( C . 2 0 , 0 0 0 B . C ) r e s e m be
t h o s e s t i l l ! s e d b y t h e T a n l r a i k a s .S e e P F a w t i n s o f , 67. See A. Avaon Mahanitvana Ianrra, 3rd Ed., p 560
 ChapleF2

68 S e e B . B h a l l a c h a r y aB , u d d h i s tE s o t e r i s n ,p . 4 3 2 . S e e H .
P S a s t r i ,N o l i c e so l S k t . M S S , 2 n d S e r i e s ,i , X X X l l , p . 1 5 2 i
P r o r .S . K . C h a l l e r j e e J, , 4 S ,I , 1 9 5 9 ,p . l i 3 ; S . L e v i , N e p a l ,
l , p . 3 4 6 i W o o d r o f , e ,S a k t i & S a k t a , 8 l h e d . p . 1 2 3 .
69. Studies in Tantta, p. p. 45-55. Also see Bagchi in lHO, vir,
193 Lt.
7Q O n t h i s q u e s l i o n ,s e e S . K . C h a l l e r j ii n J 4 S , l . 1 9 5 9 . P
1 O 4 t1 1 3 t G o e zi n A S O R ,3 5 , 1 9 5 5 ,p . p . l 3 3 f l i J . N e e d h a m
Science and Civilisation in China, tt, pp. 149-51,425-za.
71. See J. Needham, op. cit
72. See N. N. Bhalfacharya, Histoty at Tantnrc religion, p.
104.
73. S e e o u r o b s s r v a t i o n si n l h i s r e g a r d u n d e r T a n l r a B e y o n d
Chapter-3

See N. N. Bhallacharya! book. op'ctl pp 87ff.

VedicOrigin of T6ntric Practices
75. See Adorts Allis Osirts, pp. 34-35.
76. See Ency. ot Aeligion and Ethics, I, p. 147
See tndo-Atyan naces, pp. 148-49.
Chapter-3

Most ol the scholarsare of the viewthatlhe relrgion of

the Tantrasis quitedistinctfrom thal oi the Vedas.Some
occultpraclicesprescribed in the Tantras,in particular, are
saidlo be quile opposed10the pathprescribed in tf'e Vedas.
Sornescholars, on lheotherhand,holdlhatiheT,intricreligion
is notdifferentIromthe Vedicreligion. In realily,however, lhe
Tanlrasare of lwo types:someare pro-Vedic and someare
non-Vedic.'Accordingly, the Tentricpraclices are alsool two
types'pro'Vedic andnon-Vedic- Thisposition canbe supported
by lhe tacl lhat lhe philosophical ideasand pracliceslound
in someTantras,suchas,lheKilarnava-T6\nlra,lhe l"4ahdoirvana-
Tantra.lhe Pnpartca-sarae1c.bear remarkable similarilies
wilh thoseof the Vedas.Someof the Tantrasot this group
claimto haveoriginated tromlhe Vedas.TheKuldrnava-Tantta
saysthaltheTentricpathis lhe essenceol theVedicreligion.,
ln theviewol Bh:iskararava. lheTantrasconlaintheessence
ol lhe Upanisads. On the otherhand, practices prescribed in
sometantras,suchas, the Yoni-Tantra,lhe Kuman-Tanlra,lhe
NiruItaa-Tantra,the Gupta-sedhana-Ta,lra elc. seem lo be
very lar lfom thoseof the Vedas.Particularly, the praclices
calLed Ciniic:irasor practices oi cina,enjoined in someTanlras
of lhis group,are in all probability ol non-Vedicorigin.Ol
course,the philosophy behindthe praclices of the non Vedic
Tantras, rs nolquiledislincifromlhatof thepro.Vedic Tanlras,
theonly femarkable dillerence betweenihese twobeingth s
ihal In the non-Vedic Tantrasgreaterconcession has been
grvento the sensualpleasures and leelingso{ the common
humanbeings.s whileinthepro-Vedic Tantras greater emphasis
has beenlaidon the reslrainloJthe commonhuman{eelings.
TheVedicreligionhastwo prlncipalpalhs- (i) Kamakenda
or the palhol actionwhichis meantior the preservation and
smooih runningof societyal]d lii) jfiena-kdndaot the palh
of knowledoe whichleadsmento liberation. Thetormeris the
 88 Chapler-3 VedicOrigin oJTiiniric Praclices

palh ol pravrttiot bhogai.e. enjoyment;lhe latteris the palh purascaranaor

holywordsand sentences, muftering oI mant@s
ot nrvrltiot tyega i.e. renuncialion.These two paths are thus greal number with performances, homa
in a along someolhei
contradictory lo each alher. fhe karma-kanda advocales the physical posl!rc, pdnayame
or sacrifice,asanaor ot b.ealh-
rnainlenance of societylhroughactionsand wordlyenloyments,
control,dhyanaor meditalion,dhararaor concentraiion of the
while lhe jnana-kandapreachesthe renouncementoi atl lhe yanlra-sddhane
|",ind, or praclice
on symbolical diagrams, and
worldlyenjoymenlslorthe altainmentof liberation, the summum so on. The mostimDorlant oracliceol lhis kindis that of sal-
bonumof 1e.Herelhe problem s: if liberationis to be attained
cakra-bhedaor raisingthe kundalinipowet lying al the base
only throughrenuncation,wrlllhe personsperforrningactions
of the spinalcordto the brchma-Bndhraot sahasraralying al
and iving householdlives be deprived of llberaton? The
thelooeol the samecord.ll is heldthaltherear€ six cakras
Tanlra cornesforward lo solve the problem by alliliattngpravrtti
or medilalionalcentrescalledmuladhem, svadhisthana, manipuq,
or enlovmenl 1o niv lior ren!nctalion.lt says thal bhoga or
anah^b. visuddhdand a/ra withinthe neruecalledsusumnd
wordlyenjoymentalso can be directedtowardsIberat on. The
runningihfoughlhe spinalcord.Thesesixcentreslie parallel
Kuhrnava-Tantrasaysihal in Tantra bhoga re appears n lhe
form of yoga.' That means, herc bhoga is enjoyinednot for
to lhe evacuative organ,the generative organ,the nevael,the
heart, the throatand lhe brow,respectively. The duiy of a
bhogailsell,hul lot yoga or re-unionwith the UltimaleReatily.
Fot,inTar'lra,bhogaor enjoymentappearsas bhogaonlyout
s;idhakais 10raiselhe kundalini-powetlying helow mihdherc
wardly,while inwardlyit is lyaga or renunciation.Hence the
la brahma-randhra ot sahasrrrathroughthesesix medilational
practicesprescribedin lhe Tantra embraceboth lhe elemenls
ol enjoymentand renunciationlound in karma kAndaand iiZna- (2) The principalpracticesol the secondtype a.e those
kanda, respectively.And from a comparatlvestudy ol the performed withpa6ca-ma-kdras or fivethingshaving'm'asthe
T:intricand the Vedic practices,il witt be seen lhat mosl ot 'n llal lelrer in lheir names.Theseli've fia-ka:'asarct maclye
the Tenlr c practicesexisl in some forrn orother or, alleasl, or wine,rrinsa or meat,malsyaot lish, mudfuor ealablesand
n lhe form ol a seed in lhe Vedic praclicesretatingeitherto maithuna oI sex-enjoymen]-.CakG-sadhana ot practiceperlomed
karma-kendaat 10 ifiena-kenda. n an assernblyol males and females with lhe five makafas
The T;inlic practicesmay broadlybe d vided nlo three
In a secrelplace- proferably in a cemetery - at some dark
classes as follows: (1) Some practces are regarded as nightrs alsoa praclic€of thislype.The praclicewithmeat
olrlrgatoryor extremelynecessarylor spiritual upliit and are necessarly bringswith it the performance of yali or animal
accepledby people in generalwith reverence,being neither sacrifice including nan-valiotlhe sactiliceol humanbeings.
dreadlynof extrernelysecrel, (2) Some praclicesare considered Oiher practices ol this typ€ atet svagatn-rudhira-mensa-
as obLrgatory or highly necessarylor the attainmentof an sadhana or lhe practiceol olleringbloodandlleshout ot one's
enlightenedlife but are generallylooked upon as dreadtutor own body,cila-sddhaneor praclicewiththe helpot the luneral
pyrc, sava-sedhaneotiho practiceol meditationby sitting on
exlremelysecrel.(3) There are slill otherpracliceswhrchhave
lltle relalionor no relationwith religionor spiritualuptittand a dead body in a secretplace- preterablyin a cemetery-
are perlormedlor lhe tullilmentol some wordlv desire or for at dark nighl, munda-sealhand ot pactice to be perlormed by
the gratification ol some evil motive. sitlingon threeor live heads ot menor ol ditferentanimals
includingone ot man,and so on.
(1) The tirst kind ol practicesinclude diksa or initation
trom some gum or preceptor,lapaor mutteringol mantrasol {3) Practicesol lhe third lype consist mainly ot the sat'
karmansat slx kinds ol occult practices called abhicercs.
 90 Chapter3
These are: sajnlior practiceslot lhe cure ot some dtsease
or
Ior warding ofl som€ evjls, vesikaama or practtces
tor
enLhantlngorov6rpowenngsomeperson,stamDhanaot
Vaclices
ror barringlhe kurtionol some event, yrdyesanaor praLlices
tor creating an inimical relation between persons, ucatana
or
practices tor creating imbalancein some one.s
mtnd and
marana or ptacllces lor killing some person.
Let us now see howlarlhese practicescan be rraced lo
lhe vedrc l,lerature.
I Djkszior initialionfrom some guru or preceprorts
d^
essenllalSacramentOt the VediC trad,lion.In ne Attarcya
BQhmana l'h.1) and lhe Tajthiya Aranyaka
\Ch.2) we hno
oerafledctescrjplions of lhe nte ol initialton or diksantyesti.
Ch?ndoqyl Up. says that rt is onty a man who acqLir6s
:h:
proper knowledgelrom an acaryaOr preceDtOr
thar Lan .epell
nrs rgnoranceaboul the self or Brahmans.Japa or multeirng
ol manlasand puascaraata or rnuterjng ol /rarlfas in a greal
numoer are bul improvemenlsover svadhyayaor regr.rtar
ttudy
ol the Vedas.Thathornaswere regutarandobtigaloryperiormance;
or Ine vedrc peopte does not requrreany detarl.The Vedic
peoplehad to pertorm lhe nte ol agnihotradaity.
In whrchrhey
had to ofter milk to the fire ca ed garhapatya.Besrdes,rhere
were ,orras oi numerans types,
Pracllces like asara, prenayema, dhyana ot nddhyesana,
..
onarana etc, were quile tamrliarlo the Upan,saoicway ol
spifltual life fhe Upanisads say that medrtation shoutd be
oedormedby sining and keeprngthe chest. neck a-o head
slraighl.s ln a numbor ol places of the lJpanj;ads, we l|r,d
relerences to prana and apana, ihe knowledge of which is
essenllallot prenayAmaorbreath-control.The ChandogyaUp
(1.2) and the BrhaderanyakaUp. (1.3) have shown in derail
lhe superiorityol prcna olet all lhe sense-organs.The fve
kinds ol Nena or vilal air are menlioned in lie prasna uD.
13.5').Pdneyama is clearfy reterred lo in the Katha Up. \2 2 3)
a d lhe Svetasvatara Up. l2.S).t Dhyada or rneditatjon and
dharanaor contentrationoflhe mind werethe principal practices
ol the Upanisadicsages. The well,known passage ol the
BrhadaranyakaUp., stotavyomantavyonididhy(tsitavyah 12.4.5),
clearlyordainslhe pracliceol mediation.In the latefUpanisads
tike lhe Yogasikha, the Yoga-cudamanietc. there are plentv
references to asana, pranayama, dhyoena, dhi;rana elc.
Though the Tzintric mono,syllabiamani'as or sounds
calledvtasseemoulwa.dlylobe meaningless, muchimporlance
is altached1othem. Taces ol such mono-syllabic marlras are
iolnd in the Vedas. The use ol'phat is probablymentioned
in the Fyand is clearly lound in lhe Vejasaneyi-Samhib
\7.3).3fhe Taittiiya-Aranyaka(4.27Jme ionsa distinct charm
c o n s l s t n go f l h e s o u n d s ' k h a / , ' p h aat n d ' k a t . s T h e T a n t c
methodot symbolising spiritualprinciplesthroughsome ie ers
of lhe alphabel can clearly be traced to the hinkercpesane
an.i aumkaro-pesane ol the Chendogya Up_ (1.1), and the
Asvabyana Srcula -stlra (1.1).1a
The practiceof worshippingyartrasor symbolicatdiagrams
.r'ay be lraced lo the /yand the fa tinya AanyaAa. fhe
design ot the sacriticia,allar described in dilrercnl Brehmanas,
Aranyakas and Silva-sitrcs also might have contributed to
the formationof the idea o{ the symbolicaldiagramsof the
Tinlric practices.Laksmidhara,whilecommentingon Soundarya-
/arari(32), quoles some passagesfrom lhe Ia ittiriya-BEhmana
and lhe Taitliriya Aranyaka and explains them as referring to
the Sri vidya ol Tantra.Swami Vjsnutirthaalso quotessome
passagesfrom the "Saubhagyakanda'ol lfie Ayto show thal
the idea ot Sri vidyi alongwiththat ol symbolicaldiagrams
rs traceablein the AY.
The most importantpracticeof tantra,Yoga,Vaisnavism,
Adva la,Ved;inta etc. is that of satcakrc-bheda. ln short, all
olher practices ol these schools are meanl {or this sal-cakra-
bheda.ll is generallyopinedthatlhis practiceoriginatedin the
schoolof Tantrawherelrom it was bofiowedlaterby the other
schools.But a study of the Upanisadiclilerature shows that
llre idea oi the cakfas or medilalionalcenlresand lhe nerve
susurrnawithinwhichthe cakasaresaid to exislwas already
there in lhe Upanisads.fheKalha I.Jp.12.1 12,2.3.17)and lhe
svetasvataraUp. (3.13) say that the Highest purusa exists
 92 Chapler-3
in the lolus of the heart in lhe shape of the thumb. The
Chandogya Up. lA 1l) and lhe Kaivalya up. (j.6) refer lo rhe
htlpundaika ot hearl,totus.', The Katha IJp. (2.3.16) refers
to a nerve originatinglrom the heartand extendingup to the
tope oJ lhe head, which is noting bui lhe nerve susumna.
Further,the same Up. (2.2.1)describes the body as having
eteven gates whichcertainlyjnctude- besidesthe ninewell,
known passages ot two ears, lwo eyes elc. - muhdhi\ra and
brahma'randhra,the passagesal the base and at the lop
respeclively,of lhe nerve s./sumna.'3 The Aydescribes the
body as a city havingeighl cakrasor circles and nine gates.
Here 'eighl cakras' prcbablyincludebesides the six well,
known cakrcs - sahas/ara lying at the iope ol the head and
lalan-cakrclying helween ajna and sahasGra.il Again,lhe AV
slates that lhe spinal cord containsthirly-sjx aksaras o(
letlers.'5This correspondstotheTantric idea otplacno lhe
aksaraslo lhe dilferent catfas ot the sprnatco.d t- lh;et,.
known simile ol two birds restingon the same tree, lhe bird
tree from all sofiows represenls Brahman staying in brahma
randhra at sahastara, and lhe bird subiectedto sorrows stands
lor lhe jiva lying at the base of the spinal cord.,6The tree
described as'urdhva-mulovak-sakha'(Katha,2.3.j) .e. as
nav,ngils rools aboveand tne branchesbetow,rerersto lhe
nerve susumna;tot at the lope ol the nerve exisls Brahman
and in its lowerpartsiie the pfinciplesof liie. Further,ihe series
o' L'eaIon lound n lhe Sa'ntnya-yogasyslemcorresoondsto
lhe 0r'le'e'l calras.Tl^espacebelweensahasraraand lne drrid
cakta lying pa?)le) lo the brow accomodaies the cateqories
Ito.r prak.ti to ahamkara, white the cakras o' V!i;ddha.
anahata, manipura, svadhi,thana and muladhara tying at the
throal, lhe heart, the navel, the generauveorgan and rhe
evacualiveorgan, respeclively, correspondlo the cateqories
or elher.air. rlre,walerand earth.respectrvetyTne ChanAogya
Up. (5-16)describesthe generatjveorganas a placeof wale;,r
fhe Yoga-sitra ol Palaijali refers lo lhe nabhi-cakra at navel
cente, hrdaya ot head, kanthakupaot lhrcal and murdha-ivot6
ot brahma-rcndhta6The yoga-sasl.aoiDattatr.yadrscUises
In clear terms lhe posilion of lhe nerve susumrd and lhe
93
VedicOriginot TentricPractices
cakaslying within il-reThe later Upanisadslike lhe Kaivalya'
he Yoga-aikha.lheYoga'cidAmanietc deal in delail wilh
the nerve susumra and the cakfas.From all lhese, we can
co_cludewil- ^erlarnly that lhe ioea ol the ne've susumnj
ard lhe cakras was lhere in the Vedic tradition.
2. Of the secreiand dreadlulpracticesof Tantra,the most
commonand rernarkablepracticesare those performedwith
Ihe I ve ma-karas. Ol them, mudrii or lhe praclice of offer ng
cookedrice and vegetableelc. tolheMoiher and takinglhe
samealterwardsis not at all an elemenlol secrecyor censure,
This pracliceol mudre may be traced io the Vedic praclice
ol oflerlngpurodasa,a kind ot cake, to the gods and eating
the remains of it.
ln lhe Vedic soma-sacriiices.lhe sacriticesused lo oller
the l!ice ol soma-creeper to the gods and lake ihe same after
the offering. This soma'iuice was a kind ol liquor,as il is
clearlyundersloodfrom lhe behavjours of the gods and lhe
scariliersafier dr nklng il (RV 2.19.1) ,Somawas very much
favouritelo lndrawho becomeintoxicatedbydrinking il,and,
accordingly- he was ve(y oltencalledsomapaor soma-drinker,
Ihe SatapathaBrehnara (5-4.5.19)says ihat spirituousrquor
was offered lo Indra.Asvinaand Sarasvati:n the Sautramani
sacri{rce.Soma sacritice,soma-iuicewas exiricatedlhree
timesa day in ihe morning,in the noon and in lhe eventngand
was offered to gods. Parlicularly, in lhe atietaVpe ol soma-
sacr fice. Somawas !sed in large quantiiyat night.Thus, the
Tdntricpraclicewlth wine was a verv commonelemenl oJlhe
Ved c rites.
Anrmal-sacriftceot pasu-yegawas also a very common
perlormanceof lhe Vedic people.ln the Brdhmanictiterature,
tlrereare detailed descriptionsol the killing of animalsin the
anrmal-sacrifice.In this sacrjtice,a spol was demarcatedtor
killinganimals.wherea yipa or wooden-l'a.r'eforbindingthe
anrmals was kepl tixed.Ajler choppjng ofl the head oi an
anirnalthere,the yap;ior fat oftheanimal was taken outot
ls abdomen.11was then cleansed,cooked in an earthenjar
and ofiered to the gods, after which it was laken by ihe
 94 Chapter'3
scariliers.Animalscommonly
killedin animal-sacrifrces
were
rams and goats.In horse,sacrilices,horsesalono w/th a
nLnber ol w,ld dnd oofleslic antma! were ^tl,Fd y/eabr,as
or bullsalso were probablykilledin some sacrifices.According
t0 sorne,humanbeingswere also killed in the sacriiicesof
purusamedhaand sarva-medha,whie accordingto olhers,
human beingswere simply offeredalive and n01killed.,0In
any case, lhere shouldbe no doubt thai the Tjnlrjc oractce
ol human sacriiice or narc vali has its root n the Ved c
sacritlcesol ol purusa-medhaand sarva-meona.
The ro e of sex-elementsin connectionwilh religiousrites
rs aiso lound rn the Vedic literature.In the descrption of
goddessUsas,thereare elements which are pronelo arouse
sex-ree ngs. tn the vejasaneyi-samhit4 aI the yaiuFveda,
lhere occursa hymn (23.22-31)whichseems to nd cate that
sexual unronwas employedtorihe promotion oi agricultural
products.The descriptlon ot the horse-sacrifice occufiino in
th. Satapatha Bahmana(r.1.-8,20.21) bearssomecexeterre:ts.
The descripliongoes thus: The horse io be sacflfced is
covered wilh a garmentand siain. The queens go round lt
thrice frorn leit io rlght and thrice from right to tefi. The
chief queen goes near the horse,The queen and the horse
are lhen coveredwilh a garmentand are givento lie iogelher.
n the rneantime,the priest,the maidensand olher queens
ndulge n vulgar and sexual ialks. This part oi the horse,
sacrificehas thus a clear relerence lo sex and hence may
lre Interpreied as havingsomethingto do with the lertrttv-culi.,i
Further, n the SalapathaBrahmanawe cofiP- across numerous
passage n which sexual union is identitiedwth sacrifice
12,4.422 1 .; 5 1 . 1 , 5 . 1 31 9 ;5 . 2 . 5 . 8 ; 6 . 3 . 3 0 ; 6 . 3 . 3 . 3 8 i 7 . T
5h. 1e. 6 ) .
Altareya-Annyaka\2.1.1: 2.3.7) also relers to sex-eement
when it describesseed and woman-bloodas AdilVaand Aont.
respeclively.r,
In a numberof Upanisadicpassages,woman is conceived
as the sacrilicialfire,
her lowerprivaiepo11ion
as the sacrrlicial
wood,lhe generative organas theflame,andso on (Ch.Up.5.1B.j
22,8r.Up.6.2.13).The BrhadaranyakaUp.(6.4.3) descrbeslhe
V€dc Ongn ol Tant c Practces
ower private parl of woman as the sacrilicial altar and lhe
srnallerparts oi lhe same as representingdifferentparts or
maierialsol sacrifce. lt is addedthat one who remembersthis
during copulatrongets the result of the vajapeya-sacrtice.
This means that sex-enioymentshould be regardedas a
sacriice and that it should be done wilhoutany attachment.
n the "Vdmadeva-upiisane" ol the ChandogyaUp.(2.13.1'2), it
is said that the sign made by a man to a woman rs hrm-
kara (thesound'him'),hls lying with her is udgltha(the sound
hum)hlslacinq iowards heris pralihar.a (inspiration) and so
an lha Tartit;ya Up. ard the TaillrriyaAranyaka say ltat
Praiapaiiin lhe form oi immo al bliss existsin the generalive
atgan.l',lhe Brhaderanyakaup. also says lhat all the elemenls
of b ss culrnnate in ihe bliss of the generativeorgan-'?s
Thus, a I lhe elemenls ot lhe Tiintric practiceswith ihe
Iive ma-kArascan be lracedto the sacri{icial ritesof lhe Vedas
and ihc ph,lo(op!.a discoursesof Ihe Upanisads.
The Tentric practice of the ofleringoJ blood and llesh
by the sadhaka out oJ his own body might have developed
Joundin sarua-yajiaor Jrom
irom the idea of self-immolation
the Vedic idea that the yajam;inaor saciiicer is to be looked
Lrponas the pasuor animaltobe saciliced.Though lhe Tenklc
practlces01cit;i's,idhand,sava-sddhane and munda-s;idhan;i
cannol be direcllytracedto ihe Vedic lradition,lhey seem to
be later developmentsol some or the other Vedic riles.
The Tzinlricpractices o{ sal-karma or six kinds ot abhicaras
or magica rites are explicillydeallwith in the Vedic literature
as tollowsl
Senlt: the RV deals with spells lor curing diseases
(10.162)and prescribesantidoteslor poison( 1.191;7.50.
In the
AV, we lind numerousspellsfor curingdiseasesimaginedas
demons (5.2.2). Further,in this yeda we tind a number ol
hyrnnscalled pauslikaniby which one could gain happiness
and avold danger.There are also hymns calledsammanasya
by which peaceand harmonyof a familycouldbe broughtand
unitybeiweenhusbandand wite could be reslored.The use of
 97
96 Chapl€r-3 VedicOrlgin oi TdntricPraclices

also' lhe Tanlras

protective
amuletsis seento be very popularal the time of Vedas. Accordingto lhe kadllional view
i"Joea tror rf'e: Sar oragya-kdndaollhe Ay TnPhalikulitnava'
lhe d'scourse
fa.t,a c'early'ocusesthlslraditionwhen ll slarls ahe
Vasikarana:The Taittirliya"Samithiri(2.3.1) prescrbes Rudtd
;;, N"* D;"' says in ihe AthatuanaSamhna
s:imgrahani
rnantras by whicha personcouldbe wonoverand Alnarava_Vedasak"r'
prominenlor powedulpersonsand unrulywives could be 1-anatarCt.ttl alsoreierslo Mahedevras
^ by
Tanlra_work Da'nodara rs eurogrsed
tf," virio.r'"tu."ni
tamed.The Tailtiriya-Brehmana (2.3..10)says lhat Sitalried Kulatrdva'
as.ontarnrnql^e essenceof IHeAy Fulnet lhe
to win somathroughso.cery.In lhe AV, lhereare numerous Ine palh ol Tanlta calleoKulamargaas lhe
irnr,,0"."i0""
sDellsbv whicha husbandor lovercoLlldallraclhis wite or of Vedas ln the view ol Bhaskaraya'lhe Tenttas
belovedtowardshim (3.25.1-2). In lhe sameway,spellsare :'
""a"na"
mart<sa continuation oJlhe Upanisadicsectionol lhe Vedas
loundwhichcouldbe usedby a ladyto win overthe heartof lo .raln a r
Accofoingly.the Ianl"c lJpanisadsare sLooosed
someman.we comeacrosssomeacrosssomelormulasalso ao'recr ri ar'onOerweenIne Vedas and lhe fankas A lhPqe
by whichonecouldappease lhewrathof a grealmasleror galn study thal
vlews oo in lavour oi the result olour Ioregoing
oTominence in an assemblv. in lhe Vedas
th" Tu-nlri"pru"t"". have got their origin
Stambharar ln theAV,we meelwithwildcharmsby which
a womancouldbe madebarrenor a mancouldbe robbedol
his generative
power.fnIhe ebhicekahymnsottheAV,lhere BEFERENCES
-
are also magicformulasto loil lhe magicalacls ot some 1. v i d e U K D a s s " U p a k r a m a n i k ; i t' o \ h e K u l a t n a v a
Tanta, P 4
vedagama'maharnavam Sara_
Vidvesana.ln the RV, we lind spells or praclices lor malhilvAnena_manthena -
anarmomavr{dev kLrla-dhafmah samuddhrlah Kularnava_
removlng co-wlves (10.145.159),
as rsclarified
In theApastdmaa- viddhl
Gthyasitrc(10.5-8.9. In the AV also,lhereare spellswhich i . " t , u . z i l o ; l a s m 6 d v e d 6 t m a k a ms a s l r a m
karlatmakam PnYc - ibid 2 86'
couldbe appliedby a woman10ousther rivals.
videYoni_Tanlra, Chs 5 and7; Nila-Tanlra Ch 11:Kumar
Ucdlana:In lhe AV we see spellscomingunderlhe class Tanira.Ch. 6 and Gupta's6dhana'Tantra Ch 4
calledslri-karmeniby whichonecouldcreateloveintrrgues and - h i arnavd_'arr'a 2 2r'
disturbances in a madiedlite,Therealsospellswhicharesard 4. voqa b'rogalnakan xaulam
y o ; o b h o g a y a l e- i b r d , 2 2 5
to be capableol makingsomepersoninsane.Again,we come
itcdryavdn purusoveda- Chendogva Up ' 6 14 2
acrossspellsforinflamingtheloveoJsomewomanlKausikasukta, 5.
-Karvalva
3s,28). 6. sukhdsanaslhah sucihsama'grive_srtah_sarirah
up, ii ri i --rr" samansa i'ar nrdindr'vdn'
Meana: ln lhe Vejasaneyi-Samhita 17.3),the Ketyeyana u"tv" "rnepv;
- Svelasvarara Up 2 I
-"nu"u t"nn'
Srayta-sitrc\9.4,39Jandthe Taithriya-Arcnyajka (4.27),there
are charmsagainstdemons.In lhe abhicarika-hymns of the T oavuosrhF p a n a n - P r a s n du p 3 5 a l h a l \ d l o r d h v a
,l!"'". - '"lo 3 T t dhvamp'anamunnavarv apa"dn
AV, we lind charmsby whichenemiescouldby destroyed. - Katha up 2 23 prarda praordvena
prdryagasyalr
Fromthe above, it is seenthal almoslall the e emenls samvuklaceslah- svetasvalara up z 5
ol the T6ntricpracticescan be iraced lo the Vediclilerature, phal prenavatva vyanayalvd - Vaiasaneyi_Samhila
T3
8.
and, hence.lhey must be regardedas originaling lrom the - Ialt'va
9. k h a t - p h a d - j a h i ,c h i n d h i b h i n d h i h a n d h i k a l
 98 Chapler3 VedicOriginol Teniric Practices 99

24. p r a j a p a r l ra m r r a n a n d ai l y _ u p a s l h e- T a j l t t n v au p 3 1 1 '
10 u p e sl a -
a u m - i t y - e t a da k s a r a m - u d g i l h a m C h i : n d o g y aU p , 3
1 . 1 . 1 s e e l b i d ,1 . 1 2 - 1 3 . 25 s a r v e s a m a n a n d a f a m L r p a s l h a e k a y a n a mB r h a d a r a n v a k a
- ib'd
11 puram hanlrimukham visva-mdlrjave rekha svara-madhyar'r U p . 2 . 4 l 1 i e k a k i n a r a m a t es a d v i l i y a ma i c c h a r
1 . 4 . 3 i s e e i b r d ,6 . 4 3 - 4
tadesa. brhal-lilhir disa panca ca nllya sasodasikam
p u r a m a d h y a mv i b h a r t i - q u o l e d b y S v a m V r s n l n r t h a i n 26. s a r v a b h v o v a e s a d e v a l a b h v aa l m a n a m a l a b h a l e l a d _
- Ajlareya
Saundarya-lahari, p. 334. devafabhyo yaiamana atmanam nlskrinite
Brahnana, 6.31 avadhnan p u r u s a m p a s L r m a tharva
12. anguslha-mdlrah p u j r u s o m a d h y ad l m a n i t i s t h a l - K a l h a 12 35
Veda. 19. 1 7 10 and Taitlniva Aranyaka 3
U p ,2 . 1 . 1 2 :a n g u s l h a - m a l f aphu r u s on l a r a l m 6s a c l aj a n d n 6 m
h r d a y es a n n i v i s f a h- S v e l a s v a l a r aU p . 3 . 1 3 : b r a h m a p u r e 27 r a n l r a n a mu p a n i s a c ' c h e s a t v a- l B h a s k a r a r a r y acso m l o n
daharampundarikam- Chandogya Up, A.1.1: hd-putidukam Ntlya-sodasikanava. l 22
v r a j a m v i s u d d h a m- K a i v a l y a U p , 1 . 6
13. saiam caik6 ca hrdayasya n6dyas ldsdm murdhdnam
a b h i n i h i r l a k 5- K a r h a U p , 2 . 3 . 1 6 ip u r a m e k 6 d a s ad v a r a m
- ibid,2.2.1.
a s r a - c a k r dn a v a . d v e r a- A t h a t v a - V e d a ,1 O _ 2 .
15. b r h a l i h k i k a s e h* ibicl,9. 12.
16 dva suparnasay!ja sakhey6 saminam vrksam parisasvajate
t a y o fa n y a hp i p p a l a ms v a d v - a l l y ' a n a s n a n n - a nayboh i c a k a s i t i
- MundakaUp, 3. 1.1.
17. vide Chandogya Up, 5.16 and Sankara s comt. on it.
18. n a b h r . c a k r ek a y a - v y u h a - s l h a n a r n Y o g a - s u t r a m3 . 2 9 :
hrdaye cirta-samvit- ibid, 3-34; kanrha-kupe ksut
p i p a s a n i v r l l i-h r b l d ,3 . 3 0 ;m u r d h a - j y o l i ssil d d h a d a r s a n a m
- lbid,3.32.
19 v t d e D a t t a t F y a Y o g a . s a s r . av e r s e s 1 0 7 - 1 1 8
2A vide Clnva Svami yajha-tallva-pnkesa, pp 38-39, 108-
1?2.
21. p u r u s e h e v e a y a m a d i t y o g a r b h o b h a v a t i y a d - e t a dr a j a h
- A i t a r e y aA r a n y a k a , 2 . 1 . L
22. A. B. Keilh, Religion and Philasophy ol lhe Vedas and lhe
Upanisads, p. 345.
23 upamanlrayalesa hinkaro,jnapayalesa prastavah,strlydsaha
s e t e s a u d g i t h a h ,p r a l i s t r i m s a h a s e l e s a p f a t i h a r a h
Chendogya Up, 2. 13.1.
 c.
G
(tl
IE
f
ct
.=
a
i.e
Ir"
CL (E
(!-C
5=
ChaPter-4

T
I he wo'shipof S va-linqa placedon a roundplareca lad
aryhyaat yanipatais a commonpracliceprevalentin the culi
ol Saivism.Practically,in this cull the worshipof Siva' nga
s much more popularthan the worshipoi the image ol Siva.
It is said by the Saivitesthai lhe worshipof Siva can nol be
completew thoul the worshipol Siva-liRga. Ihe Siva-purAna
p
declaresthat lhe worsh ot /lngais higherthan the worship
oi Svas rmage.
As lo the existence oi the practiceot Siva-|ngaworship
in ancientInd a, there is no deliniteprooi at o!r hand. Some
fainl marks of the worship of Siva's lmage are, of couTse,
foLrnd n the Vedic llerature-For example,Ihe Rg-Vedarelerc
to some ciru cltra or beaulilul image or arl oi S va-'zfhe Yajur-
veda also seernsto hinl to the existenceof lhe practlceof lhe
worshp ol S va's mage, when it speaks ol the worship ol
Tryambakamatked with sweetscent.3tsulno signifcant h nl
lo ihe ex slence oi lhe worshp of Siva-lnga is to be lound
in the Vedic leterature.
Those who ook upon iinga-worsh p as a iorrn ot pha sm
'slsnadeva'occurring
as discussedbelow,hold thal lhe term
in the Rg-yedaameanssomebarbariansfollowng the practtce
ol phallicworship.Bui this view can not be accepled on the
ground lhat no refeTenceto such a lraditon s lound in lhe
vedic nterprelalions of anc eni India.Y;iskain h s /vlfukiasays
lhat sisradeva'means one who is devo d ol brahmacaryaol
sex-control.D$gAcAtya also explans the lerm in the same
way. Sayana explainsthe term to mean peopleaddicledto
sensua peasure.5Accordingy, lheword'slsnadeva'cannoibe
sa,d ro _dv ng ra alro_ with phallicworsFip.
ln the remainsoi Mohenjodaro, sometimesol shortshaped
stone or burrt clay have been lound.A iew round_shaped
flat
and plain things aLso have been discoveredirom these
 ChapleF4
r e m a n s . A c c o r d n g i o s o f i r el h i n k e r s l,h e l o r m e rc a s s o l
rlems are probablylhose of Sva- ngaandthe atter class of
iems. those al yanipatasot arghyas. George Marshal, n
partcu ar. is keen to rdentiy some oblecls made of slcalite
and lefia colta as pha ic syrtbo s.6 But th s s a mere
conJectur€ hav ng no del n te proof whatsoever. This v ew can
b - o r e { u l e db y t h e i a c tl h a l e v e nw t h n a p e n o d o f a b o u t t w o
tho!sand years aiter the l\,4ohenlodaro c v sation. no sLlcha
trad lion ot S va llnga worship cou d be lound in Indra
ln the lvlah;ibhirala, thereare clear marks 01the practce
oi S va- nga-worshp. In the 'Arus;sana-parvanof the same.
there s c ear reJerence to Siva nga ln the 'Sauplikaparvan'
(Ch 17.21 3) also a referencelo the Siva- nga is folrnd n
the Vana-paivan,Arjuna is seen 1o be worshpp ng Siva in
lhe lornr of an a ter which certarnlystandsfor Slva nga.tThe
worshipoi S vaOlngawas howev€rnol popuar in anc ent Ind a.
Patanlalireiers lo Sivam, but not lo Siva- nga. In lhe cons
oi lhe Kushanadynasty,imagesof S va and Uma are lound,
bul there s no evidenceof Slva- nga. t seems that S va-linga
b e c a m e p o p u l a r d u r n g t h e G u p t aa g e i . e . a r o u n di h e 4 t h
centuryA.D.The connectionol Siva-linga with yonpataseens
to be slr laler.
No!v,lhe probem beiore us s; What s th s S va- nga?
The popuar idea aboul the natureoi Sva linga s thai t s a
symbo ol the generativ€organof Siva,the p ate be ow. known
as arghyact yonlpata,Iepreseniing lheiernaleorganoi Ga!ri
the fulolherGoddess.This idea is coupled with lhe general
beliei thal Sva s a god lull ing the desires oi men in ther
marlal liie. A great majorly oi scholars also oprne, n
c o n l o r ml y w i t ht h e p o p u l a br e l i e i t h a l S i v al i n g a L s a s y m b o l
oi Sivas generalveorgan. ln supporl oithsview, some
s c h o a f s h o d t h a l d i l e r e n tf o r m s o f p h a l c w o r s h p w e r e
prevaent amongihe primlive societiesof countres like Egypt,
Greek. Roman etc., and the worshp of S va nga s stmply
a varietyol lhat primitivelraditionof pha lism.eSomescholars,
on the other hand contradicl th s v ew, saying thai Siva
nga is lhe symbo of Siva himself,and not of h s generalive
Whalls S va Laga ? 105
organ We afe heremaklng an endeavourto so ve thisproblem
, o ' n d o - r L. . c l n a l u ' eo l S v d E a .
Before mak ng an observalionon lhe controversy,il s to
benoted that n lhe Purenas,there is a numberot ep sodes
aboul S va' inga. some of which describeS va'linga as the
manfeslaton of lhe generatrveorgan of Siva, wh e some
olhers describeil as a revelationof S va hirnseliin lhe iorm
ol lyotrlingaof brllianl iorm. Eprsodesdescribing Siva nga
, r\e re p o vp o gdn o'Siva a e ll e lollow_9:
1 The S/ye Pur:jra says thal once Siva, desirng lo lesl
'o . a.l , . c \ d r - r - n F d d b e d l l t l Ltto r - r
d n . . d p o l r o n r r i e dr o a l l L r et t s e! r r v o <o r r h e . a g o
" "L
and ihe wrvesoi the sagesalso becameal uredtowards him.
ar lr d 'r p. l_. ..9.5 s""v | .r ._d LLr\ed lhdr hrs rj.qd
shou d fall down there al once. a SivaJinga lell to the ground
at once, but t look the iorm of ire, began to rnove hther
and th lher and burn al thingsthat came to its front. The ,rga
gradualyexpandedand pervadedthe who e wor1d. A Ithe gods,
dernonsand men becameafraidto see the nga and wenl lo
Brahma for rescue. Brahmi advised them to meditateupon
llma, so that she takesthe {ormof yorland paclies lhe ,rga. '
The gods and the sagesd d accordingly, and the ,rga became
stable rest ng an lhe yoni ol Ume.
, - ! 6 s r ' . / r P r , r ? - rq , v \ r h - . o n c es , v d d g g l - r n e o
a beaulriu forrnand, n a nakedposition,went to lhe Diruka
Iorest sportinglyto co ecl alms irom the hermlages oi the
sages and tr ed to arousethe ieeling of lust in the m nds oi
the wives ol lhe sages.Al this, the sages becarneangry and
cursed that his///rgashou d fal toiheground atonce. S/va's
ltnga a1 ance fel lo the ground.r,
{b) In lhe same Purana the episode s describedrn a
s o m e w h adl l i e r e n tw a y .l i i s s a i d t h a l a f t e rt h e d e a t ho t S a l ,
S va s consorl, in the sacriliceol Daksa, S va became mad
with the feejingol llst and began to move hitherand thither.
He. thus. reached the hermitage oi lhe Bzrlakhiyasand
d s t ! r b e d t h e w i v e so J t h e s a g e sw l h t h e i e e i n g o i u s t .A t
 ChapleF4
thrs,he sagesbecame angryand cursedthat his lingashould
al once fall lo the ground. Siva's ,nga at once lel to the
ground,'3but it beganto lrighlenthe wholewodd. In lear, the
gods began to sing in praiseof Siva. At lhis, Siva became
pleased and told that it Brahma,the gods and the Brahmins
worshippedlhe linga,the world woutd be saved Accordingly,
Brahme,the godsand the Erahminsworshippedthe Siva-linga
and lhe world was saved.
3. Ihe V.imana-Purena says that alter the death of Satr,
Sva became mad with lust, lravelledhitherand lhither and
then enleredthe foresl called Diruvana where he disturbed
lhe wives ol lhe sages.Al this, the sages cursed him as a
resultof which the /lrga of Siva iell to the ground.tmmediatety
afler thls, Siva vanished and his /inga expanded to such an
exlent that il louchedboth the lower region and the upper
region.rlAt this, the world becameafraid.Visnu and Erahma
lhen approachedthe lingaand, with a view to Jinding out its
end,went lo its lowerand upperregions,respeclively. But they
returnedin vain and beganto sing in praiseoi Siva. Sivathen
appearedand Visnuand Brahme requesiedhim to take back
his ,rga. Siva agreed 1olake back his ,nga providedthe gods
worshippedSiva-linga.Visnuagreed and Brahmiiworshipped
9oldenSiva'linga.
4. ln an episode ol the Siva-Purena, it is said thal once
Kali,lhe black-complexioned conso ol Siva,was engaged in
deep meditalionwjth a view to becominggauri or while-com-
plexroned.Ai that time Siva becamemad with the pangs of
separationtrom Kiili and, being beautilullydressed,entered
a loreslof the hermitsin a nakedpositionwilh his companions.
ExceptArundhal, ali the wivesot the hermilsbecamedislurbed
w(h the leeling ol lust to see him. Seeing the condrtions
ol their wives, lhe hermitsbecame angry and gave Siva a
good beating.In a blood-stained condilion,Siva reachedthe
hermitageol Vasistha-Arundhatiservedhim with greal care.
Siva blessedher and wenl oul of the hermitage.The wtves oi
the hermilsfollowedSiva agajn, and the sages also went on
bealing him. Thus passedotl lwelveyears. Atter thal. Bhrgu
107
and olher sages cursedSiva that his ,nga shouldlall to the
ground.Siva's /lngafell to the groundbut, in a beautilul and
brlilianltorm,rt expandedallaroundand then entereddeep nio
the earlh. At this,the wholeworldbecamedark and the hearis
ot the sagesalso was envelopedwith darkness,Arundhatithen
came to know the identityol Siva and cured his wounds by
her power ol merits. The sages atso recognisedSiva and
slarled singing in his praise.Then a voice was heard lrom
above which advsed the sages to worship the S/va-tinga,
say ng lhat the worshipof the Siva-lingais greater lhan the
worship oi lhe image ol siva.15
5.Ihe Padma-Purcnasays that once SvdyambhuvaManu
pe ormeda greal sacrilice in the mountainol l\randara.The
sages who attended the sacrifice asked the Vada-knowino
Bra mrn5 Wno is the greatestamong lhe gods? i he queslro;
was put 10 lhe great sage Bhrguwho advised the sages to
examrnethe characlersof Brahma,Visnu and Siva for havino
Iha a_swe lO r^e qLestron.Bhrgu satd that, of lhese three,
the one who wouldbe tound to have a pure characteroi the
qually ot sattvawoutdbe regardedas th€ greatest.Then, the
sages alongwithBhrguweni to Kailasalo examjnelhe character
ol Siva. They met Nandin al the gate and requestedhim to
Inlorm Siva oi their presence.Nandjntold them that.as Siva
was lhen engaged'- entoymentwith Umd. it was not possrb,e
-o lhem
lo app'oach him at that ltme. The saoes warledal
lhe garF lor a long lime. but yet they dictnot g;t permrssron
'on
Srva lo meet him. At lhrs, Bhrgu became very angry
a'rd cJ'sed Srva. saying that as he disregardeOrr,e
sagei
In.hs mood ot lustiveenjoyment with his
consort,he should
:19, the lolm ol yoni-tingaor rhe lemateand maleorgans
ln lhe 'Sauptrka.parvan",?of the Mahabhairata,
rl rs sard
,.-_6.
' ,dr a|.Fa rirre ot lhe cosmic
crealion,wh6n l4ahddevawas
erqaged In penance wilhrn
waler, Brahmd created another
-aiaoali and direcred
h,m to createaflthe berngs.Accordrngty.
creal4d Innumerabtebeings. Atter that Mahddeva
^-ralapali
!q' ,e out ot water and found
that lhe acl ol creattonwas
 Whalrs SrvaLinqa? 109

- o d I l r d v a l e or ' l o L g n l n e l o w e ' r e g o no l l h e s l a l l ' i o a n o l h e t

alreadvcornpleie.Al this, he consideredhis /inga Lrnusetul
and, h;vinq lorn t olf, he went to the mounlain oi lvlilaval
Ihe tinga ol Sva was sluck to the earth
fp sooes desc'iolng Slva_lingaas lhe syrrbor ol lha
drvineano orilllanliotn ol S,va are lhe lo"owlng
saysthatoncelherearosea quarrel
1. the Skanda-Purana
between Brahmaand Siva on the questionoJtheirsupenorly
The ouarrelultimatelyresultedinto a fight between the
two, whr;h continuedfor one thousandyears Alter thal a
belween thelwo''
lyatir tingaat briliant //nga appeared in
sky advlsed them to refrain
ana a uolce lrom the
lt was sa d that the jyolirlinga was lhe Siva ltnga' and ne
who could reachlhe end oi ihe lingawould be treated as the
qrealer belweenthe two Brahm, wenl upwards and Vsnu
Jownwards lo see the end ol the linga' bul nerlhercould
succeed in his venture.
2. This slory ol ihe revelalianol lhe jyolitmaya orbrLlranl
//rga s lound \n the Brahmenda'Purana also " ll ls sardlhat
when Brahme and Visnu were engaged in quarrel
In no'lfe
o-esl o'r ol supe or Iy, a firpdppeared lhe
i . e b r i l l a n c eo l I _ e " ' e ' n a d e d l o l h e r ' g h l s
Seerncrthat surprisingfire, Brahmaand Visnu ran towards t
lo kn; whal ilwas. The lire graduallypervadedlhe sky and
lhe earlh, and Visnu iound an indescribable/inga withrnthe
iire. Brahm:and Visnuwenl upwardsanddown-wards,respecnvely'
and lried tor one hundredyears10reach the end ol the /inga
bul lailed. Alter thal Siva appearedbejore them
3. Ihe Stva'Puranaalso descrbes the revealion ol lhe
Natir-hnaaal the time of the quarrel belween Brahmuiand
Vlsnu. ttere llte iyolir'tingais described to be a fearlul
of lire wilh n which N,4ah6deva, the formless remained:!
4. ln anotherepisodeof lhe Siva'Potena'it is said that
a{ler his birth lrom lhe navel'lotusol Visnu lying In
and wakelulness
ntdh a slale belween sleep
desirinqlo know the secretoi his birth,travelled through
torone hundred
.tutt oitn" navel-lotusolVisnu
o;e r_d eo years. bul he drd not llno l'e end ol lhe slalk
Alier lhal, by the directionof a voice irom the sky, Brahma
ror
ora.r seo penance lwelveyears Allet lhal VisnJ appeated
.na oo_r,'edhinsellas the crealorol Brahmd Al thrs Blahfla
became angry, abused Visnu and slarted fightingwrlh hrm'
During therr lighl,a iyotir-tingaappeafedintheir midst,which
havingneilher begrnnrng
vrasextremelybrilliantand indescnbable,
nor end and neilherincreasenor decrease lt was lormless
and was known lo be the cause ol the universe-'?j Then, by
rhe DrooosaJ ol Visnu,both Brahmd and VisnLr lried 10 lind
o rl hp sol|ce o lhe tie'y suoslance Brdhma we'' uoward<
irom lighl ng
and Visnu downwards,but find ng no end io lhe iyottr'ltnga
lhey began10 meditaleupon t for one hundred years' Then
ten handedand tive'headedMahadevaappearedbeforethem'
Brahma and VLsnusanq hymns in praise of Siva and Srva
p eased by the songs advised them lo make Siva'linga wilh
clay and lo worship and mediateupon it. The same episode
rs found ln lhe same languagein lhe ltnga-Purenaalsa
5. Accordingto anotherepisodefoundin lhe Sivapurena"'
_
on tne
Brahmziand V snu were once engaged in tighlinglo lesl who
d a' on
( q _ r cr'l L!as sLrperorbetweenthem. In lhis iighl, VisnLrappliedlhe
l\4rhesvara-weapon and Brahm;ilet loosethe P;isupataweapon
as a resullol v/hch the world was on the br nk ol destrlcllon
(.. q thr). Vahadevaappeared n belween lhe lwo In lhe
iorrn ol a priar ol Iire, and the weaponsol Visnu and Brahmi
dissolved into lhal pallarol lire.
6 Ihe Kirma Purina describeslinga as inexpressrble,
brillianl.ndestructibie and as ol the natureot bliss ll s sard
thal r/hen Brahmaand Visnuwere engagedin fighling to tesl
their slrperorilv upon each other,a iyolit'linga or p lar ol f re
pillar
appeared n belween lhem. the jyalirlingawas wthoul any
oeq - r rg o. end. wilhoulany Increaseol oec'edse and wa(
exlremey bn hanl.:rThisiyotir-linga pervaded the whole!nrverse.
yoga_ B ., dno V snr wcnl upwatosa'rddow'r_wards respe-lrvplv
"r
Brahma to lind out rhe end ol the rnga, bul iailed Then lhey starled
lhe prayng lo Siva. and Siva appearedbelore them
years- and

7. Ihe K.;lika' Putena says thal after destroying the
Daksayajnaor sacriliceperformedby Daksa, Siva took lhe
dead body ol Sati,his consort,on his shoulderand wandered
all around n extremeanguish. Findinglhis aci oi Siva to be
dangerouslo lhe world,Brahmd,Visnu and Sani entered the
body of Saii,cut it into piecesand droppedthem on the eadh.
And Siva remainedin the form of /lnga in those ptace where
the head of Sati lell, and took the form ol tauha-maya Sira-
linga or Siva-lingahaving iron as its materiat.?o
From lhe above study,il is clear thal bolh the said vrews
aboul Sivalrngahave lheir rools in lhe Plra, ic traditian.Now.
the problem betore us is: which of these two vews can be
regardedas genuine.On lhis problem,the ioiowing points
may be considered for coming to a conclusion.
1. The ierm '/t/,ga'didnot originallymean the generalive
organ. 11meanl the fine state of something.Viicaspatiin his
Samkhya tattva-kaumudl says that '/irga'means lhat Jine
slate ol somelhing inlo which the gross form oi thal thing
is desolved.?5TheSkanda-Puranaalso exptainsthe term in the
sarne way, In the general usage ot the term, 'lnga' means
some specralmark which poinls to lhe existenceof something
ese. ll s Lrsedlo denote the generatlveorgan only tn a
secondarysense,and this sensedevelopedonly al a lalerlime
Hence, the term '/tnga'can nol be laken lo mean ihe generative
organ, if lhe conlext does not requireit
2. In Vira-Saivism, the term 'linga'is used lo denoteany
drvine lorln. Accordjngto lhis school, there are six /lrOa,
s,halas or lorms ol Siva. namety, mahahng a rrhe gre;l).
ptasada-linga {the gracious), carc-finga (,the dynamic) stya-
,nga (the auspicious), gutu-hnga llhe preceptive) and acafa-
,rga (lhe praclical).16These ,hga-sthalas have not even lhe
s ighleslrelationwilh the generativeorgan. lt is notable that
the Saivitesof this school are the most devotedfollowers
ol Siva-linga.They are called Lingiiyetsalso, as they loltow
the praclice ol hanging a Sivalinga on the neck.2? Even in
such a syslem, Sivalinga does not ftean the generative
Wha!rs S va Liiga ? ltl
organ
3. The practce of attachrngyonipatabelawthe Sivalinga
is nol un vefsal.There are numerous Siva- ngas which are
not altached10 Yani?ala.
4. Though lhe linga-wotshipis speciallyrelaled lo lhe
Sva-cult. il is not monopolisedby lhis cull. For lhere are
relerences lo Ihe linga-wotship ol other gods like Visnu and
Brahma. For example, the Kelika-Pur1naspeaks ol lhe /ingas
of Brahmaand Visnu.'?8
5. Thereare numerousSiva-irngas wilh eyes,moulh,nose
elc. and aso some with tour mouths,
On the slrength oi lhe above iacts, some think thal il s
reasonabe lo lookuponSiva-linga as a symbolor represenlation
o l S i v a h i m s e l ia n d n o t o f h i s g e n e r a l i voer g a n . I n t h e v i e w
ol MahesvarDas and Haridas Bhallacharya,Siva linga was
neverconnecled with the phallicworship: it simplyslood lor
lhe Indescribable Absolule.'?e HaridasBhattacharya and Ramesh
ChandraMajumdarholdthat Slva-lingais a subslituleol Siva,
lusl as lhe sa/agramaslone s a subslitute of NdrAyana,r0 il
s assurnedby some thinkers that the idea of represenling
Siva by S va-linga might haveoriginatedfromthe Upanisadic
stalementslike Brahman is stable like a tree', Though
wrthoul any iool or hand, it moves and receivesrlhough
wrthoulany eye, il sees; and thoughwithout any ear, it hears
elc which speak oJ lhe unchangeablenature01 Erahrnan
ll rs. however,an extremeview lo hold that the worshp
ol Srva-lingawas not al all connectedwilh phallism.The dea
ol pha sm was lhere, bui lt was blendedwith ihe idea ol Siva
as lhe absolulecause.The poinl is lhal, Siva conioined wrlh
Sakt.lhe Mother'coddess,is regardedby the Saivitesas lhe
ulmale cause of the world. This idea compared wlth lhe
Irorldy lact oi procrealiontrornthe organiccontaclbelween
rnaleand lemale,lead to the idea ol organiccontaclbetween
srva and lhe {\rother-Goddess,
Ior the explanattonol lhe
cleallonol the world. In reality,view,rrom the lranscondenlal
poinlol v ew Sivaand Sakliare lormless; they assumedivrne
112 cnapt.r-+

lorms only lor the satistactionoi ihe devolionalsentirnents list"s d'd

o e n e r a l r vO e , g d no l S i v a l l T a y b e a d d e o l h a l
ol the spiritualaspirants.Hence, the idea ol the aenerative o ' s r v a . t r n q aa s t h e s y ' n b o o
l i l h e l o l a l r t o
y l S va lhal hac
o.gan ol Srva and the Molher-Goddessdoes not aurl lo lhe ieteuanceIo religious practices or spiritual progress ol lhe
iranscendental nalureot Sivaand the l\'lother.
Even n lhe state devotees. The concept ol Siva-linga as a symbol ol lhe
of divinelroms, Siva and Sakti are not to be taken on a oarl oeneral ve organ oJ Siva has nolhing to do with the relrgrous
wilh otherbeingsen,oyingorganicpleasure.The Jormsol Siva The concepl
iractices or spiritualprogressol the devotees
and Saktt are divine and are completelytree lrom sensual ol Siva-l nga as a symbol ol the generatjve organ of Siva has
pleasure.This divlne existenceor sport ol sva and Sakt or noihinglo do with the religiouspraclicesnor with the sprrtual
Gaurihas ils parallelonly in the sport betweenSrikrishnaand progressol a devolee.
Badha or lhe gopis. ln lhis divine existence.there is no
dillerencebetweenthe body and its partsor ofgans lor every
pa ol the bady is cinmaya or divine. Accordingty,it is REFERENCES
loolishnessto distinguishbetweenthe body ol Siva and his -
s a n k a r ap r a l r m a v a sl u l i n g a ' p u j ag a n y a s r S i v a P u r a n a
organ.The so calledditferencebetweenthe whoteand the oad Dharma Sanhna, 10. 2O5
is -rade only fo' the satislactionol the sentrme.l ot d v ne
2. r a v a s r i y e m a r u l a m a r j a y a n l ar ' r d r a y a t i e l a n r m a c a r u
love ol the devotees.Again. it is not the orqanic retaton c l l r a n r- F Y 3 . 8 1 6 . 3 .
oelween Siva and Saktr,but the total relationbetweenthem
3. t v d r b a k a ' n v a l a m a h e s 'usgr va n d h i m p u s n v r t d h d n a m
that is the causeol the universe.Hence,it is Sivarn his totalitv ri qroreo bv V Das ki ana va oevala Bb.ord
thal may oe comparedlo lhe male generatrve o gan and Sa(tl S e h n y ap a t i k e , p . 5 5 C a l c u t l a U n i v o r s i l y ,1 9 6 7 - 8
in her lotality,to the temalegenerativeorgan.Tl this kind his
idea that degeneratedinto the nakedsex,beheaviours l v , l as i s n a - d e v aa p i g u r r l h a m n a h - R V 7 2 1 5
ol Siva
depicted in the above rnentionedPuranic episodes.Thts 5 s l s n a ' d e v da b r a h m a c a r y a h- N n u k t a ' 4 1 9 i s r s n a d e v a n
shameluland pitiabledelineationol Siva,otherwse knownas s i s n e n a n r t v a m e v a p r a k i r n a b h i hs l n b h i h s a k a m k r i d a n l a
Yogireja or the kjng of the selr-controlled yogins, most be a s a l e s r a u i r a n i k a r m a n i u t s d y a - D u r g a c a r v ao n i b t d :
attributedto the credit ol some aulhorsol low grade.And 1 s i s n e n a d r v y a n t i k r i d a n l a i t i s a s n a d e v a ha b r a h m a c a r v a
iryafrhah - S a y a n ao n 8 V 7 2 1 . 5
is the mythslashionedby such authors01low qradethat have
Ini'ueaceda class of thinkers or devoleesloiake the Srva. 6. See supra "Siva as a Vedlc God .
linga as lhe generativeorgan of Siva. What we men to say See Mahebhanta. "sauptika_paruan1 " 7 21'3
s thisthal Siva-lingaprimadlydenotesthe brilliantd v ne iorm 8 d h a v a m-
m r n - n r a y a ms t h a n d i l a mk r l v a m e l y e n a p d j a v a b
of Siva, it is ihe pratikaor symbolof the tota ity of Srva, mav ' V a n a ' P a r u a n "3, 9 6 5
Mahebhera?.
oe ,s gainedas lhe male generattveorgan,In vtew cl Ine lacr pp
9 See H N Bhartacharya, Hindudet Devadevl Vo t
ihat lhe creation of the wodd proceeds lrom ihe conlact 118-9 and A. C Das Rg'Vedic C u l l u t e p 1 6 4
belweenSiva, the Absolute,and Sakti,the conscious power - Srv:r'
ol Siva. This very idea is Joundin the Ketika-pur;ina 10. lvadiyam caica lingam ca palatam prlhvitale
and the Purena Jhana sanhi!6 42 15
Brahma-Samhitawhich declare that Sambhu, Sankara or
I\,4ahesvara is ol the lorm ol linga.3,To be moreexplcit, even y o n r i u p a b h a v e cc e d v a i t a d a t a t s l h r r a l a mb h a i e t t b r d '
whenthe conceplionof generativeorgan is app ied, Sivatinqa 42 21
-
rs lo oe ia(eT to representthe lolatityor Siva. a"o nor rie 12 l a l a s l a t p a t i a m l i n g a m i a t k s a n a c _ c h a n k a r a s ycaa
 W h a l r s S r v aL n q d ? I 15
114
Chapter-4

S k a n d a - P u . a n a ,p r a b h i s a - k h a n d a . 18722. Foundatrcns ol Living Faiths, pp. 224'9

"An
13. l a l a s c a i v a p a t a t i n g a mt a t k s a n a rt a r 30. S e e B h a f l a c h a t y a l,o c c i l a n d K . A N i l a k a n l h aS a s l n .
- lbtd,
PUra-dvrsah H sroncal Skelch of Saivism," Cultural Hetitage ot lndta
39. 15.
Vol. lV. P. 67
14. l a r a hp a p a i ad e v a s y at i n g a mp L v r mv y a d a r d y a r . r a s a t a t a m
v l v e s a r n aD r a h m a n d ceo r d h v a t ob h r n d t_ v a m a n ap u Q n a 31 vrksa iva srabdho divi listhaty'ckah - svetasvatata up
6.66-7. 3 . 9 t a p a n i p a d oj a v a n og r a h i t ap a s y a t y _ a c a k s usha s r n o l v _
akarnah ib,d,3.19.
15. See labove. -
32 s a k l l m a np u r u s a hs o y a m l i n g a _ r u pmi a h e s v a r a h B ' a h m a _
16. voni-linga-svarupam vai tasrrad bhavisyat, _ prdda- -
S a . , h i t a .5 . 1 4 1 p u i a y e l i n g a _ s a n k a r a m K a l i k a ' P u t a n a
r . u . a r a . - u [ a r a - k h a n d a " .c h 7 8 8 c . 6 : I n i g a _ s v a r u pbi h a g a v a n _ c h a m b h ulaa l r a s v a y a m
1 4 a h a b h a n t . S a u p l i k a - p a r y a ,n C h 7 slhilah - /bid 80.36.
18 a ! , r b h u l 3 r m a h a - t r n g a md , v y a m r e t o - r r a / a n , L b . a n _
rKanoa-Fuana. 34 13
19. See Arahmancla-pu?na, Ch. 60.
20. m a n a n a t a - s l a m b h a - v j b h i s a n a kvnaibf h u v al a n - n r a d h y a t a l e
as nrskalah ._ Sjva-purana, Vidyesvara-samnna,
4. 11.
21 j y o r i r l i n g a m t o d o t p a n n a ma v a y o r m a d h y e
dbhuram _
e a u D a m y a . n I d r s t a m . a v y r k t a m v r s vsra m b h a v a r _
srra
Purana, Jnana sanhita, 2. 62.4
22 See Siva-Purana. Vidyesvara-sanhjta, Ch 4
23 p r a b o d h a d h a mp a r a mt r n g a mp r a d u r b h L r a m
srvarnatam-
k s a v a - v r d d h t s v i n r m u k raaomr m a d . y a . t a - v a i , . r a _
r 4urmd.
Furana, ftrva-bhaga, 26 75.
24. r a r . a l a t r aT a h a d e v a h s v a y a m t , n g a - s v a r u p a . d r , h . .
r(ar^d
P D t a n a 1 8 . 4 / , g a t \ a s i t a t v a mt a t r a r v at r n g a t v a m
garava.
h a r a h . . . . . . l l r i d1.8 . 5 4 .
25 ili llngar. Sam^hyarakv.-"cuaua. on
5 d m ^ h v a . A a h \ a5. a t a y a h s a r v a - o e v a n a mt d v d n d
Ingam
ucyate - Skanda-Punna. quoted by M. Das op
c,r. p. 56
26 See Srikaru-bhasya o n B r a h m a - s u t r a1, . 1 . 4 , I r . 2 j - 2 9
27. S e e J . N . S i n h a , S c h o o t sa t S a i v i s r : 'p. . . 1 5 2 .
2A. s v a y a mv i s n u rl i n g a - r u ptia r r a s t eb h a g a v a nh a r i h_
Karta
184j.yi"lyh sira.svar;pena
brahma.rinsa_
s:.i:?.,::
v a f u p a -l:.
d h f k- i b i 4 80.36.
29. See M. Das op ci! pp. 55-6 and H. Bhallacha.ya.
Ire
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Chapter-5

T
I o rhe qereralpeople,Tantraand lhe Tdntri[asor rhe
followers oi Tanlraare obiectsol bolhdislikeand fear.Some
occullpracticescalledabhicercs, whichhaveliltlerelalions
wllhreligion, andalsosomereligious pursued by theTdntrikas
are responsible for this-Of the religious pract/ces oJTantra,
lhe ma kArasAdhanasor practiceswilh 7he ma-kdfts, in
parlicular, havebeen subiected lo seriouscriticisms.
Thesemakerasate livein number, namely, madyaor wine,
mansaot meal, matsyaor lish, mudr6 or crookedrice ard
vegelable and mailhona or sex-relalion.'These arecalledma
k;jras,becauseall lhe wordsdenoting theseobjeclshavema
kalaor the sound'm'inlhe beginning. Andma-kera-s,dhanes
are lhosereligious practices lhatare pursuedby lheTantrikas
wilh the help ol these ma'kiais. Ol the live mekeras,mudrA
s described by noneas an objectcomingundermudrearc nol
al a I harmfulto our morallifeand are usedby all oi us in our
day-to-daylife. But the olher lout ma-kerasare seiously
criticisedby allthescriplures ol Hinduism including Euddhisrn,
Jainismand Sikhism,and also by the peoplein generalas
directlyopposedto religionand ethics.
Of course,scriptures liketheManu-smttiand lhe likehave
prescribed lish and mealas lood,but theseprescriptions are
meantfor the peopleol lowgradewhohaveno ideaaboutthe
higherand purerplaneol spirituallite.This is clearfromthe
lactthat,whilegivinghisfinalassessmenl, l,,lanuhasdeclared
non-ealing ol lishand meatas lhe ,ltamaor lhe highesllorm
ol practice,and hasadvisedlhe spiritual aspiranls lo abandon
lhe pracliceol eatinglishandmeal.,Likewise, drinking ol wine
has alsobeenallowedto the peopleof lowerrank,and sex-
relationhasbeenprescribed lor the house-holders, lhoughal
the end,the abandonmenl of thesehabitshasbeeneulogised
as givinggreatlr!its.3This meanslhal thesetour ma-kafas
arelreatedas opposed to religious Underlhese
or spiriluallile.
 120 Chapter5 Tanlrc Practicewrth Makaras

c r r c u m s r a n . Fas ,o u e s l i o n . , a r . r r adl lnys e sI n o u r m r n da s l o dr veoelablelormrngthe loundation ol all lhe livingbeings

why these things have been"declaredin Tanlraas means for ."mb;rses lhe earth.Mailhura,the
-,uoa", root ol mulliplicilyrepresenls
spirilualuplift. o, Hencethe practice ol the llve ma_kdras
"pur"
;ears divinrsalion ol all lheseelements anddedication ol lhe
In some authoritativescriptures,it is held lhal the ternrs lhe llow ot
'madya, same ol the Lotd' (5)'Madya' means lasling
mansd etc.laundln the Tzjntricprescriptions do nol. necla. (which lies in lhe lotus ol
n reatrty,rneanwine, fish etc. with whtch we are acouainted. sLpreme oozingkom bindu
,ainasrara at lne lop ol the spinal cord and lunchons as the
These lerrnsare here said io be used in lechnicalsenses to lhe
denotedilterentstepsor stagesin the pathot spiriluatprogress ;ootol all manifestations) as a resulto{ the unionbetween
'Mensa' means destroyrng menls
and fealisaljon.Thus, in the Tjnlrjc scriptures,we find the kuntlalini-powetand bindu.
explanatlonsal lhe ma-k4as in diiterentways as iollows:(1) (punya)and demerils(papa)- symbolised by lhe anlmalto
-
ne sicriliced and ol{ering lhe heart- represented by mansa
The practlceof drinkingmadyaot wtnemeansthe pracliceoi
last ng the ilow of nectar oozing trom lhe t6/u o I Brahmatandhra
- lo the Lord.'Malsya'meansconkollinglhe sensesand
sltualedat the lop of the spinal cotd.'Mensa'rneansspeech ol|no_a rhe'n Io lne contaclof the sell Mailhunameans
(ma = tongue, ams6 = speech) and, hence, the practiceof r,"ni,ni rne .ndividuar selfin contactwrlnthe SuprerreSel'3
ealing md,sa means speech-conlrol. ,Malsya'
means sydsa. iere tf'e questionis: il ihe saidwordsare reallyusedin
the oulgoingbreaih,ancjpraskisa, the ignoringbreath,of lhe their lechnicalsensesto symbolisespiritualpraclrcesot
lwo torms ol air lying jn the nervescalled canga i.e. ide and diflerentgrades,as presenledabove,why havethe Tiintrikas
Yamunai.e..pinga6. Hence, the praclice of eating matsya chosentiese wordswhichin their generalusagecarrythe
neans ptunayamai,e.breath-conlrol or aircontrol. The practice meanings oJundesirable thingsandtherebyarousedollbtsand
ol eatrngmlldrdmeansdigestingthe sentimentsot desire.lear. d sresp;ct in the minds ot people? Tothis,somesaythalthese
h a l ' e d .v a _ l V .s h a n e e t c . . o V b O , t - g . n e n b y r r e l i r e wordshave been used lo attracithe ordinarypeopleor people
ol
Knowledge.'Maithuna' meansunionbetweenBrahmanand the of low qrade who are addicted to such things But lhis
indivdual self.a 12) 'Madya' means bliss derived from the interoret;tion cannotbe accepledon tho followinggrounds:
enjoymenioi Brahmanthroughthe Wacliceol yoga.,MAtsya, (1) First,it is notpossible to altractthe ordinarypeoplesimply
means lhe dedicalionol all actions to B.ahman. ,l4atsya, by utteringa fewwordsdenotingthingsoJalluremenlToallract
meansfeelingthe joys and sorrowsol all beingsas one.sown the ordinirypeople,thoselhingsmustactuallybe olferedto
loys and sorrows.Mudlri'meangivingup the companyof evil lhemior lheir enioymenl.(2) Secondly,in theTeintricscriptures,
petsons. 'Maithauna' means unjon oJ lhe seff with S]va. delaileddescriptions ol'lhe makerasare foundas lollows:
the
Highesr.5r3\'Mddva means absorplionin the med alton ol lJttamamadyaot madyaof high qualilycan be producedlrom
B . a h n a na d i n t h e b l t s sa r , s i n g, r o ms u c hT e o ( a l , o n . . M a n s a molases, sesamum andhoney.Mrinsaor mealcanDeacqulreo
means absorptionln lhe meditationol Brahmanthroughthe Iron rhe lhreelypesor animalslivingin waler.landand air'
deslructionot mefits (punya), demerits (papa), angei etc. Amongstmatsyasor Jishes,sii/a, bodeb and rohila are.tne
'Malsya'
meanssense-control besl ones. Sd/irice- whitelike the moon'beams - when
and absorptionin the m;ditaijon
ol lhe_seil.'Mrdrdmeans.boiling'ordestroyingdesire,greed, cookedor baked wilh thee becomessuitableto be used as
elc. Maithuna'means absorptionin Brahman.6 Madya giving
\4) mudra.eFlowersare also worthy of being used as mudte ln
ase 1o happrnessand miserystandsfor rakla or blood.Mdnsa ''.ecdseol lhe praclrceol [/larthuna Sadhakasown wite is
energislnglhe body and lhe mind representsvAyu at at. decared10be the bestassociale.ro Allthesedescriptions have
Matsya increasing the power of iert ltty signilies wa1et.Mudn clearreferences to the corlesponding rralerialthings are
we
 ChapteFs
r^-r". Practrcewilh l/lakaras 123
acqurarntedwith. lt is neitherpossiblenor, desirable give
to
acquaintedwith. lt is neilher possiblenor desirable
to dive ,^,eod'o l'e'r as three di{lerenlways of sprnlualpraclice
5ym0ottL, or, spintual inrerprelalionsto all these ler.ns.
{3) oy ff'" sadf'akas ol threediflerenlathtudesOlthese
r nlroly,the ltve ma-kaas in lhts directorpopular "i.'".i"0 ol sedhakas, a sedhakaol the pasubhavais ool
senses are in,"" ryp"s
seen to be used nol onty by the ordrnarysddha*ds
but also ."r,rtei to o.actise wit|. lhe ma'kArasin lheirpopularsense
ov sadnak€sof high rate, in the pursurtot spiriluatJte.
crear i'n"" pru"ii"". with the ma-kalas may bringdownlallin hrs
sadDakastikeBemaksepaand othersused to take wtne
neat ..,r rJal l'le. Hence, some atukalpas or substlluleslorthe ma_
etc. in their spiritual practices. Srj p K. Chanopadhayayin
his i'aras a'e prescribed lor this class ol saalhakas as tollows :
Sadhusanga inlorms us how great iantrikas The substitules lol matsya arc cocoanul'watel' milk' honey'
,Tanlebhihist
navrngsuper-sensuous experiencesajso used to p,acltcewtth lhe juice ol ginget mixed with molasses so on The subslitutes
rne rve makdlas.An evenl descflbed,nlhts work w r
su,lrce lat mansaate salt,ginger,sesamum, garlicand so on The
. In rhe dark night of a new_moonday. a numoer substitutes lor malsya ate red radish (mulaka), brinial,salt,
l:"to:'l'.o" paddy.
or I antnkas, each having his female assoctate with
him, ;rnoer, elc. Jhe subslitules lor mudra are nce etc The
ll. tonerycemetery,
sar In a crrcu,arway. i.lo-sr.trres for malhunarsofleringol llower'BForthe sad'akas
::::1!i_d 1
consurnedsulficienl meal and wtne along wllh lheir ternate ol d,vvaDhava also.lhelrvemaka@sate nol prescribedsince
associatesand practisedtor the wholenight.ln this
assembly, the sadhaka ol lhis class,berngalwaysabsorbedIn divine
tne cakresvara ot the head ol the circte and the bhairavi,
his lhoughls,considerit superfluous io practisewiththeseexternal
temale associate,embraced each other in a naked position
and elem;nts.The sadhakasof lhis classare advisedio; takeonly
attajnedsamddhr,loosinglheirexlernatsenses.iiThis thesvmbolicorspirilualmeaningsofthe ma-karasasmenlioned
description
shows thal even lhe sedhakasot high,are pracr.se
w th .he aoov;.T.e fivema-ftalas in lheirpopulersensesareprescribed
rve makaras tn their populat senses 'or lhe sadhatasot viabhava only Accotdinglo some.the
Now, we are conlrontedwilh two problems:{1) First. exiernalma-karas are prescribed lor the sadhakasol diryabhava
. il
wrne, meal,etc. are really meanl lor spirjtualpraclices, also." But it is more reasonableto attachlhe practicewith
why
have lhe Tdntrikasgiven the aforesaidsymbotic lhe externalma-karaslo lhe sadhakasol viabhava only' as
or spirituj
o!rhg.l?8+aras? whydJd^esrear it is the sadhakasof virabhavaonly Ihal lty io attainsprrilual
l:l,eleretarlgr5 \2) Seco^dty, enlighlenment throughconlrontation withthe nalu.allendencres
lottowers of Tantra lrkeRamakrjshna and olhersnot praclice
with lhe ma-karas? ol the mind-boby.But lor whomsoeverthe ma'karasmighl be
prescribed,a sadhakais nol allowedto practicewith lhem
ln solvingtheseproblems,the Trintrjkassay thal sridhakas
accordlngto his sweet will. A sadhakamay ptaclisewith lhe
or sprntual aspirants aredividedin{othreetyp;s,according lhe capabililyol
to makafas;nlywhenthe preceptor, considering
three types ol bhevasot menlal atilude_ihe ttrreerypei
ot the sadhaka.allows him to do so.
bhAvasarc: (al pasubhevaot tamasika-bh.iva _ the animalistic
alfd{deor the a iludeot the quatityol lamas, vtebhava In someTantras,the five rta'kei.ashave been described
\h) as obligatorylor allkindsol sadhakas.lheMahenitvena'Tantra
ot tne tatasika-bhdva * the neroicalliludeor the a rruoe
o, says lhat withoutthe p:€,cliceol ma'kiircs,a sadhakacannot
lhe q,.jalityol rEas, and (c) divyabhevao. se vi|a-bhava -
lhe divinealtrtudeor lhe altrtudeol the quatilyol sattva.,! excepilo makeprogress in his spiritualiourney' as he is liable
Thoughthesethreebhdyasaresofietimesdesc;ibed lo be conlronledwith obstaclesat every step of his journey-
as three
slepsin the pathol sprrituat progress,rl is morereaso-ab,e
fhe MAtkebheda-Tan lra says lhat withoutdrinkingmadyaor
w ne, no personcan acquirelhe highestknowledge and thal
by drinkingmadyaevenlhe worst sinnercan acquirereal
 125
124 ChapleF5 rantricPr!491!M99I39
'egardeo as
knowledge and atlainliberation. A person,it is said,altains ,ha en,ovmenlol lhese ma-karasas such be
'-1,."'il,
srralilaor godliness al lhe very momentoi drinkingsuraor ,o'titu"r ptogressor lor the atlarnmentol hberation
wilhoul
wine.Likewise, the Kularnava-Tanlra and someotherTantras ,n""n.o.t oitne p"opte wouldbe entitledto liberalron
the exception o' a person
also sav that lhe oracticewilh the ma-karasis essentiai lor ,.-r endeavour. Tantrasaysthat wlth
spiritualupliil.l5In all lhesecases,however, the ma-karas arc .uttuu In rls symbolicor spiritual sense all fish_ealers
l,i-
to be acceptedin lheirsymbolicor spirjlualsense,sincelhe ]i" 'J l" *g"tc"o li.h.,t"n commrttingviolenceagainsl
srmply
practicewith the spiritualma-karasis obligatorylor all. lt is l",mals. lqa'n. rl is said that a persondnnkingwrne
"i
in the caseol the sadhakasolvirabhavaonlythat practicewith ,'^,.n'ou."nr '. qt""l sinner.and that unbriddled enioymenl
thema-*afas in lheirdirector popular sensehasbeenregarded i ri"'rr.*r.a. '"" 'iot Ortlerenttlom lhe enloymenlby lhe lower
helplng a
as necessary.ln realily in lhe case ol lhe sadhakas 01 ,n,mats. T"e ma'heras arc lhus regarded as
virabhavaelso, praclice wilh lhe external ma-kerasis noi oi'rywl-en lheVa'e
laonaia atta n tiUe,ation or enlightenment
proper
obligatory.Thesadhakas o1thisclassare simplya jowed,and fJe use ol accotdingto scriptural iniunctions and wilh
not compelled, lo praclise with lhe ma-karas. This is known
tromtheJactthatlhereare numerous greaisac/hakas whodid ma-karas
BLI rhe quest'onstill remainsas to how lhese
nol practise with lhe external ma-karas, and that a great lo sprrituality can help a
wnah a.e drametricallyopposed
sadhaka like Bamakrishnadescribedthis wav ol soiritual progress. ln reply to this we have lo
pracliceas'a pathfull oI rubbish."nd sadhakain his spirilual
ll cannot,however, be ot .piriiuallndeavour is ot two kinds namely
llu tn"i
denied thal praclice with the exlernal ma-keras- be il or lhe palh ol renuncialion and pravtllimarga oI
"ualrn"
n.' rtn.marca
obligaloryor optional- has been regardedin Tantraas a '' palh a sedhaka
Lfreoarnoieniovment Accordinglo the lirst
meanslor spiritualuplifl. tint drreclly againsl those menlal and phys cal
. ,"ou'rs6 16
lhe
Now,as saidabove,the non-Tanlric lhinkershavealwavs ,.".J"c,"" rn"iut" oppo."J to sprrilualprogress Here
decred the ma-kdasas greatevils,on the groundthal they osDIart is to ma'1lainrlgoroussell controlthrouqh abhyasa
lhe
bringdownfall in ourelhicalandspirilual life.Hence,theTantric o, i.e oracfice a'O vatraiya or delachmentand lo desltoy
And lor lhis
prescriptionol lhese ma-kiitasas means tor spirilualuplift i."J".i"i"" or desire,lusl, greed etc to the root-
lhal
nalurallyevokesthesequesiions: First,why havelheseanti- oJroose,he 's lo grveup lhe enjoymentol all lhose lhrngs
ln lhe palh ol
spiritualthingsbeenconsidered inTanlraas meanslor spirilual are Lableto aroule these menlal lendencies
to destroy the
uplifl?Secondly,is it reallypossibleto make progressin ,r""rrri o" rft" other hand, a sedhaka is nol
spiriluallife with the help ol lhese ma-karcs? mentallendenciesnaiuralto humanbeings;nor is he requlred
lo o've uo lhose lhlngsot enJoyment thal are liablelo arouse
In solvingthe lirst question, it will haveto be noledthat
Tantrahas neverdescribedthe enjoymentoJ lhe ma kdrasas ir'"-.. t"ni"n","". rr iirhrough bhogaor enloymentdeclarelhe
yoga -
such io be ihe meansfor spiril!al progress,Tantrahas sasiras ol thrs path' lhal a sadhaka can allain
described lhe ma-karas simplyas sub-servient to the spirriual enliohlenment or liberationBul bhogaas such cannotleao a
progressot a sadhakawho,havinghis aim {rxedon spirilual sad;aka lo enliohlenmenl or liberation li is bhoga through the
purification or d-ivinisation of the naturalhumanlendenciesihal
enlighlenment, underlakes lhe relevanlpraclices wilhthe help
ol thesema-kdras. A personwhosepurposeis simplyto eal can leada sadhakalo spiritualenlighlenmentThis puritication
Jishand meat,lodrinkwine,andto enioysexualpleasure or divrnrsalion rs posslble.whenlhe naturalhumantendencles
can
neverbe expectedto makeprogressin lhe spirilualpalh. lJ dre drrectedlowardslhe Lordor lhe Mother'That means when
 Chapler-5
the sadhakaenloys anything,he is to think and rea se lhat
lhe objectol his enjoyrnenlis but a maniiestationoi the Lord
or the fvother.Accofdingly,a sedhaka is hete a owed to enjoy
all lhose thingsfor which he has a naluralaitachment.What
lhe sedhakais requiredto practiseis that he shoutdthink and
realrsethe bliss derlved from the enioymentof those th ngs
to be the bliss ol Brahmanor the l\,lother. A sedhaka by a
reguar pursuanceof ihis pracljce,can lransporl his mind lo
lhe divine land ly ng beyond the land oi materralenjoyment.
lt s thereioresaid n Tantrathal a sadhakacan rise io lhe
spiritualplane with the help of those things that are iiableto
br ng downfallin the lifeoi man.16
The signiticancehere is thal,
a szidhakais to enioydivinebliss in the very enjoymenlol the
worldlythings,and thus iry 10detachhis mindlrom the objects
oi worldly enjoymenl.When a sadhakais successfutin lhis
praclice,the v/hole world reappearsto him as div ne. This
clearly shows lhat pravrfti mArya is simply a slep towards
ntvrttrmerga. And it is this pravrtti-mdrga is s rnpty a step
|o\Natds nivrttimerga. And it is this pravrttLmarga lhal s
prescrbed rn Tantra.Tanlrathereloresays lhal in )l ptavrttiis
lranslormed lnto lyrtr, or rather, bhoga teappears as yaga,,s
This path is meantparticuJar y for those who lead a dom;stic
le, and also ior lhose who are not capable ol praclising
rigorousself-control.
ll rs now clear that the five ma-kerasarc prescrbed in
Tantra from the viewpoinl ol pnvrtti-mArga. Here the sedhaka
ls requ red 10reatjse,at the time ol enjoyingthe ma karas,lhal
lhe enjoymenthe gets is but a manitestationoi lhe bliss of
Brahman. ln other words, he shoutd enjoy Brahm;inanda
tlrroughlhe enjoymentol the wortdlythings.A pointto be noled
nere s ihal alllhe enjoymentsol the worldoriginate,tn reality,
Irom Brahmzinanda. The ordinarypeopte cannot reaiisethis
o a c a J s eo t t q n o . a l c ea n d t h e r e s u l t i n tgm p u r t vo r I , e m _ d
w - . ' I n o o s et i . r i l a l i o nosf l h e i re n l o y m e nol, o l i s - a s d d t r A d
who, trtrougrtproper practicesdirects h s mjl]d lowards the
S!preme, can deslroythis ignoranceand the resultingimpurtiy
ol lhe mrnd.As a result,lhe limlationsimposedby gnorance
and the impurty of the mind vanjsh and ihe unljmiieddivine
121
T:nr L Pra.tl.e dth Ti,4akaras
'div nisation When
b iss reveas itsei. Thrs is whal is called
a sidhaka ls successiul in dlvlnlsing his nalura hLrman
lendencies.he linds no dlllerencebelweengood and bad or
betweef truth and lasiy. To him, lhe so_calledevl deed s
reveaed as a good deecl;lhe |]nlrue,as truei the undrinkabe
as drinkable the unealable,as ealable;and the unenloyalre
asenjoyae b : ' T h e p r a c t i cw
e t h l h e m a - k a r a sl h u s , s h o w s t n e
patlr oi divinisal on and leaches us how to inf nit se our I n le
n reply to the second queslion,we may say, lrom an
analysisol lhe natura human tendences, that it is certa n y
possibleto rise to lhe plane ol pure and divinebliss lhrougn
!"/ord y enjoymenl.ll we can enjoyworldlythingsas Brahman
our enjoymenlbecomespure and deep, as a resuLlol whlch
our nalurallendences r se to a divine p ane Th€ enloymenl
01lhe beaulyol a f ower becomespurerand deeper,whenllrat
beaLrly is enioyedand realisedas the beautyol Brahman.Such
an -.floymenidestfoysihe boundsimposedon us by the m n0'
bocly,and uniles us with lhe unboundedb ss ol Brahrnan In
the same way.ihe b ss derlvedlrom the enloyrnentof the ma
kares risesto an intinlteand divineplane,when it s realised
as denlrcalw th lhe blissol BrahmanThe iruth oi this pos tion
rs attestedby the I fe histores ol numeroussidhakas
Ol lhe iive ma kiras, the lilth one caled malfhu,aor sex
re al on has naluraly becornethe obiectol worsl cr tic sm To
clarfy the postion, kema or lusl s regardedas lhe greatest
r
o b s l a c l el o s p r i i u a p r o g r e s sa, n d t l s l h e s e x _ r e L a l l o n
relaion betweenlhe male and female that enk ndles lhe i re
oi llrsl:r Hence,the questionnaturallycomes: how can sex
reLatron be regardedas a path for spirtua progress?To ths,
our rep y ls llrat, in Tantra,a sadhakals advisednot to enloy
h s jema e assocate throughthe leeling 01 ust. but 1o look
upon and enjoy her as a human representat on of the Divine
lVolher to lransformthe woman into Mother Lrkewlse a
sadhlkeor iemale aspirantis aso advlsedlo ook llpon ano
enloy her male associaleas a human representalion of S va'
ln realty, k;ima or lusl and preman ot love are Dul lwo
 l\.aharas 129
Tanlflc Practrce wrth

as represen|_g
aspecisof the samepsychological altitude.ll we can turnih€ dr.Aaras In lherrsyrroolicor splrilualsenses
directionof kAmalowads the Lord or the l\,4other, il reveals ;i;erenr oanps ol sprrrlual reaiisal'on He now derves l"e
itsellas p/emar.Grealsagesof ages have shownin th€ir enjoyment ol lhe neclar ol lhe bliss
ii"u,"rt o,"""rt" lro. lre
praclicalliveslhat kajmacan be translormedinlo pteman and AlatrrlanInadyal: the whole ol his existence lmudlal includinq
that, accordingly, all the conditions€vokingkima can be th" prana-n"yu or vital air Imalsya) is realised by him as
translormedinto conditionsevokingpreman.We havealreadv identicalwith lhe existence ol lhe Supreme; all the actions
relerred to theevenlol an assembly ol theTant haswhe.eth; retaiing lo his mind-body are broughl under his conkol Imdnsa]i
headof lhe circleand his femaleassocialeembracedeach and his self becomes ,ully absorbed in Btahman lmaithunal.
other in a naked posilion and were absorbed in samadhi. Ol course, rl is very risky lo practisewith lhe ma-karas.
KrsnadasaKavirajain his Caitanya-caritamrta intormsus that parlicularly, with mailhuna,as in this paththereis very chance
Ramananda Raya,aVaisnava-saint anddevotee of SriCaitanya, ot downla al every step.The Kulamava-Tantratherefore says
usedto practisewith some deyadssis- girls in the services lhat thesepractrcesare moredangerouslhan waJkingthrough
of the deitiesin a temple- as his associates. Ramananda the edge of a sword,or claspinglhe neck ol a tigeror catching
Rayausedlo balhethesegirlsin his own hands,ornamenls holdot snake.Thal is why the practiceswilh the ma-karasate
lhem and applyperfumeto theirbodies.And whitedoingso, generallykepl secret within the circleol a selectedlew, and
he usedlo be absorbedin the planeol divine realisation.We greal religiousleachers concernedwith the mass do never
cannol doubt the sanclityof the behaviourol Raya and the propagalethem.
heighlof his realisation,becauseof the fact thal a great sainl
and staunchfollowerof self-controllike Sri Caitanvaoaid his
highesltribulesto Raya,sayingthal he was matchless in his REFERENCES
self-controi, and thal likea stonehe everrernained unmoved r. .nadyamminsam tathi malsyammudr; mailhunameva
by ihe lellingol lust.c reatdevoteeslikeCandidasa, Vitvamangala ca sakti-puid'vidhivddye paica-tattvamprakirtitam-
andJayadeva alsousedto practise withlheirfemale associates. Mahanirva na-Tente,5. 221see atsoMundanala-Tantra. 2.
In the lile of Sri Ramakrishna also,we find thal one day,by 59.
the direction oJhis lady-preceptor BhairaviBrahmani, he had 2 tasm:i6mafsy:invivaiayer- Manu-Samhtta,5. l5i nivadeta
to sil on lhe lap ol a naked,beautiJul and tull,grown girl;bLtt safva-mansasya bhaksana _ ,b/d.5. 48.
even in this conditionhe remainedunmovedby lust and 3. na m:tnsa-bhaksanedoso na madve na ca maithune.
behavedlikea child.The keyto the attainmentol sucha mental pravrttiresa bhuanamnivrllis tu mahdohati_ ibld. 5. 56.
balancelies in lhe divinisaiionor molherisationot woman.ll 4 soma-dh:iriksared yd tu brahrna-randhrad varanane.
will not be out of place to menlionh€rethat Srikrsna'sRasa- p(yandnda-mayim tam yah sa €va madya-sevakah. ma-
sporlwilh the goplswas playedin sucha divineplane.And saDdadrasanajneya iad-amsanrasanapriye.sada yo
throughthe pracliceoI maithuna,Tanltaleachesus this gr€at bhaksayed devisa evamansa-sadhakah_ ganga,yamLnayor
secretol divinisation or molhedsation of woman. madhyematsyaudvaucaratahsada,tau matsyaubhaksaved
yas rL sa bhave'lmalsya-sadhakah. asarrsra-iugupsa-
We may thusconclude lhat all lhe practices withthe ma- ohaya-visada,ghma"mana tajjabhisangah.
brahma-gnav-
k;jras teach us lo divine the objects of our atlachmentor asra mudrah para sukrrir nah japacyamanahsamastat
enioymenl. Whena s4dhakais successtul in lhis divinisalion, tadajalo mahanando brahma,jnanau sudunabham ?ihani
he sees lhat the materialma-kerasate translormedinto the larare yasm;idarm;irimastad-ucyate- Agamasara.
spirilualma-karas. In otherwords,in thisplane,he enjoysthe
 Tantrc Practicewilh l\Iakaras 131
130 Chapter-5

MundanAh-TanlG, 2- 59: pasor na divya-virayoh- vog,n,

5. y a d - u k t a mp a r a m a mb r a h m an t v r k e r a mn i r a n j a n a mt a s m i n Ianrra. 6. 14i see C. L. Gaulam, op cit, vol. I, pp. 250 72.
o r a m a d a n a . , n i n a mt a n m a d y a m p a r i k i r t t a m e v a f r m a m and Brahmafsl Salyadeb, Pu./a-lallva,pp. 169-70.
s a n o t ih i y a l k a r m al a n m a m s a mp a r i k i d i l a mm . alsyamanam
s a r v a - b h L j t es u k h a - d u h k h a m i d a m p f y e . a s a l ' s a n g a - 15 p a n c a - l a t l v a mv i n e p t t e a b h i c 6 r i y a k a l p a l e .n e s l a _ s i d drh
m u d r : j n a my a t t a n m u d r i p a r i k i n i l i . k u l a - k u n d a l i nsi a k l i r bhavel lasya vighnes lasya pad€ pade - Mahennnna
d e h i n a m d e h a - d h a r i n il.a y a s i v a s y a s a u y o g o m a i l h u n a m Ianka, 5,23; kul6-c6ramvind devi sakli-manlro na srddhidah
p a r i k i r t i l a m- q u o t s d b y S v a m i N i g a m a n a n d a ,I a r k i k - ibld,5.21t see also Maltka-bhecla-Tantra.3. 32, 3. 3a
Gutu,pp. 1A-9. and 4.9 and asa Kulamava-Tantta, 7. 1AA.
vyoma-pankaia-nihsyanda-sudh?i.p:ina'ralonarah. sudh;i. 1 s ( a ) vide Srl Sri Banakrishna-kath'nrta, Retlect Publication.
p ? i . a m i m a m p r o k l a m i t a r e m a d y a - p a y i n a hp. u n y a p u n y a C a l c u t l a .p p 2 3 6 , 3 3 5 , 9 5 2 .
pasum halv:i jntna-khadgena yogavil. paie layam nayec 16 s u d h i h- K u l a r r a v a _
m e d - p a n c a k a mi s e n i d e v a l 6 - p r i t a y e
crltam palijsi sa nigadyate. manasa cendriya'gafam I a r l r a , 1 0 6 t s v e c c h a y dp a s u v a tr a n a mp a s u ' p e n a mi l r i l a m
s a r n y a m y a l r n a ny io j a y e l .m a l s y a s is a b h a v e d d e v i . . . . p a r e - - Mah|njrv'na-Iantta, 7.95; see also Kuhmava.Tantra.
s a k l y a l m a - m i t h u n a - s a d r y o g a n a n d a ' n i r b h a r ayha. a s t e 2. 11A-32 and 5. 110, and also Nila'Tantta, 9. 2'4 and
mairhunam rat syad apare slri-nisevakah - Kularnava-
Tantra, A 1OA-112.
17. p r a v r t t a mc a n i v r l t a m c a d v i v i d h a m k a r m a v a i d i k a m -
S e e M a h a n i r v a n a - T a n l r8c ., 1 0 3 - 1 11 .
8. s a h a s r 5 r o p a rbi i n d a u k u n d a y 6 m e l a n a ms i v e . m a a l h u n a m 18. yan eva palanamdravyaihsiddhistan eva codila- Kuriirrava_
s a y a n a md i v y d m y a l i n a m p a r i k i t t i t a m- Y o g i n i - T a n t r a . 6 Tantra. 5. 44.
4 l I k u n d a l y am i l a n a db i n c j o hs r a v a l ey a t p a r a m r l a m .p i v e d
yogi mahesani satyam salyam varanane t9 b h o g a - y o g a t m a k a kma u l a . r -' i b i d , 2 . 2 4 ; b h o g a y o g a y a t e
Yogint-Tantra.
ibid.2_ 25.
9. ultameslividhd malsyahsdla'palhina'rohilah MaDantpana' -
20 anecdrah sadac6raslv-ak6ryam. karyam utlamam, asalyam
Iarlra. 6. 8; mrLnsam trividhamprcklamjala-bhucara-khecalam
- ibid, 6. 5t gaudi paisti talha madhvitrivdha coltanrd a p j s a r y a n s y a l k a u I k a r a m k u l e s v a r i a p e y a ma o i o e y a r
surd- lbid, 6. 2; see also Kularnava-TantQ,Ch. 5i candra' s y d d a b h a k . s y a mo h a k s v a m6 v a c a a g a m v a r ra p i g a m y d r
bimba-nibh3subhra sali-landula'sambhavayava-godh umajd syal kaulikanam kulesvai - ibtd 9. 57.
vapi ghrla-pakva'manohara - quoled by Svami 21 ei. Fhisatrum mahavahok6maripam dulasadam thagavad_
N gamananda, op cit p. 31. Gita 3. 43
svakiya kevala jneya sarya-dosa"\iva(ji1a- Mahanirvana-

ll vide P K. Chalfopadhyay, Tantrcbhilasit SAdhusanga. yol

, pp. 237.8.
12. sakli prddhanyddbh6vandmtmyanam s5dhakasyaca. divya,
vira-pasUnamca bh'iva-rtayam udahtlam - Rud.a yamala.
quoled by Svami Nigamananda, op cit, p. 43.
13. See Yogini-Tantra,Ch.6, Kukrnava-Tantra, Ch.5 and C. L.
Gartam, Ianta-nehavijian, pp. 245-72.
d i v y d n d m c a i v a v l a n 6 m s a d h a n a b h a v a - s i t d h a n a m-
 ct)
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.s-' !E o)
5 65
Chapter-6

VI
Gradalions of Approach

The nalural state ol communian is lhe highest; meditalton

and concentation are the mtddle; japa and chants oI praise
lawer; ritual and outer worship ate lhe lowest,
(9 34)

THERE are several modes ol approachand communon

w th the Divine,each approprialeto the inner developmenland
conditionof mind of ihe seeker.Those that are the leasl
developed,the most exlroverl, need lhe external material
support ol ritual, ceremonres,etc. lor keeping lhemselves
turnedlo the D vine; thosewho are a littlemoredevelopeddo
nol ieel the need of physicalmodesol worshipand lhey resort
lo /apa and chantsol praise.Those who are stilltu(her up on
lhe ladderof evolutiondiscardall physicaland semi'physical
means and take to concentrationand meditationupon the
objeclof lheir quest.The higheststale, however,is arrivedat
when communionwilh the Divineis conslanland nalural:one
does not need any specialpracliceto live in the consciousness
ol onenesswilh the Divine.
136 Chapt€r-6
cradationsol Approachingthe Divine 137

G U R U( r )
G U R (Ur D
Thete is no lruth grcater lhan lhe Gutu.
All holy actions are @otedin the Curu.
(3.113)
112.14)
TO the seekerlhe Guru€mbodies thekuth to be realised;
theGuruit is whocommunicates gives
th€lruthlo thedisciple, ALL ritualin lpiisare, innerdiscipline,dependstor its lile-
him the powerto assimilate it and b€comeone with it. Thus dynamismon lhe spiritlal energylransmifledby the Guru in
doesthe Gururepresenl to ihe disciplelo ldeal10be attained the niliation.The powerwhichflowsiniolhe disciplewhenhe
and lhe meanswherebylo seekil. The Guru is all because is laught the rilualisticaction by a competentGuru emerges
he can give all.To the disciplethere is noihingbeyondlhe the act and makesil alive.Wilhoutit ritualis mechanicaland
Guru, does nol yield its intendedtruit.
 138
Chapler-6
139
cuRu( t)
GURU(lV)
-- Guru is the fathet, Gutu is the mothet, Guru is God
lvlaheshwaraHimself.

i12.49) Form his transcendentstation,the Lord in the form of the

_ THEGuruis the motherwhocarriesthe seekerin the womb
ol his conscjousnessbeforehe gives him birth inlo the
life ol
lhe Spirit.
_ The Guruis the fatherwho tendsto the growthand welfare
ot the initiate in the difticultpath.
_ The,Guruembodiesthe Lord for it is throughthe person
ot the Gufu lhat He manifeslsHimselfro the disciple
and
reachesto him His saving crace.
curu frces one lrom animalbonds.
I.t2.26)
WHATis achievedin the discipleas a resultof the force
of the Gurudoesnot dependuponthe human capacities of
theGuru.Forit is nothispersonal atlaintments or lackof lhem
thal decidesthe issue.Whenone surrenders oneselfto lhe
Guru, it is to the DivineLordthatone opens itselfthroughhim.
And the Powerol the Lordis supreme;it is not handicapped
by the limiiations of the humaninstrumenl; it achieveswhal
the Lordwills.
The Dlvineacts throughlhe human Guru.The Guru
tunclionsas ihe channel,rendering the Divineaccessible to
theaspiranl whocannotenterintodirectrelation withtheDivine

140 Chapier6
GURU(v)
The sighl of lhe Guru of the Kula Path is difficul! lo oblain
in all the worlds; only by lhe happy ripening of previous metils
is that obtained, nol othetwise.
(e.s1)
THEGurLr,
whoshowstheTruth,
opensthewayto realise
it and imparlsthe strenglhwherewith10iread it, is nol secured
by human effort.He appearson lhe scene when one is ready
to receivehis message,whenone is developedenough,across
lhe lives, to be able to get into the spiril of lhe Teachingo1
the Guru, lo live in tune with his liberatedand liberaling
consciousness. When the seekeris lhus preparedby his past
and presenlevolulionlor the decisivestep, he is eilher laken
by circlmslancesto where lhe Guru is or the Guru himsell
the Divine
cradalonsol Approaching r41
G U R U( V D
Thete is no Mantta highet than the padukaano God higher
jnitialian higher than the sakIa,and na mell
than the Guru: no
highet than the Kula warshtq
11212)
To rernemberand dwell in one's consciolrsness upon the
feel oi the Guru symbolisedby the padukii ls more elfectve
lhan lhe repetlio ol any Mantra;it is a direclcommun on wlth
a living Power.
The Guru is a represenlativeol lhe slpreme God an
embodmenl ol God lo the disciple.He LsaccessibleIn every
wav.One can have persona relationwrthhLrnnamannerlhat
s ;oi normallvpossiblewilh Deitieswho are nonphysicain
Inltialion,d/ksa,ts ot severalkinds eachaequlreslls own
nstrumenlation.But lhe saka diksa, direct transmissronol
sprritualdynamism,needs nolhingby way oi channelor r tual
to be etieclive.ll s sponlaneousand ellectivelnstanlaneously
Men seek lo acquire merit by vanous means- elhlcal
rellgiousand olhers - bul lhe best way s io accuslomlhe
consciousness to dwell upon God by a concenlrated pour ng
ol onesellupon H m - ln the chosenlorm'- at all leve s oi
lhe be ng, rnenla, emotlonal,physicalOnlyso is one ellecively
liftedup Godwards- and that a is the meaningol teal punya
142 Chapter,6

GURU(VID G U R U( V l l l )

At the raot ol dhyenais the lorm ol the curu; at the rcol

When the superb Teachergives Io his disciple then daes
of puja is the feel of the Guru;at the rcat of the mantrals the
the disciple get liberated: there is na further bitth for him
wotd of the Guru:and al the root of all liberutjonis thegrace
(12.19)

(12.13)
THE real Guru, high of souland Jullcompassron, does nol
merelyinitiale the discipleand receive his adoration He holds
THE Guru it is whom lies the key io the successof all spiritua weliare oJ the dlsope,
himsel responsible tor the
sadhanasin the life spirituaJ.
takes upon himselithe burdenof his destiny,lays open lo hlm
To begindhJaina, meditation, the firslstep is io visuatise his own resourcesol the spirit and mind.The Guru nol only
the fofm of the Guru,focus all lhe mentai{acullieson il, takes the discrpleinto is own being bul also gives himsel
connectoneselllo the inspiration that liowsfromrt and Iead with all his atta rrtments- to him-And 1 is the spirilualpower
the mindin the desireddirection. of the Guru which passes into ihe being of the d scrpleand
Belore any pije. wotship, is begun, one oiters menlal goes on io eltecthis liberation. He freedlrom the cycleof birlh
worshjplifstto the feetol the Gurulor it js the spiritual
power and death.
thal {lows frornthe feei that efrectsthe conjunctionbetween
the worshipper and the Deityinvoked.
No manlrais lruly ellectiveunlessil has been received
throughthe mouthol the curu. In communication the manlra,
the G!ru transmils his lapas-shaktlto lhe disciplethroughthe
wordand thal powerworksin the lorm o{ the mantra.
Liberation - the culminalion of all spiritualsadhana-
cannotbe effectedby one's own strength.lt is only a Power
grealerthan ones own,from outsidethe rangeol the lriple
lgnoranceof this creation,that can cut the iinat knot oi
bondage. Andlhatpowerconesthrough theGraceof theGuru.
 a " r a d d l o n so l A p p r o a c h i n qt h e D i v i 4 e 145

GURUANDGOD GURU AND PABENTS

Even when God Shjva is wtoth, the Gutu is lhe savjour; The parents are indeed to be deliberctely adored because
but whehthe Guruhimsellis annoyed,therc is none to save. hey ate the cause af your birth; bul the one to be worshipped
(12.45) espectally is lhe Gulu who shows whal is dharma and what ts

lN a mannerof speaking, the displeasure of lhe godscan (12.48)

be facedif the crace of the Guruis lhere.For he is capable
ot avertingthe consequences of lhe djspleasure eitherby his
ownspiritual poweror by interceding wirhthe gods.Butil the
uum htmsett wereto be displeased. thenwoe to the discrplel
Thereis a deeperrelationbeiweenlhe Guruand the disciple
thal normallyadmilsol no interference.
:::
:t
THE parentshave a claimupon lhe graiiiudeand iealty of
man becauseit is they who givenhlm birih and rearedhim up
But lhe GLrruis to be adoredmuch more. For wh le the parenls
give him only physicalbirth,and bring hlm to materilalife,lhe
G!ru g ves a greaterb rth, birlh into lhe Trulhof God, opens
his eyes to the right palh, and launcheshim rnlo a lile lhal
assures a gloriousfuture in this world and lhe nexl.

I
{
i

d
1
146 cnaDreF6 Gradaions of Approachingthe Divine 147

GURU'SWORD HERE
ll one does nal temedy lhe ills ol hades here itsell, what
tndeed can the alllicted hope for there where medicine is nol?
A singlewotdol the Gurugiveslibe@tion;all sciencesare
\1.24)
(1.107)
THE maladythal aillictsliie on earlh is to be cured whrle
one is on earth itset. For lhe meansto do so are providedlo
THEvarious branches of learning
cultivate
anddevelop manwhenhe is living.He is giventhe faculiiesof understanding,
lhe mind in the ways ol the intellect.Bul they do not by vision,will ll he lails to utilisethis opportunilylo cure himselt
lhemselvesgivesliberationto manfromlhe roundsof birthand ol lhe dsease ol ignorance,egoism and divisionby proper
dealh.Al besllhey may bringhometo himthe realnatureol elforl duringhis lilei me, it is idle 10 expectthingsto be betler
his bondage,how his laculliesare limiledon everyside by atter death.In the wodds lo which man departs,there are no
ignorance anddivisionandevenindicate thewaysand means possibilitiesoi suddenchangeand cure; lhal 6an be done only
by whichhe can free himsell.But the acllal workingoui oi .', on earlh whichis lhe appoinledtieldfor evolutionand progress
lhat processof liberation cannotbe donefrom this learning Greatis lhe predition,saysthe Upanishad,il one lails io make
alone.lt has lo com€ from anothersourcethat is the Word of rt here.What is therecan only be a conlinuation of whal is here.
the Guru.Thiswordis potentbecauseil is not the speechot
lhe commonkind, lt representsthe expressivepowerol the The problemis projecledhere and it must be faced and
spiritual
consciousness of the Guruwhohasrealised theTruth solved on its own ground.
in hirnselt.
ll asan outermeansol cornrnunication oi his inner
slare of Knowledgeand tapasyeto the seeker.Tfirs word
implantsin the beingof lhe disciptethe dynamicsof the
realisedTruthwhichis selJ-eltectualingandwhichreallybuilds
the way, the sAdhanAin him.
148 Chapter-6
HOLYCOMPANY
Company ol the holy is the remedy and the cure.
(1.56)
ASSOCIATION has an influencelargerthan is admiited.
Especiallyfor those who seek to achievethe higher ends ot
life, lhe companyol the holy is invaluable.lt is nol so much
lheir words or teachingbut their very presencethat makes a
greal dilterence.They live normally in a higher slate of
consciousness, ailunedtolheTruthol theirldeal.andconstantlv
emanalevibralionscharacteristics oJtheirstale oi rea isation.
These vibralionsol higher consciousnesscreate a specral
atmosphereoi purity,peaceand spirilua poweraro!nd lhem,
and whoeverbrealhesit comes under ils uptiltinginfluence_
One is exposedto the higherchargeall the time and without
any special etforl changes are seen to be initiated in his
person;the good elementsget nourishment and increasewhile
the opposiieones are depressedand dwindleaway.A natufal
changecomes over as wilh logs ot Juel,in varyingcondiilons,
gelting dry and ready in lhe warmth ol a fire.
lhe Oivine
cradationsol Approaching 149
HOLY MEN O}
I do not dwell in Kailas nor tn Meru not in the Mandan
mountains:I am lherc where the Knowers of lhe Kula-Turthare.
(9.94)
THE Dvne is not lo be soughlin the geographical
locations ce ebraled n mylhology.Whatever the symbolic
significance ol lhesetradjlions,the Divineis lound moreeasily
lhrough those who have realisedthe Truth ol the Divine in
themselves. They have perceivedthe Reality,attainedidentily
wrlh il in lhe depths ot their being and emanate the direcl
vibrationsot lhe D vinitywith whom they are in union.To come
undertheir inlluence,to establishcontactwith them and to be
wilh them mentally,vitallyand physicallyis a sure means to
realisethe DivineReality.Not pjlgrimagesto distanlplacesbul
companyol lhe holy is the way.
 r:ha^tor_A QI449!9$ 91App,o""r'insthe Divine 151

HOLY 0t) HUMAN BIRTH (I)

"EN
Wherc the Knowet ol the Kula-Truthtives, that place is The Knowledge of the Reality cannot be obtained without
human btth.

(s.97) ( 1. 1 4 )

HE who has realisedthe Truthof the Divinedoesnol THE Tantraspeaksol the innumerable birlhsthal lhe soul
livewithina closedcircleof existence, cul oif tromall.On the has to pass throughbeforeil can arriveat matufity,a condition
c€nlraryhe radJates incessany lromeveryporeot hrsbe.ng suitablefor lakingand supporlingthe humanembodiment. And
rne nrgn Uonscrousness that he breathes,and all ir hia thrs human orgafism alone is endowed wilh lhe means ol
env'rons absorbsilsvibrations.
EveMhingunCiergoes a change. understanding the natureoJ liie, ils goal and the way to arrive
rnosethalare/eadycatchtheflameof aspr,atior andprogrJss al it, rn a word, of coming into possessionof the Knowledge
rhose{hatare not yer ripe_ lhe str wel togs oi the truth of onesell and oJ olhers,of the Truthwhich gives
:]llruet
or lip.lyl
- are warmedup and madeready, meaning10 all existence.I\ranalone, of all crealurestn lile,
'o tfemselves. knownor unknoin
All quickensin pace. The stamp oi his has ihe intelligence, the awakenedsoul to acquireand wield
rearsatonts t.npressed on all ordersol crealionaroundhtm. the Knowledgeof ihe Trulbin manilestalion. Humanbirth,thus,
rs a rare opportunilypresented by Nalure after aeons ol
preparalionthrougha successiveseriesol inleriofbirihs and
t behoavesman to pui it io the best use open to him and nol
friilef ii away in lesser pursuiis.
152 Chapter-G
lhe Divine
Gradatons ol Approaching
HUMANBIRTH(D
IMAGES

Human birth, Iadder to liberation,is difticult to obtain. Who

is more la be pitied than he who gets this birth and yet does Milk is formed thtough the entire body al the cow but iI
no! save himself? pours aut only lhtough the teats af the udder; even so lhe
Divinitypervading everywhereradtateslhrough the Images and
i1.16)

THE humanbirthis a culminaiion (6.7s)

ol a long,long series
ol preparalorybirths in the journey of the soul; it marks a
delinitestagewherefullawakening lromthesleepof Inconscience THE Divine is indeedspfead everywherejn its lorrnless
is eflectedandlhe possibility of breaking throughthe bondage Infinily.Bul on thal accoLrnti rs nol all beyond perceplion,
ol lgnorance by a purposiva growthinlo the freedomof selt beyondthe reach of the humantacullies.The Divine reveals
knowledge is placedbeloreman.He is gjvenalllhe meansol tsell in linite Form as well. In fact all iorms are uliimalelythe
will,feeljng,thoughtby whichhe can outgrowihe tutelageof se t-i gurationsof lhe DivineBeing.Of lheseformsagaln,there
Natureand buildhimselfin the imageof God,his creater.No are some which are specialconcentrations of lhe Divinity;ihey
olhertypeof beingin creatjon is givensuchan opportunityand reveallhe ensoulingDivinemore readilylhan others.Such are
the wherewilhalto lullili the great object ol tife,- Freedom, lhe lmages, ldols, elc., that have come lo be worshippedas
Ljght, lmmorlalityof Consciousness. Woe unlo the man who signiticantiorms and living symbolsof the Divine-
denieshimselflhe highdestinythat is spreadbelorehim I
154 Chapler'6
IMMEOIATE
Do today what is lor tomoitow. do in the forenoon what rc
fot the aftenoon; Death does not wait to see il things arc done
\1.42)
lF time is fleeling,lhe wise man forestallsii by aniicipalion.
He is noi laken by surprise, he does not wait lor the turn of
lhings.Not only does he nol poslponeanylhing,bul he always
believes in completingin advance. He seizes time by the
foreiockand achievesin the immediate.For no one knowswhal
the nextmomenthas in slote,whatnew unforeseenpossibilities
may not come intoihe situation.Besjdes,he knowsthal Dealh,
the endero, lhings,is alwayson lhe prowl-And this unwelcome
guest has no considerationlor the convenienceol man.
Gradatons of Approachinglhe Divine 155
INNER AND OUTER(I)
Thete is no Mantra highet than meditation; no god highel
than the Self; no worship is higher than inner pursuit; lhete is
no fruil greater than contentment.
(9.37)
ALL practiceol Manka leadslo communionwith the Deity
and whenthls communionis perlecl,the consciousness
dwels
solely on lhe Deity - there ts dhyana. Ihus dhyana is a
culm nalion ol llantra.
There are several gods and goddessesin lhe universe.
They are so many emanalionsput out from the Supreme
Creatortor purposesof lhe manifestalion. Bul He Himseltis
presenl in the crealion,in each lorm in creation,as ils Sell.
The sell is the Divine ilsell while the gods are Powersand
Personalitieso, Him.
The aim oi all worshipis to establishrelationwith the Deity
and invokeils Presence.Oller rilualis only a supporl.a help.
The real processis inner;lhe mind and the heart aspire and
pourthemselvesin adoralionand pursuilgraduallyleadingthe
consciousnessto onenesswith the Adored.
There is kuit and lruil but the one {ealurecommonto most
is fuiillmenl of desires. Bul thal does nol bring lasting
happiness.A desire salisfiedbreeds anolherand there rs no
respite.There is real happinessand peace only when one is
able lo touch the reposeol lhe soul within.This contentment
depends upon nolhing externaland is the Jruitof truits.
 cradai ons ol Approachinglhe Divine 151

156 Chapier-6
INNERTRUTH

INNERAND OUTER(ID
Ta perditian he goes who regards lhe Gutu as human, the
Mantra as r,ere letlers and the Images as slone.
Theone withautitual is the higherworship,silencets lhe
(12.45)
highetjapa, thaughtfrce state is the higher meditalion,and
dlsrelessnessthe highet ftuil.
(s.38) THE l.ue volaryof the Tantrais nol misledby appearances.
He knows lhal lhe truth oJ things is wiihrnlhem, nol on therr
s!rlaces. The Guru to him is not merey a human being like
WORSHIP i s o t t w o k i n d s : l h e o n e w i l ho u l e rr i t u atl o a lothers, albeltbetterendowedthan the olhers,and he does
supportthecommunion islhe bAhyapii6, extetnal worship;the not dea wilh h m on that basis.The Guru representsand
outerandhigheris thepurelyinnerworship, a f ow ol adoraton embodieslo h m lhe very Divrnelhat he aspiresto realiseand
ot lhe Deitywith or withoutmentalenactionol the rilual he adores hrm n lhe light oi his experience.
Japa is of two kinds: audible,with lhe word or words Similary the Mantrahe practisesis nol srnply a slring ol
physicallyrepeatedby moulhithe olher and h gher s the letters sel logelher with some rhyme or no rhyme. lt s the
mental,inaudible, silent,in whichonedwellsuponthe Manlra solnd body ol the Deity he prayslo. ll rs nol lusl a means or
repeatingit inwardlywithoutmovinglhe lips. techniqueto take him to his goal. lt is both lhe way and the
Medilation is lwo kinds:the one whichpursuesa lineol goar In one.
thoughtorganisedaroundthe objectchosen;lhe otherand Ne ther rs lhe lmage he worshipsmerelya maleria tigure.
higheris lhe slaiewithoutthoughtaclivily,the mindis silent It s the physrcalForm in whrchthe Deityis presenl.The lmage
withoulany occupying idea-novemeni. or dol rs lhe nodusfor lhe meetingoi the humanconscrousness
Andwhalis ihe fruitoJallthes€praclices? Thereare many that seeks and adores and the Dvine Consciousnesslhat
kindsthat are sought,e.9., malerial advancemenl, healthol nranlesls rn responseto the asprrafron.
bodyand mind,afrluence in heavenlier slates beyond, liberation
lrom birthand death. None ol lhese, says lhe lext, is woflh
the pursuii.
The objective is to be lree lrom desire, even lhe
desire for liberation. Personal desire lotally eliminaled and
displayed by the DivineWill is the idealcondilion
158 Chapter-6 G r a d a l i o n so f A p p f o a c h i n gl h e D i v i n e 159

(I)
KNOWLEOGE
INTELLECTUAL INTELLECTUAL KNOWLEDGE (ID
The head caffies the tlowersbut it is the nose that gels
Notknov/inglhe Truthwithinhimsell,the deludedone gets
(r.e5)
(1.96)
THE mere fact ol earningand schoLarship does not by
iisellgive the powerof wisdomunlessone equtpsoneselland
[,lENstudyand poreoverbookswithoulnumbeiin order entersinto lhe hearl o, thal Knowledge-Only he who aspires
lo knowthe Reality.Bul the Trlth of thangsis not lo be lound for lhe libefativeactionot lhe Truih-Knowledge wilhoul losing
in lhe pagesol any books;it cannotbe gol simplyby reading. himsell n the inie lecluallormulationsol it, gest its full beneil.
It is to be seen and experienced. And the besl place lo Olherwiseit remainsa barren menlal acquisition-
experience it is withinonesell- For there one has a direcl
perception. an inlimate feelingwhich is unmislakable.The
Divine is in the heart ol thingsand renders himselfmost
accessible al this core.Io withdrawlhe consciousness from
its pre-occupalions in a hundreddireclions outsideandcenke
it withinoneseltis the sureslwayto becomeawareol lhe Truth
slationedwithin and to realiseit.
160 chaolalr-. Gradalionsof Approachinglhe Divine 161

JAPA(t) JAPA (ID

Japats ofthree kinds.Japadonealoudis the lowest;Japa lf the repetitton is too clipped, it causes disease, if toa
donein low tonesis themiddle;Japadonementallyis lhe best. exlended, ft causes decay of tapas; when letterc are stuck to
(15.54) each other. lhe Mantra does not fructify.

WHENthe Japais donealoud(in the hearingol olhers)

thereis a lendencylor the repetition
to gel mechanicat.
The WHEN lhe lapa is done one much be carelu lo see lhat
so!nd predominates overthe senseand muchof the benetit the lettersare pronouncedwith full regardto their lorm and
ndividuality.No letters shall be suppressedor only pa(ly
Whenit rs donein low tones{withthe rnovemenl of ps pronouncedr10 give them only parlial expresslonresulls ln
but outsidethe hearingol others)thereis less d straclionol suppresson ol health.so also if in pronuncialionthe letlers
sound.Butstillthe ellorlof repetition of the wordsatfectsthe are undulyextended,1l resultsrn waslageo{ spirrlualenergy.
concenlraiion of the consciousness. Care shoulCbe takenio ultereach lelterdistincllyso lhat each
s o u n d - v b r a t o nh a s i t s l u l l c o u r s e .O n l y s o i s J a p a i r u r l l u l .
S!ch a concentration is fullypossiblewhenthe Japa
proceedswilhoulverbalrepelition (withoutany movement ot
lips).One dwelJsuponthe meaningand the consciousness
participatesuninterruptedly
in theaffirmation andre-allirmaiion
ot lhe invocation.
Thelettersor wordsare repealedverysubtly
wilhinthe beingas supportslo thisflowor consctousness lo
the Deity.
162 Chapier_6

JAPA0r0 JAPA 0V)

How can there be lulllllments if learning is acquied lor the

sakeof debate,Japadone lor the sakeol another,gifts given ll the mind be in one place, Shiva in another, Shaktt in
for lhe sake of lame ! anather and life'brcath sli!! in anothel place, even a crare ol

(1s.102) (1s.10)

JAPAin sadhanais meanlto enterintothe consciousness

ot the oeity and becomeone with il_ ll is only lhe Japa thal
rs ctonewilhthissoleob,ective lhatis spirituay tulti ing.One
rearnsto torgetonesellmoreand morecompletety
and,al lhe
besl,becomesthe Deityitselt.But if the Japais underiaken
lor lhe sakeoJanother,
in orderto workforthe spiritual welfare
ol somebodyelse,jt cannotbe equa y successful.
For it is
a matteris cultivaling one'sconsciousness and leadingit to
contacland livein the greaterconsciousness
of the D;jty.lt
rs lor eachpersonto nake lhe eflortand work oul the process
anhimsell.In lhis filed lhere can be no Japa by proxy.
FOR Japa to be trlittul il is indispensablelhat all the
consciousness is concerrlraledand pouredinlo il Distractions
and drsorqanised slalesol mindand leelingare an impedimenl
The mind-muslbe gatheredroundthe objeclof the Japa; the
active consciorlsness(Shakti) must coverage on it all ils
currents;the passivebeing(Shiva)must be lully iurned to lhe
eliortiand the llje_brealh must be gearedlo lhe repelition,lor
only so can the mindwith all its lacultiesbe easilyquietedand
locussedon the Japa
 164
Chapter-6

JAPA AND DHYANA Gfadalionsol Approachingthe Divine 165

When ttrcd-by Japa. take to Dhyana: tircd to Dhyana: JAPA AND STOTRA
take
ot htm who does both Japa and Dhyana. he
i?::i 1"p1..
tvantrc achleves most- Statra,laudatton,temembercdmenlally,lhe Manlra repeated
verbally, are both useless like water in a brcken vessel.
(1s.13)
(1s.56)
DICIOUScomb,nation of Japaand Dhydna(Medrldlron/
_-,AJU.
mahes tne sadhanaless slrenuousand morelruttlut.When
lhe STOTRA,hymn of praise,is inlendedlo be clearly articulated
mrndsiows signs oi exhaustiondue lo long concenlraiion n words, expressedin ils {ull sound-valuesand lhus affirmed
on
the repetiliono1thel\lantra,it shouidbe rela;edinto n the physcal universe.The physicalvibrationsso released
meditation
on the meaningand signiJicance of the l\,4antra.
The mind musl create an atmosphere,lorm a magnelicfield as it were, and
bp djloweolo toltowthe unrofljngof the tdeaIn tne lhe Presence ot the Deity thal is lauded is srJccessfully
Mantra;thts
rereaseOr the lhought_energies gives ,est lo lhe nerves ano Invokedon lhe spot.
rne Derngsoon gets resloredlo norma
cy. But il lhe rnind ts The Mantrais to be dwelt upon ln one'sconsciousness so
a/'oweo lo slay loo long In th;s state ol release.
thougl-15 lhat the Deity ensoulingthe [,4anlragraduallyyields lsell to
oegrnglo wander and a tirednessol aimlessmovemenl;ets
in. lt is then lime to draw back allthe lacu[tes lhe consciousnessthat is concentraledupon it. Mere verbal
i-lhe conce^lrat,onon and tocuslhem repetilionremainsonly on lhe surface withoui allecling the
J€pa.Thus both Japa ano Dhyanaare
rnerwowheetsuponwhtchthe updsardnrovesto nner domainsoi the be ng wherelhe contactis to take place.
tls dest,narion.
166 ChapteF6 cradationsof AoDoachr'rqrhe Div.ne 167

JIVAAND SHIVA JUST USE

Jiva is Shiva;Shivais Jiva; the Jiva pure is Shiva.When Da nat cul aff even a blade of qrass uselessly.
the bonds il is Jiva: fteed lrom bonds t! is Sadashiva. (5 46)
le.42)
CREATIONhas a rneaningand a purpose Everythrng
THEsoulassociated withNat!re,involvedin its movements, ln the wor d has a signilicance; each ihing - big or small -
is Jiva.In ilselfil is a portion,amsa,o{ the Divine. The Divine has its place in the total scheme.And to deslroyanyihrngIn
projectsitselt inlo ihe manifestation and lhis projectionis the li{e regardlessoi the use for which it is intendedis a wanton
soul.Whenlhe soul is involvedin the activities oJ life-nature inlerierencewith the order of CosmicNaiure Thls is not to say
it getscoveredbut its essential character is not affecled.The that nolhing should be utilised.Everythingis to be used lor
momeniit freesitsellfromthetrappings jorgedin the process lhe purpose Jor which li s put forth by L4other'Nature,bul not
ol the evolulionin whichit is cast,its innalecharacleras a missedor wasled. As an awakened being, man has a special
selttormulation of the Divinebecomespatent. responsibililyin ihis regard one must learnto underslandthe
intentron in Nalure, put onesell in tune with 1 and act in
consonance with its wil. That is the sign and lhe way oJ
progress.

I
168 Chapler6
KARMA
Of whal is dane here the fruit is abtained elsewhete: of lhe
lree whose raats are watered the frutts show on lhe bnnches.
EVERYaclionhas its reaction- now or alter. t is n vain
to hopeto escapethe consequences of one'sdoingsin lilehere
by going away elsewhere.
Whaleverbe the worldsto whichone goes,the impujsons
generateddurng the bodlly life on earih iollow man in hs
subllerbodiesand insislon working lhemselvesout.Th s may
be etfected parlly in the period belween death and re
embodimentand party in subsequentbirlhs. The laws of
Karma are, as a rule, ne uclable.
G r a d a t i o n so f A p p r o a c h i n qt h e D i v n e
KAULA (r)
Away fram misery, contended,devoid al qualities, free frcm
jealousy, given ta the Knawledge of the Doctrine, peaceful, the
Kaula is always devoled to the Divine.
(s.84)
THE true Kaula - parlicipantof the Kaula Dharmain the
Tantratraditionharmonisingthe Truthof the DivineBeingwith
the manilestationoi the D vlne Consciousness-Force - is lo
be dlstinguished not lrom exlernalmarksof appearance,|iual
etc., but be the grade of the consciousnesshe has atta ned.
He is one who is not lost in the miseriesof the petty world
ot des res, d sappontmenls and atflicitonscommon to most.
He s content with what is given to him by the Divine,finds
his source ol happinesswith in hinself.He is not sublecl to
lhe currentsof likes and dislikes,good and evil, that sweep
the mind oii its balance.He does not burn himselfwith envy
at the good fortuneof others.He knows and lives in the Truth
oi the Divine, rts Oneness, its overpoweringBliss. Nolhing
d slurbs him; he is ever al peace, with hiinselland with the
world.All his atlentron,all his energiesflow towardsthe Divine,
the supreme object of his adoralion.
1to Chapier-6
KAULA (ID
Without insolence, anget, show, desirc and ego, truthful in
speech, nat enslaved lo the senses, the master of the Kaula
path is steady, not fickle.
(9 85)
BUT on that accounl,becauseol his high slatus,the Kaula
is not proud,not haLrghty; he does nol show ofl his powersor
his knowledgeto impress upon the less tortunaleand gain
a following.He is rootedin the divinecentrewithin,nol in lhe
ego; he is not swayed by ihe impulses ol nalure, but ls
governedby the impulsionso{ lhe soul, the Truth wilhin and
he expressesin speechand actiononly what is consistenlwilh
thal verily. He is lirmly sel in his pursuil ol the ldeal and
nothing can dislracl him.
Gradationsof Approachingthe Divine 171
SELF.REVEALING
Not by thinking but by itself alone is the Reality reveated.
(s.1o)
THE Divinecannotbe lhoughtout. No amountoi reasonlng,
lhoLrghtdeliberalron can bringone lace to facewith the Reality
ol the Divine. Normallysuch mental activityonly weaves a
lhoughtwebaroundlhe person.At the most,mentaldeliberation
can processlhe mind,free it lrom its dross of materialityand
vrlalcolourng and prepareit lor a highergrowth.But il cannol
serzethe Drvin€even in its highestllight.The Divineis beyond.
It revealsitseli by its own choice and il the being is ready it
can receiveand imbibethe revelalion. Thinkingcan be an aid
bul never the means to realiselhe Divine.

'172 C h a p l e t6
SHIVA.SHAKTI
The wa d is made ol Shiva and Shaktt
(2.83)
THE universeis not a transientproducto{ an i usivePower'
It is a creationof a divinePuissance,Shakl , that not only puts
it oul into birth but builds it into a progressivemanifeslation
of the Divine, she is lhere in lhe creatlon, omnpTesenl'
omniscienl,omnipotent,as the consciousnessthat intorms
and guides,as the Forcelhat execulesBut thisConsclousness-
Farce, cit-sakti,is not alone.The Poweris of one who wields
ii, ihe Sakfibelongsto the Sakla;the Consciousnessis of the
Being,the Shiva,the SupremeExistent.lt is emanaledby an0
based upon Shiva; il brings out into manitestatlonwhat rs
containedin the illimitableBeing ot Shava ln iacl, the Shakli
is none other than Shiva himself,Shiva as Shakti Wherever
Shakti is, there ls Shiva ioo - whether in this world or any
olher.The Truth is One, revealingitself in its double aspect
when turned io manilestation,and all that is manifest is
constitutedo{ lhis double t.uth ol exaslence-
Gradationsol Approachingthe Divine
SINS OF THE DISCIPLE
The blemish af the ministet touches the king; the blemish
af the wte lhe husband; and the sins af the disciple, withoul
daubt, are visiled upon the teacher.
(ri.109)
When the GurLracceplsone as disciple,he takes hlm into
h rnself,makes him part ol h s own beingand, n the process,
. e s h a r e sh i s l l i e w l h t h e
t a k e sh i s d e s t n y u p o n h i m s e l i H
d sc p e There is an inlermngl ng ol the two conscousness
t ll they becomeone. Naluraliya that lhe discipledoes h s
thoLrghls,his words, his actions- has its own reaclions n
the be ng of lhe Guru and his Karam allects the Guru.
Ths s how th6 collective sins ot the dscples, even
devoiees,come lo ieave a mark on the body of the Guru and
even lnflct physicaldamage upon it.
174 Chapter6
SUPREMETRUTI-
Some seek the truth non'dual, otherc the truth dual But
lhey do not know my Truth which exceeds both
(110)
PHILOSOPHERS dispuleendlesslyaboutthe natureor lne
rea|ly.Some holdthatlhe Realilyis one which does not perm I
any other; all else that seems to be ls only an appearance,
there cannot be anythingelse other lhan lhe so e, absolule,
One.There are otherswho challengelhis posilionand assert
thal thereare alwaystwo kuths - God and Nature,Sptriiand
[,4atter- and all is an interaction, a play of the Two And so
the dispulationsgo on, each proclaiminghis own view as the
sole lrulh. The real lrulh ol lhe matter,however, s thal the
Realityis abovealt mind-madedistinclions- 11is an omnipresent
Realitywhichpermtsmanypossibleexpedencesol itcorresponding
lo lhe viewpointsfrom which it is perceived;it is the supreme
Trulh in whichallexperiencesand the slalemenlsbasedupon
them lind their reconcilialion.lt is none ol them solely but
conlainsall of lhem in its inlegralityand exceedsthem in ils
transcendenceoi all lolmulalions,
Gradalions
ol Approach
ng lhe D vine 175
TANTRASADHANA(I)
Fron lhe nulAdhAra ga up to the brahmarandhraagain and
agatn: bltss tssues out of his meeting of the Kundaltni Shakti
and lhe l'"'laanot Full Consciousness.Whal flows from Ihrclotus
in the suprene Ethet is the wine. the real wine to be lasled
by man: what ts drunk alherwise, is anly ltquaL
( 5 . r0 7 . 8 )
HEFE s ihe sadhana of the Tantra and ils ecslatc
iu lilment in a nuishell.Awakenthe concentraleddynamtsm
ol Powerlayingcoiledup al the base of lhe sp ne in the body
and lead I upwardsrn lhe system by approprraterneansol
Dhyana,Japaetc.and takeil lo the summilol the consciousness
of supreconscrence, Whenlhe two meet,the Powerrisingfron-t
below- lhe Krndalini andthe superconsciousness awailrng
above - the Sanasrara there is a llow ol pure bliss.This
is lhe rea ecslasy, the yield of the myslic wine thal is
celebratedn the Tanlra,and nol the inloxication
causedby the
phys ca subslancecal ed wine which can be qualted by any
body wilhouthavingto go lhroughlhe elaborateand strenuous
processesol the sadhana. Materialwine is only an outer
symbol n fitua oi ths inner tlowtng
176 Chapt€r6
TANTRASADHANA(|D
Knowingyoga, cut asundeLwith the swordof knawledae.
the animat of duatily - metit and demetil. anct meee;hc
consciousness in lhe Suprcme.Thatis the true eatinqol meal.
(5.10s)
THEanimaltobesacrificed is nollhefourlegged quadruped
thal is the viclimof commonsuperslition, but the notionol
goodand bad,lhe obsession of dualitythatdogsthelootsteps
of man.This constantpreoccupation with what is good and
whal is bad, what storesup metit and what accumulates
derneritcreatesan unhealthysell-occupation thatstandsin the
way of true enlatgement and lreedomIn conscrousness.
Besidesgoodand bad are very relativeterms;whai is good
at one ljme,al one stageof development, becomesnol qood
al anolher.whatis bad now maylurn out to be goodtate;on.
To eliminatethis involvement
in the net of papa andpunyaand
findone'slevelin a consciousness ihal transcends bothis the
Gradationsot Approachingthe Divine 177
TANTRA SADHANA(III)
Bnng lhe host al the sense under conlrol by the mind and
yake them to the sell That is lhe lrue ealtng af hsh: all else
is simply to hurt the crealures.
(5.110)
THE sensesare ever on lhe move,draggrngthe m nd with
them lnlo lhe world ol their objects.Man is always prone to
this distracton ol the sense and consequenly lails to make
lhe best ol lhe opporl!nityand the time givento h m. Inslead
ol being his own master, abe lo drrecl and utlise the
c rcumstancesaround him for his properadvancement,he is
a s ave ol the senses,heiplesslydriftingwhereverlhey lead.
Br ng ihese senses under thy conlros, calls the scrplure, lel
lhy mind assertits righttulmasteryoverprata in whosecurrenl
lhe senses aTerunning,Once the pntic energyis controlled,
a I lhe sense-motons are automaticallyabsorbedand the way
is open lo p ace lhe sense under the directionol the soul.
This s the lrue 'ealrn9',lhe jusl utilisaiionol the
sensesand the oblectslor the teedingoi lhe soul-experience
tor growlh, not the indulgingot the senses lor lher own
salislaclon,
 174 G r a d a l L o nosl A p p , o a c h i n gt h e D i v i n e 179
Chapter-6

TANTRASADHANA(IV) UPASANA

The Woman ta be waited Waited is the Shak that is ',^/ithoutupesane the Presence does nat fructtfy.
datmant in the animal man but awake in the votary of the path. (6 7e)
The rush of bliss that ensues upon the meettng of the pair,
the Supreme Shakti and the Self abave, is the reat Cangrcss: THE Divineis ndeedpresenteverywhere, especiallyln the
aU else ts mete copulatian. human body.B!t lhal by itselJdoes not make any difference
( 5 . 1 1 11 2 ) lo man Lrnless he lakes stepsto rea rseit in his conscousness.
Self awareness,sel{-puriicalion, adorationand evocalionol
THERE is a divinepower tatenitn man waitingto be the indwellingD vine are ihe main sleps for awakeninglhis
awakenedlnto aclion,All the powersthat are normaly active Presencein h s conscousnessand makingll a dynamrcpower
and make ltie possibte are only derivations,diminutions, n lile. Suchan innerdlsciplines indispensable lo prepareand
raisethe humansystemto the levelof thal purity and rnlensrty
secondaryformulationsof this Motherpower that is dormant
within.Thts puissance,the Shaktr,js lo be awakened,aroused n seeking whLchalone can move the Divine to reveal and
intoan upwardmovementtowardsthe Self,lhepure Consctousness man fest lsell in the person ol the seeker. Otherwiseihe
srluatedat the higheslcentfe ot ihe beingoJ man. And when potentialtyremainsuntappedand dormant.
thrs union betweenthe Shakti dartingirom ils seat beiow in
lhe otus ol the Muladharaand ihe Lord waitingabove in the
olus ol inftniie petats, the Sahasrara,is etfected in lhe
consciousnessol the practitionerthere is an ebulition ol
inlenseAnanda,
That is the true Congress,the real btissthat is aimed
at, not lhe physicatinierchangeal the animat tevet.
 180
Chapler6
Gradationsol Approaching
the Divine 141
UPASANA GRADATIONS

VEDA
La.udalionjs worth a billion af worsnps;
,
taudatton: Fpa, a bi ion ol
meditation.a biltion ol Fpas: and absorptrcnts
worth
a Dlltoo ot meditalions There is no science greater than the Veda.
(3.113)
(9.36)

THERE is a gradationin the discipline, saonaDathat ieads THE Veda s the revealedknowledge.ll is cherishedas the
lo the Divine.Worship,with externalmeans Wordwhichhas rssuedfromlhe Supremealongwith ihe words
lo supporl the
dedicalion,is the tirst with which lhe cornmunton thal conslilutethe universe.lt holds all the knowledgeof the
rexl is less physrcal: rt is the starts. the
repet.tio'land oweltingLpo. lhF truthsof [/an, Natureand God, the way to harmoniesthem in
Name or lhe Word ol Invocatron ot the DerryHrgherthan lhat oneself,eilecl the lunctionof Nalure and God in oneselfand
r:eltat ]eaf ot meditat,onon rhe iorrr fulfrllhe cosmic purposein the manilestalion.ll conlainsthe
:-l:e and lrurn ot the
uelly. Hrghesl o. all ts the srale or one^ess key to the problemsof ljle in lhe instilulionof Sacrificewhich
thdt .s the
curmtnatron ol all successlulmeditanon:one rs absoroeoInlo s an outer symbol oi the irrnerprocessof consecralionand
lhe objectoJpursuit- the conditionof samadhi. selj'surrenderby man to lhe Divinity(in appropriatelorms)
Thereis thus
aL.sle-ady lrogression in this discjpline : physrcat,semr_ callingforth the blrth ol the gods ol divineKnowledge,Power,
pnysrcal,mental,spirilual.The character Bliss and Harmonyin his hallowedbeing.
of the means keeps
with lhe nalure of the developingconsciousness.
142 the Divine
of Approaching
Gradatrons 183
Chapter6

VEOAANDTANTRA VERBAL KNOWLEDGE

Knowthe lruth of the Vedato be the Doctrineol lhe Kauta. verbal knowledge is not adequale lo destroy lhe delusions
of the worldly raunds. By mere talk of the lamp lhe darkness
(2.85)
1.97)
THETantrais notalienlo theVeda.Thetruththal ensouls
the Tantrais essentiallythe subslance of the Veda.The lruth
ot a DivineRealitypervading all formsin existence, all states THE lgnorancethal holdsman in slaveryto inferiorNalure
ol consciousness andpowerin crealion, the possibility
of man cannot be dispelledby a readingol books or inslruclionsby
awakinglo thistruenatureof liie,andhimselldeveloping into mouth.Words remainmere words and are inefiective. At best
lhey g ve a menia underslanding of lhe problem but no more
a liveinslrumentol the Divine,particjpairngin the cosmicpiay
ol lhe Supreme - allthesebasickuthsof theVedaenterinlo The solulionhas lo come trom elsewhere. ll is only by /ivlrg
lhe slructureof lhe Tanlricsystem,The Tantrarepresents it
the knowledge,by building as a live force ior change in lhe
a
contlnuation,an enlarged application suitedto the developing consciousness,that the liberalion can be eiiecled. lt s nol
mind oi humanily,of the Vedictradition. enoughlo know and say thal a lamp can remove darkness,
it is necessarylo fetch rl and keep it alighl on lhe scene

144 Chapter6
WINE
lf by the mere dinking af wine one were to altain pertec on,
all drunkard-creatureswould be perfecl.
\2. t17)
lT is a commonnotlonthat in the Tantrawine-drinking
is a means oi spiritualperfection.li thal were reallyso, says
the text, all the low types ol men that are addictedto drink
would have reachedihe supreme stale. Note the wo(J pamarah,
low creatures, used lo describe those that take to the
intoxicatng drink.One who aims high can never resorlio th s
type of drink which weakens and ultimatelybreaks the wi
wh ch s the fulcrumof all determinalionand effortof man. ll
is a delusionlo think that the sense oJ abandonmenithal
comes over the senses on takingalcoholcan be a means oT
a foretasle of the real freedom oJ the soul- Actually it is a
precursorol the disintegralion of the centralisingpoweroJwill.
C d d . l i o , l \ o l A p p r o d . h i n qt n e D i v r ' l e 185
woRsHtP0)
Warship with the tnsltuction of the curu.
(6.5)
TO worshp s io communewithihe Deity.Totakeand foltow
a sel oi procedureot ritualsby onesell is nol the way to do
l. One musi Iirsl receivethe initiation,lhe aulhorityio hotd
conrmunon w th the Gur!. For the Guru is one who has realised
n h mself,in whatevermeasure,the realityof the Deity and
can put olhers n relationlo that Deityby meansof his tapas-
power.When he inlliales,he rmplantsth s connectingpowerin
the beingo{ the discipleand the outer riluatis only a phys ca
support to the repealed atfirmalionand buitdingup of this
relai/on.W thout this aulhorsationand chargelrom the curu,
mere ritualislicworship is ineltective.
r86 Chapter6 G r a d a t i o n so f A p p r o a c hn g t h e D i v i n e 147

woRsHrP
0r) woRsHtP(Ir)

Worship the Sri Chakra by uniting the I'4antra. Sel aside the faded petals of lgnorance and worship wth
(6.s) the cansciausness of 'He and l',
(9.42)
TO worshipby mechanica{ly repeating the prescribed
Manlrasis no trueworship. The l/anlrais the sound-body ol WHILEworshippingthe Divinedo not offerio hinrthe slaie
the Deily.Each Deity has its l\rantra.To reachthe Deily the f owers o{ thy desires,passions,ignorantmovements.Throw
mostnatufalwayis to approach throlghihe Manirathatis its them behind lhee and realise thal thou art another,nol a
sound-form- Andlhat can be donenol by simplyuiteringthe creal!re of lgnorance.Know it in lhy heart lhat thou arl none
the Manlra,but by joining,yoga,one's
leltersthat conslilute olher than Fle,the Divine,ailirmthjs truthin thy consciousness
conscrousness lo the ldea,the Truththat is ensouledin the and n th s feelingof identiiyofter thy worship.So with thou
Nlantra.By thinkinguponlhe ldeain the Manlra,by dwetting grew nto the likenessoJ thy ideal.
upon 1 in the consciousness, and conslantlyaffirmingit in
onesef whilerepeating the l\,4antra,
one irnbtbes thevibrations
of the Deityand movescloserand closerto it. This growng
communionleadrngto an eventualunion is the objectol
188 Chapler-6
Gradationsof Approachingthe Divine 189
woRsHlP
0v)
(v)
woRsHrP
Arouse lhe soulJorce lo ils full potency and salisfy the
Deities in the body.
Worshtp wtlh exclusve concenlralion.
(6.96)
(6.71)
THE body ot man is conceivedlo be an minialureuniverse
in itself. The various cosmic Deities occupy appropriale WORSHIP is nol a mechanicalduty to be somehow
stalions in lhe various limbs ot the body. They are to be completed.Theinvocationot the Divinity,its reception,adoration,
se I surrenderand linally,the terminationof the meeting,are
awakenedand activisedlo participatein the worship.And the
parls of a soul-processol growthinto godhoodand they call
meanslo do il is lo arousethe innatepower of lhe soul which
for all the attentionand concenlralionol the mind that the
is for the mosl parl inacliveand b€hindthe veil. The Shakti
practitioneris capableol. ll lhe hands participatein the rilual
lying dormant is to be aroused by concentrationand evocation
with the aid ol the Manka and directed upwards where She wrthoutthe properconsciousness in them, jl the mouthmerely
parroislhe form!las withouithe mind and the heart dwelling
meets the Lord sealed in lh€ sahasraraand the shower of Bliss
ensues. The Deilies presiding over the severai limbs ol the upon the sense in lhem if one is only bodily presenton the
body share in this celestial downpour, become contented and scene ol worshipwhilelhe mind wanderselsewhere,lhen lhe
join the whole movement ol worship. purposeot worshipis nol served-Not only the mind but all the
facultiesof lhe being musl learn to convergeon the objecl ot
190 Chapler6 Gradalronsol Approachingthe Divine 191

(vD
woRsHrP YANTRA

lf, fickle-minded,you call one Deity and worshipanother, As lhe body is lo the jtva, as oil is to the lamp. so ts yantra
you receive the curses of bolh. the eslabhshed seal of all the Deitles.
( 6s 1 ) (6.87)

BEFOREone undertakesworshipand invokesa Deily,one
must be Jirm in one's laith in thal Deity.lf, in the absenceot
such failh, one changeslhe object ol the Call in the course
ol lhe upesana,prelers anotherDeity losinglailh n the one
alreadyinvoked,ihen one oJJends both.The lirsl Deity s called
the secondis offeredworshipthal has been
but leftunatiended;
alreadydedicatedin spirit and tasted in parl by anolher.ll is
disrespectto bolh.
THE Oely needs a physical nodus lo lunction in the
physca world.And lhal need is providedby lhe Yanlrawhich
is a diagrammaliclorm corresponding to the conliguraton of
the lorces lhai accornpanythe manifesiationol lhe Deity on
rls own plane.When lhis tigure- revealedlo lhe vis on oi the
Seer in his lapasya - is drawn and concenlraledupon, t
recreales,as il were, lhe very condilionsin which lhe Deity
becamemanilestoriginallyand the Deily is movedlo manitest

Thus lhe Yantrais more than a symbol.lt is the body ot

the Deily.
192 ch"pt"t-6
YANTRAANO MANTRA
The Yantrais ensouled by the Mantra, and the Deity is in
the form ol the Mantrc.
(6.85)
WORSHIPof the Yanlrais the same as worshipof lhe
Deity.For eachYanlrais the form-pallernol a particularDeity.
ll representsdiagrammatically lhe contiguralionol the linesol
manitestation of the Deity.The soul of the yantra- whatgives
lite to it - is the Manka that is used to consecrate and
energjesil. Andlhis Mantraagain,is the sound-patern ot the
Deity.Each Deityhas its characteristic sound-vibralions and
theyconstilule itssoundbodywhichis revealed to theaudition
o, the Seerin the lorm ol the Manka.
Gradationsol Approachingthe Divine 193
YOGA
The union ol the jiva and the Sell is Yoga.
(s.30)
THE beingof man rs one in its essencewith the Divine
Seli whichbasesand supportsall life.But it is not awareol
this divineoriginand character becauseit is involvedin the
operations ot Nalurein lgnorance. By awakening lo lhis lrulh
ol hrmselland by the adoption of a psychological
andspirilual
disciplne,it is possibleior manto disengage himselJ fromh s
manysidedinvovementirl the lfe ol lgnorance, tncrease the
awareness of hislruenature,gradually
growinlolheconsciousness
of the Sellwithinandevenlually realisehisidentilywithit.This
union and Iha maanslo il - is Yoga.
194 Chapler.6

YOG|N(r)

The yogin should regularlyperfom sandhya withaul mantra

and water, austerity without puja and fie-sacrifictal, warchtp
withoul ceremontes.
(e.39)

THE yogin does not need to undergo all lhe ritualislic

exercse lhat the ordinaryman does lo gain communionwilh
the Div ne. Bul he conl nues the modesoi communionlhough
he dispenseswith the aciive supporls which are no longer
necessafyin his stage ot developmeni.
The yogin dwells in his consciousnesson lhe Divine Chapter-7
al peak periods.He undergoescontinuousseltdiscipliningol
the mind, lite and body-His being flows in adorationlowards
GLOSSARY
the Divine,even in submissionand sel'.consecration.Medilation,
concentralion ol will,adorationol the Divine,are iniegralparls
of his etfort.
Chapter-7

T
I he vasl Tanl.a lileratureconlarnsa large nLmber ol
technicalterrnsand wordswhichare nol commonlyused.Here
we have noted only such words as are ollen necessarylor
the study ot Tantras.
For the convenienceoi ihose who are interestedonly in
the sclentiiicelementsn Tantra,we have givena separatelisl
containing exclusivelylhe scienliJicterms, based mainly on

In English Alphabetical Order

Abhic:ira
A rite designedto harm olhers.
Seradeilaka,
Saklisamgama,
Abhiseka
Consecralion ol theTanlricdevoleewhohas holywaler
sprinkledover him. lt is ot two broad kinds : &ikhbhiseka
and Ptrnabhiseka.
Satadatilaka (Raghavabhatta'scomm. iv. 1).
Prcnatosini.
Saktisamgana,
Acara
Rulesol conducias meansot spiritualatlainment.
Thereare generally
sevenkindsol such rules;e.9.,
Veda,Vaisnava,Saiva, Daksina,Vadma,Siddhanta,
Kaula.Theseare comprisedin two main categones,
viz., Vamaand Daksina-Kaulamargarchasya,
Pranatosini,
Matrkabheda,
r98 ChapterT Glossary r99

Adhara Saklisamgama,fa'a,
Literally,receplacle.fhe Cakta (q.v.), supposed to (3) One ol lhe broaddivisionsoJTantnceceras,as d siincl
exist in the loweslextremityol the spinalcord,is called
MLihdhara. Agneya-varna
Nlalantra, Lellers connectedwilh the elemenlot Jire.These are
irom Yato Ksa in order.
presidedover by
One ot the six geographicaldivisions Saradalilaka(Raghavabhalta's
comm. on il),
Buddhist and Jan deities, Vaglsvari, Vairayogrni, Aiapd
Nairrtesvari,etc.
A lorm ol elforllessmeditatron. The sounds ham and
PEnatasini,
sah. arising automaticallydue to the movement ol
Saklls mgama, Sundar, brealh constrlulethis manlra.Th s automaticformalion
al ihe hamsa-mantralakesplace in mtladhera, anehata
and Aliacakras. Ajapa is twolold, secret and open The
Procedure of purifying lhe body consisilng ol six laller rs sub divided into lwo calegories,sound and
adhvas, viz.. varna, pada, manlra, kala. lattva, and sighl. GheQnda,
Saradalilaka.Xlvgl (Raghavabhatlascomm. on i1).
Saradalilaka (Raghavabhaltas cornm. on rt).
Aifrd-cakra
Adyd Sakti
The nerue'plexusbetweenthe eyebrows.Look ng like
Primevalenergy conceivedas a goodess. a two-pelalledwhite lotus, il is symbolisedby lhe
Aghamarsana lellers Ha and Ksa.
Lterally meaningthe wiplng oll oi the sin kom lhe Satcakranihpana,
body.ll is done by sprinklingwaler on dilierenlparts Aksam6lii
ol the body.
A rosary of beasds made ot Budr6ksa,
crystals,elc
Ianlrasdra of Krsnananda (on authority ol Malitilanlra,
Akula
Aghdta
Srva aspect ol Sakti.
PRnayama.
Tantra\toka,
Aghora
Ati
(1) A form of Siva, black and lierce,supposedto preside
over the soulhero region. Sp rtuous iquorusedin Tanlrc worship.
PrAnatosini, (on authorlty ol Nitvana'tant ra). Atidha
(2) Name oi a Siva secl resorling lo vamacara. A posturein whichtherightleg s slretched
lorwardand
the leli rs slighllybenl.
200 Chapler7
Glossary 201

Amnaya
Aniaryr9a
Zone ol T6nlric culture,live or six n numb€r.
l\/entalworship^ which'thePancalanvasare concetved
Ku16nava, Saklisamgama, Sundari, V as abslracland nol langiblelhings
Andhata Mahanirvana,
(l) A nerve plexus (Cakra) in the region of the hearl. GautamiyaTantra,
supposedlo look like a lwelve'pelalledred loius.
GendharvaTantra,
(2) Nanre ol a partclar sound without anylhing berng
Anukalpa
stuck,
c '5<ri"'-o 6 r .^.^n,r !r,-or ror w,ne.
Anavasthollasa
Apy:iyana
The lasl slageof spirit!alprogress,accordinglo some
Tanlrc schools. Processingol a manira.
Parasurema-kaIpaslt ra, Krsndnandas lanlrasala,
Anavi diksd Armbha-ulldsa
A {orm of Tantricinilialionin which mantrc, arcana. F rsl slage ot spirilualaltainmenl.
asana nyasa),dhyana and various arlicles ol worship Parasuremakalpa,
are required.ll is ol varrouskinds,e.9.. Sp6rsh,Vacik!
Ardhaparyanka
A siti ng poslurein whichbothihe egs are on the same
SAradAulaka, V.127-4o (Raghavabhaila's
comm.on il),
pedeslal,one knee being bent and the other raised.
Pranalosini,
Arka : Jhana saktt.
Anganyrisa
AsarnprajietaSamadhi
A melhodot feelinglhe limbs in a Tanlrc rile. lt rs ol
tlveor s x kinds.The cenlresare hearl,head,protective 'ee Samedhi.
symbol,eyes and inlestine. Asana
Nilatantra, Poslureas an accessoryoI yoga.
Antardasara Astadala-padma
Internalbody ol myslic diagrams.Inner shade ol lhe Eight-pelaliedlolus conceived as a symbol in the
flames ol Ca*ras, called Bindu, Ttikonaa^d Astakona. maklngol Caklas insideand outsidehuman body as
Manrlesl ray al lhe Navatikonaor Navayonrcakra also in diagrams.The pelalsare slatedlo; contarnthe
consislingot nine lriangles. Ielters K,4, CA, TA, TA, PA, YA, SA, LA
Kamakaavilasa, 30; Nlyasoda sikatnava, Astamdtrk6
Eight Mothe.goddessessupposed to reside in the
VjsnurekhaolBht|pura-yantrc,Nityasodasi kanava
202 oEplsz Glossary 203

169,71. An Ayadh! ta of the highesl grade is ca ed Kulayadhula.

A$apes. Avadhutasate dividedintotwo classes: Househotders
viz.,ghrna(hatred), ano recluses.
Eighlbondsol humanexist€nce,
Kulernava,
lajja (shamel, bhaya lleatl, sarka (apprehension),
Pftinatosini,
./ugupsa(aversionor reproach),kula (pedigree),si/a MahalniMena,
(conduct),latl (birth or cast€)
(2) Name ol a nerve.
Astasiddhi Avadhdii
See Siddhi The centralnerve,accordingto Buddhists,corresponding
Astra : Same as Astrabia (q.v). lo Susumna of Hindu Tanlra.
Artrabiia Avaranadevatd
Syllabe Phat Also calledYogini,presidingover nine Caklas ca ed
Prakala, Guptas, elc., which are differentlrom the welt_
Nilatantft, known Salcakras.
Asvakrrntd Aiyasodasikamava,
The vast tract ot land etlendinglrom the vindhyahills (SetubandhaComm.).
to the great ocean. ln lhe MahAsiddhaseratantra, ils
w€stern boundaryis lhe river Karatoyain Dinajpur Avidy:i
districtot WestBengal,and lhe easternboundaryis in Fa se knowledge, nescience, Moha.
Yavadvipaor Java. Accordinglo some authoriiiesil
ext€nds lromabovehilltolho west,comprising Persia,
Egypland Rhodesia. Tentricdisciple
belonging
to theprobatjonary
stagesof
aramDha,taruna,yauvanaand praudha,parasurama-
It is one of the threetractsinlo whichIndiais divided
kalpa-sutram,(Ramesvara's Comm.).
in cadainTantras.
Avrli
AvadhUta
Avarana,
Veilot delusion.
dvaita-jhAna-vihino yah
saNa-bhita- hite ratah/ Avyakta
tyakta-vanAs ramah santah Denol€sprakrti(q.v.).
Unmanifested.
paqa-lasa-PaBnmukhah// Bahirdasara
avalipta nd kutrcPi dhutaqaPah
sadaiva hi / Exlernalappearanceot the mysticdiagramsintended
avadhutah sa viineYas-talktte lo representlive grossand fivesubtleelements.These
cina-sadhanam // elernenlsare symbolisedby ten ieftersbeginninEwilh
(1) A Tantric devoleeot a very high order'
204 Chapter-7

Thetentriangles, represenlinglhetheme,aresupposed Bh0iaps6rana

to be presided over by len goddesses,called Wardingofi evil spirils and disturbancesby means ol
Kulakaulayogini. mantfas.
Nityesodasikenava, Saradatilaka,
Banalinga (Raghavas comm.).
A form of Siva-phallus, supposedto resrdein ihe Krsndnanda'sIanllasara,
ltiangleol Anahata-cakft .
Bhiitasuddhi
Bhairava
Parl oi a rile in which the live bhttas or elemenls oi
Paramasiva lhe body are purllied.
BhairaviCakra Nilatantra,
A ritualin whichPaficatattvas are used.In it, males Bija
and lemalesparticipate and indulgein dr nk ng and
sexualinlercourse. (1) lvystic syllableslike
MaheniruAna, Hrim, Hum. e1c.
Kaul6val-ninaya, \2) Semen.
Kularnava, {3) Cidatman.
BhairaviMudrd BindLr
ll is that condiljonwheneverything is withdrawnnto (1) One dot representsundividedmaniieslationof Siva.
a personin the shapeot his soul. \2) Double doi ( ylsarga) represenis Sakti.
BhArali (3) Accordingto Saivas, an evoluteol Nada.
Sameas Yisuddha(q.v.). (4) ln Kashmir-Saivism, one of lhe len Vidyallattavas.
Bhumispaise (5) Para. Accordingto some, it has threelorms, Prakas?
A mudralq.v.)in whichthe palmol the righthand s lslalic). Vimarca (kinetic) and Ptakas'a-Vimatsa
lumedinward, andthelingersoutstretched w th thetips (comblnationof bolh).
of Jingers louchingthe ground. SArade laka,
BhUpura Tantaloka,
A iour-cornered figurewithJourdoorsand a lriangle PGpafrcasera,
within.
KAnaka l6.vil sa, (Cidvalli).
GandharvaTantrc,
Brahmadvara
Nityesodasikarnava,
The passagethroughwhich Kutdarti (q.v.) moves.
206 Chapler-7 Glossary 207

Brahmagranlhi which s necessarylor keepingthe body lit and lor

Oneof thethreeknotsin lhe MllAdhea-cakra. Ntlatantra atlainmentol Siddhis.A f'nltic SiLdhane.
Brahmdndi Caksusrdiksa
Sameas SusrmDa(q.v.). A lorm ol anitiationin which the Guru iniiiates hrs
Brahmapura : Humanbody. discipleby a moreglance-
Brahmarandhra Kulanava,
An aperturein lhe crownol the head,throughwhich Saradalilaka,
the soul or vitalbreathis supposed10escapeon ils (Reghava's comm.).
leavingthe body. Candra
grahmavartman : Sameas Susumra(q.v.). A Vamacarisect.
Cakra
Sak!isamgama.Ied,
(a) The six mysticalcirclesor nerve-plexuses, supposed Candrakald
to exjslwilhinthe bodylromlhe lowerextremity ot the
spinalcordupto thehead.Thecirclesin theascending Symbolol cresentmoon supposedto exisl on the
otdetate'.MiLldhera,Svedhisthena, Manipira,Anehata, crown ot the goodess.lrom which nectar is believed
Visuddha,Ajne. to exude.
Ihe Sahasara-padma totus)is supposed
11ooo-petatted MaheniNena,
lo be locaiedwithinthe crownof lhe head. Candranadi
(b) Designalion of an assemblyof Tantricdevoteeslor Anolhernameof /da(q.v.),supposedto ropresenlSakti
certain rites, e.9., BhaitaviCakra. in the form ol the moon,
(c) Endlessrotationof Sakti. Satcakrcnitpana,L
(d) Yanteot myslicdiagtam,e.9.,Trkonacakn,Astakanacakra. caram6ld
See Satcakranir0pana. Rosaryol Frdrdksa,crystal,etc.,lor Japaor muttering
the nameol god.
Cakrap'ild Krsnanenda's
A Tiintricworshipin the companyol some tanlric TantrasAra,
devoleesunderthe leadershipof the Gulu. Caturdasara
Nitatantra, A diagramconstiiutedby '14triangles6ach of whichis
Cakrabheda presidedov6r by a goddess.Such goddossesare
calledSampradd-ya-yoginis. ll is believedto leadlo lhe
Literalltpenetration
ol Cakras.[,4anilestalion
or aclivation acquisitionol /sitva,one of the s/ddhis (q.v.).
 Chapier-7 Glossary

ilityasodasikernava, Satcakraniipana,
Gandharvatanlra, Daksindcdra
Caturvimsatitaliva Orlhodox wayot spiritual
attainmentwithoutPa6cama-
24 lundamentalthjngsatsorecognised inTantra.These kar.ain conformilywith Veda, Smrti and Pu16na.
are lrve gross elemenls,five sub e elements,five Vedecara,Vaisnaveceraand SalvicAraare includedn
sensoryorgans,live motororgans,mind,intellect., it.
egolrsn,pramordial substance (p/akrl,). Daksinamerga
Catuskdtd Sameas Dakslracara (q.v.).
A partrculararrangement of leltersfor use in the cull Daksinasrolatantta
ol Srividya.
Tantrasbelonging to the southern currenl,viz.,Yogiri
Krsndnanda's lanlrasdr'a, jala, Yaginihrdaya,Manlrc-mali ni,Aghores),Ktieghore-
Cholikd svari, Lakin)kalpa,Marici,Mahemanct.
SyllablePhal Damara
Cindcdra ll denolesuproar,ajlray,riot,the bustleandcont!son
oi lestivityor slrile.ll slandstor a classoi Taniras,
A modeof Kaulacara.
staledlo havebeennarraledby Siva.
TeAEntra,
Dasasamskara
Citrini
See Samskara.
Nameof a nerue,alsocalledSrahma-Diidi, Someiirnes Oasamah6vidy6
regarded as one of lhe threeconslituentsof Sosurnnd
(q.v-);oftenidentiJied with Susumra. Tentdntricgoddesses : Kali,Terli,Sodasi,
Bhuvanesvari,
Bhairavi,Chinnamasla, Dhumavati. Vagala,N/elangi,
Pknatosini,
Kamal4.Pranalosini,
Cdddcakra
Dehasddhana
A kindot spirilualexerciselor ylra type 01devolees
Same as Kayasadhana(q.v-)
ll involvesLala-yoga(q.v.).
Devacakra
Ddkini
A kind of Cakrarilual.
A class of minor deilies associatedwrlh parvati,
Chinna-masta, etc.Supposed to be the presiding
deity Devicakra
oI tt4ilAdherc. Sameas Cakla(q.v.).
Devyastra
Krsnananda's
Iantasdra, 'I
he mysrlc svllablesHRIM PHAT
21O Chatter-7 Glossary 211

Nilatantra,ll. 7. Pr6natosini,
Dh6ranayantra Other types are Karma, Pancayatanaand Ekamanl@,
elc.
A dragramusuallyusedas an amulet,ll is drawnon
a leai,and dedicatedto a deity. oipana
Kfsnananda'sIadtaasdra, Processing
ot manlra.
Saktisamgama, Tala, L. Krsnananda's ,ldsara,
Dhiirani Divya-bh:iva
Protective
spellused by TankicEuddhists. ol a Tantricdevotee.
The higheslspiritualattainment
Dh6tusakti Oivyacakra
Designation oJ Oakini,Rdkini, etc., the presiding NameoJ a Cakraritual,in whichthe Pafrcatattvas
ate
deitiesof Cakras. used,meantlor lhosewho havemadeconsiderable
Dhydna spiritualprogress.
l\,4editation Mahanirvena.
on a deity.
Easicelementin TaniricSadheraand an accessoryof Divyamudrd
YOga. Same as Khecallmudfa(q.v.).
Digambara Oivyatattva
(1) A nakedorderol Avadhutas (q.v.)havingthe quatity A categoryal Pahcatattvalq.v.).
ol Siva. Divyaugha
(2J A Vemalcerisecl. of Tantricgurus.
A line of succession
Pranatosini,Vll. 7, Syemerahasya,
Saundaryalahai,(Laksrnicomm.). (quolation lromBhavacudamanl.
Diksd Drk-diksd
lnitiation,According 10 Vbvasaa lartra, il is of four Sameas Caksusldlksd(q.v.).
k\nds,viz., Kriy,vati, Kalavati,Vanamayiand vedhamayj.
Pft\natosini,
Accord,nglo Kulanava il is seventold,viz., Kriya, Sameas Lata(q.v.).
Varna. Kala, Sparsa, Vak, Drk and Manasa. Each ol Dfiiy6ga
theseis subdivided. Ritual union ol a Tankic devoteewith his female
According to Rudrayamala, it is oJ lhree lorms,viz., parlner.Her organis tanciedas sacriticial
fire into
Anavi. Sakti and Sambhavi. whichthe semenof the malepariner,conceivedas
212 Chapter-7 Glossary 213

clarifiedbutler,is olleted. Patasurema-katpasitrc, Gunaspanda

Ekalinga Oualitiesoi Satlya,elc.
A tield or a place in which (up to five krosas)lhere is Guptatarayogini
bul one Sivalinga: designation ol a Sivalinga al such
a place.
Designation of goddesseswho arc Avaranaclevatas
(q.v.).
Nilatantra,
Gandharvantantra,
Gajak16ntd
Gupti
Same as Asvaknirta (q.v.).
Keepingthe manfa secrel.
Gandhdstaka
Krsnenanda'sIanlrasera,
EighttragrantsLlbstances laken togetherand used as
Gurubila
substitute Jor wine of thtee kinds - Sakti-sambendht,
S ivasambandhi and Visnusambandhi. Lelters H, S, KH, M, L, V R, Y Um.
Sarade aka, HSdividya,Hddimata
Gauda Sampradaya yldyd, denoling knowledge,manlla or deity, emanating
Ircm KAmareja bija.
A sect ol Tanlricdevoleesbelongingto easlern India
andlollowing VaritcAra. lt depends entirely on parcatallya A school named aller Ha, the symbot ol Siva, anC
(q.v.), and advocates the unily oj devalA, guru and influentialin Keralaand Kashmir.
mantfa as manitestationol the energy ol the Greal Saktisamgama,fa"a.
Goddess.
H6kini
PurascaryArnava,
Presidingdeity of lhe Ajna-cakra(q.v-),conceivedas
Sa k tisamg ama, stndatl, srx-tacedand while in complexon.
Gauripatta gatcakranirupana.
Base upholding Siyarrga. Looking like lhe female Hamsa
organ, tt is also called yonl.
(1) SupremeSoul, Erahman.
Gdyatri
(2) A symbolic fiantra involving inhaiation(ham) and
The bastc manlra ot an initialed dy4a. exhalation(sa)oJbreath.Sameas A/apd(q.v.).Regarded
Grh6vadhdta as Para-mamantta.ll is of two kinds, yyakla (manifesl)
and Gupla (hidden).
An Avadhuta(q.v.)leadingthe life of a househotder.
Ham is lhe symbol ol Sindu lPurusa, firale Princjp]eot
Creation, and Sah ol Visargal
(Prakrti,FemaleFrinciple).
 Chaple-7 Glossary 215
214

Homa
Satcakranirupana,
(Observalions
of Kalicarana).
A rite in whichoblationis pouredinlo fire. lt is ol
variouskinds,e.9.,Sthila (gross),Srksma(sublle),
Hamsa-manlra Para(transcedental), Eehya(exlernal),Anlara(internal),
Also called AjafA-mantrc. Name ol lhe /ranra, consisling Nignha (hatmlul acl), Saumya (benelicial),
etc.
ol ham and sah symbolism,for lhe awakenjngof Matuebheda,
Kundalini lq.v.).
tanlraBla,
Ham6apitha
Krsnananda's IantraSala,
Region ol Hamsa, supposed to exist within sahasaras
(q.v-).Indicaledby A-KA-IHA lriangle,and markedby SeradAtilaka,
letters HA-LA-KSA. In it, lhe devolee should medilate TAdbhaktl-sudhanava,
on guru as ideniicalwith Siva. Nilatantra,
Padukapancaka,I Hotri diks6
(KalicaranasComm.). A type ol initiationin which the gutu petlorms homa
Hirdhakald tor purilyingthe six quarters.
(1) Sex-organ
drawnon mysticdiagrams. Alsoknownas SAradAtilaka,
Hamsapadaot Yoni. Hsien(Chinese)
\2) Waveof blissresulting unron.
lrom Siva-Sakli lmmorlality
Halhayoga Hrllekha
A kind ol lorced yoga or abslracl meditationpedormed the Baia Hrim.
with greatselt-morlification, such as standingon one
leg. ln it, the mind is forcedto wilhdrawJromexternal
objects. tdd
ln the Yogasikhopanisad(l-33), it is described as the Oneol lhe fourteenmainnerves.Symbolol the rnoon,
unity of ihe sun (Ha) and the moon (Tha). it is on lhe lett ol the spinalcord. Supposed1obe ol
ln lhe Hathayoga-padipika (1.10),it is regarded as lhe whitecolour
source ol all kinds ot Yoga. Satcakraninipana, l.
Havisya lddhi (Irom Pddh,)
Food preparedwith rice lhat has been dried in the l\,liraculouspowerslaled in Buddhisttexts like lhe
Bahma-hla-sutta,
Nilatanta, Cullavagga,
216 ChapterT Glossary 2t7

1 1 m( A r a b i c ) as a newelybornchild.
Accordinglo Sulis, knowledgegatheredlrom experience. Saktisamgama,Ifue,
Indrayoni Jivana
A nerve-plexus belween Visuddha and Ajie Cakras. Processing a manlra,
ndj : Kriyasakti. Krsnananda's larlrasdra,
lndubij6 Jivanmukti
Dram. Liberation in lile.
Ntlalantra, Jivasakti
lsilva Nameaf Cund ni, the vitalenergywilhinthe body.
A kind ol Sddhl (q.v). TanlrcrajaTantra,
lstamantra Jfr6nahoma
The ma,lfa taught by one's guru. HamapedotmedIn rnlernalworsnip.
Itaralinga Pranabsini,
A, latm ol Sivalinga. {Ouolaliontrom Nilyatantra).
Saradatilaka, lV. Jyesthe
.raPa A destructiveSakti by which Sivahoodol exkemely
lVulteringor repeatinga manl€, or the r]ameoi a deity. enlightened personsis obslructed.
Kuhrnava, Jyotirdhy6na
Saktisamgama,IatA, l\,leditation
on the Sell, believedto rcsidein Kundafini
(q.v.) in the form of lighl. Also called Tejodhyena.
Gandharvantantta,
Kadaimata
lt rs of three kinds, viz.. Vyakta (expressed), Avyakla
(unexpressed),Suksma(subtle),alsocalled,respeciively, A principalTantric schoolwithKa as ils symbol.Texts
Vacika, Upamsu and Manasa. in gloriflcationoi l,,lahatripurasundari,
especially
those
describrng the modeof Her worship,elc.,are known
Jetakusuma chieflyundertwodivisions,one ol whichisMadhumatimala
Menslrualblood ot a woman. at K+dimatta.
Nilatanlra, fhe Tanttaraja, Mattkamava,Tripunmavaand Yoginihrdaya
Jilasilaka comeunderthis class.
Newelybornchlld.Mantrais conceivedduringinitiation Saktisamgama, fata
214 Chapler-7
Glossary 219
Do, Kali,
Kdlacakra
Kddividy6(K{dlndta)
A minor nerve-cycleahove VisuddhaCakra(q.v.)but
Knowledgederivingils name kom the initial letter ol below lhe AjfiAcakra(q.v.).Atso known as tala/d-
VegshavaBija (q.v.). cakfa,it denot€sthe wheelof time and the chiel deity
gla&tilaka, ol Tdntric Buddhists'KehcakrayAna.
Kahddimata Kal6 (Vati) diksd
One ot the three main Tantricdoctrines. A Jormol anitialionin which the guru locatesthe five
Saktisamgama,fafa, Kalds, called Niv ti. Pratisth,, Vidhya, Santi and
ganlyatitain dilletenlpa{s of the bodyof the discipie
K6klnl and anointshim.
(1) Presidingdeily of the Anehak Cak a (q.v.),conceived K6l.imikha
as yellow and residingwithin a twelve-petalledred
lotus. A V6miichariSaivasect,muchsimilarof Kepalikas.
Th6y are knownto havedweltin SouthIndia.
Satcak@nitupana,
KaliimUdi
l2l KA is called Kekinl Biia.
Framentaryform of lhe ligure of Sakti.
K.l6
Sakliof any deiiyis dividedintosixteenparts{Kai6).
(1) Aspect of the Great l\4otherGoddess, symbolically
reprcsentedby yrfr6 or letter 38 Kalesare supposed Garlandof Letterc,
lo hav6 emanaledlrom the lhree grcups ot letiers, Kaliinydsa
called Saunrya, Saua and Agneya. Perceptionol the deity in ditferentparts ot the body
PEpafrcds'ra, of the female partneroi lhe devot€e.
Sarcdatilaka, Krsndnanda's Ianffasdra,
Accordinglo anolh€atradrllon,50 Ka6.remanatedfrom Kelibiia
the tive oonstituentsoi Pnnava (Omkenl, viz., A, U, The syllableKrim.
MA, Bindu, Nedd.
Kdlimala
SAra&tilaka,
Textsin glorilicationot Mahatripurasundari,especially
(2) Prakrli, Saldi, May6. those describingthe modo ol her worship,etc., are
ge&tilaka, knownchieflyunderlwo divisions,one of whichis the
Prcpaficaserc, K'limata o, Malinimala.
(3) Lettors lrom A to KSA. Kdinabila
(4) /lf6da. The syllablesKlim, Krcm, elc.
224 Chapier-7 Gossary 221

Kemakale Kdpalika
(i) Sexual art. An exlremst Saivaresorting 10the cultof Sakli,and
dr nk ng w ne in hurnanskulls.
12) lmaginedas l/ahdltipurasundari, it is ol the natureol
Cil (consciousness),A nanda lbliss), iccha \will), Jnana Saktisamgama,Keli,
(knowledge)and Kiya(aclion).ll is supposedto be in Kaftrnl6tl6l
a lriangle wilhin the Candramandala ot the Sahasra-
The hand used as a rosary.
rapadma\q.v.).li is regardedas a comb nalionol lhe
thtee Bindus ol Ravi, Agnland Soma. In some Tantras, Krsreranda s Tantrase ra,
Karnais the equilibriumoi Prakesa(stalic)and ylmalsa Nilalantra,
(dynam c) Sakli oi Siva.
Karamkini Mud16
Nity6sodasikernava,
Accordingto those,who have attainedperteclknowledge,
(Setubandha
comm.). it is a mentalstate when the body of lhe five elemenls
Satcakruniipana, resls n the greal lirmament,and the world appearslo
be ke a corpse and devoid oi al actions.
(Obseruations
of Kalicarana).
aarana
KAmakela vilAsa, CidvalIi \comm.)
In aslronomyit s the name given to halt of a illhl.
K6mamandira
Kdrana
House lor union with Sakt/.
Wine used rn Tantricriluals.The word meanscaused.
Nilatantra,
Such wine is supposedto be the cause ol knowedge
Kdmarajabija ol dharma, arlha, kAma, and moksa. Panatasini..
Designation of lelters HA, SA, KA, HA, LA, HRAN, KaranyAsa
each symbolisingan aspect ol Sakll or Vidye. Partot a rilernwhichthe handis placedin a particular
Serada laka, poslion.In ii, the fingersandthe reverseof the palm
Kdmesibija or Kiimabiia are used to invokedeiliesin lhe lorm of letters.
The syllable Klim or Klhrin. Krsr]ananda'sTan|lasar.a,
Kiimika
Name 01 lhe seal lot K mya Japa ar lhe mutter ng of Kartari
a manln ^ame 01a deilyfor a specialpurpose.I\,4ade A mantraat two letters.
of the skin of deer, liger or ram or cane. Tantraraja,
Purascaryernava, Kaftrik6
Kafrcuka: PAsa,evil,MeYe,e1c. A krndot.4slra (q.v.)or weaponwhich is seen in the
222 Chapter-7

land ot Adw-Sakti.
Kaulika
Nilalantra.
Sarneas Kaula (w. v.).
Kiismira Sampradiiya
One who lollowsthe /(irlaot Kaulamodeol Sadhatrt,
Tantrc devoteesoJ Kashmir.Sakl/samgama.
Sundari, NirvAnalantG,Xl. Kul6nava,
Purascaryernava, Nilatantra,
Kaula KaulikaSakti
One who periormsTankic riteswith five Mak:ifas, .e., Same as Kheca Sakti (q.v.).
lallaws Kulacara.
KaulikaSiddhi
Kaulas ate divided into many sects, e.9., Kapallka,
I4aksaaccoding lo Kulamataof KashairSaivism.
Ksapanaka,Dlgambara.
Patatrimsika,
Nilatantra.
Kaulini
Kaulamdrga
Same as Kandallrl (q.v.).
A way of spiritualexercise(ec6fa)coniinedw thin the
sp ritual lineageof a particulargrcup \Kula). Kavaca
ln it, lhe devoiee worships with the Pancamakaras. Prayerwith certain mysiic syllablessupposedto
protectthe devoteeas an armourprotectsthe body.
It rs of two krnds,wel and dry.
Protectivespell.
Kaulam'rga-rahasya,
SyamArahasya,
Nivenalantra,
KeralaSampraddya
Kulatnava,
A Tdntric secft whose followersare spread over 19
Rudrayemala,Vllata, counlriesfrom Ary4varlata the sea.
Kaulajnananimaya, Saklisamgama,K6li,
Mahanirvana, Siddhanta-samgraha.
Kaulavalininaya, Puras'caryamava,
Pranatosini, Khapuspa
Krsnananda'sIanrrasara, [,4enstrual
blood.
Warning against abrse al Kaulamt\rga, ParcsurAma Khecari Mudrii
Kalpa sutra,
AYogicposturewhichleadsto spiritual
attainment, and
Mahenitvana, enabtesa pefsonto overcome diseaseand death.By
lhis mudr6movemenlon the outskirlsof the sky of Clf
224 Ct€pbr-7 Glossary 225

becomespossible. speedlikemind),Kdmal.rpilva(assumingformsal will),

Ghelanda, Vikaaanadharmifua linlinitementalpowerto consume
and lransmit).
Khecarl Sakti
K,iyavati diked
Kha meansBrahman.
A tormol initiationin whichmanyritualsare perlormed,
The pow€r,which movesas the kinetrcenergyoI
and the gLlrusanlifiesthe disciple'sbody; inculcales
Brahman,is calledKhecai. his own consciousness inlo the disciple.
Thoughon€, it is manitestedin variouslorms.
Pdnatosini,
Parctrimsika,
Kriydyoga
Kllaka
A kind oi yogic exercise,Sakti-samqalra,Sundari,
Litorallya small stick,
KrodhaniMudrd
It is a kind of L/ydsa(q.v.).
Accordingto lhose, who have achievedsuccess in
Nilatant/a, mantra,il meansthat which is containedin the 24
Krsnananda's fantrasara, tattvas.
Koaa Krlyd
Sheath.The Humanbodyis supposed to consistof the An evil goddesssupposedto causeharm.
five shealhs as follows : Nilatantrc,
Annamaya, PtAnamaya, Manomaya, VijfiAnamaya, Kula
Ananclamdya.
(1) Familyand lhe modeof worshiphandeddown by the
Kramad6ksd traditionof the lamily.
A type of initiationto the mantrasot Kati, Tdrd and 12) Tantricriteobtainingin a particularregionwilh reference
Tripurasundari,meant lor cerlain special kinds ol to a particllar deity.
dovotees.
(3) The Saslra which expoundsthe group of objecls
PAnatosini, includingthe knower,the knownand lhe knowledgeor
KJamamalt the worshipperand the object ol worship.
A Tdntricsystomof Kashrnir,deattwith in Abhinavagupta's (4) Body.
Knmakeliand Kama-slotrc.lt is twotoldaccordingas {s) Adheracaka,Constiluenlsol lhe word are Ku (earth)
it relatesto Saivismand Sdktism. and liyale(merg€s).
Ta Aloka, {6) Spirituallineagefrom Paramasivalo one's own gurt-r.
Krlytu.kll La t,sahasehama,1
Throe kinds of my6ticpower,viz., Maojavitva(having
226 Chapt€r-7 Glossary

(SaubhegyabhAskaa comm.l. (Ramesvara'scomm.).

Kulabhakta Kulakaulayogini
One who is devotedto a KautikaSedhaka. Presidanggoddessesof cakras ol the Bahi-dasera
(q.v.)class.
Nilatantn,
Kulacakra Gandha atantrc,
Kulakundalinl
A kind ol Tentric rit€ in which several devotees
assemble. Sameas Kurdarnl(q.v.).
Nilatantta, Kulam6.ga
Kulectua Safie as Ka2lamarya\q.v.l
Same as Ka!/an6r9a (q.v.). Kulamrta
Nihtantn, Nectarllowingdownlromlhe Candamandala wilhin\he
Kuladravya head when Kundalinilq.v.)penetralesthe six Cakras.
Kulaftiyaka
Same as Pal-calattua(q.v.).
KaulAvalinimaya, Besi among lhe KaulikaSadhakas,Heree Siva.
Nilatantta,
Nilatantq,
Kuladrsti Kulapadma
Six-petalledlotuswalhinSahasdra(q.v.).
Sight of Kuladevi;Kaufika,s.
Kulapatha
Sight of th6 desired deity.
The passagethroughwhichKundalini
(q.v.)ascends.
Nilatante,
Kulaiana Saundaryalahatl,
KulaoUiana
A devoteeof th€ Kaullkaclass.
Worshipol the desireddeilyof a Kaula{q.v.).
NilatantH,
Kulaiffa Nilatantta,
Kulapuspa
One who knows Kulacara.
Flowerslike Aaklar'ara(redChinarose);hereit means
Nilatanta,
the menslrualblood of a woman.
Kulaifiena
Nilatantn,
Knowledgeol Kulanterya.
Kularasa
PaGsunma-kalpasuta,
Svayambhu-kusuma or menstrualblood ol a woman.
 Glossary
Nilatantra,
Kulasamketa Kulayosil
AlsocalledKau ni, il is lhe nameol Kundalinilq.v.l.
Technicalmysleriesot Kautamerya
lq.v.),e.g.,Krama-
sanketa,pijA-sanketa,Mantra-iankera, Saundaryalahari
eti.
(Laksmidhara'scomm.).
Kuhnava, Kullukd
ParasuAna-kalpasitra Designationol a mantrarecited before /?pa aller the
(Ramesvara worshipoI Mahevidye.
s comm.).
Kulasdstrc
Kulodaka
Kuternava,KaulAvati-nirnaya,
eIc.
NilatantH, Semen,
Kulasundra Nilatanln,
Kumbhaka
crcat Kautika(q.v.).
Nitatantra, A kind ol PAnayemain which the breathls held up.
Kulasunalari Nilatantra,
Femininegenderof Kulasundara(q.v.). Kundagolodbhava
'l\renslrual
blood,regarded
Kulatattva as sacfedtortheGoddess.
Kundodbhavais the blood of a marriedwoman,and
Sarneas Kutadravya. Golod-bhavais of a widow'.
KuldvadhUta N- N- thattacharya.
See Avadhuta. Hist. ol Tantric Religion, p.443. lhe vtord Kunda,
Kul{vidyd i occurringin \he Manusmtti,iii. 156, 158, 178, and
Yejfiavalkya-smni,1.1O,222,224,hasbeeninterpreted
The mantra used by a Kaulika.
as an illegitimateissueof a Brahminwomaa,whose
NilatantG, husbandis alive,by anotherBrdhminmale.
Kula-vrksa The word Gora,occuringin Manusmrti,lll. 156, 174
The followingtrees regardedas sacreq and Yejfravalkya-smrti, l. 10, 222, has been taken to
by Kaulas : denole an otfspringof the clandeslane union ol a
S/6smdlaka,Kaaitjaka, Nimbe.Asvattha,
Kadamba. Brahminwidowand a Brahminmale.
Plaksa,Vata,lJdumbaa,Anca.
Kundalini
The serpenl,symbolol vitalenergy,suppos€dto coil
 231
230 Chapter-7

pe orm Maithunaas pa.l of a Tenkic Poja.

atound lhe Miladhera (q.v.).
TantEAja,
Also cal1edDrli.
cheranda,
Latdsiidhana
Riiualinvolving.
Salcakranidpana,
Paficamakara.
Sarad6tilaka,
Nilatantra.
Layabhogdnga-vidhAna
Proc€ssol separalrng Malasor Pesas(q.v.)lrom the
Pranatosini.
body.A part ol Srrdrt dikse (q.v.).
MAtkebheda,
Setadetbka,
Rudrayamela,Ullata
Purascaryarnava,
Sa undarya-laha ri, lLaksmi-dhara).
Layaslddhiyoga-samedhi
Kircabiia
State ol perlectbliss. In it, lhe devoleeacquires
The myslic syllable HUlt|. spiriluapower,and enjoysthe pleasurelike sexual
Kurukulld enjoymentleadingto lhe realisalionof idenlitywilh lhe
SupremeBeing.
Letters,A, E
Gheranda,
Laghim6
Layayoga
See Slddhi
A lotn ol Hathayogawhich d€stroys all mundane
Ldkini
desiresandleadslo eternalblissby bringing aboutthe
Presiding deity ol Manipura Cakra (q.v.). mergerol one'smindin the SupremeBeing.
Laksmi Lelih6naMud16
Name ol bllia S.im. According again
to Saklas.thatwhichlickseverything
Nilatantra, and agarn.
Lalandcakra Linga
See Kahcakft, Lambikagra. lrale organworshippedas Siva-phallus.
Lambik6gra Lingapuspa
A nerve-circle located above the Vtsuddha and hetow The flower,calledFaklaka.ati,usedas a substiluteIor
the A,hii. Also called Lalana ot Kalacakra. sexualunion,
Lai6 PatasuA ma-kalqasit ra,
Sakli or woman with whom one should associaleor
232 Chaplef-7
Glossary

Lop6mud16 Krsndnanda'sIanllasara,
IVankas, relating
lo S,vidyi,consisling
of l5 symbolic Mahamudra
lelters.
(1) A torm ol poslure-
Krsnananda's Ianlrasara,
Ghennda,
Madhyam6
(2) Womanin general.
A kind ot sound midwaybetweenPasyanti(q.v.Jand
Vaikhati\q.v.).Connecledwith intellecl.Represenls Femaleorgan.
equilibriumof Paraa d Pasyanti. Mahdpasu
Prapafrcasen, An uninitaled person,
Kdmakaliivilasa, Nitut!ara,
Lalita\sahasranama, Mahdsitmrdjya-diksd
(Saubhagyabhaskara). A lorm of initiationwhich is an essentialprerequisile
MadhyamasrolaTanlra ol Kaub Sedhana.
Tanlrasbelongingto the middlecwtent, viz., Vijaya, Mahesetu
NihsvAsa,Sveyambhuva, Vetula,Virabhadra,Raurcva, Designation oi a manta recited before lapa afler the
Makuta and Vircsa. worship ol a Mah vidya.
Mah6cakra Higher lrom of Selu (q.v.).
A Cakra tilual in whichone'smolher,slster,daughler, Nilatanlta,
daughterin-law and wife are lo be worshippedas Mah6vidy6
Paicasakti.
Ten Tdntricgoddesseswhose namesvary in difierent
Nittut!an, lexls. They are usually called Kali, Tara, Sodasi,
Mahdcindcdra,Mahecinakrama Bhuvanesvari, Bhairavi, Chinnartasta, Dhumaveri, Vagah,
Sameas Cmacdra(q.v.)- Mehngi, Kamak, Prenatosini,
Mahdh.ada It ls intereslingto nole lhal the lerm also denotes
Kevalanvayihelu,i.e., a purely posilive probans in logrc
Pu(e Cidatman. or Nyayasdstra(VideMahavidya-vidambana ol Vadind?.
Mah6m6msa ed. l\r. R. Telang,Baroda,1920).
Fleshof lhe{ollowingcrealures,
regarded
as sacredfor [4ahim6
otteringto the deity: A kind ol slddhl (q.v.).
man,cow,ram,horse,bultalo,boar,goat,deer. Maithuna
SyemArchasya, Sexual intercourse,consideredas one of the tive
234 ChapteFT Glossary

Manodikse
l,4ahAnitvena, A form of iniiiationmerely by lhe gulu's lhought and
Pnnatasini, mental action.

Mala Kuhrna'a,

Fetterscausingrebifthand sulteringof worldtyex slence. Manonmana

Threefoid,viz., Anava, Kerma and MAyjya. blisscomingout as a resultof bhakllyoga_
Transcendental
Mdlinimata
Same as K.i/imata(q.v.). Gheranda,
M6nasadiks6 Mantra

Same as Marodiksa (q.v.). Generallyincanlalionrelalinglo a male deity.

Mdnavaugha Mantra-adhva
A line or successtonof Tankic aulus. Blood lo be purified for S+dhana. Adhva denotes a
constiiuentoi the body which is ot six kinds, viz.,
Mandala Bhuvana (cetebal o(gan), Mantra (blood and flesh),
(1) A penod ol 49 days. Pada and Varna (muscles and vein), Dhetu and Reta
(bonesand tluids).Saraditr;hka,V 24-25(Raghavabhatla).

(2) Atlaa Cakrain which the devotees,sittingw th lheir Manlracailanya

lemale parlners around the ieader, lnduge In the Consciousness,inherentin aarlra, lo be roused by
enloymenl ol live Makaras. exerton,
PAnatasini,
Gandharvatantra,
(3) D agramslike Sarvato-bhadra,
used in Tantrc r tuals.
l\,,lanjpura Mantraydna
A Cakranear the navelregion,atso called Nabhicakra. Name of Tanlric Buddhism.
Conceved as a 10 petaled lotus oi b ue co our, each M6ntri diksd
petal contaning a te er. \t/ithtnthe lotus s concerved
a tnangleol the colourof lhe risingsun.Theouler sides A iorm oi initialionin which the gufu at tirsl purifies
of the lrange afe representedby three svastika h mseii and ihen consceraleshis disciple.
symDors, SAr|deihka,
Satcakra-niripana,
Nilatantra,,
 236 ChaplerT
Glossary 237
Manu
thread pass beiore being lied in a knot.
Nilatantn, Nilatante,
Mdrana Mudre
The rile for killing. (i) Derived lrcm rcol Mud, it iiterally means lhat which
givesdelight.Posesot handor fingersused in worship,
Marifat
e.9., Matsya, Krrma, Samkha, elc.
According
to Sufis,knowledge
obtained
throughdivine_ Ihe Gheranda-samhita
grace.
nenlrons 20 Mudnis.
lretr : Yogifri,Sakti Katii.
(ii) Postureot lhe body al the lime of yoga., e-g-,Asviini
lrakkii : See Asbmetke.
Miitrkinydsa (iii) One of lhe five Makafas essential in Tanlric Sddhana.
Perceptionol Metk6s (q.v-)in the lorms ol lettersin lt means Jried or parched cereals, e.9., Yogiii-tante,
differentparis ol the body.Tvtolold_ Antarmettka\- or geomelricalfigures.
nyAsa and Bahj rma!t ke-nyAsa, (lv) ln Buddhist Tantra it denotes woman. The Prcgfiopeya
Krsnenanda's Iarfrasara, and Sekoddesatika \p.56) take to mean a woman with
Mritrkerna whom a TdntricYoginassociates.
M'trkevarna:lener ol the alphabet. Mudrevirya
Nelatantra, ot Khecari(q.v.).
Condition
Mdtrk6varna Mukta-triveni
See Matrk4na. same as Alta (q.v.).
M6ye MUla
Name ol Bija Hin. (1) AlsocalledMiddhaQ G.v.).
(2) Mulamantralq.v.).
M6ydbila MUlacakra
Same as Muladhara(q.v.).
Nelatantra, Milatantra,
[,4ayiya
mala : Such a feelingas,l,,,Nrine,. MUlidhdra
Meru The lowesio{ the six Cakaras(q.v.),supposedto be
at the lowest extremityol the spinal cord whete
The beadin a rosary,throughwhichthe endsof the Kundalini(q.v.) is supposedto reside.
 238 Glossary 239

Satcakenhipana, Napumsaka manlra

Mrilamantra A mantfawhichis neithermale(i.e.,meantlor deilies)
The main or basic mantraimpaftedby one's spiritual nor female(i.e.,meantlor femaledeities).
preceptorat the time of initiation. Saradeflaka,
Mdlavidyd NapumsakaVaina
Sameas M{tamantq (q.v.). LetlersB and L.
Nilatantft, SAnde laka,
Mursid (Raghavabbatta).
Guru or spiritualpreceptoraccordinglo Sulis. Nal6camud16
N6bhipadma A hand-pose in whichthetipol the rightthumbas,oined
Same as Manipua lq.v.), with the lop mark ol the righl forefingerand then
slretchedoui whileotherting€rsare bentlow.
Satcakmniipana,
Nali
Mida
Dancingwoman,Goddess(Sakti)supposedto dance
Sound.First vibrationof pafti Sakti expressingitsef in delightat the perlormanceof rituals.
rn creataon.
Maniteslationof the consciousnesso, lhe
Supr6meBeing,rev€aledin sound.
SAtadAtitaka,t.6lI. Navacakra
SatcakEnin)pana, Nine Cakatas,of which live belonginglo Sakti and
pointingupwardand lour to Siva pointingdownward,
(Katicarana). constitutingthe S.iantla whichis lookeduponas lhe
Prapancdsara, bodiesol Siva and Sakli, ioined together.
Nddi Saundaryalahai, lX.
Artery or vein in lhe body.Supposedto be 72,OOO In (Laksmldhara's comm.).
number.Ol these,72 are the maiorones,of which NityatsodasikAhava,
agafnthe lhree mosl jmportantare tda, pinga/i.,and
Susumt6- (Seftrbandhacomm.)-
PrAnatosini, Navanada
Nakuli (1) lo
Nine Nedasor specialkindsol sound,supposecl
reveallhe nalure ol Kundalihi.
Ha.
KemakalvilAsa,
{akutisa
Ham. lcidva i).
240 Glossary 241

12) LettersA, inilial letl€rot €ach Varya,Ya,Sa and Ksa. P66cabhula

Saundaryalahad, Favegrosselements, viz.,Earth,Waler,Fire,W;ndand
(Laksmidhara). Ether.
Nimcsa Sakti Pancagavya
lryill pou,er,by which the concept of Sadasiva is Five productsol the cow, viz., cowdung,cow's urine,
characterisedin KashmirSaivism. milk,curd and ghee.
lsvataqatyabhijfre, Nilatantra,
Nirvikalpa Samddhl Pahcaka16
Blisslul state of mind in which the distinctiono{ the Five aspects ot Sakti, viz., Nivttti, Pratisth*, Vidya,
knower,knowledge andobjeclol knowledge is obliterated. Santi and Santyatita,
Ny6sa stedenaka,
(1) A pa.l ot Tantricritual,in whichditiasare placed(i.e., Paficakahcuka
felt) on differentlimbs of the body. Five impurematerialelemenls,viz., Kal6,Niyati,Kela,
There are vadoustypes ol /Vyasa,e.9., tlAtkanyesa Vidfe and FlAga,which causes bondageol diflerent
(feefingMetfkds),Pitha-nyasa lleelingthe holy resorts kinds.
ol Sakti), etc. Pahcakles'a
(2) Subtle identilicationwith Cakfas. Five lelters, viz., AvidyA,(talse knoweldge),Asmila
Kfsnananda'aTantrasafa, (egotism), Raga (attachment),Dvesa (hatred) and
Atthiniyas'a(adherence).
Nilalanla,
Pa6cakriy{ or Pa6caktya
Odra.puspa
Five actions of Sakti, viz.,
Javellowet.
Srsti (creation),
Also called Jape. China rose.
Slhlti (Preservation),
Odrawas the nameof modernOrissa.Perhaps,il was
believedthal this flower originallyused to grow in Samrera(Destruction),
Orissa. Irodhada(Disappearance),
Padmiisana AnugrehalFavoutl,
A sitting poslure,in which the right foot is placedon Tantrcloka,
the lelt thigh and vic6 versa.
Paicamak6ra
Paficabandhana
Five things,whose namesbegin wiih the lettersMa,
Five tetters as a resull ol Avidye $alse knowledge). necessarylor Tdntric sedhana. rhese are Maclya,
 ChaplerT qlg!:!ry 243

l,16msa,
MaEye,Mudra,Mailhuna. Paicataltva
Pancamnaya Sa.I]'eas PahcamakA? (q.v.).
(zones)
FiveAmnayas well-known
torTentricculiure. Paiciiyatani diksd
Paacamundi Initialionintothe cults ot Siva,Sakti,Vtsnu,Sirya and
An asana(seat),bt fa\rIt)c Sadhana. made with lhe Ganesa.
seveteoneaos ol two Candalas, one jackal, one Krsnanandas lanllas6ra,
monKeyano one snaKe.
Pafrcopdcra
Paica6lra
Flve arlicles ior worship,\tiz., gandha (sandalpaste
Originallyused, in SalapathaBrehmana,as an adjecltve and othertragranlsubstances),puspa (flowe4,dhrpa
ol Purusamedha, it later came lo be used as an (incense), dlpa \larnp), naivedya (tood oflering).
independenl word meaninga sacrificeto be perlormed Purascaryanava,
in live successivenighls.Thewordhas been nierpreled
in as many as erght diflerenl ways (Vide K. D. Parakiye
Bharadvaj'spaper'Pancariitrain Aruna BhAratt.A. N. Wrleol anolherperson,somelimeslaken by a devotee
Jani Fel. Vol-, pp. 59 ll.) The Patcalitra deals wilh as nrs panner.
philosophy, and iconography
medilalion,lemplearchitecture Paralinga
and some mallers peculiar10 the secl.
(1) lmaginarymale organ in terms ol which the EirdLlor
Pafrca Sakti vacuum in lhe Sahasfti/alrianglein conceived.
Molher,sister,daughler,daughter in-lawand preceplor's
\2) A lype ol Sivalinga.
wiie worshippedas live greai Sakis.
Paramahamsa
A devoteewho has s!cceeded in Hamsa-manlra.
PafrcaPrela
Paramakula
Brahmii,VisnLr,RLrdra,
lsa, Sadasiva,forminglhe seal
of Goddess,logethercalled Panca Preta. Same as Alid (q.v.).
Paicatanm6tra Pararr1esihi
Guru
Five subtle elemenls, viz., Sabda, Sparca, Ripa, The lourth spiritualancestorof lhe guru.
Rasa, Gandha,corresponding, respeclivey, to Sky or Mahenirvena,
Ether,Wind, Fire,Water and Earth.
Paramitil
Pafrcanga-suddhi
Periection,lranscendenlal virlue.Generallysix or leni
Fivelold purilication,viz.. atma-suddhi,sthena-suddhi, viz., Dama. Sila, Ksanti, Virya, Dhyana. Prajna. fo
mant@-sucldhi,dnvya-suddhi ancl deva suddhi- lhese are, somelimes, added Salya, Adhi-slhana,
Maitra, Upeksa.
 Glossary 245
Chapl€r-7

Rucircyamda, Ullata,
Palamudra
Pasucakta
Sublle lorm ot Mudra.
A kind ot Cakra ritual.
Tantranja,
Parapa€Guru
Pasu Siistra
Thirdspiritualanceslorof lhe guru.
Tankasolherthan thosebelongingto the Kaulagroup.
MahAniNAna,
Pasvecdra
Pard Sakti
cenerai name01 VedAcan,VaisnavecAra, SaivAcan
(1) SupremeGoddess.An aspeclo1lvlother Goddess. and DaksinecAra.
12) Femaleparlner ot the tantric Sedhaka.Sa.rcdatilaka, Pasyanti
1.7 (Comm.).Nitya-sedasikamava,
Belonging lo the regiono, the navel,it is lhe second
Mahenitu{na,V.2. slageoi the development of soundwithinihe body.
Kulernava, Prapahcasera,
Salcakranirapana,L Paustika
(Keicarana). A rite designedto causeprosperity.
P6sa Nilatant@,Xll. 26.
Same as Mala (q.v.). Pindabrahminda-m:irga
Passageof the ascentof Kundalinilq.v.).
Anu.Jiva.That whichis tied by pAsasor letlers. Pi6gal6
A man in whomanimalprop€nsities are predominant. One ot lhe three principalarteries- rising from
Regarded as the weakesttype of humanbeings. MilAdhAraand reachingthe right nostrit.
A low class ol Tenlric devoiees. Possesses the characteristics
oi lhe Sun, il is also
called SltyanAdi.
Twofold- sabhaya(intluencedby knowledge)and
vibhevalulitha mark letl by knowledge).A pas! may Serad tilaka,
again be drksita(initialed)or adlkslta(uninitiaied). (Comm.of Rdghava).
PesupabsAta. Satcakrani pana | (Sammohanalaolra quoted ln
Kauhvaiinirnaya, Kalicarana's comm.).
Nilatantra,Vlll. Pir (Persian)
Pasubhdva Gufuor spifllualprecepior,according to Suis.
The atlitudeol a Pasu {q.v.).
 GIos,sary 247

Pithahyesa
The Vedic syllableOm. See Nyiiga.
Prdney6ma Pithasakti
Lit. ihe expansionol brealhi a breathingexercise. Colleclive name of goddesses /cche, Jtena, etc., each
ll is ol three kinds, viz., represenlingan aspecl ot sakli.
Piraka li..halalion), Sfanarahasya,
Kumbhaka lholdi^g lhe brealh), Pradhdna-tatlva
Fecaka (exhalalion), Equilbriumol lhe fellingof joy or Sorrow.
NilaIantG, Prdkdmya
Pranabsini, A kind oi Sddhl (q.v.).
Praty6hdra Prakrti
Yogic process of withdrawinglhe senses frorn iheir (1) Sakli. one's temale pa.lner in a T:inlric rite.
conlact with external objects. \2) Female Principleof crealion.
Pratyalidha (3) The SLrpremeSakli accordingto the Saktas.
A sitlingposlurein which the shooterhas the left knee Nilalanta,
advancedand lhe rightleg slighllybent and relracted.
Purascarana
Nilatantta,
A Tdntric rile designedto cause the potency ol a
Prthvibiia mantra. ll gene(ally consisis ol len pa.ts, vtz., japa,
The letters LA- homa, tarpana, abhiseka, aghamarcana, siryArghya.
lalpana, pranema, pLije,brAhma-nabhojana.
PUraka
ln ll. lhe person concerned has lo iake havtsyenna
A process of prdniiyama (q.v.).
\q.v.) and pancagavya lq.v.).
Pdlha Kaukvalinirnaya,
A holy place in which a limb ol the severedbody ol NilatantG,
Sali (Siva'sconsorl) is supposedto have iallen.
ll may consists ol live parts also. viz., Japa, Homa.
Nilalanlra. Ta,Dana. Abh6eka. Bahmanabhotana.
Pilha means a place where a devolee of high order
Krsndnanda's
Iartrasara,
used lo live or seat on which such a devoleeailained
Siddhi.Generally51 Pllhasare recognised.Ol lhese, PUrndbhiseka
quile a few are in Bengalor in nelghboringareas. H thesl form ot Abhiseka i.q.v.).
 ChapteFT Glossary 249

Ivlaleand FemalePrinciplesof creation. Prenabstni,

Puryastaka Gheranda,
Five kinds, viz., Rambha
Parc (llo\Nes made oJ jewels, etc.), Designationof a woman ot any of the lour castes
endowedwiih noblekails ot characler,eminentlyfit ior
Apara ltnade with cui pieces of variegatedclolh), T.intric rites.
Uliama (obtainedJrom planls),
Ntruttaraianlra,
Madhyama lftuils) ,
RathakrAnta
Adama (leaves, waletJ.
A vasl stretchof land from ihe Vindhyasto l/lahdcina
Putita includrngNepa. China was called Nlahacinain the
A manlrain betweenlwo Bias, one in the beginning, medievalperiod..
anolherat the end. Recaka
N)latantra, A process ol pranayama (q.v.).
Putikrta Bikt6
Same as pulita (q.v.). Name of a llthl oi evil inlluence.
RahasyaYogini Nilatantra,
Eighlpresiding deiiies of the Aslakona Cakra lq.v.). Fludragranthi
Gandhatua, A knol obslructingthe ascent ol Kundalinilq.v.).
Raidcakra LalifasahasranAma,
A formof Cakraworship. \S aub hagyab haskara cofitm.).
ln it,mother,
sistef,daughler,
dautherinlawandpreceptols 56di Vidy:i
wile are lookedupon as Saktis.
A branchol knowledge,so namedafterthe initialletler
at Ihe Sakti Bija.
Raiani Sahaja
A specialtype ol woman recomrnended tor being (1) The easiestand most naturalwayof sp ritualexercise.
worshipped in Taniricril!als.
\2) Ultimalerealiiyaccordingto lhe Sahal/yds
or adherenls
Ntruttara-tantra, ol the sahala doctrine.
RS,ayoga Sahasr:ira
A iormol yogain whichihe mindautomatrcally
merges
in Brahman,
It Thousand-petalled multicolouredlotus supposed 1o
ex sl in Brahmarandhra (q-v.).

I
 ChaplerT Glossary 251

Satcakrcnitpana,
Srividyatatnasulra,
NilatantG, (Dipika camm.).
Saivdc6ra
Saklibija
A lotm ol DaksinecaQ emphasising lhe cult 01 Siva-
Sakti.
Sakticakra
Vedic mode, eightfoldYogic praclices and animal
sacfilice;lhese are lhe charocler,sltcs
o'lhis iaala Name ol the live Sakli trranglestn Stiyantra\q.v.).
Pranatosini, Saundaryalahai
S6kini (Laksmidhara
s comm. citing Bhairavayemala).
Presiding Goddess ol the Visuddha Cakra (q.v.). Sakticiilani
Satcakranirupana, A mudrzicausing great success. By it the breath is held
up by Kumbhaka. The wind so confined pushes
(Krilicarana's
comm.). Kundalin)upwatd.
Sdkteyi S:iktidiks6
A kind of Diks6 (q.v.). Initialionbased on pure knowledge,in which there is
sakti (Raghavabhatta).
no externaltile. Seradelilaka,
(1) rhe BijaHrim. Prenalosini
12) The lemaleparlner ol a TantricSiidhaka. Sakti-karanavrda
Ol three kinds,viz., The doctrinethat Saktiis boththe efficieniand malerial
Syakia (own wite), cause of the universe.
ParakiyAlanolhet man'swife), Nnyasodasikernava.

Sadharanl (proslitule). Saktisamgama,Ta'ia,

(3) Femaleprincipleo, creation. Saundatyalahan,
(4) A limd ol Mantta. Kaulafteryarahasya.

Kubrnava, Laliksahasrandma,
Saktipala
Krsnananda's Tanlrasara, Touch of lhe lustreof Siva, by which even a man ol
no strenglhcan realise Cil.
Candhalva,
Saktitrikona
PrAnatosini,
Sakli trianglesconceivedas existingin differentparts
Nilatantta, of the body. lhe lhree lines ol a itiangle symoorsrng
 252
Chapter-7

any set of threetheories,

and the angtessupposed
lo
be presidedoverby difterentgoddesses. Samheracakra
Saktivarna A part ol
Navacakralq.v.).
S red titaka, Nityesodasikarnava, l.
Samddhi Sampradayayogini
An accessoryol yoga,Stateof jnlenseconcentration See undet Catutdasea.
and bllss,in whichthe worldof sensedisappears. 11
ls, ol. two kinds. Savikatpa(q.v.t and Nivjkata SampraifrdtaSamadhi
whlchare afsocalledSampralhdtaatd Asampralnita, \q.v )
See Samddhi
respeclivety.
Samputa
cheranda,
The desiredmantra,rcciledbelorc andaller the name
GandhaNa.Kuknava, ol lhe Sedhya(i_e.,one agajnstwhom any of the six
Sdmarasya matevotent rilesis performed).
Equitrbrium
of Siva and Saktrlot lJpaya and palFe n Nilatantta,
EUO0n|sm),o enconcerued insexuallerms.lhe conplele Samskdra
comprehenslon ol whichleadsto the perceptionoJnon_
duatjty. Sacramenl, usually10,prescribed tor the lhreeupper
classesol the Brdhmanacal society_
Samaya(Prijd)
56nta-Sakti
Worshipin and by lhe mind.
A lorm of Sakll containingwi (rbch6),knowtedge
Samdydcira (Jtdna) and action (kriy6).
A mode ot lhe Srividye cun. Sdntibiia
Saundaryalaha. Svaha.
(Laksmidhara's
comm.), Sastre
lsa ubhegyabh's kara comm.l. SyallablePhat.
ParasuAma-kalpas[tra, (Ramesvara
s comm.). Satcakrabheda
Sdmbhavidiksi Sameas Cakrabheda
(q.v.).
A Iormot initiation
ol a superior
levetdoneby the mere Satcak.amarga
louch, glanceor will oJ the galrr/.
Sameas Pindabrch
mandatnarya\9.v.).
Relatedto the secret cult ol Kamesvan. Nlyotsava,
Saikarma
Six acls calculated
to do harmlo an enemy:
 ChapleFT Glossary

Metuna (killir'g), type.

Slambhana (causingparalysis), It lays greaterstress on antar'figa lhan on external
Uccelara (exzplusion),Vasikarana(bringrngothers rites.
undef control), l1sadherents worshipVisnuby day while.esortingio
Yidyesana(creaiingbad blood) panmcamakaraal nighl.
and Srirll (pacilication). Siddhaugha
N)latantra, A line of successionof FanTricgurus,
Savikalpa Samddhi siddhi
A state ot perlecl concentrationand bliss in which a l\/ystical power. S!pposed lo tle eighl, viz., Anima
leelingoi ditferenceexistsbelweenthe knowerand lhe (assuminqa very smallform),Laghlma(makingthe
oblectsoi knowledge. bodyvery lighl),Pnpti\powetol oblaining anything),
Sdvilri Prakamyallrtesisliblewill), Mahima(increasingone's
size at will), /sllva {superiority,grealness), yagitya
Manlra called (bringingothersundercontrol),Kamavasayta (suppression
Gayatri lq.v.). ol passion).
Nilalantra, Sometimesthe numberis given as ten, wilh the
Setu
addilion ol Bhuktisiddhi, lcchi\siddhi.
(1) Deslgnationol a mantrareciled belore iapa aflet lhe
Sivabiia
watsh)p ol Mahevidye.So called as it is believed lo be Narneol mercury,
ke a bridge lor crossing the ocean ol sutterng. Siva Cakra
According to Tantrasera,Omkera proceeds a ma,lra.
Accordrng lo Pranatosint,Prcnava lomkAra) s cd)ed The tour Sivatrianglesmakingthe Sriyanlra(q.v.).
Set, lor Brahmanasand Ksatriyas.For va syas Phat Binducakra,Astadala-padma, Bhipura, e1c.,ate also
s Selu. called Sivacakra.
\2) Fourieenvowelsfollowedby anusvAn aad nada Saundaryalahari,
(Laksmidhara's comm.)-
Nilatantra. Smdrtidiksd
Siddha Vidyd Iniliationol the disciplein his absence-In it, the
Same as Mahavidye (q.v.). preceplor mentallyrendersthe neophyte lreefromihe
threetoldimpurityof 6nava,k,ma al.d mayiyalypes,
Siddh6nlaciir:i and elevaleshis soul so as 10enableit to be united
Alot.r. aI Vamacara,designedlor devoteesol lhe Yira wiih the SupremeBeing.
256 ChaplerT Glossary 257

Seradetilaka, Srividy,
(Rdghava'scomm.). (1) ftrahavidy:.
Sodasadala-padma (2J A patliculat manfra.
Sixteen-petalled lolus a, each petalof whichhas a Sriyantra
vowelrepresenlinga Mdrrki.
The mosl importantdiagram relaiing lo lhe cult of
Sodasopac6ra SrividyA.
Sixteenarlicfesfor worship;asana, svagata.padya. Aiso called Sricakla and Ttipurccakra.
Arghya,Acamaniya,madhupa*a, puna-racamanya,
It containsI lrianglesor yo,ls, five connectedwilh
snaniya, vasana, bhisana, gandha, puspa. dhtpa,
Saktiand lour with Siva,lhe tormertufnedupwardand
dipa, naivedya,vandana.
the laltef downward,
Mahenirvana,
NityAsodasikemava,
Sodhiinydsa
KamaKalAvihsa,
A lorm ot Nyasain whichlhe deiliesare rndrvidualy
perceivedin lhe body.lt has six methods_ Saundaryalahari,\Laksmidhara'scomm.).
Srola
Terabhakti-sudharneva,
See Daksina Srcta.
Sarcdalilaka,
Madhyama Srota.
Krsnananda's Ianlrasara,
Ststicakra
Sonilapuspa
Ore-lhid al Sriyanlra. I ep resentinglhe crealive aspecl
Sameas Jetakusuma (q-v.).
ol Sakti.
Nilatantrc,
Selubandha comm. on Nitt'asodasikanava.
Sparsa(Sparsani)diksd
Stambhana
initialionoJ lhe discipleby lhe touchal lhe guru.
One of lhe s x Tantricrites,renderingthe eliorls ol lhe
KuLirnava, enemy aborliveor causing paralyss to his body.
SA/adiilllaka,(Beghava'scornm.). Send tilaka
Sricakra SthUladeha
See Sriyantra. Gross budy.
Srikula SthUlaDhyina
A prominentTantic
schoolotwhichlextslikelrtrudrahasya. lvedilationbased on an object like the image oi lhe
Prapaicasara,Saradalilaka.elc-, belong. de ly concerned.
258 ChapteFT Glossary 259

Strivarna Svacchanda
Long vowes. Independent.Siva.
SendAlilaka, Sv:idhisth6na
( c o m m).. Name of a Cakra within lhe body, supposed lo be
locatedabove MilAdhAra.11looks lke a s x-peialled
Suddhaiattva
t o I !s .
Paramasiva.
Satcakrantripana,
Suddhavidyii
(Laksrndhara'scomm.).
Knowledgeof Tatlvas.
Nilatantra.
Thal wh ch impartsthe knowledgeol Siva.
Sarcakranirupana,
Suddhi
Nilatantr3,
Designationof meat, fish, Mud,?, frurls, roots, etc.,
Svakiy6
olferedwh le ofleringwine to the goddess.
Wlle oi lhe devoteeas his parlner in SAdhana.
Paficamakeras(q.v.) are also called Sucldhi.
Svapuspa
Siiksmadeha
The Iirst menstrualblood of a marrledwoman, sacred
S!btle body.
lo Goddess.
Sulabija
SvayambhuKusuma
The mysiic sound Phat.
Menslrualb ood ol a maiden,
Sdnyatd
Void or vacuiy conceived in terms oi lhe Female
Tddana
Principle.
Processingof a mantrc.Each letteroi I s reciled 10
Surya Nddi
o r 1 0 0t m e s .
Anolher name ol pingalt\ lq.v.).
Iadara s donealsoby writingthe lettersand spflnkling
Susumnd waler oi sandalwood over lhem.
A NAdi supposed to exist between tda and pingala. Krsndnanda'sIanirasAra,
Aso called Brahmanadiar Bhahmavartman. TaiiasaVarna
li extends from l\4tladhAra \q.v.) Ia Branmaranonra AgneyaVarna. .e., t, I, Ai, Kha, Cha, Tha, Tha, Pha
(q.v.). Fa. Ksai staled lo have origlnatedfrom lelas (heat)
Throughit Kurdarnl ascends. Tamas
Almabhmiina.
 q!9!91rv 261

Tanmdtra thumb.
Subtle elemenls, saooa, sparsa, ripa, rasa, Nilatantra,
ganoha. Teiodhyanii
Taoism Same as Jyatirdhyana (q.v.).
A schoolot Chinese
lhoughtaccording to whichMolher Tha
Goddessrepresents yin, i.e., the iemale principle
An rmitativesound, as il a metallicjar rollingdown
underlyingcreation. sleps.
T6rdbiia
Trailokyamohana-cakra
The mystic sy|able Kram.
A lotm ol Sricakra ot Stiyantra (q.v.).
Trirdsodha
Trikona
A kind ol Nlaisa used in the worshipol Tdra. (1) The myslic syllableem.
Nitatantra,
\2) Triangle,alsocalledyori necessaryin Tanlricworship.
fariqal Pare Sakti ot ydk is at the middle point. Three arms
According to Suf;s, the way ot understanding represenlsthree lorms ol sound (Pasyanti,Madhyana,
the Vaikha4, ot, accotding to some Tantras,/cche (desire),
relationbetweencod and the individuai
and withl h e
matefialworld_ Jtena (knowledge) and Kr.ya (action). Three Btas,
lhree Saktis, three goddesses,three Plhas, and other
Tdrinimata conceplsinvolvinga lriad. KundaliniiscalledMaMIikona.
Same as Khadjmala(q.v.). Kamakalavilasa,
Tarpana NityAsodasikernava I Setubandha comm.).
(l) Libationo{ waterof deities,sagesanOloretathers. Pa rasurama-kalpa€it E,
Krsndnanda's Ianlrasdra, GandhatualantG,
i/lahanitvana, TanttaAja-tantra,
12) A Ternodot processtng marllas. Trilinga
-,JntrasAra,
op. cit,, Threephallus-symbols
ol Siva,viz., BAna.HaH, Parc.
NilatantG, Tripitha
Tatlvacakra Collectivename oJKamar(lpa,Pirnagiriand Jalandhara
Same as Divyacakra(q.v.). Pithas.
Taltvamudra K makalAvilasa,
Thetopol the rjngJinger
jojnedwithrhetip of lhe righl
 262 Ca'l."r-l Glossary

Tripuracakra Upemsu
Same as Srcakra ot Sriyantra lq.v.). Japa tn a vety low voice so that it cannotbe heared.
Tripurasundarimata Uttariicdra
Name ol Hadimata (q.v.). The way shown by Vediciniunctionand the Guru who
ts Jivanmukla,
Saktisamgama,
Turiya Uttarakaula

(1) Higheststate. A sect ol Kaula worshippers.

(2) A very high state. A tietd of knowtedge,which is atso Saundar)talahari,

known as lalr.iya,
is supposedlo be containedin lhe Uitaramnaya
Sahasrara Cakft. Northerr]zone ol Tantraculture.
L,ccdlana Vacika (Vak) diksa
One of the six malevoteniriles,by whichthe exputston The lorm of initiation with mantra.
or menlal agilationof the enemy is ensured.
Sara.latilaka, {Raghava's comm-)
SeradeUlaka,
Vadhubila
Unmana, Unamani
STRlM.
Sixlh stage in spjrituatnexerciseThe devolee,in lhis
stage,expeflencesgreatjoy in Whichhis sens_organs Nilalantra,
stop lunclrontng, Vagbhdva
UpacSra ll denoles br'a, and is also the name ol a lrlangle.
Arlicles ror worship_These may range irom five lo vahniiaya
sixiy iour, Svaha.
SAradeitaka, (Riighava,s comm.). Niletantra,
Krsnananda'sl"artras6ra,
Veikhari
Mahenilvana,
One oi the four kinds ol sounds.Carriedby lhe wind
Up6diinakerana insde the body, t is articulatedin the throat as
Materialcause. senlences.
Ull:isa Saradatilaka,1.1 (Conm.).
Srages ot Tdnlflc Secthdna.viz.. Aambha, Iatuna. N ityasodasikanava, (Selubandha comm.).
Yauvana,Prcudha, Praudhenb, lJnmana, Anavastha. VaisnavAcdra
Pa rasurama-kaIpas i Ira, A way oi Sddhana to be lollowed by a Tantric devolee.
264 ChapteFT Gossary 265

Nilatantra, unoerconllol.
Vaira Sarcdalilaka,
(1) a weaponojtenloundin ihe handsol the
Thunderbolt, Vedicera
TantricBuddhistimages. A mode ol Sadhana. ln il Vedic way is followed.
12) Diamond. Prenabsini,
Vajrapuspa Vedha (mayi) diksd
Diamond llower,lheblossomoi sesamum.
llower,valuable Same as Manodiksd (q.v.).
Nilatant@.
Vairayana For technicalmeaningin Tanlra,see our observations
A iorm of TantricBuddhism. in connexionwilh posiiionof women in Tanlra
Vrik-diksi Vibhiva
See VecikiDiksa. See under Pasu,
V:im6cdra
A Tenlric way ol SAdhana.Followersol it resort to A black rile by which animosityis created between
Pfraca-makra. persons.
Saktisamgama, Tdra l. 90 fJ. Sakti is worshippedas vidy,
a personification of Siva'swife.According lo some,a (1) Trueknowledge.
ritein whicha woman,whois placedon the leflof lhe
man, playsan rmportanlpart, or rs a crookedway 12) Female deily.
practisedsecreily. Vema is ol kinds, Madhyamain (3) Mantra telating lo a iemale deity.
whichall the five MaliA.asare resorledto, and Ulrama (4) Female panner of a Tanltic sedhaka.
in which Madya, Maithuna and Mudd a,e used.
Nilatantra,
Vamamarga
Vil:isa
Sdmeas Yanacafa(q.v.).
A principalTantricschool.
varna (mayi)Diksa
Vira
The Jormof inilialionin whichlhe spirilof lettersis
inio the ditlerentparlsol the disciple
inlLrsed s body. A T6niric giidhaka ol lhe second grade, who has
advanced menlal laculties,and follows
Seradatbka,
Virecera
lq.v.).
Vasikarana
Oneoi lhe six blackriiesby whicha personis broughl
 li

266 ChapleFT
Glossary

Rudrcyemah,UlIara,
Visnukrdntd
Paas u16ma-kalpasi tla,
The lract oi land extending irom the V ndhyas to
Nirvenbntn, CallaLa{Chittangongin Bangladesh)or, accordingto
KAmAkhy,hntn, some, lo Java in lhe Far East.
Visuddha
Saktisamgama,Sundati. One of the six Cak@s, above lhe Anahala (q.v.) in the
P16natosini, regronof lhe neck. Supposedio look iike a sixleen
petaled lotus. Seal of Sarasvali.
Virabhava
Satcakraniipana,
A partjcularattiludeof a fanltic Sedhaka.
Vitarka
Viracakra
Retlectionlike this - | am Siva Hirnsell.
A cakra ntual in which five Sakiis, viz.. mother
Vydpaka-nyesa
lBhumindn-kanya\),daughler(Balakl3uta),
sister(Svapacl),
daughter-inlaw(Kapiir)andwile( yoginl)areworshipped. See Vyapaka-traya.
Nilatantra,
Virdciira Vyiipakatraya
A way of Sddhanalo be lollowedby a Tantricdevolee. A kind o{ Nydsa. The three are :
Virasiidhana 1. Touchingthe head and ioot wilh the hand.
.9edharapractisedby a Vin lype of devolee. 2. From loot lo head.
Virisana 3. From head to foot.
Sitlingposlurein whichone reststhe body on the
heels. Ydmala
Visarga L r l e r a l lm
y e a n i n g ' p a ,i f' c o u p l e ' .
It representsbothPaniand Apa,?aspectsol the Sakii. Yang
Also called Kaulika Sakti,il is the FemalePrinciple The [,4alePrinciplein Chinesephilosophy.
(sah)as complementary to the MalePrinciple (ham),
Yantra
Bindu.Tanlra-loka,lll. 120 If., Salcakrcniripana,XL-
lll (K6licarana's
comm-quotingPraspaAcasAra). D agram,geometricalfigure,paintedwithvariouscolours
al the time of worship.The worshipper imagrnes thal
Visnugranlhi resides
.the deily,
being worshipped lor lhe limebeing,
Akno\in lhe AnehatuCakralq.v.)whichKundalinihas in thediagram.Diagrams difleraccording to the lorms
to penetralein ds ascent, oi lhe deitiesworshipped. Variouslyinterpreledas
264 ChapleFT Glossary 269

rnstrument,lhe body and abode of a deily, amutel.

mentallaculty,pureconsciousness,
doclrinal,niceties,
mrcrocosmol human body, etc, il) Dragramresembln9 the temaleorgan.
Gandharva, Nilatantra,
Kularnava, \2) FourfoldSakti, viz., AmbA, Jyesthe,Raudtj, VAma.
Saktisangama, Iata,. (3) Femaleorgan.See caud-pitha.
Krsnanandas Ianllasara, Yonimudra
Saundaryalahari. (1) A i nger-pose ooking like the temaleorgan
Nilatantra, \2) A poslure ol lhe body,ln which the devoteefixes hrs
anus on hrs eil hee/,longue on the palale,and eyes
Yantrapuspa
on tfre lrp ol the nose. ll is supposed to rouse
Flowers like JavA, Aparajita. Raktakarvira. elc. Kundalini.
Nilatan!G, Pranatosini.
Yaugi diks6 SeradAltlaka,(Ouotationlrom thrtasuddh i-ianIraJ.
A form ol initialion.In it, the gulu, in a sublte iorm. N)latantn.
enters lhe body ol his discjpte and idenlifies his
personalitywiih lhat ot the discipte.
Black Apamjib tlower symbotingsexuatIntercourse.
SeGdeilaka.
PurasuAma kalpasttra,
'I Yoniyugma
he FemaiePrincipiein Chtnesephilosophy.
A lnangle with ls apex upwardintersecting
a trtangle
Yogini with its apex downward.
( r) A class ol goddesses,64 in number,betievedto be Nilalanlra,
manifestalionsol lhe eight Metrkiis.
Yuganaddha
12) Femaiepanner of the Sedhaka-
M a l e P r n c i p l eu n l l e dw r t h F e m a e p r i n c i p l ea, m o t l
(3) Goddessespresrdingover lhe takras. oflen represenledin Tiintric Buddhistart.
(4) Name oJ a Tanlricschool_ The non-dualstate ol un ty al SUnyatAand Karune.
(s) A class ol Female ascetics spreading knowtedge SedhananAla,
among lhe masses.
{6) Medicinewoman.
(7) Woman possessedby the goCdess.