119-474: Divisions Sama vedic Yajur vedic Atharva vedic Vaishnava puranas Shaiva puranas Shakta puranas The Vijñāna-bhairava-tantra (VBT, sometimes spelled in a Hindicised way as Vigyan Bhairav Tantra ) is a Shiva Tantra, of the Kaula Trika tradition of Kashmir Shaivism , possibly authored by Guru Keyūravatī. Singh notes that it is difficult to establish an exact date for
238-439: A Kaula's parts is realized through mutual reflection. Reflection ( pratibimba ) is used here in the sense of "containing an image of the other objects inside", a concept similar to that of the hologram. The number of possible interactions and reflections between the members of a Kaula is much larger than the number of elements it contains. Kashmir Shaivism declares that each part is in fact Akula (Shiva) in essence; thus there
357-508: A 2016 review, that combine Vedic, yogic and meditative traditions from 5th-century Hinduism as well as rival Buddhist and Jain traditions. it is a neologism of western scholars and does not reflect the self-understanding of any particular tantric tradition. While Goudriaan's description is useful, adds Gray, there is no single defining universal characteristic common to all Tantra traditions, being an open evolving system. Tantrism, whether Buddhist or Hindu, can best be characterized as practices,
476-456: A central feature of tantric practice. According to Geoffrey Samuel, sramana groups like the Buddhists and Jains were associated with the dead. Samuel notes that they "frequently settled at sites associated with the dead and seem to have taken over a significant role in relation to the spirits of the dead." To step into this realm required entering a dangerous and impure supernatural realm from
595-486: A child which are concerned with the loss of male virility and power. David Gordon White views Yogini cults as foundational to early tantra but disagrees with scholars who maintain that the roots of such cults lie in an "autochthonous non-Vedic source" such as indigenous tribes or the Indus Valley civilization . Instead, White suggests Vedic Srauta texts mention offerings to goddesses Rākā, Sinīvālī, and Kuhū in
714-512: A commentary, called Kaumadi , by Ananda Bhatta . In 1957, Paul Reps brought the text to wide attention by including a poetic English translation in his popular book Zen Flesh, Zen Bones . Reps' translation was the subject of a voluminous commentary by Osho . As the Sanskritist Christopher Wallis writes, many of English VBT translations have been done by persons who lack training in reading Sanskrit and who lack
833-402: A form of bodily enlightenment where, through the power of mantras, he comes to recognize the divinities within the body. Initiation into mantric practice is based on a transfer of power and the link (lineage) of the heart. The word or phoneme is not useful in itself, as it does not have efficiency unless the disciple received his initiation from an authentic master. While the manifest reality
952-473: A free force, entering the senses and producing extroverted samādhi . At this point, consciousness, mind, senses and physical body are "dissolved" into oneness, expanded into the spiritual light of consciousness. As a consequence, any perception of the exterior reality becomes nondual. It becomes possible to live submerged in a continuous state of union with Shiva even while performing regular day-to-day activities. This form of extroverted, all-inclusive samādhi
1071-409: A greater length, in 18 instances, stating that its metaphorical definition of "warp (weaving), extended cloth" is relevant to many contexts. The word tantra , states Patanjali, means "principal, main". He uses the same example of svatantra as a composite word of "sva" (self) and tantra, then stating "svatantra" means "one who is self-dependent, one who is his own master, the principal thing for whom
1190-476: A level that is considered to exist beyond time and space, where the powers of knowledge and action are unfettered, there are no conditioning desires or needs to be fulfilled and bliss is directly present in consciousness. Kaula's basic method is the experience of the freedom of consciousness in the heart, ultimately reflected in the center of the being as Khechari Mudra . This mudra (attitude) means "the ability of consciousness to freely move ( charati ) about in
1309-801: A manner similar to a tantric ritual. Frederick Smith – a professor of Sanskrit and Classical Indian Religions, considers Tantra to be a religious movement parallel to the Bhakti movement of the 1st millennium AD. Tantra along with Ayurveda , states Smith, has traditionally been attributed to Atharvaveda , but this attribution is one of respect not of historicity. Ayurveda has primarily been an empirical practice with Vedic roots, but Tantra has been an esoteric, folk movement without grounding that can be traced to anything in Atharvaveda or any other vedic text. Pre-tantric Buddhism contains elements which could be seen as proto-tantric, and which may have influenced
SECTION 10
#17327900877391428-551: A parallel part of the Hindu tradition, independent of the Vedic corpus. The Vedic and non-Vedic (Tantric) paths are seen as two different approaches to ultimate reality , the Vedic approach based on Brahman , and Tantrika being based on the non-Vedic Āgama texts. Despite Bhatta attempt to clarify, states Padoux, in reality Hindus and Buddhists have historically felt free to borrow and blend ideas from all sources, Vedic, non-Vedic and in
1547-451: A positive (affirmative) approach: instead of prescribing self-limitations and condemning various actions, it embraces such actions in a spiritual light. Thus, sexuality, love, social life and artistic pursuits are considered vectors of spiritual evolution. The main focus in Kaula is on practical methods for attaining liberation , rather than engaging in complex philosophical debate. Whatever
1666-536: A serious impediment to spiritual liberation ( moksha , nirvana , kaivalya ). These orthodox traditions teach renunciation of householder life, a mendicant's life of simplicity and leaving all attachments to become a monk or nun. In contrast, the Tantrika traditions hold, states Robert Brown, that "both enlightenment and worldly success" are achievable, and that "this world need not be shunned to achieve enlightenment". Yet, even this supposed categorical divergence
1785-423: A set of techniques, with a strong focus on rituals and meditation, by those who believe that it is a path to liberation that is characterized by both knowledge and freedom. According to Padoux, the term "Tantrika" is based on a comment by Kulluka Bhatta on Manava Dharmasastra 2.1 , who contrasted vaidika and tantrika forms of Śruti (canonical texts). The Tantrika, to Bhatta, is that literature which forms
1904-461: A social level deconditioning is realized by detaching from traditional restrictions with regard to what is considered pure and impure and through the adoption of the spiritual family of the guru. At the mental level freedom is attained by the awakening of Kundalini through asana , pranayama , mudra or mantras , the amplification and sublimation of the vital and mental energy and the elevation of consciousness. The culmination of this process
2023-702: A spiritualized sexuality are mentioned in the late Upanishads. According to Samuel, "late Vedic texts treat sexual intercourse as symbolically equivalent to the Vedic sacrifice , and ejaculation of semen as the offering." This theme can be found in the Jaiminiya Brahmana , the Chandogya Upanisad , and the Brhadaranyaka Upanisad . The Brhadaranyaka contains various sexual rituals and practices which are mostly aimed at obtaining
2142-493: A standard part of Yoga, but Tantric practices do not appear in it. Likewise, the Taittiriya Upanishad discusses a central channel running through the body and various Vedic texts mention the bodily pranas (vital breaths) that move around in the body and animate it. However, the idea of consciously moving the bodily pranas through yoga is not found in these sources. According to Lorenzen, Vedic ideas related to
2261-507: Is Bhairavī, the essence of Bhairava. It is that essence which is ultimately real & fundamental; it is that which ought to be known & experienced; it is that which is inherently pure, and it is that which pervades everything. According to Christopher Wallis, Bhairava and Bhairavi are also used to refer to expanded states of consciousness, with Bhairavi referring more to energetic and active ( śakti ) states, and Bhairava referring to still and quiescent ( śūnya ) states. Wallis also notes that
2380-518: Is a Tantric tradition which is characterised by distinctive rituals and symbolism connected with the worship of Shakti and Shiva that is associated with cremation-ground or charnel ground sceticism, found in Shaktism and Shaivism . Kaula preserves some of the distinctive features of the Kāpālika tradition, from which it is derived. It is subdivided into four subcategories of texts based on
2499-517: Is a 19th-century European invention not present in any Asian language; compare " Sufism ", of similar Orientalist origin. According to Padoux, Tantrism is a Western term and notion, not a category that is used by Tantrikas themselves. The term was introduced by 19th-century Indologists, with limited knowledge of India and in whose view Tantrism was a particular, unusual and minority practice in contrast to Indian traditions they believed to be mainstream. Robert Brown similarly notes that "tantrism"
SECTION 20
#17327900877392618-513: Is a bibliographic category, just like the word Sutra (which means "sewing together", mirroring the metaphor of "weaving together" in Tantra ). The same Buddhist texts are sometimes referred to as tantra or sutra; for example, Vairocabhisambodhi-tantra is also referred to as Vairocabhisambodhi-sutra . The various contextual meanings of the word Tantra vary with the Indian text and are summarized in
2737-495: Is a connection between the parts through their common Akula substrate. As each part contains Akula , in its essence, it automatically contains everything, this is how the mutual reflection is said to be realized. Almost half of the Tantraloka is dedicated to rituals, usually evoking the union of complementary sets such as man and woman, a faculty and its object or inhalation and exhalation. The practice of ritual may involve
2856-411: Is a construct of Western scholarship , not a concept of the religious system itself. He defines Tantrism as an apologetic label of Westerners for a system that they little understand that is "not coherent" and which is "an accumulated set of practices and ideas from various sources, that has varied between its practitioners within a group, varied across groups, across geography and over its history". It
2975-556: Is a contraction ( saṃkoca ) of totality, thus in each Kula there is a contracted form of the universe, a contracted form of Shiva ( Akula ) himself. Such an affirmation has been popularized under slogans like "Consciousness is Everything" in some recent Kashmir Shaivism related publications for the public. Often at the highest level of reality Shiva and Shakti form the supreme couple, or the ultimate Kula (family). Shiva, under various names ( anuttara - absolute, prakāśa - uncreated light, cit - supreme consciousness, Akula - beyond
3094-408: Is a method by which the adept unites with a purified yoginī and receives the unique experience of the illuminated consciousness. He is to see her as both his lover and guru. The energy generated during the tantric sexual act is considered a form of "subtle emission", while the act of ejaculation is considered a form of physical emission. In Kashmir Shaivism, the energy of emission ( visarga śakti )
3213-435: Is a system, adds Brown, that gives each follower the freedom to mix Tantric elements with non-Tantric aspects, to challenge and transgress any and all norms, experiment with "the mundane to reach the supramundane". Teun Goudriaan in his 1981 review of Hindu Tantrism, states that Tantrism usually means a "systematic quest for salvation or spiritual excellence" by realizing and fostering the divine within one's own body, one that
3332-427: Is a wide gap between what Tantra means to its followers, and the way Tantra has been represented or perceived since colonial era writers began commenting on it. Many definitions of Tantra have been proposed since, and there is no universally accepted definition. André Padoux, in his review of Tantra definitions offers two, then rejects both. One definition, according to Padoux, is found among Tantra practitioners – it
3451-723: Is also mention of fierce demon like deities called rākṣasa and rākṣasī, like the children-eating Hārītī . They are also present in Mahayana texts, such as in Chapter 26 of the Lotus Sutra which includes a dialogue between the Buddha and a group of rākṣasīs, who swear to uphold and protect the sutra. These figures also teach magical dhāraṇīs to protect followers of the Lotus Sutra . A key element of Buddhist Tantric practice
3570-739: Is an esoteric yogic tradition that developed on the Indian subcontinent from the middle of the 1st millennium CE onwards in both Hinduism and Buddhism . The term tantra , in the Indian traditions, also means any systematic broadly applicable "text, theory, system, method, instrument, technique or practice". A key feature of these traditions is the use of mantras , and thus they are commonly referred to as Mantramārga ("Path of Mantra") in Hinduism or Mantrayāna ("Mantra Vehicle") and Guhyamantra ("Secret Mantra") in Buddhism. In Buddhism,
3689-470: Is any "system of observances" about the vision of man and the cosmos where correspondences between the inner world of the person and the macrocosmic reality play an essential role. Another definition, more common among observers and non-practitioners, is some "set of mechanistic rituals, omitting entirely the ideological side". Tantric traditions have been studied mostly from textual and historical perspectives. Anthropological work on living Tantric tradition
Vijñāna Bhairava Tantra - Misplaced Pages Continue
3808-515: Is bound to Vajrayogini equated by Tibetans with Hatakeshvari. Here the parallel with Hinduism is evident because Hinduist deity Hatakeshvara with his consort rules in Vitala, the second realm of asuras in Patala. Of course, much more popular daivic and manushya commands prevail among Kulas and Kaulas, though they are still shrouded in secrecy - for the better. The concepts of purity, sacrifice, freedom,
3927-403: Is called Āvāpa , such as massaging with oil. (...) Medieval texts present their own definitions of Tantra. Kāmikā-tantra , for example, gives the following explanation of the term tantra : Because it elaborates ( tan ) copious and profound matters, especially relating to the principles of reality ( tattva ) and sacred mantras, and because it provides liberation ( tra ), it
4046-563: Is called a tantra . The occultist and businessman Pierre Bernard (1875–1955) is widely credited with introducing the philosophy and practices of tantra to the American people, at the same time creating a somewhat misleading impression of its connection to sex. That popular sexualization is more accurately regarded as the western Neo-Tantra movement. In modern scholarship, Tantra has been studied as an esoteric practice and ritualistic religion, sometimes referred to as Tantrism. There
4165-401: Is compounded by the fact that it has been a historically significant part of major Indian religions, including Buddhism, Hinduism and Jainism, both in and outside South Asia and East Asia. To its practitioners, Tantra is defined as a combination of texts, techniques, rituals, monastic practices, meditation, yoga, and ideology. According to Georg Feuerstein , The scope of topics discussed in
4284-514: Is considered to be a form of ānanda (bliss). Depending on the orientation of one's consciousness, introverted or extroverted, emission can be of two kinds: rested and risen. In Śānta , the rested form of emission, focus is absorbed just on one's own Self in an act of transcendence. In Udita , the risen form, the focus is projected on the Self ( atman ) of one's lover – a state associated with immanence. Santodita (beyond udita and śānta )
4403-529: Is debatable, e.g. Bhagavad Gita v.2:48–53, including: "Yoga is skill in [the performance of] actions." The Keśin hymn of the Rig Veda (10.136) describes the "wild loner" who, states Karel Werner, "carrying within oneself fire and poison, heaven and earth, ranging from enthusiasm and creativity to depression and agony, from the heights of spiritual bliss to the heaviness of earth-bound labor". The Rigveda uses words of admiration for these loners, and whether it
4522-466: Is described as Kula (a variant form of the term Kaula ), the unifying factor, the Deity, is termed Akula . "A" means "beyond", or "non", thus "Akula" is "beyond kula". As the substrate of all manifestation is Akula , such is also the basis of any Kula . So Kula families are united by a common substrate, the transcendent Akula . In every one of its instances, on various levels of the universe, Kula
4641-475: Is far from the diverse and complex understanding of what Tantra means to those Buddhists, Hindu and Jains who practice it. David Gray disagrees with broad generalizations and states that defining Tantra is a difficult task because "Tantra traditions are manifold, spanning several religious traditions and cultural worlds. As a result they are also diverse, which makes it a significant challenge to come up with an adequate definition". The challenge of defining Tantra
4760-451: Is himself", thereby interpreting the definition of tantra. Patanjali also offers a semantic definition of Tantra, stating that it is structural rules, standard procedures, centralized guide or knowledge in any field that applies to many elements. Starting in the early centuries of the common era, newly revealed Tantras centering on Vishnu , Shiva or Shakti emerged. There are tantric lineages in all main forms of modern Hinduism, such as
4879-507: Is most suitable to the practitioner. In the Vijñāna-bhairava-tantra (VBT), Bhairavi , the goddess ( Shakti ), asks Bhairava (the fearsome manifestation of Shiva ) to reveal the essence of how to realize the true nature of reality. In his answer Bhairava describes 112 ways to enter into the universal and transcendental state of consciousness. References to it appear throughout the literature of Kashmir Shaivism, indicating that it
Vijñāna Bhairava Tantra - Misplaced Pages Continue
4998-400: Is pleasant and positive can be integrated in its practice. The principal means employed in the Kaula practice are the spiritual family, the practice of initiation rituals, the couple (sexual rituals such as maithuna ), the body (spiritual alchemy inside one's own body), the energy (shakti) (controlled especially through the use of mantras and mystical phonemes) and the consciousness (seen as
5117-403: Is pure. As long as one is identified with the supreme consciousness, there is nothing impure. The adept is unaffected by any external impurity and makes use of what is reprehensible to attain transcendence. Here arises the antinomian and asocial character of Kaula and the left-handed forms of tantra. Kaula sacrifice ( yajna ) is defined primarily as an inward act. Any action performed with
5236-495: Is related to Tantra or not, has been variously interpreted. According to David Lorenzen, it describes munis (sages) experiencing Tantra-like "ecstatic, altered states of consciousness" and gaining the ability "to fly on the wind". In contrast, Werner suggests that these are early Yoga pioneers and accomplished yogis of the ancient pre-Buddhist Indian tradition, and that this Vedic hymn is speaking of those "lost in thoughts" whose "personalities are not bound to earth, for they follow
5355-403: Is said to be the substantial cause of manifestation (manifestation is made of Cit , "like pots are made of clay") and also the efficient cause ("like the potter is the efficient cause in the activity of creating pots"). Tantra Traditional Tantra ( / ˈ t ʌ n t r ə / ; Sanskrit : तन्त्र , lit. 'expansion-device, salvation-spreader; loom, weave, warp')
5474-519: Is scarce, and ethnography has rarely engaged with the study of Tantra. This is arguably a result of the modern construction of Tantrism as occult, esoteric and secret. Some scholars have tried to demystify the myth of secrecy in contemporary Tantric traditions, suggesting new methodological avenues to overcome the ethical and epistemological problems in the study of living Tantric traditions. According to David N. Lorenzen, two different kinds of definitions of Tantra exist, narrow and broad. According to
5593-418: Is simultaneous union of the masculine-feminine and spirit-matter, and has the ultimate goal of realizing the "primal blissful state of non-duality". It is typically a methodically striven system, consisting of voluntarily chosen specific practices which may include Tantric items such as mantras ( bijas ), geometric patterns and symbols ( mandala ), gestures ( mudra ), mapping of the microcosm within one's body to
5712-419: Is spiritual illumination. Absolute freedom is to be found only in the revelation of the unity of the spirit with God, a state described as Atma-vyapti or re-absorption into the true Self ( atman ) or Shiva-vyapti : re-absorption into the supreme consciousness of Shiva. To be free is to be absolved from the necessity of rebirth conditioned by karmic constraints. Consciousness expands into pure reality ,
5831-402: Is synonymous with physical stretching and little more. The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali define yoga as "the stilling of the disturbances of the mind". Richard Payne states that Tantra has been commonly but incorrectly associated with sex, given popular culture's prurient obsession with intimacy. Tantra has been labelled as the "yoga of ecstasy", driven by senseless ritualistic libertinism . This
5950-493: Is that of a "group of people" engaged together in the practice of spiritual discipline. Kaula practices are based on tantra , closely related to the siddha tradition and Shaktism (if those siddhas relate themselves to divya or manava streams, one can easily find their texts; if the siddhas belong to the siddha stream proper which relates to daityas and danavas, a curious mind is yet to find something textual about that). Kaula sects are noted for their extreme exponents who recommend
6069-496: Is the path" ( gurur upāyaḥ ). This statement from the most revered sacred text of Kashmir Shaivism, the Śiva Sutras , summarizes the school's conception of the guru-disciple relationship. Kaula functions as a form of guru yoga , where the disciple's only essential practice is to surrender himself to his guru, accepting the spiritual impulse bestowed upon him by his master. Disciples eminently open towards their guru's spiritual influence are named spiritual sons and held to know
SECTION 50
#17327900877396188-430: Is the pinnacle of spiritual evolution, bhairavi mudra , jagadananda or bhava samadhi . The yogi experiences everything as pure light and ecstasy ( cit-ananda ) and does not feel any difference between interior and exterior any more. Abhinavagupta: "The couple ( yamala ) is consciousness itself, the unifying emission and the stable abode. It is the absolute, the noble cosmic bliss consisting of both Shiva and Shakti. It
6307-407: Is the supreme secret of Kula ; neither quiescent nor emergent, it is the flowing font of both quiescence and emergence." (Tantraloka) The sexual practices of the Kaula schools, also known as "the secret ritual", are performed with an "external Shakti" (sexual partner) as opposed to the purely meditative practices which involve only one's own spiritual energies (the "interior Shakti"). The role of
6426-401: Is the uniting form, cause of both śānta and udita emissions. Santodita is described as universal bliss ( cidānanda ), undivided consciousness, kaula (the group of two as one) and an "outflow of the pulsation of Shiva and Shakti". This kind of translation from the physical act to the mental and to consciousness itself is a characteristic of the tantric world view. Mantric meditation is
6545-637: Is the visualization of deities in meditation. This practice is actually found in pre-tantric Buddhist texts as well. In Mahayana sutras like the Pratyutpanna Samādhi and the three Amitabha Pure land sutras . There are other Mahāyāna sutras which contain what may be called "proto-tantric" material such as the Gandavyuha and the Dasabhumika which might have served as a source for the imagery found in later Tantric texts. According to Samuel,
6664-633: The Golden Light Sutra (c. 5th century at the latest) contains what could be seen as a proto-mandala. In the second chapter, a bodhisattva has a vision of "a vast building made of beryl and with divine jewels and celestial perfumes. Four lotus-seats appear in the four directions, with four Buddhas seated upon them: Aksobhya in the East, Ratnaketu in the South, Amitayus in the West and Dundubhīśvara in
6783-784: The Kapalikas ("skull men", also called Somasiddhatins or Mahavartins ). Besides the shocking fact that they frequented cremation grounds and carried human skulls, little is known about them, and there is a paucity of primary sources on the Kapalikas. Samuel also states that the sources depict them as using alcohol and sex freely, that they were associated with terrfying female spirit-deities called yoginis and dakinis , and that they were believed to possess magical powers, such as flight. Kapalikas are depicted in fictional works and also widely disparaged in Buddhist, Hindu and Jain texts of
6902-596: The Kaulas Tantric practices are rare. Reference is made in the early 9th century to vama (left-hand) Tantras of the Kaulas. Literary evidence suggests Tantric Buddhism was probably flourishing by the 7th century. Matrikas, or fierce mother goddesses that later are closely linked to Tantra practices, appear both in Buddhist and Hindu arts and literature between the 7th and 10th centuries. According to Gavin Flood ,
7021-599: The Shaiva Siddhanta tradition, the Shakta sect of Shri Vidya , the Kaula , and Kashmir Shaivism . The ancient Mimamsa school of Hinduism uses the term tantra extensively, and its scholars offer various definitions. For example: When an action or a thing, once complete, becomes beneficial in several matters to one person, or to many people, that is known as Tantra . For example, a lamp placed amidst many priests. In contrast, that which benefits by its repetition
7140-557: The Vajrayana traditions are known for tantric ideas and practices, which are based on Indian Buddhist Tantras . They include Indo-Tibetan Buddhism , Chinese Esoteric Buddhism , Japanese Shingon Buddhism and Nepalese Newar Buddhism . Although Southern Esoteric Buddhism does not directly reference the tantras, its practices and ideas parallel them. In Buddhism, tantra has influenced the art and iconography of Tibetan and East Asian Buddhism, as well as historic cave temples of India and
7259-599: The "Heart of the Lord" ( aham ) is the substrate of the family of 36 elements forming all manifestation. The concept of "Spiritual Heart" is so important that even the supreme realization in Kashmir Shaivism is described in relation to it. The Khechari Mudra is an attitude described as "the ability of consciousness to freely move ( charati ) about in the space ( kha ) of the heart". ("kha"+"charati" forming "kechari") Similarly to other tantric schools, Kaula chooses
SECTION 60
#17327900877397378-776: The 1st century CE. The Mahabharata , the Harivamsa , and the Devi Mahatmya in the Markandeya Purana all mention the fierce, demon-killing manifestations of the Great Goddess, Mahishamardini , identified with Durga - Parvati . These suggest that Shaktism , reverence and worship for the Goddess in Indian culture, was an established tradition by the early centuries of the 1st millennium. Padoux mentions an inscription from 423 to 424 CE which mentions
7497-796: The 1st millennium CE. In Hāla 's Gatha-saptasati (composed by the 5th century AD), for example, the story calls a female character Kapalika, whose lover dies, he is cremated, she takes his cremation ashes and smears her body with it. The 6th-century Varāhamihira mentions Kapalikas in his literary works. Some of the Kāpālika practices mentioned in these texts are those found in Shaiva Hinduism and Vajrayana Buddhism, and scholars disagree on who influenced whom. These early historical mentions are in passing and appear to be Tantra-like practices, they are not detailed nor comprehensive presentation of Tantric beliefs and practices. Epigraphic references to
7616-431: The Indian perspective. This association with death remains a feature of modern Buddhism, and in Buddhist countries today, Buddhist monks and other ritual specialists are in charge of the dead. Thus, the association of tantric practitioners with charnel grounds and death imagery is preceded by early Buddhist contact with these sites of the dead. Some scholars think that the development of tantra may have been influenced by
7735-474: The Kaula visualization of kundalini rising through a system of chakras is overlaid onto the earlier bindu -oriented system. Also, M. P. Pandit, a distinguished expert on Trika, once wrote an interesting note about liberation through Kashmir Shaivism: "There are four ways of effecting this liberation: Kaula Marga, where the individual pursues yogic practices; Shakti Marga, mainly through the awakening and rise of
7854-522: The Kundalini Power; Shunya Marga, arriving at the non-duality of Shiva through an act of Grace; Ananda Marga, instant self-recognition resulting in perpetual bliss." The translation of the term kula in English is considered difficult and has raised some problems for researchers. The basic meaning is "family", "group" or "self-contained unit". This is explained by Gavin Flood as referring to
7973-587: The North." A series of artwork discovered in Gandhara , in modern-day Pakistan , dating from about the 1st century CE, show Buddhist and Hindu monks holding skulls. The legend corresponding to these artworks is found in Buddhist texts, and describes monks "who tap skulls and forecast the future rebirths of the person to whom that skull belonged". According to Robert Brown, these Buddhist skull-tapping reliefs suggest that tantric practices may have been in vogue by
8092-596: The Sanskrit root tan means the warping of threads on a loom. It implies "interweaving of traditions and teachings as threads" into a text, technique or practice. The word appears in the hymns of the Rigveda such as in 10.71, with the meaning of " warp (weaving) ". It is found in many other Vedic era texts, such as in section 10.7.42 of the Atharvaveda and many Brahmanas . In these and post-Vedic texts,
8211-498: The Tantras is considerable. They deal with the creation and history of the world; the names and functions of a great variety of male and female deities and other higher beings; the types of ritual worship (especially of Goddesses); magic, sorcery, and divination; esoteric "physiology" (the mapping of the subtle or psychic body); the awakening of the mysterious serpent power (kundalinî-shakti); techniques of bodily and mental purification;
8330-408: The appended table. The 5th-century BCE scholar Pāṇini in his Sutra 1.4.54–55 of Sanskrit grammar, cryptically explains tantra through the example of "Sva-tantra" (Sanskrit: स्वतन्त्र), which he states means "independent" or a person who is his own "warp, cloth, weaver, promoter, karta (actor)". Patanjali in his Mahābhāṣya quotes and accepts Panini's definition, then discusses or mentions it at
8449-713: The art of Southeast Asia . Tantric Hindu and Buddhist traditions have also influenced other Eastern religious traditions such as Jainism , the Tibetan Bön tradition, Daoism , and the Japanese Shintō tradition. Certain modes of non- Vedic worship such as Puja are considered tantric in their conception and rituals. Hindu temple building also generally conforms to the iconography of tantra. Hindu texts describing these topics are called Tantras, Āgamas or Samhitās . Tantra ( Sanskrit : तन्त्र ) literally means "loom, warp, weave". According to Padoux,
8568-650: The background of reading the sanskrit tantric texts that the VBT relies on. The result has been various poetic or free form renderings which fail to properly communicate the actual practices which are briefly outlined in the text. Two exceptions to this are Jaideva Singh's translation and Mark Dyczkowski's translation. The various VBT translations include the following: Kaula (Hinduism) Saiddhantika Non - Saiddhantika Kaula , also known as Kula , Kulamārga ("the Kula path") and Kaulācāra ("the Kaula tradition"),
8687-577: The body later diversified into the "mystical anatomy" of nadis and chakras found in Tantra. The yogic component of Tantrism appears clearly in Bāṇabhaṭṭa 's Harshacharita and Daṇḍin 's Dashakumaracharita . In contrast to this theory of Lorenzen, other scholars such as Mircea Eliade consider Yoga and the evolution of Yogic practices to be separate and distinct from the evolution of Tantra and Tantric practices. According to Geoffrey Samuel ,
8806-474: The case of Buddhism, its own canonical works. One of the key differences between the Tantric and non-Tantric traditions – whether it be orthodox Buddhism, Hinduism or Jainism – is their assumptions about the need for monastic or ascetic life. Non-Tantrika, or orthodox traditions in all three major ancient Indian religions, hold that the worldly life of a householder is one driven by desires and greeds which are
8925-436: The causal body or soul). Thus external world, body, mind and soul are considered kindred parts of the whole, concretisation of the supreme consciousness . From this perspective, Kula is the totality of manifestation, in gross, subtle and supreme form. Even if Cit is not directly involved in the process of manifestation (as it is said to be unmanifest), it is always present in every possible facet of manifestation. Thus, it
9044-584: The commonest use of the term "yoga" refers to "a dying warrior transferring himself at death to the sphere of the sun through yoga, a practice that links up with Upanisadic references to the channel to the crown of the head as the pathway by which one can travel through the solar orb to the World of Brahman." This practice of transferring one's consciousness at death is still an important practice in Tibetan Buddhism. Samuel also notes that sexual rituals and
9163-431: The construction of a mandala , visualization of a goddess or group of goddesses ( Śakti ), recitation ( japa ), performed in a state of "rest inside the creative awareness" ( camatkāra ), oblation into fire and its internalized version – the burning of the objects and means of knowledge into the "fire" of non-dual consciousness ( parāmarśa ). The power of a ritual lies in its repetition. A pure disciple will attain
9282-523: The contextual meaning of Tantra is that which is "principal or essential part, main point, model, framework, feature". In the Smritis and epics of Hinduism (and Jainism), the term means "doctrine, rule, theory, method, technique or chapter" and the word appears both as a separate word and as a common suffix, such as atma-tantra meaning "doctrine or theory of Atman (Self)". The term "Tantra" after about 500 BCE, in Buddhism, Hinduism and Jainism
9401-513: The cosmic couple Shiva and Shakti . The term Aham refers to the same reality as other terms like anuttara (unsurpassed), Akula (beyond the group), Shiva (The Lord), Cit (supreme consciousness) as well as "feminine" aspects as Ananda and Shakti . Each term brings a specific viewpoint, but none of them can fully describe the Supreme Reality. On the individual level, the heart is the binding force of all conscious experiences –
9520-407: The couple, the body, the central channel of the subtle breath ( susumna ), the mind and Shakti . Kaula stresses the language of self-sufficiency, liberation and freedom. Socially the Kaula may be viewed as an alternative society, complete in itself, which supports the freedom of the devotee from interior mental and egotistic limitations and from exterior social and cultural preconceptions. At
9639-480: The cremation places. Samuel states that transgressive and antinomian tantric practices developed in both Buddhist and Brahmanical (mainly Śaiva ascetics like the Kapalikas) contexts and that "Śaivas and Buddhists borrowed extensively from each other, with varying degrees of acknowledgement." According to Samuel, these deliberately transgressive practices included, "night time orgies in charnel grounds, involving
9758-559: The cults of nature spirit-deities like Yakṣas and Nagas . Yakṣa cults were an important part of early Buddhism . Yakṣas are powerful nature spirits which were sometimes seen as guardians or protectors. Yakṣas like Kubera are also associated with magical incantations. Kubera is said to have provided the Buddhist sangha with protection spells in the Āṭānāṭiya Sutta . These spirit deities also included numerous female deities (yakṣiṇī) that can be found depicted in major Buddhist sites like Sanchi and Bharhut . In early Buddhist texts there
9877-472: The development of the Buddhist Tantric tradition. The use of magical chants or incantations can be found in the early Buddhist texts as well as in some Mahayana sutras. These magical spells or chants were used for various reasons, such as for protection , and for the generation of auspiciousness . Mahayana incantations are called dhāraṇīs . Some Mahayana sutras incorporate the use of mantras ,
9996-535: The earliest date for the Tantra texts related to Tantric practices is 600 CE, though most of them were probably composed after the 8th century onwards. According to Flood, very little is known about who created the Tantras, nor much is known about the social status of these and medieval era Tantrikas. Flood states that the pioneers of Tantra may have been ascetics who lived at the cremation grounds, possibly from "above low-caste groups", and were probably non-Brahmanical and possibly part of an ancient tradition. By
10115-415: The early medieval times, their practices may have included the imitation of deities such as Kali and Bhairava, with offerings of non-vegetarian food, alcohol and sexual substances. According to this theory, these practitioners would have invited their deities to enter them, then reverted the role in order to control that deity and gain its power. These ascetics would have been supported by low castes living at
10234-404: The epitome of one's whole being and of the universe itself). The first phase of development is linked to the attainment of a state of non-duality described as an "absorption into the spiritual heart", nirvikalpa samadhi or experiencing the " uncreated light " of consciousness ( prakāśa ) (read a number of subjective accounts of this experience). Group practices, which are restricted to
10353-468: The flouting of taboos and social mores as a means of liberation. Such practices were often later toned down to appeal to ordinary householders, as in Kashmiri Shaivism . There also exists an idea about the down-looking, sixth face of Mahashakti (Adhomukhi). Tantraloka calls it Patalaamnaya, where asuras and nagas reside. Adharaamnaya is also its name. Elsewhere it is called Bauddhaamnaya and
10472-526: The founding of a temple to terrifying deities called "the mothers". However, this does not mean Tantric rituals and practices were as yet a part of either Hindu or Buddhist traditions. "Apart from the somewhat dubious reference to Tantra in the Gangadhar inscription of 423 CE", states David Lorenzen, it is only 7th-century Banabhatta's Kadambari which provide convincing proof of Tantra and Tantric texts. Shaivite ascetics seem to have been involved in
10591-566: The goddesses Kuleśvarī, Kubjikā, Kālī , and Tripurasundarī respectively. The Trika texts are closely related to the Kuleśvarī texts and can be considered as part of the Kulamārga. These subcategories emerged as cults with a wide range of practices—some with mild practices involving worship of Siva or Sadasiva as a householder deity while others involved worshiping ferocious goddesses with blood, alcohol and erotic offerings. In later Hatha Yoga ,
10710-562: The groups of manifestation) and Shakti , under a similar plethora or names ( Vimarsa - reflection in consciousness, Visarga - creative energy that emits the Universe, Kundalini - fundamental energy of the body, spanda - atemporal vibration, Kauliki - that which is "sprung" in Kula ). The two are always in indissoluble union in a perfect state of bliss. Ultimately there is no difference between Shiva and Shakti, they are different aspects of
10829-490: The highest state of consciousness by their direct link to their guru's illuminated heart. The guru is considered to form a single Self (atman) with his disciples. As such, he leads the disciples to the discovery of their own Atman with his own consciousness, exalted into the supreme state. Aham , the heart or "subjective I", is a central concept in Kaula ideology, conceived of as the most sacred reality, home of consciousness ( Cit ) and bliss ( Ananda ), place of union of
10948-414: The individual being is considered a Kula composed of eight elements: five senses, ego ( ahamkar ), the mind and the intellect. These eight are not disconnected, unrelated processes but rather a unified, interrelated family ("kaula") based on consciousness as the common substrate. Kaula prescribes practices that reintegrate the eight "rays" of the soul into the supreme consciousness. On the cosmic level,
11067-509: The initial development of Tantra, particularly the transgressive elements dealing with the charnel ground. According to Samuel, one group of Shaiva ascetics, the Pasupatas , practiced a form of spirituality that made use of shocking and disreputable behavior later found in a tantric context, such as dancing, singing, and smearing themselves with ashes. Early Tantric practices are sometimes attributed to Shaiva ascetics associated with Bhairava,
11186-518: The inner development of a spiritual energy called tapas becomes a central element of Vedic religion in the Brahmanas and Srauta texts. In these texts, ascetic practices allow a holy man to build up tapas, a kind of magical inner heat, which allows them to perform all sorts of magical feats as well as granting visions and divine revelations. Samuel also notes that in the Mahabharata , one of
11305-454: The macrocosmic elements outside as the subtle body ( kundalini yoga ), assignments of icons and sounds ( nyasa ), meditation ( dhyana ), ritual worship ( puja ), initiation ( diksha ) and others. Tantrism, adds Goudriaan, is a living system that is decidedly monistic , but with wide variations, and it is impossible to be dogmatic about a simple or fixed definition. Tantrism is an overarching term for "Tantric traditions", states David Gray in
11424-409: The members of a kaula (family), include rituals, festivities, initiations and the secretive tantric sexual union. The purposes of this practice are the initiation of novices, the expansion of consciousness and expression of the bliss already attained as participants become more and more advanced. The key to the effectiveness of group practice is held to reside in the harmony of minds and hearts of
11543-522: The most common form of tantric practice. In the Kaula system, this practice is associated especially with the group of phonemes . The 50 phonemes ( varṇa ) of the Sanskrit alphabet are used as "seed" mantras denoting various aspects of consciousness ( cit ) and energy ( śakti ). The group ( kula ) of Sanskrit phonemes form a complete description of reality, from the lowest ("earth") to the highest (Śiva consciousness) level. The ritual "setting out" of
11662-416: The narrow definition, Tantrism, or "Tantric religion", is the elite traditions directly based on the Sanskrit texts called the Tantras, Samhitas, and Agamas. Lorenzen's "broad definition" extends this by including a broad range of "magical beliefs and practices" such as Yoga and Shaktism . The term "yoga" is broadly attributed to many traditions and practices, including the western assumption that yoga
11781-409: The nature of enlightenment; and not least, sacred sexuality. Hindu puja , temples and iconography all show tantric influence. These texts, states Gavin Flood, contain representation of "the body in philosophy, in ritual and in art", which are linked to "techniques of the body, methods or technologies developed within the tantric traditions intended to transform body and self". The term tantrism
11900-402: The participants. When a compatible spiritual group is created, it can greatly accelerate the spiritual evolution of its members. Abhinavagupta declares that such a group can enter a state of oneness and universal consciousness without effort. He explains this by the notion of reflection ( pratibimba ), a process of unification, an effortless overflow of spiritual energy. The relation between
12019-632: The path of the mysterious wind". The two oldest Upanishadic scriptures of Hinduism, the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad in section 4.2 and Chandogya Upanishad in section 8.6, refer to nadis ( hati ) in presenting their theory on how the Atman (Self) and the body are connected and interdependent through energy carrying arteries when one is awake or sleeping, but they do not mention anything related to Tantric practices. The Shvetashvatara Upanishad describes breath control that became
12138-439: The phonemes imitates the emanation of the cosmos from the supreme I-consciousness of Śiva. In another ritual, the phonemes are identified with specific zones of the body through the practice of nyāsa , infusing the body with spiritual energy. This mystical state of culminates in the kaula of the body (perfection of the ensemble of organs, senses and mind) and such a being is known as a siddha (accomplished one). The adept attains
12257-443: The physical body due to the activity of the spiritual energy ( śakti ) and may be called tantric body alchemy (see internal alchemy ). Starting from the expanded consciousness of the self ( atman ), the body (and in the end, the exterior reality too) is infused with the experience of non-duality. The non-dual, experienced initially only in consciousness, is extended to the whole body. The kaula adept will discover kaulika –
12376-475: The power ( siddhi ) of identification with the Universal Consciousness experienced in the physical body, generated spontaneously, without any effort (formal meditation, postures – asana , concentration Dharana and other forms of exertion in yoga). This process is described as the descent of the energy of the non-dual consciousness into the physical. Then consciousness manifests as
12495-408: The purpose of evoking the supreme reality is said to be sacrifice. However, if sacrifice were performed only interiorly, there would be a lack of externality and therefore limitation and dualism. That is why Kaula adepts also perform symbolic external sacrifices making use of a sacred place and various rituals. There are six main types of sacrifice according to the "six supports"; external reality,
12614-413: The recognition of the true nature of Reality, the "tremendous" or "awesome" consciousness (i.e. vijñāna-bhairava ). These include several variants of breath awareness , concentration on various centers in the body, non-dual awareness , mantra practice, visualizations and contemplations which make use of the senses. A prerequisite to success in any of the practices is a clear understanding of which method
12733-399: The retinues of minor goddesses depicted in the schools' literature. Philosophically the term is said to represent a unifying connectedness, beneath the various objects, processes and living entities of this world, which may be identified with these goddesses as aspects of the supreme deity, in some regions the god Shiva, elsewhere a goddess. Another meaning sometimes given to the term kaula
12852-412: The same reality. The supreme "family" by definition spans both manifestation and transcendence. In Kashmir Shaivism, Supreme Consciousness ( Cit , identical to Akula ) is considered to be the substrate of manifestation. Consciousness is the ultimate principle, the monad of the universe, always present as substrate in every external object, be it gross (physical), subtle (mental) or subtlest (relating to
12971-429: The sexual Kaula ritual is to unite the couple, yogini (initiated woman) and siddha (initiated man), and induce one in the other a state of permanent awakening. This achievement is made possible by the intensity of their love. In their exalted state, the two become absorbed into the consciousness of the Self. Becoming united on all the levels, physical, astral, mental and even in their consciousness, they reconstitute
13090-448: The space ( kha ) of the heart". The disciple learns to recognize Śiva as the ultimate reality. The practices pertaining to consciousness are explained in such texts as Vijñāna Bhairava Tantra , Spanda Kārikās and Śiva Sūtras . Kashmiri Shaivism describes freedom as svātantrya - the freedom to create, maintain and destroy the universe pertaining to Śiva himself. It is considered that Śiva, above any restriction or conditioning, creates
13209-415: The spiritual master ( guru ) and the heart are core concepts of the Kaula tradition. In this sacrifice, the wise man should use the very ingredient which is forbidden in the series of scriptures. It is immersed in the nectar-of-the-left. ( Tantrāloka ) Actions or objects are not seen impure in themselves, rather the attitude is the determinant factor. Spiritual ignorance is the only impurity and knowledge
13328-475: The state of Bhairava consciousness. Mark Dyczkowski has classified the practices of the VBT into various main types along with the verses in which they appear: Saiddhantika Non - Saiddhantika The text appeared in 1918 in the Kashmir Series of Text and Studies ( KSTS ). The Kashmir Series published two volumes, one with a commentary in Sanskrit by Kshemaraja and Shivopadhyaya and the other with
13447-474: The supreme couple of Shiva and Shakti. The Kaula sacrifice is reserved for the few, the elite who can maintain a state of Bhairava (spiritual illumination) in sexual union. Other couples, even if they reproduce the ritual to the letter (as perceived from outside), if they do not attain Bhairava consciousness, are merely engaging in a sexual act. "Initiation by the mouth of the yogini ( yoginī-vaktra )",
13566-490: The supreme state even by simply staying for a short time in presence of a guru without any instruction, but less prepared ones need reinforcement and gradual accumulation. Kaula puts a special emphasis on the physical body in spiritual practice "as a vessel of the Supreme" and, as such, not an obstacle tortured in ascetic practices. Repeated submergence into the state of non-duality is supposed to induce secondary effects on
13685-409: The text exhibits a "strong Buddhist influence", and one of the most common meditations taught in the text focuses on the ‘voidness’ ( śūnya ) of things, such as verse 48 which offers a meditation on the body as empty space, and verses 45 and 49 which teach meditations on the empty space of the heart. Most of the VBT's verses are brief compressed descriptions of various practices that allow one to access
13804-492: The text, and it could have been written at some time from the 7th to the 8th century CE. It is also called the Śiva-jñāna-upaniṣad by Abhinavagupta . The VBT is framed as a discourse between Bhairava (the "fearsome one", or "the dark matter") and the goddess Bhairavi in 163 Sanskrit anuṣṭubh stanzas. It briefly presents around 112 Tantric meditation methods ( yuktis ) or centering techniques ( dhāraṇās ) in very compressed form. These practices are supposed to lead to
13923-478: The universe of his free will as a playful expression of his spirit ( lila ). Here the kaulas are unlike Advaita and Veda , where there is the conception that maya (cosmic illusion) is superimposed upon the brahman (absolute), inducing a sort of illusory creation. Here, creation is considered real, and the will to create is considered free and unfettered. Svatantrya is identical to Ananda (bliss) and vimarśa (reflexive consciousness/auto-consciousness). "Guru
14042-402: The verbal root Tan means: "to extend", "to spread", "to spin out", "weave", "display", "put forth", and "compose". Therefore, by extension, it can also mean "system", "doctrine", or "work". The connotation of the word tantra to mean an esoteric practice or religious ritualism is a colonial era European invention. This term is based on the metaphor of weaving , states Ron Barrett, where
14161-521: Was considered to be an important text in this tradition. The VBT describes the goal of these practices, the "true nature of reality", as follows in the Christopher Wallis translation from 2018: Beyond reckoning in space or time; without direction or locality; impossible to represent; ultimately indescribable; Blissful with the experience of that which is inmost; a field of awareness free of mental constructs: that state of overflowing fullness
#738261