INTRODUCTION
Sanskrit
literature can be classified under six orthodox heads and four secular
heads. They are: (i) Sruti, (ii) Smriti, (iii) Itihasa, (iv) Purana,
(v) Agama, and (vi) Darsana; and (i) Subhashita, (ii) Kavya, (iii)
Nataka and, (iv) Alankara.
The
Agamas are theological treatises and practical manuals of divine worship.
The Agamas include Tantras, Mantras, and Yantras. These are treatises
explaining the external worship of God, in idols, temples, etc. All
the Agamas treat of (i) Jnana or Knowledge, (ii) Yoga or concentration,
(iii) Kriya or making, and (iv) Charya or doing. They also give elaborate
details about the ontology, cosmology, liberation, devotion, meditation,
philosophy of Mantras, mystic diagrams, charms and spells, temple-building,
image-making, domestic observances, social rules, and public festivals.
The
Agamas are divided into three sections: the Vaishnava, the Saiva,
and the Sakta. The three chief sects of Hinduism, viz., Vaishnavism,
Saivism, and Saktism, base their doctrines and dogmas on their respective
Agamas. The Vaishnava Agamas or Pancharatra Agamas glorify God as
Vishnu. The Saiva Agamas glorify God as Siva and have given rise to
an important school of philosophy known as Saiva Siddhanta. The Sakta
Agamas or Tantras glorify God as the Mother of the world under one
of the many names of Devi. The Agamas do not derive their authority
from the Vedas, but they are not antagonistic to them. They are all
Vedic in spirit and character. That is the reason why they are regarded
as authoritative.
The
Tantra Agamas belong to the Sakta cult. They glorify Sakti as the
World-Mother. They dwell on the Sakti (energy) aspect of God and prescribe
numerous courses of ritualistic worship of Divine Mother in various
forms. There are seventy-seven Agamas. These are very much like the
Puranas in some respects. The texts are usually in the form of dialogues
between Siva and Parvati. In some of these, Siva answers the questions
put by Parvati and in others Parvati answers, Siva questioning. Mahanirvana,
Kularnava, Kulasara, Prapanchasara, Tantraraja, Rudra Yamala, Brahma
Yamala, Vishnu Yamala, and Todala Tantra are the important works.
The Agamas teach several occult practices, some of which confer powers,
while the others bestow knowledge and freedom. Among the existing
books the Mahanirvana Tantra is the most famous.
TANTRA
YOGA
Tantra
Yoga had been one of the potent powers for the spiritual regeneration
of the Hindus. When practised by the ignorant, unenlightened, and
unqualified persons, it has led to certain abuses; and there is no
denying that some degraded forms of Saktism have sought nothing but
magic, immorality, and occult powers. An example of the perverted
expression of the truth, a travesty of the original practices, is
the theory of the five Makaras (Pancha Makaras);-Madya or wine, Mamsa
or flesh, Matsya or fish, Mudra or symbolical acts, and Maithuna or
coition. The esoteric meaning of these five Makaras is: "Kill
egoism, control flesh, drink the wine of God-intoxication, and have
union with Lord Siva".
Tantra
explains (Tanoti) in great detail the knowledge concerning Tattva
(Truth or Brahman) and Mantra (mystic syllables). It saves (Trayate).
Hence it is called Tantra.
The
Tantras are not books of sorcery, witchcraft, magic spells, and mysterious
formulae. They are wonderful scriptures. All persons without the distinctions
of caste, creed, or colour may draw inspiration from them and attain
spiritual strength, wisdom, and eternal bliss. Mahanirvana and Kularnava
Tantras are the important books in Tantra Sastra. Yoga Kundalini Upanishad
of Krishna Yajurveda, Jabala Darsana, Trisikha Brahmana, and Varaha
Upanishad are useful for getting knowledge of Kundalini Sakti and
the methods to awaken it and take it to Sahasrara Chakra at the crown
of the head.
The
Tantra is, in some of its aspects, a secret doctrine. It is a Gupta
Vidya. You cannot learn it from the study of books. You will have
to get the knowledge and practice from the practical Tantrikas, the
Tantric Acharyas and Gurus who hold the key to it. The Tantric student
must be endowed with purity, faith, devotion, dedication to Guru,
dispassion, humility, courage, cosmic love, truthfulness, non-covetousness,
and contentment. Absence of these qualities in the practitioner means
a gross abuse of Saktism.
The
Sakti Tantra is Advaita Vada. It proclaims that Paramatman (Supreme
Soul) and Jivatman (individual soul) are one. The Saktas accept the
Vedas as the basic scriptures. They recognise the Sakta-Tantras as
texts expounding the means to attain the goal set forth in the Vedas.
Tantra
Yoga lays special emphasis on the development of the powers latent
in the six Chakras, from Muladhara to Ajna. Kundalini Yoga actually
belongs to Tantric Sadhana which gives a detailed description about
this serpent-power and the Chakras (plexus). Entire Tantric Sadhana
aims at awakening Kundalini, and making her to unite with Lord Sadasiva,
in the Sahasrara Chakra. Methods adopted to achieve this end in Tantric
Sadhana are Japa of the Name of the Mother, prayer, and various rituals.
GURU
AND DIKSHA (INITIATION)
Yoga
should be learnt from a Guru (spiritual preceptor). And this is true
all the more in the case of Tantra Yoga. It is the Guru who will recognise
the class to which the aspirant belongs and prescribe suitable Sadhana.
The
Guru is none other than the Supreme Divine Mother Herself, descended
into the world in order to elevate the aspirant. As one lamp is lit
at the flame of another, so the divine Sakti consisting of Mantra
is communicated from Guru to the disciple. The disciple fasts, observes
Brahmacharya, and gets the Mantra from the Guru.
Initiation
tears the veil of mystery and enables the disciple to grasp the hidden
truth behind scriptures' texts. These are generally veiled in mystic
language. You cannot understand them by self-study. Self-study will
only lead you to greater ignorance. The Guru only will give you, by
Diksha (initiation), the right perspective in which to study the scriptures
and practise Yoga.
QUALIFICATIONS
OF A DISCIPLE
The
qualifications of the disciple are purity, faith, devotion, dispassion,
truthfulness, and control of the senses. He should be intelligent
and a believer in Vedas. He must abstain from injury to all beings.
He must be vigilant, diligent, patient, and persevering. He must be
ever doing good to all. All Sadhana should be done under the personal
direction of a Guru or spiritual teacher.
TANTRA
SADHANA
Bhuta
Suddhi is an important Tantric rite. It means purification of the
five elements of which the body is composed. The Sadhaka (aspirant)
dissolves the sinful body and makes a new divine body. He infuses
into the body the life of the Devi.
Nyasa
is a very important and powerful Tantric rite. It is placing of the
tips of the fingers of the right hand on various parts of the body,
accompanied by Mantra.
In
Kavacha the one Brahman is invoked by different names in order to
protect different parts of the body. For example, Parabrahman is thought
of as in the Sahasrara Padma in the head. The Supreme Lord is meditated
upon in the heart. Protector of the world, Vishnu is invoked to protect
the throat, so that the aspirant may utter the Mantras of his Ishta
Devata.
Mudra
is ritual of manual gestures. Mudra gives pleasure to the Devatas.
There are 108 Mudras. In welcoming (Avahana) the Devata an appropriate
gesture is made. In making offering (Arghya) Matsya Mudra is made.
The right hand is placed on the back of the left and the two thumbs
are extended finlike on each side of the hands. Similarly, there are
Mudras for the various acts done during the worship.
Yantra
takes the place of the image. It is an object of worship. Yantra is
a diagram, drawn on paper. It is engraved on a metal sheet also. A
Yantra is appropriated to a specific Devata only. Various Yantras
are peculiar to each Devata. They are various designs according to
the object of worship. Yantra is the body of the Devata. All the Yantras
have a common edging called Bhupura. They have a quadrangular figure
with four doors, which encloses and separates the Yantra from the
external world.
The
Sadhaka first meditates upon the Devata or Deity and then arouses
the Devata in himself. He then communicates the Divine presence thus
aroused to the Yantra. When the Devata has been invoked into the Yantra
by the appropriate Mantra, the vital airs (Prana) of the Devata are
infused therein by the Pranapratishtha ceremony. The Devata is thereby
installed in the Yantra. The materials used or acts done in Puja are
called Upachara. They are sixteen in number, viz., (1) Asana (seating
of the Devata); (2) Svagata (welcoming of the Devata); (3) Padya (water
for washing the feet); (4) Arghya (water for ablution); (5) Achamana
(water for sipping); (6) Madhuparka (honey, ghee, milk, and curd);
(7) Snana (bath); (8) Vastra (cloth); (9) Abharana (jewels); (10)
Gandha (perfume); (11) Pashpa (flowers); (12) Dhupa (incense); (13)
Dipa (light); (14) Naivedya (food) and Tambulam (betel); (15) Nirajana
(Arati); and (16) Vandana (prostration and prayer).
Sadhakas
are of three kinds, viz., Pasu (animalistic), Vira (valorous), and
Divya (divine).
THE
PANCHA TATTVA
The
Pancha Tattva is essential for the worship of Sakti. The Pancha Tattvas
are wine (Madya), meat (Mamsa), fish (Matsya), parched cereal (Mudra)
and sexual union (Maithuna). As they all commence with the letter
M, they are vulgarly called Pancha-ma-kara or five M's. The Pancha
Tattvas stand for drinking, eating and propagation. The Pancha Tattvas,
the five elements of worship destroy great sins, Maha-pataka-nasanam.
The
Pancha Tattvas have not always their literal meaning. The meaning
differs according as they refer to the Tamasic (Pasu), Rajasic (Vira)
or Sattvic (Divya) Sadhanas respectively.
Wine
may be wine; or it may be coconut water or it may mean God-intoxication
or the intoxicating knowledge of Brahman or the Absolute. Wine is
a symbol to denote the Supreme, eternal Bliss of Yoga knowledge, or
knowledge of Atman (Atma-jnana).
The
union of Siva and Sakti in the upper brain centre known as Sahasrara
or thousand-petalled lotus is Maithuna.
Mamsa
(meat) is the act by which the aspirant consecrates all his actions
to the Lord.
Matsya
(fish) is that Sattvic knowledge by which the Sadhaka sympathises
with the pleasure and pain of all beings.
Mudra
is the act of abandoning all associations with evil which leads to
bondage.
Wine
is fire; flesh is air; fish is water; cereal is earth; sexual union
is ether.
Milk,
ghee, honey are all substitutes for wine. Salt, ginger, sesamum, white
beans, garlic are substitutes for meat. White brinjal, red radish,
masur (a kind of grain) and red sesamum are substitutes for
fish. Paddy, rice, wheat and grain are Mudra. Offering of flowers
with the hands formed with a particular Mudra is Maithuna.
The
Sadhaka thinks that he has got a Deva body. This is Bhuta- Suddhi.
Various Nyasas are performed. Mental worship is performed of the Devi
who is thought of as being in red raiment seated on a red lotus. Her
dark body is like rain-cloud. Her forehead is shining with the light
of the crescent moon. Japa of Mantra is then done. Thereupon there
is external worship.
Sexual
intercourse by a man with a woman who is not lawful to him is a sin.
The Vaidika Dharma is very strict on this point. It forbids not merely
actual Maithuna but Ashtanga or eightfold Maithuna namely Smaranam
(thinking upon it), Kirtanam (talking of it), Keli (play with women),
Prekshanam (making eyes at women), Guhya-bhashanam (talking in private
with women), Sankalpa (wish or resolve for sexual union), Adhyavasaya
(determination towards it), Kriyanishpatti (actual accomplishment
of the sexual act).
A
Tantric can have copulation with his wife. He calls his wife his Sakti.
Wife is a house-goddess Griha-lakshmi or Griha-devata united to her
husband by the sacramental Samskara of marriage. She should not be
regarded as an object of enjoyment. She is his partner in life (Ardhangini).
The union of a man and his wife is a veritable sacred scriptural rite.
CONCLUSION
Tantra
Yoga is the saving wisdom. It is the marvellous boat which takes man
safely to the other shore of fearlessness, immortality, freedom, and
perfection, when practised with understanding under personal guidance
of well-established Tantric Guru.