Sexology of the Vajrayana Buddhism - Dr Uday Dokras
A vajra and bell (ghanta), which are classic ritual symbols of VajrayānaVajrayāna (Sanskrit: वज्रयान, "thunderbolt vehicle", "diamond vehicle", or "indestructible vehicle" ) along with Mantrayāna, Guhyamantrayāna, Tantrayāna, Secret Mantra, Tantric Buddhism, and Esoteric Buddhism are names referring to Buddhist traditions associated with Tantra and "Secret Mantra," which developed in the medieval Indian subcontinent and spread to Tibet, East Asia, Mongolia and other Himalayan states.
Vajrayāna practices are connected to specific lineages in Buddhism, through the teachings of lineage holders. Others might generally refer to texts as the Buddhist Tantras.[1] It includes practices that make use of mantras, dharanis, mudras, mandalas and the visualization of deities and Buddhas.
Traditional Vajrayāna sources claim that the tantras and the lineage of Vajrayāna was taught by the Buddha Shakyamuni and other figures such as the bodhisattva Vajrapani and Padmasambhava. Contemporary historians of Buddhist studies meanwhile argue that this movement dates to the tantric era of medieval India (c. 5th century CE onwards). According to Vajrayāna scriptures, the term Vajrayān a refers to one of three vehicles or routes to enlightenment, the other two being the Śrāvakayāna (also known pejoratively as the Hīnayāna) and Mahāyāna (a.k.a Pāramitāyāna). There are several Buddhist tantric traditions that are currently practiced, including Indo-Tibetan Buddhism, Chinese Esoteric Buddhism, Tendai Buddhism, Shingon Buddhism and Newar Buddhism.
In Tibetan Buddhism practiced in the Himalayan regions of India, Nepal, and Bhutan, Buddhist Tantra is most often termed Vajrayāna (Tib. རྡོ་རྗེ་ཐེག་པ་, dorje tekpa, Wyl. rdo rje theg pa) and Secret mantra (Skt. Guhyamantra, Tib. གསང་སྔགས་, sang ngak, Wyl. gsang sngags). The vajra is a mythical weapon associated with Indra which was said to be indestructible and unbreakable (like a diamond) and extremely powerful (like thunder). Thus, the term is variously translated as Diamond Vehicle, Thunderbolt Vehicle, Indestructible Vehicle and so on.
Chinese Esoteric Buddhism it is generally known by various terms such as Zhēnyán (Chinese: 真言, literally "true word", referring to mantra), Tángmì or Hanmì (唐密 - 漢密, "Tang Esotericism" or "Han Esotericism"), Mìzōng (密宗, "Esoteric Sect") or Mìjiao (Chinese: 密教; Esoteric Teaching). The Chinese term mì 密 ("secret, esoteric") is a translation of the Sanskrit term Guhya ("secret, hidden, profound, abstruse").
In Japan, Buddhist esotericism is known as Mikkyō (密教, "secret teachings") or by the term Shingon (a Japanese rendering of Zhēnyán), which also refers to a specific school of Shingon-shū (真言宗).
Mahasiddhas and the tantric movement
Tantric Buddhism is associated with groups of wandering yogis called mahasiddhas in medieval India.[4] According to Robert Thurman, these tantric figures thrived during the latter half of the first millennium CE.[2] According to Reynolds (2007), the mahasiddhas date to the medieval period in North India and used methods that were radically different from those used in Buddhist monasteries, including practicing in charnel grounds.
Since the practice of Tantra focuses on the transformation of poisons into wisdom, the yogic circles came together in tantric feasts, often in sacred sites (pitha) and places (ksetra) which included dancing, singing, consort practices and the ingestion of taboo substances like alcohol, urine, and meat.[6] At least two of the mahasiddhas cited in the Buddhist literature are comparable with the Shaiva Nath saints (Gorakshanath and Matsyendranath) who practiced Hatha Yoga.
According to Schumann, a movement called Sahaja-siddhi developed in the 8th century in Bengal.[7] It was dominated by long-haired, wandering mahasiddhas who openly challenged and ridiculed the Buddhist establishment. The mahasiddhas pursued siddhis, magical powers such as flight and extrasensory perception as well as spiritual liberation.
Ronald M. Davidson states that,
Buddhist siddhas demonstrated the appropriation of an older sociological form—the independent sage/magician, who lived in a liminal zone on the borders between fields and forests. Their rites involved the conjunction of sexual practices and Buddhist mandala visualization with ritual accoutrements made from parts of the human body, so that control may be exercised over the forces hindering the natural abilities of the siddha to manipulate the cosmos at will. At their most extreme, siddhas also represented a defensive position within the Buddhist tradition, adopted and sustained for the purpose of aggressive engagement with the medieval culture of public violence. They reinforced their reputations for personal sanctity with rumors of the magical manipulation of various flavors of demonic females (dakini, yaksi, yogini), cemetery ghouls (vetala), and other things that go bump in the night. Operating on the margins of both monasteries and polite society, some adopted the behaviors associated with ghosts (preta, pisaca), not only as a religious praxis but also as an extension of their implied threats.
Tantras
Diamond Realm mandala, based on the tantric Vajrasekhara Sutra, and symbolizing the final realization of Vairocana Buddha in Shingon./Naked tantrikas dancing and eating from skull cups (kapalas), closeup of a Chakrasamvara mandala
Many of the elements found in Buddhist tantric literature are not wholly new. Earlier Mahāyāna sutras already contained some elements which are emphasized in the Tantras, such as mantras and dharani.The use of protective verses or phrases actually dates back to the Vedic period and can be seen in the early Buddhist texts, where they are termed paritta. The practice of visualization of Buddhas such as Amitābha is also seen in pre-tantric texts like the Longer Sukhāvatīvyūha Sūtra.
There are other Mahāyāna sutras which contain "proto-tantric" material such as the Gandavyuha and the Dasabhumika which might have served as a central source of visual imagery for Tantric texts. Later Mahāyāna texts like the Kāraṇḍavyūha Sūtra (c. 4th-5th century CE) expound the use of mantras such as Om mani padme hum, associated with vastly powerful beings like Avalokiteshvara. The popular Heart Sutra also includes a mantra.
Vajrayāna Buddhists developed a large corpus of texts called the Buddhist Tantras, some of which can be traced to at least the 7th century CE but might be older. The dating of the tantras is "a difficult, indeed an impossible task" according to David Snellgrove.
Some of the earliest of these texts, Kriya tantras such as the Mañjuśrī-mūla-kalpa (c. 6th century), teach the use of mantras and dharanis for mostly worldly ends including curing illness, controlling the weather and generating wealth. The Tattvasaṃgraha Tantra (Compendium of Principles), classed as a "Yoga tantra", is one of the first Buddhist tantras which focuses on liberation as opposed to worldly goals. In another early tantra, the Vajrasekhara (Vajra Peak), the influential schema of the five Buddha families is developed. Other early tantras include the Mahāvairocana Abhisaṃbodhi and the Guhyasamāja (Gathering of Secrets).
The Guhyasamāja is a Mahayoga class of Tantra, which features forms of ritual practice considered "left-hand" (vamachara) such as the use of taboo substances like alcohol, consort practices, and charnel ground practices which evoke wrathful deities. Ryujun Tajima divides the tantras into those which were "a development of Mahāyānist thought" and those "formed in a rather popular mould toward the end of the eighth century and declining into the esoterism of the left", this "left esoterism" mainly refers to the Yogini tantras and later works associated with wandering yogis. This practice survives in Tibetan Buddhism, but it is rare for this to be done with an actual person. It is more common for a yogi or yogini to use an imagined consort (a buddhist tantric deity, i.e. a yidam).
These later tantras such as the Hevajra Tantra and the Chakrasamvara are classed as "Yogini tantras" and represent the final form of development of Indian Buddhist tantras in the ninth and tenth centuries. The Kalachakra tantra developed in the 10th century. It is farthest removed from the earlier Buddhist traditions, and incorporates concepts of messianism and astrology not present elsewhere in Buddhist literature.
According to Ronald M. Davidson, the rise of Tantric Buddhism was a response to the feudal structure of Indian society in the early medieval period (ca. 500-1200 CE) which saw kings being divinized as manifestations of gods. Likewise, tantric yogis reconfigured their practice through the metaphor of being consecrated (abhiśeka) as the overlord (rājādhirāja) of a mandala palace of divine vassals, an imperial metaphor symbolizing kingly fortresses and their political power Relationship to Shaivism
Vajrayana adopted deities such as Bhairava, known as Yamantaka in Tibetan Buddhism.//The central deity of the Cakrasaṃvara Tantra, which according to scholars like David B. Gray and Alexis Sanderson, appropriated numerous elements from nondual Shaiva Tantra
The question of the origins of early Vajrayāna has been taken up by various scholars. David Seyfort Ruegg has suggested that Buddhist tantra employed various elements of a “pan-Indian religious substrate” which is not specifically Buddhist, Shaiva or Vaishnava.
According to Alexis Sanderson, various classes of Vajrayāna literature developed as a result of royal courts sponsoring both Buddhism and Shaivism. The relationship between the two systems can be seen in texts like the Mañjusrimulakalpa, which later came to be classified under Kriya tantra, and states that mantras taught in the Shaiva, Garuda and Vaishnava tantras will be effective if applied by Buddhists since they were all taught originally by Manjushri.
Alexis Sanderson notes that the Vajrayāna Yogini tantras draw extensively from the material also present in Shaiva Bhairava tantras classified as Vidyapitha. Sanderson's comparison of them shows similarity in "ritual procedures, style of observance, deities, mantras, mandalas, ritual dress, Kapalika accouterments like skull bowls, specialized terminology, secret gestures, and secret jargons. There is even direct borrowing of passages from Shaiva texts." Sanderson gives numerous examples such as the Guhyasiddhi of Padmavajra, a work associated with the Guhyasamaja tradition, which prescribes acting as a Shaiva guru and initiating members into Saiva Siddhanta scriptures and mandalas. Sanderson claims that the Samvara tantra texts adopted the pitha list from the Shaiva text Tantrasadbhava, introducing a copying error where a deity was mistaken for a place.
Ronald M. Davidson meanwhile, argues that Sanderson's claims for direct influence from Shaiva Vidyapitha texts are problematic because "the chronology of the Vidyapitha tantras is by no means so well established" and that "the available evidence suggests that received Saiva tantras come into evidence sometime in the ninth to tenth centuries with their affirmation by scholars like Abhinavagupta (c. 1000 c.e.)" Davidson also notes that the list of pithas or sacred places "are certainly not particularly Buddhist, nor are they uniquely Kapalika venues, despite their presence in lists employed by both traditions." Davidson further adds that like the Buddhists, the Shaiva tradition was also involved in the appropriation of Hindu and non-Hindu deities, texts and traditions, an example being "village or tribal divinities like Tumburu".
Davidson adds that Buddhists and Kapalikas as well as other ascetics (possibly Pasupatas) mingled and discussed their paths at various pilgrimage places and that there were conversions between the different groups. Thus he concludes:
The Buddhist-Kapalika connection is more complex than a simple process of religious imitation and textual appropriation. There can be no question that the Buddhist tantras were heavily influenced by Kapalika and other Saiva movements, but the influence was apparently mutual. Perhaps a more nuanced model would be that the various lines of transmission were locally flourishing and that in some areas they interacted, while in others they maintained concerted hostility. Thus the influence was both sustained and reciprocal, even in those places where Buddhist and Kapalika siddhas were in extreme antagonism.
Davidson also argues for the influence of non-brahmanical and outcaste tribal religions and their feminine deities (such as Parnasabari and Janguli)
According to several Buddhist tantras as well as traditional Tibetan Buddhist sources, the tantras and the Vajrayana was taught by the Buddha Shakyamuni, but only to some individuals. There are several stories and versions of how the tantras were disseminated. The Jñana Tilaka Tantra, for example, has the Buddha state that the tantras will be explained by the bodhisattva Vajrapani. One of the most famous legends is that of king Indrabhuti (also known as King Ja) of Oddiyana (a figure related to Vajrapani, in some cases said to be an emanation of him).
Other accounts attribute the revelation of Buddhist tantras to Padmasambhava, claiming that he was an emanation of Amitaba and Avaloketishvara and that his arrival was predicted by the Buddha. Some accounts also maintain Padmasambhava is a direct reincarnation of Buddha Shakyamuni Philosophy
According to Louis de La Vallée-Poussin and Alex Wayman, the philosophical view of the Vajrayana is based on Mahayana Buddhist philosophy, mainly the Madhyamaka and Yogacara schools. The major difference seen by Vajrayana thinkers is the superiority of Tantric methods, which provide a faster vehicle to liberation and contain many more skillful means (upaya). The importance of the theory of emptiness is central to the Tantric Buddhist view and practice. The Buddhist emptiness view sees the world as being fluid, without an ontological foundation or inherent existence, but ultimately a fabric of constructions. Because of this, tantric practice such as self-visualization as the deity is seen as being no less real than everyday reality, but a process of transforming reality itself, including the practitioner's identity as the deity. As Stephan Beyer notes, "In a universe where all events dissolve ontologically into Emptiness, the touching of Emptiness in the ritual is the re-creation of the world in actuality".
The doctrine of Buddha-nature, as outlined in the Ratnagotravibhāga of Asanga, was also an important theory which became the basis for Tantric views. As explained by the Tantric commentator Lilavajra, this "intrinsic secret (behind) diverse manifestation" is the utmost secret and aim of Tantra. According to Alex Wayman this "Buddha embryo" (tathāgatagarbha) is a "non-dual, self-originated Wisdom (jnana), an effortless fount of good qualities" that resides in the mindstream but is "obscured by discursive thought." This doctrine is often associated with the idea of the inherent or natural luminosity (Skt: prakṛti-prabhāsvara-citta, T. ’od gsal gyi sems) or purity of the mind (prakrti-parisuddha).
Another fundamental theory of Tantric practice is that of transformation. In Vajrayāna, negative mental factors such as desire, hatred, greed, pride are used as part of the path. As noted by French Indologist Madeleine Biardeau, the tantric doctrine is "an attempt to place kama, desire, in every meaning of the word, in the service of liberation." This view is outlined in the following quote from the Hevajra tantra:
Those things by which evil men are bound, others turn into means and gain thereby release from the bonds of existence. By passion the world is bound, by passion too it is released, but by heretical Buddhists this practice of reversals is not known.
The Hevajra further states that "one knowing the nature of poison may dispel poison with poison." As Snellgrove notes, this idea is already present in Asanga's Mahayana-sutra-alamkara-karika and therefore it is possible that he was aware of Tantric techniques, including sexual yoga. According to Buddhist Tantra, there is no strict separation of the profane or samsara and the sacred or nirvana, rather they exist in a continuum. All individuals are seen as containing the seed of enlightenment within, which is covered over by defilements. Douglas Duckworth notes that Vajrayana sees Buddhahood not as something outside or an event in the future, but as immanently present.
Indian Tantric Buddhist philosophers such as Buddhaguhya, Vimalamitra, Ratnākaraśānti and Abhayakaragupta continued the tradition of Buddhist philosophy and adapted it to their commentaries on the major Tantras. Abhayakaragupta's Vajravali is a key source in the theory and practice of tantric rituals. After monks such as Vajrabodhi and Śubhakarasiṃha brought Tantra to Tang China (716 to 720), tantric philosophy continued to be developed in Chinese and Japanese by thinkers such as Yi Xing and Kūkai. Likewise in Tibet, Sakya Pandita (1182-28 - 1251), as well as later thinkers like Longchenpa (1308–1364) expanded on these philosophies in their tantric commentaries and treatises. The status of the tantric view continued to be debated in medieval Tibet. Tibetan Buddhist Rongzom Chokyi Zangpo (1012–1088) held that the views of sutra such as Madhyamaka were inferior to that of tantra, which was based on basic purity of ultimate reality.[48] Tsongkhapa (1357–1419) on the other hand, held that there is no difference between Vajrayāna and other forms of Mahayana in terms of prajnaparamita (perfection of insight) itself, only that Vajrayāna is a method which works faster. Place within Buddhist tradition
Tangut Auspicious Tantra of All-Reaching Union.
Various classifications are possible when distinguishing Vajrayāna from the other Buddhist traditions. Vajrayāna can be seen as a third yana, next to Śrāvakayāna and Mahayana. Vajrayāna can be distinguished from the Sutrayana. The Sutrayana is the method of perfecting good qualities, where the Vajrayāna is the method of taking the intended outcome of Buddhahood as the path. Vajrayāna can also be distinguished from the paramitayana. According to this schema, Indian Mahayana revealed two vehicles (yana) or methods for attaining enlightenment: the method of the perfections (Paramitayana) and the method of mantra (Mantrayana).
The Paramitayana consists of the six or ten paramitas, of which the scriptures say that it takes three incalculable aeons to lead one to Buddhahood. The tantra literature, however, claims that the Mantrayana leads one to Buddhahood in a single lifetime. According to the literature, the mantra is an easy path without the difficulties innate to the Paramitayana.[50] Mantrayana is sometimes portrayed as a method for those of inferior abilities.[50] However the practitioner of the mantra still has to adhere to the vows of the Bodhisattva. Goal
The goal of spiritual practice within the Mahayana and Vajrayāna traditions is to become a Sammāsambuddha (fully awakened Buddha), those on this path are termed Bodhisattvas. As with the Mahayana, motivation is a vital component of Vajrayāna practice. The Bodhisattva-path is an integral part of the Vajrayāna, which teaches that all practices are to be undertaken with the motivation to achieve Buddhahood for the benefit of all sentient beings.
In the vehicle of Sutra Mahayana the "path of the cause" is taken, whereby a practitioner starts with his or her potential Buddha-nature and nurtures it to produce the fruit of Buddhahood. In the Vajrayāna the "path of the fruit" is taken whereby the practitioner takes his or her innate Buddha-nature as the means of practice. The premise is that since we innately have an enlightened mind, practicing seeing the world in terms of ultimate truth can help us to attain our full Buddha-nature Experiencing ultimate truth is said to be the purpose of all the various tantric techniques practiced in the Vajrayana.
Monks attending the 2003 Kalachakra empowerment in Bodhgaya, India. Some empowerment ceremonies can include large numbers of initiates.
Vajrayāna Buddhism is esoteric in the sense that the transmission of certain teachings only occurs directly from teacher to student during an empowerment (abhiṣeka) and their practice requires initiation in a ritual space containing the mandala of the deity. Many techniques are also commonly said to be secret, but some Vajrayana teachers have responded that secrecy itself is not important and only a side-effect of the reality that the techniques have no validity outside the teacher-student lineage.
The secrecy of teachings was often protected through the use of allusive, indirect, symbolic and metaphorical language (twilight language) which required interpretation and guidance from a teacher. The teachings may also be considered "self-secret", meaning that even if they were to be told directly to a person, that person would not necessarily understand the teachings without proper context. In this way, the teachings are "secret" to the minds of those who are not following the path with more than a simple sense of curiosity.
Because of their role in giving access to the practices and guiding the student through them, the role of the Vajracharya Lama is indispensable in Vajrayāna.
Affirmation of the feminine, antinomian and taboo
Tibetan Chakrasamvara statue in Yab-Yum union with his consort Vajravārāhī
Some Vajrayāna rituals traditionally included the use of certain taboo substances, such as blood, semen, alcohol and urine, as ritual offerings and sacraments, though some of these are often replaced with less taboo substances such as yogurt. Tantric feasts and initiations sometimes employed substances like human flesh as noted by Kahha's Yogaratnamala.
The use of these substances is related to the non-dual (advaya) nature of a Buddha's wisdom (buddhajñana). Since the ultimate state is in some sense non-dual, a practitioner can approach that state by "transcending attachment to dual categories such as pure and impure, permitted and forbidden". As the Guhyasamaja Tantra states "the wise man who does not discriminate achieves Buddhahood".
Vajrayāna rituals also include sexual yoga, union with a physical consort as part of advanced practices. Some tantras go further, the Hevajra tantra states ‘You should kill living beings, speak lying words, take what is not given, consort with the women of others’ While some of these statements were taken literally as part of ritual practice, others such as killing were interpreted in a metaphorical sense. In the Hevajra, "killing" is defined as developing concentration by killing the life-breath of discursive thoughts Likewise, while actual sexual union with a physical consort is practiced, it is also common to use a visualized mental consort.
Alex Wayman points out that the symbolic meaning of tantric sexuality is ultimately rooted in bodhicitta and the bodhisattva's quest for enlightenment is likened to a lover seeking union with the mind of the Buddha. Judith Simmer-Brown notes the importance of the psycho-physical experiences arising in sexual yoga, termed "great bliss" (mahasukha): "Bliss melts the conceptual mind, heightens sensory awareness, and opens the practitioner to the naked experience of the nature of mind."[59] This tantric experience is not the same as ordinary self-gratifying sexual passion since it relies on tantric meditative methods using the illusory body and visualizations as well as the motivation for enlightenment. As the Hevajra tantra says:
This practice [of sexual union with a consort] is not taught for the sake of enjoyment, but for the examination of one's own thought, whether the mind is steady or waving.
Feminine deities and forces are also increasingly prominent in Vajrayāna. In the Yogini tantras in particular, women and female yoginis are given high status as the embodiment of female deities such as the wild and nude Vajrayogini.
The Candamaharosana Tantra (viii:29–30) states:
Women are heaven, women are the teaching (dharma)
Women indeed are the highest austerity (tapas)
Women are the Buddha, women are the Sangha
Women are the Perfection of Wisdom.
In India, there is evidence to show that women participated in tantric practice alongside men and were also teachers, adepts and authors of tantric texts.
Vows and behavior-Samaya
Practitioners of Vajrayāna need to abide by various tantric vows or pledges called samaya. These are extensions of the rules of the Prātimokṣa and Bodhisattva vows for the lower levels of tantra, and are taken during initiations into the empowerment for a particular Unsurpassed Yoga Tantra. The special tantric vows vary depending on the specific mandala practice for which the initiation is received and also depending on the level of initiation. Ngagpas of the Nyingma school keep a special non-celibate ordination.
A tantric guru, or teacher is expected to keep his or her samaya vows in the same way as his students. Proper conduct is considered especially necessary for a qualified Vajrayana guru. For example, the Ornament for the Essence of Manjushrikirti states:
Distance yourself from Vajra Masters who are not keeping the three vows
who keep on with a root downfall, who are miserly with the Dharma,
and who engage in actions that should be forsaken.
Those who worship them go to hell and so on as a result.
Mani stones, stones inscribed with the "om mani padme hum" mantra/ A Japanese Handscroll depicting various mudras, 11th–12th century.
While all the Vajrayāna Buddhist traditions include all of the traditional practices used in Mahayana Buddhism such as developing bodhicitta, practicing the paramitas, and meditations, they also make use of unique tantric methods and Dzogchen meditation which are seen as more advanced. These include mantras, mandalas, mudras, deity yoga, other visualization based meditations, illusory body yogas like tummo and rituals like the goma fire ritual. Vajrayana teaches that these techniques provide faster path to Buddhahood.
A central feature of tantric practice is the use of mantras, and seed syllables (bijas). Mantras are words, phrases or a collection of syllables used for a variety of meditative, magical and ritual ends. Mantras are usually associated with specific deities or Buddhas, and are seen as their manifestations in sonic form. They are traditionally believed to have spiritual power, which can lead to enlightenment as well as supramundane abilities (siddhis).
According to Indologist Alex Wayman, Buddhist esotericism is centered on what is known as "the three mysteries" or "secrets": the tantric adept affiliates his body, speech, and mind with the body, speech, and mind of a Buddha through mudra, mantras and samadhi respectively. . Padmavajra (c 7th century) explains in his Tantrarthavatara Commentary, the secret Body, Speech, and Mind of the Buddhas are:.
⦁ Secret of Body: Whatever form is necessary to tame the living beings.
⦁ Secret of Speech: Speech exactly appropriate to the lineage of the creature, as in the language of the yaksas, etc.
⦁ Secret of Mind: Knowing all things as they really are.
These elements are brought together in the practice of tantric deity yoga, which involves visualizing the deity's body and mandala, reciting the deity's mantra and gaining insight into the nature of things based on this contemplation. Advanced tantric practices such as deity yoga are taught in the context of an initiation ceremony by tantric gurus or vajracharyas (vajra-masters) to the tantric initiate, who also takes on formal commitments or vows (samaya). ] In Tibetan Buddhism, advanced practices like deity yoga are usually preceded by or coupled with "preliminary practices" called ngondro, consisting of five to seven accumulation practices and includes prostrations and recitations of the 100 syllable mantra .
Vajrayana is a system of tantric lineages, and thus only those who receive an empowerment or initiation (abhiseka) are allowed to practice the more advanced esoteric methods. In tantric deity yoga, mantras or bijas are used during the ritual evocation of deities which are said to arise out of the uttered and visualized mantric syllables. After the deity's image and mandala has been established, heart mantras are visualized as part of the contemplation in different points of the deity's body..ui.
An 18th century Mongolian miniature which depicts a monk generating a tantric visualization.
A Japanese depiction of the Amida Triad in Seed Syllable form (Siddham Script). Visualizing deities in the form of seed syllables is a common Vajrayana meditation. In Shingon, one of the most common practices is Ajikan (阿字觀), meditating on the syllable A.
The fundamental practice of Buddhist Tantra is "deity yoga" (devatayoga), meditation on a chosen deity or "cherished divinity" (Skt. Iṣṭa-devatā, Tib. yidam), which involves the recitation of mantras, prayers and visualization of the deity, the associated mandala of the deity's Buddha field, along with consorts and attendant Buddhas and bodhisattvas. According to the Tibetan scholar Tsongkhapa, deity yoga is what separates Tantra from Sutra practice.
In the Unsurpassed Yoga Tantras, the most widespread tantric form in Indo-Tibetan Buddhism, this method is divided into two stages, the generation stage (utpatti-krama) and the completion stage (nispanna-krama). In the generation stage, one dissolves one's reality into emptiness and meditates on the deity-mandala, resulting in identification with this divine reality. In the completion stage, the divine image along with the illusory body is applied to the realization of luminous emptiness.
This dissolution into emptiness is then followed by the visualization of the deity and re-emergence of the yogi as the deity. During the process of deity visualization, the deity is to be imaged as not solid or tangible, as "empty yet apparent", with the character of a mirage or a rainbow. This visualization is to be combined with "divine pride", which is "the thought that one is oneself the deity being visualized." Divine pride is different from common pride because it is based on compassion for others and on an understanding of emptiness.
A Tibetan depiction of the perfection stage practices of tummo (Skt. candali, inner heat) and phowa (transference of consciousness). The Tibetologist David Germano outlines two main types of completion practice: a formless and image-less contemplation on the ultimate empty nature of the mind and various yogas that make use of the illusory body to produce energetic sensations of bliss and warmth.
The illusory body yogas systems like the Six Dharmas of Naropa and the Six Yogas of Kalachakra make use of energetic schemas of human psycho-physiology composed of "energy channels" (Skt. nadi, Tib. rtsa), "winds" or currents (Skt. vayu, Tib. rlung), "drops" or charged particles (Skt. bindu, Tib. thig le) and chakras ("wheels"). These subtle energies are seen as "mounts" for consciousness, the physical component of awareness. They are engaged by various means such as pranayama (breath control) to produce blissful experiences that are then applied to the realization of ultimate reality.
Other methods which are associated with the completion stage in Tibetan Buddhism include dream yoga (which relies on lucid dreaming), practices associated with the bardo (the interim state between death and rebirth), transference of consciousness (phowa) and Chöd, in which the yogi ceremonially offers their body to be eaten by tantric deities in a ritual feast.
Other practices
A Newari Buddhist mandala used for Guru Puja, Nepal, 19th century, gilt copper inlaid with semiprecious stones.
Video of a Shingon Goma Fire Ritual at Yakuōin Yūkiji, Mount Takao Another form of Vajrayana practice are certain meditative techniques associated with Mahāmudrā and Dzogchen, often termed "formless practices" or the path of self-liberation. These techniques do not rely on deity visualization per se but on direct pointing-out instruction from a master and are often seen as the most advanced and direct methods. Another distinctive feature of Tantric Buddhism is its unique and often elaborate rituals. They include pujas (worship rituals), prayer festivals, protection rituals, death rituals, tantric feasts (ganachakra), tantric initiations (abhiseka) and the goma fire ritual (common in East Asian Esotericism).
A video of the Cham dance, a traditional practice in some sects of Tibetan Buddhism.
An important element in some of these rituals (particularly initiations and tantric feasts) seems to have been the practice of ritual sex or sexual yoga (karmamudra, "desire seal", also referred to as "consort observance", vidyavrata, and euphemistically as "puja"), as well as the sacramental ingestion of "power substances" such as the mingled sexual fluids and uterine blood (often performed by licking these substances off the vulva, a practice termed yonipuja).
The practice of ingestion of sexual fluids is mentioned by numerous tantric commentators, sometimes euphemistically referring to the penis as the "vajra" and the vagina as the "lotus". The Cakrasamvara Tantra commentator Kambala, writing about this practice, states:
The seats are well-known on earth to be spots within the lotus mandala; by abiding within it there is great bliss, the royal nature of nondual joy. Therefore the lotus seat is supreme: filled with a mixture of semen and uterine blood, one should especially kiss it, and lolling with the tongue take it up. Unite the vajra and lotus, with the rapture of drinking [this] liquor.]
According to David Gray, these sexual practices probably originated in a non-monastic context, but were later adopted by monastic establishments (such as Nalanda and Vikramashila). He notes that the anxiety of figures like Atisa towards these practices, and the stories of Virūpa and Maitripa being expelled from their monasteries for performing them, shows that supposedly celibate monastics were undertaking these sexual rites.[81]
Because of its adoption by the monastic tradition, the practice of sexual yoga was slowly transformed into one which was either done with an imaginary consort visualized by the yogi instead of an actual person, or reserved to a small group of the "highest" or elite practitioners. Likewise, the drinking of sexual fluids was also reinterpreted by later commentators to refer illusory body anatomy of the perfection stage practices.
Dagchen Rinpoche's hand holds a vajra drawing lines that close the Hevajra Mandala, after the empowerment, Tharlam Monastery of Tibetan Buddhism, Boudha, Kathmandu, Nepal. Vajrayāna uses a rich variety of symbols, terms, and images that have multiple meanings according to a complex system of analogical thinking. In Vajrayāna, symbols, and terms are multi-valent, reflecting the microcosm and the macrocosm as in the phrase "As without, so within" (yatha bahyam tatha ’dhyatmam iti) from Abhayakaragupta's Nispannayogavali.
The vajra
Bronze vajras and bell from Itsukushima, Japan
The Sanskrit term "vajra" denoted a thunderbolt like a legendary weapon and divine attribute that was made from an adamantine, or an indestructible substance which could, therefore, pierce and penetrate any obstacle or obfuscation. It is the weapon of choice of Indra, the King of the Devas. As a secondary meaning, "vajra" symbolizes the ultimate nature of things which is described in the tantras as translucent, pure and radiant, but also indestructible and indivisible. It is also symbolic of the power of tantric methods to achieve its goals.
A vajra is also a scepter-like ritual object (Standard Tibetan: རྡོ་རྗེ་ dorje), which has a sphere (and sometimes a gankyil) at its centre, and a variable number of spokes, 3, 5 or 9 at each end (depending on the sadhana), enfolding either end of the rod. The vajra is often traditionally employed in tantric rituals in combination with the bell or ghanta; symbolically, the vajra may represent method as well as great bliss and the bell stands for wisdom, specifically the wisdom realizing emptiness. The union of the two sets of spokes at the center of the wheel is said to symbolize the unity of wisdom (prajña) and compassion (karuna) as well as the sexual union of male and female deities
Imagery and ritual in deity yoga
Chöd ritual, note the use of Damaru drum and hand-bell, as well as the Kangling (thighbone trumpet).
Representations of the deity, such as statues (murti), paintings (thangka), or mandala, are often employed as an aid to visualization, in deity yoga. The use of visual aids, particularly microcosmic/macrocosmic diagrams, known as mandalas, is another unique feature of Buddhist Tantra. Mandalas are symbolic depictions of the sacred space of the awakened Buddhas and Bodhisattvas as well as of the inner workings of the human person. The macrocosmic symbolism of the mandala then, also represents the forces of the human body. The explanatory tantra of the Guhyasamaja tantra, the Vajramala, states: "The body becomes a palace, the hallowed basis of all the Buddhas.”
Mandalas are also sacred enclosures, sacred architecture that house and contain the uncontainable essence of a central deity or yidam and their retinue. In the book The World of Tibetan Buddhism, the Dalai Lama describes mandalas thus: "This is the celestial mansion, the pure residence of the deity." The Five Tathagatas or 'Five Buddhas', along with the figure of the Adi-Buddha, are central to many Vajrayana mandalas as they represent the "five wisdoms", which are the five primary aspects of primordial wisdom or Buddha-nature. All ritual in Vajrayana practice can be seen as aiding in this process of visualization and identification. The practitioner can use various hand implements such as a vajra, bell, hand-drum (damaru) or a ritual dagger (phurba), but also ritual hand gestures (mudras) can be made, special chanting techniques can be used, and in elaborate offering rituals or initiations, many more ritual implements and tools are used, each with an elaborate symbolic meaning to create a special environment for practice. Vajrayana has thus become a major inspiration in traditional Tibetan art.
Three leaves from a manuscript of the Vajrāvalī, a ritual compendium compiled by Abhayakaragupta, abbot of the Vikramashila monastery around 1100 CE.
See also: Tantras (Buddhism) and Tibetan Buddhist canon
There is an extended body of texts associated with Buddhist Tantra, including the "tantras" themselves, tantric commentaries and shastras, sadhanas (liturgical texts), ritual manuals (Chinese: 儀軌; Pinyin: Yíguǐ; Romanji: Giki, ), dharanis, poems or songs (dohas), termas and so on. According to Harunaga Isaacson,
Though we do not know precisely at present just how many Indian tantric Buddhist texts survive today in the language in which they were written, their number is certainly over one thousand five hundred; I suspect indeed over two thousand. A large part of this body of texts has also been translated into Tibetan, and a smaller part into Chinese. Aside from these, there are perhaps another two thousand or more works that are known today only from such translations. We can be certain as well that many others are lost to us forever, in whatever form. Of the texts that survive a very small proportion has been published; an almost insignificant percentage has been edited or translated reliably.
Vajrayāna texts exhibit a wide range of literary characteristics—usually a mix of verse and prose, almost always in a Sanskrit that "transgresses frequently against classical norms of grammar and usage," although also occasionally in various Middle Indic dialects or elegant classical Sanskrit.
In Chinese Mantrayana (Zhenyan), and Japanese Shingon, the most influential esoteric texts are the Mahavairocana Tantra and the Vajraśekhara Sūtra. In Tibetan Buddhism, a large number of tantric works are widely studied and different schools focus on the study and practice of different cycles of texts. According to Geoffrey Samuel, the Sakyapa specialize in the Hevajra Tantra, the Nyingmapa specialize in the various so called Old Tantras and terma cycles, and the most important Kagyudpa and Gelugpa tantras are Guhyasamāja, Cakrasaṃvara and Kālacakra.[93]
The Dunhuang manuscripts also contain Tibetan Tantric manuscripts. Dalton and Schaik (2007, revised) provide an excellent online catalogue listing 350 Tibetan Tantric Manuscripts] from Dunhuang in the Stein Collection of the British Library which is currently fully accessible online in discrete digitized manuscripts. With the Wylie transcription of the manuscripts they are to be made discoverable online in the future. These 350 texts are just a small portion of the vast cache of the Dunhuang manuscripts.
Map showing the dominant Buddhist tradition throughout Asia, Vajrayana (in the form of Tibetan Buddhism) dominates the Himalayan regions and in the Mongolian regions.
The Nīlakaṇṭha Dhāraṇī engraved on a stele. Temple Fo Ding Shan Chao Sheng in Sanyi Township, Taiwan. Erected in June 2005. Although there is historical evidence for Vajrayāna Buddhism in Southeast Asia and elsewhere (see History of Vajrayāna above), today the Vajrayāna exists primarily in the form of the two major traditions of Tibetan Buddhism and Japanese Esoteric Buddhism in Japan known as Shingon (literally "True Speech", i.e. mantra), with a handful of minor subschools utilising lesser amounts of esoteric or tantric materials.
The distinction between traditions is not always rigid. For example, the tantra sections of the Tibetan Buddhist canon of texts sometimes include material not usually thought of as tantric outside the Tibetan Buddhist tradition, such as the Heart Sutra and even versions of some material found in the Pali Canon.
Esoteric and Tantric teachings followed the same route into northern China as Buddhism itself, arriving via the Silk Road and Southeast Asian Maritime trade routes sometime during the first half of the 7th century, during the Tang dynasty and received sanction from the emperors of the Tang dynasty. During this time, three great masters came from India to China: Śubhakarasiṃha, Vajrabodhi, and Amoghavajra who translated key texts and founded the Zhenyan (真言, "true word", "mantra") tradition.[97] Zhenyan was also brought to Japan as Shingon during this period. This tradition focused on tantras like the Mahavairocana tantra, and unlike Tibetan Buddhism, it does not employ the antinomian and radical tantrism of the Anuttarayoga Tantras. The prestige of this tradition eventually influenced other schools of Chinese Buddhism such as Chan and Tiantai to adopt various esoteric practices over time, leading to a merging of teachings between the various schools. During the Yuan dynasty, the Mongol emperors made Tibetan Buddhism the official religion of China, and Tibetan lamas were given patronage at the court. Imperial support of Tibetan Vajrayana continued into the Ming and Qing dynasties.
Today, esoteric traditions are deeply embedded in mainstream Chinese Buddhism and expressed through various rituals which make use of tantric mantra and dhāraṇī and the veneration of certain tantric deities like Cundi and Acala. One example of esoteric teachings still practiced in many Chinese Buddhist monasteries is the Śūraṅgama Sūtra and the dhāraṇī revealed within it, the Śūraṅgama Mantra, which are especially influential in the Chinese Chan tradition.
Another form of esoteric Buddhism in China is Azhaliism, which is practiced among the Bai people of China and venerates Mahakala as a major deity
Portrait of Kobo Daishi (Kukai) holding a vajra and a mala, 14th century, Art Institute of Chicago.
The Shingon school is found in Japan and includes practices, known in Japan as Mikkyō ("Esoteric (or Mystery) Teaching"), which are similar in concept to those in Vajrayana Buddhism. The lineage for Shingon Buddhism differs from that of Tibetan Vajrayana, having emerged from India during the 9th-11th centuries in the Pala Dynasty and Central Asia (via China) and is based on earlier versions of the Indian texts than the Tibetan lineage. Shingon shares material with Tibetan Buddhism – such as the esoteric sutras (called Tantras in Tibetan Buddhism) and mandalas – but the actual practices are not related. The primary texts of Shingon Buddhism are the Mahavairocana Sutra and Vajrasekhara Sutra. The founder of Shingon Buddhism was Kukai, a Japanese monk who studied in China in the 9th century during the Tang dynasty and brought back Vajrayana scriptures, techniques and mandalas then popular in China. The school was merged into other schools in China towards the end of the Tang dynasty but was sectarian in Japan. Shingon is one of the few remaining branches of Buddhism in the world that continues to use the siddham script of the Sanskrit language.
Although the Tendai school in China and Japan does employ some esoteric practices, these rituals came to be considered of equal importance with the exoteric teachings of the Lotus Sutra. By chanting mantras, maintaining mudras, or practicing certain forms of meditation, Tendai maintains that one is able to understand sense experiences as taught by the Buddha, have faith that one is innately an enlightened being, and that one can attain enlightenment within the current lifetime.
Shugendō
Yamabushi priests at Gose, Nara.
Shugendō was founded in 7th-century Japan by the ascetic En no Gyōja, based on the Queen's Peacocks Sutra. With its origins in the solitary hijiri back in the 7th century, Shugendō evolved as a sort of amalgamation between Esoteric Buddhism, Shinto and several other religious influences including Taoism. Buddhism and Shinto were amalgamated in the shinbutsu shūgō, and Kūkai's syncretic religion held wide sway up until the end of the Edo period, coexisting with Shinto elements within Shugendō
In 1613 during the Edo period, the Tokugawa Shogunate issued a regulation obliging Shugendō temples to belong to either Shingon or Tendai temples. During the Meiji Restoration, when Shinto was declared an independent state religion separate from Buddhism, Shugendō was banned as a superstition not fit for a new, enlightened Japan. Some Shugendō temples converted themselves into various officially approved Shintō denominations. In modern times, Shugendō is practiced mainly by Tendai and Shingon sects, retaining an influence on modern Japanese religion and culture.
Korean milgy
Esoteric Buddhist practices (known as milgyo, 密教) and texts arrived in Korea during the initial introduction of Buddhism to the region in 372 CE. Esoteric Buddhism was supported by the royalty of both Unified Silla (668-935) and Goryeo Dynasty (918-1392). During the Goryeo Dynasty esoteric practices were common within large sects like the Seon school, and the Hwaeom school as well as smaller esoteric sects like the Sinin (mudra) and Ch'ongji (Dharani) schools. During the era of the Mongol occupation (1251-1350s), Tibetan Buddhism also existed in Korea though it never gained a foothold there
During the Joseon dynasty, Esoteric Buddhist schools were forced to merge with the Son and Kyo schools, becoming the ritual specialists. With the decline of Buddhism in Korea, Esoteric Buddhism mostly died out, save for a few traces in the rituals of the Jogye Order and Taego Order. There are two Esoteric Buddhist schools in modern Korea: the Chinŏn (眞言) and the Jingak Order (眞 覺). According to Henrik H. Sørensen, "they have absolutely no historical link with the Korean Buddhist tradition per se but are late constructs based in large measures on Japanese Shingon Buddhism.’
Vajrayāna Buddhism was initially established in Tibet in the 8th century when various figures like Padmasambhāva (8th century CE) and Śāntarakṣita (725–788) were invited by King Trisong Detsen, some time before 767. Tibetan Buddhism reflects the later stages tantric Indian Buddhism of the post-GuptaEarly Medieval period (500 to 1200 CE).[110][111] This tradition practices and studies a set of tantric texts and commentaries associated with the more "left hand," (vamachara) tantras, which are not part of East Asian Esoteric Buddhism. These tantras (sometimes termed 'Anuttarayoga tantras' include many transgressive elements, such as sexual and mortuary symbolism that is not shared by the earlier tantras that are studied in East Asian Buddhism. These texts were translated into Classical Tibetan during the "New translation period" (10th-12th centuries). Tibetan Buddhism also includes numerous native Tibetan developments, such as the tulku system, new sadhana texts, Tibetan scholastic works, Dzogchen literature and Terma literature. There are four major traditions or schools: Nyingma, Sakya, Kagyu, and Gelug.
In the pre-modern era, Tibetan Buddhism spread outside of Tibet primarily due to the influence of the Mongol Yuan dynasty (1271–1368), founded by Kublai Khan, which ruled China, Mongolia and eastern Siberia. In the modern era it has spread outside of Asia due to the efforts of the Tibetan diaspora (1959 onwards). The Tibetan Buddhist tradition is today found in Tibet, Bhutan, northern India, Nepal, southwestern and northern China, Mongolia and various constituent republics of Russia that are adjacent to the area, such as Amur Oblast, Buryatia, Chita Oblast, the Tuva Republic and Khabarovsk Krai. Tibetan Buddhism is also the main religion in Kalmykia. It has also spread to Western countries and there are now international networks of Tibetan Buddhist temples and meditation centers in the Western world from all four schools.
Newar Buddhism is practiced by Newars in Nepal. It is the only form of Vajrayana Buddhism in which the scriptures are written in Sanskrit and this tradition has preserved many Vajrayana texts in this language. Its priests do not follow celibacy and are called vajracharya (literally "diamond-thunderbolt carriers").
Indonesian Esoteric Buddhism refers to the traditions of Esoteric Buddhism found in the Indonesian islands of Java and Sumatra before the rise and dominance of Islam in the region (13-16th centuries). The Buddhist empire of Srivijaya (650 CE–1377 CE) was a major center of Esoteric Buddhist learning which drew Chinese monks such as Yijing and Indian scholars like Atiśa. The temple complex at Borobudur in central Java, built by the Shailendra dynasty also reflects strong Tantric or at least proto-tantric influences, particularly of the cult of Vairocana.
Indonesian Esoteric Buddhism may have also reached the Philippines, possibly establishing the first form of Buddhism in the Philippines. The few Buddhist artifacts that have been found in the islands reflect the iconography of Srivijaya's Vajrayana.
Southern Esoteric Buddhism
"Southern Esoteric Buddhism" or Borān kammaṭṭhāna ('ancient practices') is a term for esoteric forms of Buddhism from Southeast Asia, where Theravada Buddhism is dominant. The monks of the Sri Lankan, Abhayagiri vihara once practiced forms of tantra which were popular in the island.[116] Another tradition of this type was Ari Buddhism, which was common in Burma. The Tantric Buddhist 'Yogāvacara' tradition was a major Buddhist tradition in Cambodia, Laos and Thailand well into the modern era.[117] This form of Buddhism declined after the rise of Southeast Asian Buddhist modernism.
This form of esoteric Buddhism is unique in that it developed in Southeast Asia and has no direct connection to the Indian Tantric Movement of the Mahasiddhas and the tantric establishments of Nalanda and Vikramashila Universities. Thus, it does not make use of the classic Buddhist tantras and has its own independent literature and practice tradition.
Serious Vajrayana academic study in the Western world is in early stages due to the following obstacles:
⦁ Although a large number of Tantric scriptures are extant, they have not been formally ordered or systematized.
⦁ Due to the esoteric initiatory nature of the tradition, many practitioners will not divulge information or sources of their information.
⦁ As with many different subjects, it must be studied in context and with a long history spanning many different cultures.
⦁ Ritual, as well as doctrine, need to be investigated.
Buddhist tantric practice is categorized as secret practice; this is to avoid misinformed people from harmfully misusing the practices. A method to keep this secrecy is that tantric initiation is required from a master before any instructions can be received about the actual practice. During the initiation procedure in the highest class of tantra (such as the Kalachakra), students must take the tantric vows which commit them to such secrecy. "Explaining general tantra theory in a scholarly manner, not sufficient for practice, is likewise not a root downfall. Nevertheless, it weakens the effectiveness of our tantric practice.
The terminology associated with Vajrayana Buddhism can be confusing. Most of the terms originated in the Sanskrit language of tantric Indian Buddhism and may have passed through other cultures, notably those of Japan and Tibet, before translation for the modern reader. Further complications arise as seemingly equivalent terms can have subtle variations in use and meaning according to context, the time and place of use. A third problem is that the Vajrayana texts employ the tantric tradition of twilight language, a means of instruction that is deliberately coded. These obscure teaching methods relying on symbolism as well as synonym, metaphor and word association add to the difficulties faced by those attempting to understand Vajrayana Buddhism:
In the Vajrayana tradition, now preserved mainly in Tibetan lineages, it has long been recognized that certain important teachings are expressed in a form of secret symbolic language known as saṃdhyā-bhāṣā, 'Twilight Language'. Mudrās and mantras, maṇḍalas and cakras, those mysterious devices and diagrams that were so much in vogue in the pseudo-Buddhist hippie culture of the 1960s, were all examples of Twilight Language [...]
The term Tantric Buddhism was not one originally used by those who practiced it. As scholar Isabelle Onians explains:
"Tantric Buddhism" [...] is not the transcription of a native term, but a rather modern coinage, if not totally occidental. For the equivalent Sanskrit tāntrika is found, but not in Buddhist texts. Tāntrika is a term denoting someone who follows the teachings of scriptures known as Tantras, but only in Saivism, not Buddhism [...] Tantric Buddhism is a name for a phenomenon which calls itself, in Sanskrit, Mantranaya, Vajrayāna, Mantrayāna or Mantramahāyāna (and apparently never Tantrayāna). Its practitioners are known as mantrins, yogis, or sādhakas. Thus, our use of the anglicised adjective “Tantric” for the Buddhist religion taught in Tantras is not native to the tradition, but is a borrowed term which serves its purpose.
The AryaMañjuśrīmūlakalpa or Arya-Mañjuśrī-mūla-kalpa is a text of the Kriyā-tantra class. It is affiliated with the bodhisattva Mañjuśrī. It contains violent, sensual and sexual tantric rituals.
The Mañjuśrīmūlakalpa is often cited as the earliest example of an extant Indian Buddhist Tantra. Some scholars identify it as a compilation of a core dated circa 6th century with accretions and additions. The Sanskrit version, significantly longer than its corresponding Chinese and Tibetan renderings, is still extant.
The Mañjuśrīmūlakalpa, which later was classified under Kriyatantra, states that mantras taught in the Shaiva, Garuda and Vaishnava tantras will be effective if applied by Buddhists since they were all taught originally by Manjushri. The attribution to Mañjuśrī is an attempt by its author(s) to counter the objection that the teachings in this text are of non-Buddhist origin.
According to Sanderson (2009: 129) and the study by Matsunaga (1985), the text is datable to about 775 CE The editio princeps of the Sanskrit text was by T. Ganapati Sastri in three volumes (Trivandrum, 1920, 1922, 1925).[7] (Combined reprint edition at Archive org.) Rahul Sankrityayana's edition appeared in 1934.[8] Ganapati Sastri's edition with some modifications[9] was reprinted by P. L. Vaidya in 1964.
Kurukulla sculpture from Calcutta Art gallery, 1913
Kurukullā ( "Knowledge/magic/vidyā Woman "Knowledge-Causing Mother-Buddha") is a female, peaceful to semi-wrathful Yidam in Tibetan Buddhism particularly associated with rites of magnetization or enchantment. Her Sanskrit name is of unclear origin. She is related to Shri Yantra in Hinduism. Kurukullā is a goddess whose body is usually depicted in red with four arms, holding a bow and arrow made of flowers in one pair of hands and a hook and noose of flowers in the other pair. She dances in a Dakini-pose and crushes the asura Rahu (the one who devours the sun). According to Hindu astrology, Rahu is a snake with a demon head (Navagraha) who represents the ascending lunar node.
She is considered either an emanation of Amitābha, one of Tara's forms, or a transformation of Heruka.
Kurukullā was likely an Indian tribal deity associated with magical domination. She was assimilated into the Buddhist pantheon at least as early as the Hevajra Tantra, which contains her mantra. Her function in Tibetan Buddhism is the "red" function of subjugation. Her root tantra is the Arya-tara-kurukulle-kalpa (Practices of the Noble Tara Kurukullā). It was translated by Tsültrim Gyalwa, a disciple of Atiśa.
She has a complex history of traditions.[6] In one of the many stories, a queen was unhappy being neglected by her king. To win his affection, she sent her helper to find a solution. Her helper encountered a (dark-)red skinned enchantress in a market, who offered to do some magic. The enchantress gave magical food (or medicine) to the helper, and instructed the queen to give the food to the king to win his love by magical means.
The queen upon receiving the magic item, decided that it was inappropriate/harmful, and threw it to into a lake. A naga dragon king from the lake ate the food and was enchanted to impregnate the queen while both burn intensively in "flames of desire". The King learned about the pregnancy/saw the child and decided to punish the queen. The queen explained to the king what happened. The King decided to summon the enchantress into the palace. The king recognized and appreciated the enchantress as an extraordinary person (some said the enchantress was Kurukulla), and requested blessings and teachings from her. The king acquired magical powers siddhis from her practices and blessings, and then wrote instructions on the practice of Kurukulla.
The essential mantra of Kurukullā is Oṁ Kurukulle Hrīḥ Svāhā (Tibetan: ༀ་ཀུ་རུ་ཀུ་ལླེ་ཧྲཱིཿསྭཱ་ཧཱ). This mantra uses the vocative form (Kurukulle) of her name.
Giuseppe Tucci (1894–1984) was an Italian scholar-adventurer who supervised archeological digs in Iran, Persepolis, and the Himalayas. He was fluent in ancient and modern languages of East and West, and is considered the father of Tibetan studies as well as Buddhist studies, based largely on his several expeditions into Tibet and the resulting research and presentation woven into his professional teaching. His level of originality and scholarship is staggering. His ability to appreciate art, examine the past through exploration, grasp whole world systems and imagine others, distinguishes his vast legacy from other more typical scholars who rely too much on literature for cultural understanding.
Tucci traveled in Tibet exploring pre-Tibetan Zhangzhung culture, as well as Tantric Buddhist culture, some intact, some in ruins. Like other early explorers, pioneers who established contact, Tucci relied on his intuitions and posited great conceptual underpinnings of Asian thought in contrast to Western systems. Tucci was unafraid to surmise, to project; to know what he did not know so he could come to know it. What a delightful surprise to see that Tucci brought the full force of his intellect and intuition to bear on perceptions of ancient Buddhist and pre-Buddhist dance. He was interested in origins and how pre-Buddhist concepts and energies filtered into Vajrayana Buddhism.
This three-part article focuses on Tucci’s perception of dance in mural paintings, specifically his use of the word “orgiastic” to describe tantric deities dancing while coupled in erotic union.
Chakrasambhava coupled with Vajrayogini, representing wisdom and compassion as aspects of the same primal energy. The pose is unusual as Vajrayogini is standing with both of her feet on the ground. Chakrasambhava’s legs are white and red. The five elemental colors comprise the composition: blue, white, green yellow red. Tibet, date unknown. From Core of Culture
Protector of the Dharmakaya, 17th century, Tsaparang, Tibet. From Tucci, Indo-Tibetica lll.2, Reale Accademia d’Italia, 1935. Rome. Plate IV
Tantric ritual and magical practices
The ritual of the left-hand Tantrists was one in which all of the taboos of conventional Hinduism were conscientiously violated. Thus, in place of the traditional five elements (tattvas) of the Hindu cosmos, these Tantrists used the five m’s: mamsa (flesh, meat), matsya (fish), madya (fermented grapes, wine), mudra (frumentum, cereal, parched grain, or gestures), and maithuna (sexual union). This latter element was made particularly antinomian through the involvement of forbidden women—such as the wife of another man or a low-caste woman—who was identified with the Goddess. Menstrual blood, strictly taboo in conventional Hinduism, was also used in Tantric rites. Such rituals, which are described in Tantric texts and in tracts against Tantrists, made the Tantrists notorious. It is likely, however, that the rituals were not regularly performed except by a small group of highly trained adepts; the usual Tantric ceremony was purely symbolic and even more fastidious than the pujas in Hindu temples.
The cult of the Shaktas is based on the principle of the ritual sublimation of natural impulses to maintain and reproduce life. Shakta adepts are trained to direct all their energies toward the conquest of the Eternal. The sexual act and the consumption of consecrated meat or liquor are esoterically significant means of realizing the unity of flesh and spirit, of the human and the divine. They are considered not sinful acts but effective means of salvation. Ritual union—which may also be accomplished symbolically—is, for both partners, a form of sacralization, the act being a participation in cosmic and divine processes. The experience of transcending space and time, of surpassing the phenomenal duality of spirit and matter, of recovering the primeval unity, the realization of the identity of God and his Shakti, and of the manifested and unmanifested aspects of the All, constitute the very mystery of Shaktism.
The interpretation of doctrines and ritual practice is varied. Extreme Shakta communities, for example, are said to perform the secret nocturnal rites of the shrichakra (“wheel of radiance,” described in the Kularnava-tantra), in which they avail themselves of the natural and esoteric symbolic properties of colours, sounds, and perfumes to intensify their sensual experiences. Most Tantrists, however, eliminate all but the verbal ritual.
Individual and collective Yoga and worship, conducted daily, fortnightly, and monthly “for the delectation of the deity,” are of special importance. After elaborate purifications, the worshipers—who must be initiated, full of devotion toward the guru and God, have control over themselves, be well prepared and pure of heart, know the mysteries of the scriptures, and look forward to the adoration with eagerness—make the prescribed offerings, worship the power of the Divine Mother, and recite the relevant mantras. Having become aware of their own state of divinity, they are qualified to unite sexually with the Goddess. If a woman is, in certain rituals, made the object of sexual worship, the Goddess is first invoked into her; the worshiper is not to cohabit with her until his mind is free from impurity and he has risen to divine status. Union with a low-caste woman helps to transcend all opposites. Union with a woman who belongs to another man is often preferred because it is harder to obtain, nothing is certain in it, and the longing stemming from the separation of lover and beloved is more intense; it is pure preman (divine love). Adoration of a girl of age 16 aims at securing the completeness and perfection of which this number is said to be the expression. However, the texts reiterate how dangerous these rites are for those who are not initiated; those who perform such ritual acts without merging their minds in the Supreme are likely to go to one of the hells.
The esoteric Vaishnava-Sahajiya cult, which arose in Bengal in the 16th century, was another emotional attempt at reconciling the spirit and the flesh. Disregarding social opinion, its adherents, using the natural (sahaja, “born with”) qualities of the senses and stressing the sexual symbolism of Bengal Vaishnavism, reinterpreted the Radha-Krishna legend and sought for the perpetual experience of divine joy. Based on this understanding of the legend, members of the Vaishnava-Sahajiya cult held that, after arduous training, the realization of love can be experienced, because Krishna’s nature is love and the giving of love and because man is identical with Krishna. Women, as the embodiment of a theological principle, could even become spiritual guides, like Radha, conducting the worshipers in their search for realization. After reaching this state, a devotee remains in eternal bliss and can dispense with guru and ritual and be completely indifferent to the world, “steadfast amidst the dance of maya.”
Tantric and Shakta ethical and social doctrines
These ethical and social principles, though fundamentally the same as those promulgated in the classical dharma works, breathe a spirit of liberality: much value is set upon family life and respect for women (the image of the Goddess); no ban is placed on traveling (conventionally regarded as bringing about ritual pollution) or on the remarriage of widows. Although Tantric and Shakta traditions did not oblige their followers to deviate in a socially visible way from the established order, they provided a ritual and a way of life for those who, because of sex or caste, could not participate satisfyingly in the conventional rites.
The ancient Tantric tradition, based on the esoteric tantra literature, has become so interwoven with orthodox Hinduism that it is difficult to define precisely. Although it recognizes an identity between the soul and the cosmos, it emphasizes the internalization of the cosmos rather than the release of the soul to its natural state of unity. The body is the microcosm, and the ultimate state is not only omniscience but total realization of all universal and eternal forces. The body is real, not because it is the function or creation of a real deity but because it contains the deity, together with the rest of the universe. The individual soul does not unite with the One—it is the One, and the body is its function.
Tantrism, though not always in its full esoteric form, is a feature of much modern mystical thought. In Tantrism the consciousness is spoken of as moving—driven by repetition of the mantra and by other disciplines—from gross awareness of the material world to realization of the ultimate unity. The image is of a serpent, coiled and dormant, awakened and driven upward in the body through various stages of enlightenment until it reaches the brain, the highest awareness. The 19th-century mystic Ramakrishna describes the process, which is also what many Hindus seek in their quest for a spiritual experience:
When [the serpent] is awakened, it passes gradually through [various stages], and comes to rest in the heart. Then the mind moves away from [the gross physical senses]; there is perception, and a great brilliance is seen. The worshiper, when he sees this brilliance, is struck with wonder. The [[[serpent]]] moves thus through six stages, and coming to [the highest one], is united with it. Then there is samadhi.…When [the serpent] rises to the sixth stage, the form of God is seen. But a slight veil remains; it is as if one sees a light within a lantern, and thinks that the light itself can be touched, but the glass intervenes.…In samadhi, nothing external remains. One cannot even take care of his body any more; if milk is put into his mouth, he cannot swallow. If he remains for twenty-one days in this condition, he is dead. The ship puts out to sea, and returns no more.
Vernacular literatures
Most of the texts cited in this survey are Sanskrit texts, which constitute the oldest layer of extant Hindu literature. But the sacred literature of India is not as monolithic as these texts might suggest. Several other essential elements exist: independent sacred literatures in languages other than Sanskrit and material in other languages related to the Sanskrit texts either as sources of material now preserved only in Sanskrit or as new texts originating as translations of Sanskrit texts. Because Sanskrit has been in intimate contact with the mother tongues of India for such a long time, it is often impossible to determine in which of these categories a particular vernacular text belongs.
Indologists usually emphasize the influence of Sanskritic culture on vernacular culture, and indeed this influence was considerable. Sanskritic influence was already in evidence in the earliest Tamil (a principal Dravidian language) literature, perhaps dating from before the Common Era. At this time in South India the orthodox cults were aristocratic in character and were supported by kings and chiefs who gained in prestige by patronizing Brahmans. The Tamils were still primarily devoted to their local traditions, some of which, however, were becoming Sanskritized. The pastoral god Murugan was identified with Skanda, and his mother, the fierce war goddess Korravai, with Durga. Varunan, a sea god who had adopted the name of an old Vedic god but otherwise had few Vedic features, and Mayon, a black god who was a rural divinity with many of the characteristics of Krishna in his pastoral aspect, also are depicted in Tamil literature. The final Sanskritization of the Tamils was brought about through the patronage of the Pallava kings of Kanchipuram, who began to rule in the 4th century CE and who financed the making of many temples and fine religious sculptures. Similar processes took place in the Deccan, Bengal, and other regions.
Sanskritization is a term that refers to a style of text that imitates the customs and manners of the Brahmans. But, although most sacred texts in Sanskrit were composed by Brahmans, many were composed by lower-class authors. Likewise, although some sacred texts in vernacular languages were written by authors of lower castes, many others were written by Brahmans. In addition, because Sanskrit ceased to be spoken as a primary language soon after the Vedas were composed, it is likely that most of the thoughts underlying all subsequent Sanskrit literature emerged first in some other language. The issue is further clouded by the fact that, though Sanskrit texts tend to be written and vernacular traditions are primarily oral, there are important oral traditions in Sanskrit too (including the traditions of the two great Sanskrit epics), and there are important manuscript traditions in some of the non-Sanskritic languages (such as Bengali and Tamil). Indeed, written and oral versions of the epics and Puranas have been, from the very start, in constant symbiosis.
Little relevance, therefore, attaches to the distinction between written and oral traditions. A story is narrated, a process that is designated in Sanskrit by such words as purana (ancient story) and akhyana (illustrative narrative). In the oldest source, the Rigveda, myths are not so much told as alluded to; it is in the later Vedic literature of the Brahmanas that narratives are found, and these are often prejudiced by the liturgical concerns of the authors.
The recitation of certain myths was prescribed for various rituals. The epic Mahabharata states that Vedic stories were narrated “in the pauses of the ritual,” probably by Brahmans. The sutas (charioteers and panegyrists), who celebrated the feats of great rulers, were the mythographers of the Kshatriyas (the warrior class). The sutas were popular narrators of myth and legend and developed their own bardic repertoire, which was extended to higher mythology. They—and other wanderers who found ready audiences at sacrifices or places of pilgrimage—disseminated the lore.
Narrators continue to repeat and embroider the ancient stories of gods, sages, and kings. At an early stage their narratives were dramatized and gave rise to the Sanskrit theatre, in which epic mythic themes preponderate, and to the closely related dance, which survives in the now largely South Indian schools of bharata natyam (traditional dance) and the kathakali (narrative dance) of Kerala. Thus, even in Sanskrit literature, oral performance was an essential component, which further facilitated the assimilation of oral vernacular elements.
Of the four primary Dravidian literatures—Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, and Malayalam—the oldest and best-known is Tamil. The earliest preserved Tamil literature, the so-called Sangam poetry anthologies, dates from the 1st century BCE. These poems are classified by theme into akam (“interior,” primarily love poetry) and puram (“exterior,” primarily about war, the poverty of poets, and the deaths of kings).
Tamil devotional poetry was remarkable for a number of reasons. It was composed by both men and women, by people of different castes (including “outcastes”), and in a language that was classical (Tamil already had a long and rich literary heritage) but also vernacular, or spoken. Despite all these factors, the poems were frequently hailed as divine revelation and sometimes as the equal of the Sanskrit Vedas.
The bhakti movement has been traced to Tamil poetry, beginning with the poems of the devotees of Shiva called Nayanars and the devotees of Vishnu called Alvars. The Nayanars, who date from about 800 CE, composed intensely personal and devout hymns addressed to the local manifestations of Shiva. The most famous Nayanar lyricists are Appar, Sambandar, and Chuntarar, whose hymns are collected in the Tevaram (c. 11th century). More or less contemporary were their Vaishnava counterparts, the Alvars Poykai, Putan, Peyar, and Tirumankaiyalvar; and in the 8th century the poetess Andal, as well as Periyalvar, Kulachekarar, Tiruppanalvar, and notably Nammalvar, who is held to be the greatest, composed their works. Shrivaishnavas consider Nammalvar’s poems, especially his Tiruvaymoli (“Sacred Utterance”), to be the Tamil Veda.
The devotion of which they sang exemplified the new bhakti movement, which sought a more direct contact between humans and God, carried by a passionate love for the Deity, who would reciprocate by extending his grace to humankind. These saints became the inspiration of theistic systematic religion: the Shaivas for the Shaiva-siddhanta, the Vaishnavas for Vishistadvaita. In Kannada the same movement was exemplified by Basava, whose vachanas (“sayings” or “talks”) achieved great popularity.
New literary genres in Dravidian languages continued to evolve into the 17th and 18th centuries, when the Tamil Chittars (name derived from Sanskrit siddha, “perfected one”), who were eclectic mystics, composed poems noted for the power of their naturalistic diction. The Tamil sense and style of these poems belied the Sanskrit-derived title of their authors, a phenomenon that could stand as a symbol of the complex relationship between the vernacular and Sanskrit religious texts.
The main languages derived from Sanskrit are Bengali, Hindi (with its many dialects, of which Maithili is the oldest and Urdu, heavily influenced by Persian and Arabic and written in a Perso-Arabic script, is the most important), Punjabi, Gujarati, Marathi, Oriya, Kashmiri, Sindhi, Assamese, Nepali, Rajasthani, and Sinhalese. Most of these languages began to develop literary traditions about 1000 CE.
Although the earliest texts in Hindi are sometimes attributed to the 13th–14th-century Muslim poet Amir Khosrow, it was not until the 15th century that Hindi literature produced its own great religious lyricists. The earliest of these lyricists were the disciples of Ramananda (c. 140), who was a follower of the philosopher Ramanuja. The most famous of these lyricists is Kabir, a poet and mystic who was the forerunner of Sikhism. Tulsidas, apart from his Ramcharitmanas, composed Ramaite lyrics. Surdas (1483–1563), a follower of the Vallabha school of Vedanta, is known for his Sursagar (“Ocean of the Poems of Sursagar”), a collection of poems based on the stories of the childhood of Krishna found in the Bhagavata-purana. Perhaps the best-known bhakti poems are those of Mira Bai (1503–73), a Rajput princess who composed mostly in a local dialect of Hindi. She wrote passionate love poems to Krishna, whom she regarded as her husband and lover. Her bhajans (devotional songs) are sung by Hindus both privately and in public performances in India and throughout the diaspora. In the Marathi tradition, Namdev (1270?–1350?) celebrated Vishnu, particularly in his manifestation as Vitthoba at the Pandharpur temple; and in the 17th century Tukaram, the greatest poet of this literature, sang of the god of love in numerous hymns.
The importance of these writers is not limited to literature. A small sect, the Kabirpanthis, acknowledges Kabir as its founder, but its importance is less than that of the vigorous new religion (Sikhism) founded by one of Kabir’s disciples, Nanak.
Although the earliest Hindu text in Bengali is a mid-15th-century poem about Radha and Krishna, texts in praise of gods and goddesses, known as mangal-kavyas, surely existed in oral versions long before then. In later Bengal Vaishnavism, the emphasis shifts from service and surrender to mutual attachment and attraction between God (i.e., Krishna) and humankind: God is said to yearn for the worshiper’s identification with himself, which is his gift to the wholly purified devotee. The mystical and devotional possibilities of the Krishna legend are subordinated to religious practice; the divine sport and wonderful feats of this youthful hero are interpreted symbolically and allegorically. Thus, the highest fruition of bhakti is admission to the eternal sport of Krishna and his beloved Radha, whose sacred love story is explained as the mutual love between God and the human soul. Various gradations of bhakti are distinguished, such as awe, subservience, and parental affection. These are correlated with the persons of the Krishna legend; the highest and most intimate emotion is said to be the love of Radha and her girlfriends for Krishna.
Krishna and Radha, detail of a Kishangarh painting, mid-18th century
A particularly rich Bengali tradition concentrated on the love of Radha, who symbolizes the human soul, for Krishna, the supreme god. In this tradition are Chandidas, a 15th-century poet known for his love songs, and the Maithili poet Vidyapati (c. 1400). The single most influential figure, however, was Chaitanya, who in the 16th century renewed Krishnaism. He left no writings but inspired many hagiographies, among the most important of which is the Chaitanya-charitamrita (“Nectar of Chaitanya’s Life”) by Krishna Das (born 1517).
Chaitanya had a profound and lasting effect on the religious sentiments of the people of Bengal. He propagated the community celebration (sankirtana) of Krishna as the most powerful means of bringing about the proper bhakti attitude. Chaitanya also introduced the worship of God, the director of the senses, through the very activity of the senses, which must be free from all egoism and completely filled with the intense desire (preman) for the satisfaction of the beloved (i.e., Krishna).
Another form of religious lyric are the so-called padas (verses). Govinda Das (1537–1612) is one of the greatest poets in this bhakti genre of poetry in which divine love is symbolized by human love. The songs of Ramprasad Sen (1718–75) similarly honour Shakti as mother of the universe and are still in wide devotional use.
The complex interaction between Sanskrit and non-Sanskrit religious classics may be seen in the development of the epics. The two great Sanskrit epics, the Mahabharata and the Ramayana, and many Puranas (especially the Bhagavata-purana) were rendered in various vernaculars. These works were not literal translations but free versions in which the authors inserted their own emphases, which differed both from the original and from those of other authors. The oldest vernacular version of the Ramayana is the Tamil translation, the Iramavataram by Kampan (c. 12th century), a work of high literary distinction that is suffused with devotion (bhakti). A Telugu rendering was made by Ranganatha about 1300. Several translations in Bengali include some interesting and probably authentic variations from the “official” Rama story by Valmiki, the best-known translation being that of Krittibas Ojha (1450). Equally, if not more, famous is Ramcharitmanas (“Holy Lake of the Acts of Rama”).
The Mahabharata was rendered in Bengali about 1600 and into Telugu by Nannaya and Tikkana in the 13th century. The Bhagavata-purana, which was translated frequently (e.g., into Bengali by Maladhar Vasu, 1480), was popular because it gave the canonical account of Krishna’s life and especially his boyhood, which is the perennial inspiration of the bhakti poets.
The teacher Jnanadeva (also known as Jnaneshvara; 1275–96) composed a commentary on the Bhagavadgita in Marathi that remains a classic in that literature. His work was continued by Eknath (c. 1600), who also composed bhakti poetry. In the 16th century the Kannada poet Gadugu produced a highly individual version of the Mahabharata. In addition to the literal or not-so-literal translations of the Sanskrit epics, the Tamils composed their own epics, notably Ilanko Atikal’s Chilappatikaram (“The Lay of the Anklet”) and its sequel, the Manimekhalai (“Jeweled Girdle”). In Telugu there is the great Palnadu epic; Rajasthani has an entire epic cycle about the hero Pabuji. The remaining vernaculars have also produced many epics of their own.
Much of the classical mythology persists today, and its stories have been conveyed to Hindus through traditional means as well as via the mass media. Mythic illustrations remain favourites in Indian calendar art. Television series and motion pictures called “mythological” are extremely popular, perpetuating the ancient stories, and so are “devotionals,” in which an example of bhakti is illustrated. The television series Ramayana, for example, was one of the biggest successes in the Indian media. Radio regularly carries bhajans (devotional songs) and classical South Indian songs, the themes of which are often mythic. Narratives from Hindu texts have also been portrayed in popular literature. Many stories became the bases for popular comic books in the 1960s and ’70s. An English-language series called Amar Chitra Katha (“Immortal Stories in Picture Form”), for example, was read by millions of people.
Every orthodox Hindu’s home has at least one corner set aside as a domestic sanctuary where representations of a chosen deity are placed, and puja (worship) is done with prayers, hymns, flowers, and incense. Richer establishments set aside entire rooms as shrines. New temples have been constructed with modern techniques; one temple in Varanasi (Banaras) contains mirrors onto which are etched the entire Ramcharitmanas. This same poem is the basis of the annual celebration of Ram Lila (the play of Rama) in northern India, in which the entire community participates. The story of Rama was evoked by Mahatma Gandhi when he set the Ram Raj (“Kingdom of Rama”) as India’s governmental ideal.
On occasion, social protesters have armed themselves with myth to make a point. For example, Karna, an antagonist in the Mahabharata who is berated for his low birth, has been extolled in intellectual circles as a truer champion than the aristocratic heroes. Anti-northern groups in Tamil Nadu revised the story of Rama, whose expedition against the demon Ravana was believed by some to be the “Aryan” invasion of South India, by reversing it to abuse Rama and to glorify Ravana.
On a popular level, people at temples and fairs are continually reacquainted with their mythological heritage by pauranikas, tellers of the ancient stories and heirs of the sutas of 3,000 years ago, and no festival ground is complete without tents where the religious are reminded of their myths by pious speakers, modestly compensated by fees but richly rewarded by the honour in which they are held.
J.A.B. van BuitenenEdward C. DimockArthur Llewellyn BashamWendy DonigerBrian K. SmithVasudha Narayanan
Practical Hinduism
Practical Hinduism is both a quest to achieve well-being and a set of strategies for locating sources of affliction and removing or appeasing them. Characterized in this way, it has much in common with the popular beliefs and practices of many other religions. For example, Roman Catholicism as practiced in many parts of Europe or Mahayana Buddhism in Korea and Taiwan involve, as does Hinduism, petitions and offerings to enshrined divine powers in order to engage their help with all manner of problems and desires. Thus, religions which could hardly differ more vastly in their understanding of the nature of divinity, reality, and causality may nonetheless converge at the level of popular piety.
The presumption that assigns “practical” Hinduism to peasants, labourers, or tribal peoples—while assuming that the high-born, wealthy, and educated would be concerned with spiritual enlightenment and Hinduism’s ultimate aim of liberation (moksha)—is false. Hindu farmers care about their souls at least as much as do Hindu business or professional men and women (if less single-mindedly than world renouncers, who come from all ranks of life). Almost all Hindus dedicate time and energy to rituals designed to obtain prosperity or to remove troubles, to advance their careers, to advance their children’s education and careers, or to protect their families from ill health. Although rural Hindus may have little time for meditative practices, they are fully aware of ultimate truths transcending the everyday. By the same token, the pious urban elite, if more likely to pursue spiritual disciplines, frequently sponsor worship in temples or homes to ensure worldly success. At all levels of the social hierarchy, Hinduism lives through artistic performances: dance and dance-drama, representational arts, poetry, music, and song serve not only to please deities but to transmit the religion’s meaningful narratives and vital truths. One could go so far as to say that it is through the various arts that most Hindu traditions have been transmitted through the millennia.
Both adherents of the faith and those who study it describe Hinduism as a way of life. Thus, they implicitly contrast Hinduism to religions that appear to be primarily located in spaces and times set apart from the everyday—such as “church on Sunday.” Although Hindus have magnificent sacred architecture and a vital tradition of calendrical festivals, the “way of life” description means that religious attitudes and acts permeate ordinary places, times, and activities. For example, bathing, dressing, cooking, eating, disposing of leftovers, and washing the dishes may all be subject to ritual prescriptions in Hindu households. Motivations for such ritualized actions are ascribed to considerations of purity and auspiciousness—an interest that is often linked to maintaining status in a hierarchical social system.
When Hindus interact with deities, considerations of purity may or may not be important. In some Vaishnava traditions, for example, one must remain in a relatively pure state in order to be fit to worship. A Brahman priest of a Krishna temple in the Vallabha sect might refuse food and water from the hands of non-Brahmans, not to show he is better than they are but because his work in the temple demands that he maintain such boundaries. Should he inadvertently lower his own ritual purity, he might displease or offend the deity with whom he is in regular contact, which could threaten human well-being in general.
Vaishnava traditions, however, include an alternative perspective that is conveyed in a well-known tale about Rama. This tale, frequently portrayed in poetry and art, tells of an outcaste tribal woman named Shabari who meets Rama in the forest. Her simple-hearted love for him is so great that she offers him wild berries, which are all she has. She bites each one first to test its sweetness before giving it to her lord, and in so doing she contaminates the berries with saliva, a major source of pollution. Although the berries are highly unacceptable according to the standards of ritual purity, Rama accepts them and eats them blissfully. The message is that the polluted offerings of a lowborn person given to God with a heart full of love are far more pleasing than any ritually pure gift from a less-devout being. Purity of heart, therefore, is more important than bodily purity.
The capacity to see both sides of most matters—cognitive flexibility rather than dogmatic fixity—is one of the most important characteristics of practical Hinduism, which lacks dogma altogether. In this regard, persistent continuities with Hinduism’s ancient roots in Vedic traditions can be discerned. The elaborate sacrificial rituals of Vedic religion have often been described as being focused on obtaining the goods of life—neatly summarized as prosperity, health, and progeny—from divine powers through exacting ritual behaviours. However, in the Upanishads, the last of the Vedic texts, voices emerge that care for neither the rituals nor their promised fruits but are concerned above all with learning the nature of ultimate reality and how the human soul may recognize that indescribable essence in itself. One quest never supplants the other. In Hinduism today there exists, on the one hand, faith in the efficacy of ritual and desire for its worldly fruits and, on the other, disregard for all external practices and material results. Farmers consistently deride the notion that sins are washed away in the waters of sacred rivers, yet they spend small fortunes to travel to and bathe in them.
Women’s religious practices
Women’s rituals comprise an important part of practical Hinduism. Some male-authored Hindu scriptures limit women’s religious roles, consider women more subject than men to bodily impurities, and subordinate them to their fathers and husbands. Priests in temples and other public spaces are predominantly—though not exclusively—male. Most domestic Hindu rituals, however, lie in the hands and hearts of women. Women perform their own seva and puja at permanent or temporary domestic shrines, are the chief ritual experts at many calendrical festivals, and are responsible for many ritual aspects of weddings and other life-cycle celebrations. Women more frequently than men undertake personal vows (vrata)—individually or collectively—to ensure the well-being of their families.
The elements of a vrata usually include a partial fast, simple worship in a domestic space temporarily purified for this purpose, and often the retelling of one or more stories honouring the deities and exemplifying the rewards or describing the origins of the ritual. The event may conclude with the consumption of special food to break the fast. Vows are often associated with calendrical cycles, whether solar, lunar, or both. For example, each day of the week is identified with a particular deity: Monday with Shiva, Tuesday with Hanuman, Wednesday with Ganesha, and so forth. If a woman undertakes a Monday vrata, she will fast and worship Shiva and tell his story every Monday. Or, a person may do an eleventh vrata, a vow for the eleventh day of the lunar calendar, which would come twice a month in the waxing and waning halves of the moon. Some vows are undertaken for the occasional potent convergence of both calendrical systems, such as somavati amavasa, a Monday dark moon.
Women’s ritually performed stories feature heroines who may be devotees of the deity being honoured, daughters of female devotees, or persons ignorant of that particular deity who then learn about its power and blessings in the course of severe tribulations. Notably, the heroines of women’s devotional stories exemplify moral virtues, ritual knowledge, devotional fervour, and transformative agency. The power accumulated by women through their ritual actions should never be used exclusively for their own well-being. Selflessness is a very important virtue that is exemplified by self-denial in fasting. Nonetheless, because women’s well- being is connected to familial well-being, women see their rituals as productive of better circumstances for themselves and their loved ones. For women, practical Hinduism is a space where they express their competence, self-respect, and power and see themselves as protectors of husbands, brothers, and sons. Even while critiquing the ways in which some Hindu traditions disadvantage women, Indian feminists have located important resources for women in goddess worship, in vrata narratives, and in the sense of gender solidarity and self-worth that women’s rituals produce.
