On Buddhist Tantra

"This space within the heart - therein is the person, consisting of mind, immortal, resplendent." Taittirîya Upaniśad, 1.6

"There are those whose capacity of the Mahâyâna lineage is not meagre, whose minds are strongly moved by great compassion through having trained in the common path sustained by a spiritual guide, and excellent protector. They are in great haste to free from cyclic existence the kind mothers wandering there. They should enter the short path, the profound Vajra Vehicle that quickly bestows the state of a Blessed Buddha, the sole refuge of all sentient beings." Tsongkhapa : The Great Exposition of Secret Mantra, part one, Reasons for Faith.

"... those who destroy life and delight in lying, those who covet the wealth of others and are attached to sensual desires, those who eat faeces and urine, all these are worthy for the practice. The yogin who desires his mother, sister or daughter attains entire siddhi, the Dharma-nature of the supreme Mahâyâna ..." The Guhyasamâja Tantra, chapter 5.

"But in the first place, it is the one method of producing Heruka, and it is by such production that men are relased, O Vajragarbha of Great Compassion." The Hevajra Tantra, chapter 1:10.

"Seeing this excellent yoga supreme, the others are like worm-infested straw." The Cakrasamvara Tantra, chapter IV.

OM EVAM EKA TANTRA SIDDHI HUM !

Referring to the idea of a single underlying principle ("eka"), the Sanskrit word "tantra" means "weft, loom, warp, context, continuum". In Tibetan, "tantra" is known as "ju" ("rgyud"), meaning "thread, string", or "that which joins things together". Etymologically, the Sanskrit word "tantra" breaks down into the verbal roots √tran, or "propagate, elaborate on, expand on" and √tra, or "save, protect". Tantra spreads a teaching that saves. The word also refers to a specific text about esoteric spiritual practices, as in "Hevajra Tantra".

Introduction

The history of Indian Tantra is shrouded. Naming these special esoteric teachings & practices "Tantra" happened relatively late. Even in Buddhist Tantra, giving rise to a specific "path", the Vajrayâna or "Diamond Vehicle", also called Tantrayâna, Mantrayâna or Guhyamantrayâna, secrecy always remained essential, and so all key teachings were given, as in Western Qabalah, "from mouth to ear", and "received in order to bestow". This is still largely the case today.

As in Yoga, Tantra aims at a spiritual transformation opening the door to thedirect experience of the Divine here & now, entering the immediate awareness of the presence of the absolute (no longer overlayed with false ideation or even conceptualization). In Yoga, this is the restriction of mental fluctuations hindering the "seer" to stand in his own-form, bringing about union ("samâdhi"). In this view, the outstanding feature of Tantra is its esoteric, "special" spiritual technology or set of salvic methods. In Hindu context, this was "kundalinî" tantra, in Buddhist practice, Deity Yoga & Mahâmudrâ tantra.

Indeed, India produced two main systems of Tantra : the Hindu & the Buddhist. The former was largely based on Śiva & Śakti (Śaiva Tantra, promoting the union of both), the latter on Heruka (union of wisdom & bliss). Recent scholarship evidences Buddhist Tantra to be rooted in Hindu Tantra, in particular Śaiva Tantra.

In Indian Tantra, the underlying transcendent principle is the quality of oneness ("eka"). The underlying principle or ground of being is not remote or uninterested in mundane, nominal, conventional existence. On the contrary, all possible activity is its actual display or play ("lila"). There is no "mundane" existence devoid (separated from) the Divine. Nor is there a separate "transcendent" existence. There is one pan-sacral reality (the One Thing). To call it "Śiva/Śakti" or "Heruka" does not eclipse the underlying nameless principle itself (the "Tao" of the Chinese).

Historically, the Mahâyâna introduced the Tantras. In the context of the Lesser Vehicle (Theravada), Tantra is pointless (and the Fourth Turning rejected). These Buddhists insist Tantra is not part of the actual teachings of Lord Buddha. Others again assert they originate from Śaivism. There are also those who claim Śaiva Tantra was derived from Buddhist Tantra ! Traditionally, the origin of Buddhist Tantra is supposed to be rooted in the Fourth Turning of the Wheel by Buddha Śâkyamuni and meant for superior practioners only. To them, he appeared as Vajradhara, the Bearer of the Vajra. These yogis had integrated the First, Second & Third Turnings and realized the nondual "seeing" of emptiness (on the first "bhûmi" & higher). They were Superior Bodhisattvas. Compassion & emptiness had been firmly attached before these "special" techniques were practiced. Initiation, secrecy & vows unavoidable.

From the 8th century onwards, i.e. with the rise of the Pâla dynasty of Bihar & Bengal (760 - 1142 CE), Buddhist Tantra became a systematic body of teachings and entered Buddhist universities. At that point, it was "purged" from explicit sexual acts (internalized) and formalized. Radically different from Hindu (Śaiva Tantra), it did not equate wisdom ("prajñâ") with Śhiva ! Antinomian (and a-social, transgressive) elements were deemed part of a "logic of reversal" -steeped in doublespeak & a "twilight language"- necessary for speeding up spiritual evolution by confronting & liberating negative states of consciousness directly (making "desire" part of the path). Evoking, in a monastic context, afflictive & non-afflictive emotions (like anger, hatred, cruelty, arrogance, pride etc), was deemed possible (albeit highly ritualized & mostly visualized). But explicit sexuals acts were replaced by an erotic symbolism expounding the unity of compassion (the ultimate method to accumulate vast merit) and emptiness, realized by a wisdom-mind mounted on a luminous subtle body, i.e. the living unity of the Two Truths realized simultaneously (and not sequentially, or incompletely).

In Tibetan Tantra, initiated by Padmasambhava in the 8th century, this tantric union ("eka") may also be represented by an explicit sexual embrace (cf. "yab-yum", "father-mother") ; mostly a male Buddha with his female wisdom-consort. Monks vowing to be celibate, mostly replaced this wisdom-consort (the woman with whom the male tantric is supposed to have sex with) with internal processes (sensualisations). However, in the Highest Yoga Tantra, actual erotic contact is deemed necessary !

Buddhist Tantra, the Highest Yoga Tantra in particular, is the special method to generate the mind of spontaneous great bliss and use this mind to meditate on emptiness, reinforcing this great bliss. The fact desire is integrated into the path is shared with Hindu Tantra. Indeed, instead of renoucing the fire of the desire realm, wherein "all dharmas are on fire", the Buddhist tantric welcomes desire, but always together (simultaneous) with emptiness (i.e. with the absence of self-sufficiency in the desire at hand), feeding spontaneous bliss. Desire is the object of this highest "method" denying it self-subsisting, self-powered substance by an ever-present wisdom realizing the ultimate nature of all possible phenomena : lack of substance but presence of process. This said, without compassion (revealing this process) and at least a generic image (concept) of emptiness (the culmination of the Path of Preparation), Tantra is dangerous, said to lead to an unwanted rebirth.

This is why Tsongkhapa stressed prelonged emptiness meditations before entering the tantric path.

In Tibet, Buddhist Tantra became strongly interlinked with specific yogic techniques, in particular Inner Fire Yoga, making the "winds" enter, abide and cease in the central channel of the subtle body (the so-called "Vajra Body"), and the preparation of this crucial event through Deity Yoga. The importance of fire and the "flame of Agni" goes back to the Vedic seers (cf. the Keśin Hymn from the Rig Veda), while the Yogas for "moving the winds" may go back to Chinese (Taoist) sources.

Indeed, the importance & influence of the latter must be taken into account. Using Chinese information (from Inner Alchemy -Complete Reality School- and Ch'i Kung, especially the harmony between Wei Dan & Nei Dan manifest in the enlightened ones as the energetic balance between Li -Fire- and Kan -Water-), enables the Navayâna (new vehicle) to develop novel tantric techniques and better understand the traditional accounts (in particular those related to the "white" and "red" drops). This may revolutionize Buddhist Tantra, making it more operational & less symbolic (restoring the original intent, ripping away cultural overlay & monastic adaptations).

Vajrayâna did not introduce a new view on reality and so is based on the samewisdom realizing emptiness as the Great Perfection Vehicle. The crucial difference being one of method only.

By filling the two "baskets" of merit (compassion) & wisdom (insight into reality) simultaneously (not sequentially), a crucial treshold, after which final enlightenment is attained speedily, can be reached with greater ease. This technique it at the heart ("om") of all tantras ("tantra"), and is represented by the union ("eka") of wisdom ("e") and method ("-vam"), leading to the highest powers ("siddhi") & Buddhahood ("bodhi"), never leaving the mind prehending emptiness ("hum").

Calling, in the Great Perfection Vehicle, for three countless aeons of hardship, according to Tibetan sources, the goal of Tantra, Buddhahood, can be attained in one lifetime or less (three months ?) of relatively comfortable practice. In Chinese Inner Alchemy & Ch'an Ch'i Kung (Da Mo), the foundational practices take hundred days and the method could be completed in at least three years, if not longer (depending on money, partner, techniques & place).

Let it be clear, the Fourth Turning is exceptional. To bestow his own tantras, Lord Buddha, after his "parinirvâna" (?), appeared in the minds of Superior Bodhisattvas as Vajradhara. In the tantric method, the conditions are set for swift, irreversible & radical transformation of impure body, speech & mind into pure (enlightened) body, speech & mind (this is called "producing Heruka" and is considered the supreme yoga). The more this production-process, method or exceptional skillful means is perfected, the more powerful the "tântrika" becomes, i.e. is able to liberate others by the Four Vajra Actions of pacification, increase (decrease), control & wrath (destruction). Turned into one with magical feats ("siddhis"), this Superior Bodhisattva only seeks to benefit all sentient beings.

Buddhist Tantra survived in Tibet and in the Shingon school of Japan. It never grew well on Chinese soil. Tibetan Buddhism integrated the completeBuddhayâna or Buddha's path to enlightenment (including Secret Mantra Vehicle). With the 1959 exodus of the XIVth Dalai Lama to India and the arrival in the West of lots of senior Tantric Lamas (ofter formely part of the ruling 5% of Old Tibet), Buddhist Tantra came to be practiced by Western practitioners. This allows one to study, reflect & meditate on the effectiveness of these Tibetan-styled tantras for the Western mind. A process of comparison and readaptation can start.

It is hoped this work results in the emergence & growth of a Western-style Buddhist Tantra. Such an undertaking cannot avoid the historical root of Indian Tantra : Śaivism. Such a Navayâna Tantra would integrate Western science (physics, cosmology, neurology, anthropology, philosophy), Chinese Ch'i Kung (both Inner as Outer), Taoist Inner Alchemy (southern Complete Reality School) and of course typical Buddhist Tantras. Although the Tibetan Kangyur contains translations of almost 500 tantras, four will be outstanding : Guhyasamâya, Hevajra, Cakrasamvara & Kâlacakra Tantras.

Hindu Tantra : an Appraisal

In a certain sense, "Hinduism" does not exist. Overwhelmed by the complexity of the indigenous religions & cultural traditions of India, the Europeans of the 16th century simply referred to all non-Muslim Indian people as "Hindoos" (from the Persian, meaning "people East of the Indus River").

In the early 1800s, educated Indians began to use the term "Hinduism" to denote all lineages, sects and traditions regarding the four Vedas (Rig, Yajur, Sama & Artharva) as the ultimate spiritual authority. The Rig Veda , ("knowledge of praise") being the oldest (ca. 2000 BCE). This definition of Hinduism excluded Jainism & Buddhism. Although not based on the Vedas, Śaivism was however included ! Hinduism, contrary to the three Abrahamic faiths, remained morehenotheist than monotheist.

Is Hindu Tantra the "fifth Veda", i.e. a continuation of the four Vedas and the subsequent Brahmanical religious texts based on them, the Brâhmanas, theÂranyakas, the Upaniśads, the Purânas and the Bhagavad-Gitâ ?

"There was neither non-existence nor existence then ; there was neither the realm of space nor the sky which is beyond. What stirred ? Where ? In whose protection ? Was there water, bottomlessly deep ?

There was neither death nor immortality then. There was no distinguishing sign of night nor of day. That one breathed, windless, by its own impulse. Other than that there was nothing beyond." Rig Veda, Creation Hymn (Nâsadîya), 1 - 2.

In Ancient Egypt, in the tombs of the last Pharaoh of the Vth Dynasty (Wenis, ca. 2378 - 2348 BCE) and in those of the VIth Dynasty (ca.2348 - 2198 BCE), we read about "that one" :

    "I was born in Nun before the sky existed, before the Earth existed, before that which was to be made form existed, before turmoil existed, before that fear which arose on account of the Eye of Horus existed."Pyramid Texts, Utterance 486 (1040a-d) - ca. 2300 BCE.

Both texts suggest a highly sophisticated intellectual milieu.

Dating the Rig Veda ca. 2000 BCE, makes the Vedic civilization contemporaneous with the late Indus Valley civilization (ca. 3000 - 1700 BCE). The early Indo-Aryan migratory movements to the South (caused by climate change ?) were not an "invasion" of an advanced "Aryan" culture at the expense of a "primitive" aboriginal population (as conjectured earlier), but rather a gradual acculturation of more primitive nomadics on an advanced urban civilization in decline. This is suggestive of infiltration & mutual adaptation, slowly forging a new cultural continuum consisting of an interaction between different currents.

Little is known about the culture of the original, pre-Aryan, native Indians. One would expect their spiritual practices to be less intellectual & refined than the Vedic. No doubt it took a few centuries to finalize the integration between these simple native Indians and the cultured Indo-Aryans migrants (earlier, in Ancient Egypt, something likewise had happened with the assimilation of the popularOsiris in the elitist Royal Cult).

Conjecture Tantra to become one of the corner-stones of the "eternal religion" ("sanâtana-dharma") of India at the end of the Vedic period (ca. 500 BCE). The Vedic revelation and the means (Yoga & Tantra) begin to be slowly differentiated. Both means have a distinct tradition (Yoga can easily be integrated into the Vedic-Brahmanical fold, Tantra not). Moreover, there is an undeniable (Shamanistic ?) similarity between the Vedic revelation and Tantra, facilitating integration. Important tantric practices have their Vedic simile. Yoga (general spiritual practices) & Tantra (special spiritual practices) also serve an identical salvic intent : union of "âtman" with "Brahman" (of "Śakti" with "Śiva").

However, it cannot be affirmed the Vedas, the Brâhmanas & the Âranyakasdevelop a systematic view on Tantra, in fact, it is never defined as such. Is it possible the earliest spiritual practices, in casu Yoga & Tantra defined as methods or skillful means ("upayâ") for operating the transformation of body, energy & mind (cf. "technologies of the self" - Foucault), were developed in the early Śramana Movement, ca. 6th & 5th century BCE, i.e. before the traditional date of the historical Buddha (ca. 563 - 483 BCE) and before Mahâvîra (599 - 527 BCE) ?

The term "śramana" is generic and used by members of different ascetic groups of wandering renunciants. Vedic or non-Vedic, they shared the view a radical & profound change of mind or reshaping of the individual & his social relationships is possible. Such a total transformation leads either to the life of a wanderer (an ascetic) or to that of an enlightened householder. Presumably, these "new" Vedic ascetics authored the early Upaniśads and made no clear distinction between yogic & tantric methods. But they were not alone. Non-Vedic ascetics, followers of Buddha Śâkyamuni, Mahâvîra, Gosala, Śiva and others, were also part of the heterodox Śramana Movement. Perhaps at some point, some of them, like the Pâśupatas and "Kâpâlikas", adopted an extreme "kâpâlika" style, denying the householder and introducing transgressive practices inspired by Śiva, walking the "left hand path" and avoided by common society.

Between these various renunciate movements, the fundamental divide lies between those maintaining a "Vedic fire" and those who practiced without one. The fruits were rebirth in heaven or seeking liberation from rebirth (also found in the Chândogya Upaniśad). But at a later date, the renunciates became clearly opposed to the Brahmanical priest and the Vedic beliefs ! And in this later Brahmanical context, "tantrika" indeed meant "non-Vedic", i.e. not based on Vedic scripture and also "outside" the Vedic fold.

For these tantrics, the Vedas had lost their salvic power, making Brahmanism obsolete. At this point, Yoga refers to the transformation of human consciousness into Divine consciousness, whereas Tantra to specific (often transgressive) ritual practices, sacred formulae ("mantra"), spiritual diagrams ("yantra"), gestures ("mudra"), postures ("âsana"), initiations ("diksâ"), and yoga practices, some of which involving afflictive desire.

At the start of the Śramana Movement, Vedic ascetics saw spiritual practices in terms of a return to the source of the Vedas, namely the state of mind of the Vedic seers ("rishi") of old, those who had directly received the Vedic revelation. Like them, these ascetics among the Brahmins lived austere lives in forest hermitages. Desire to share in the experience of the seers, knowledge of how to do so, and the actual realization of this spiritual fact (or genuine direct experience of absolute reality) were the leitmotifs of these ascetic authors, each following a path based on their view regarding the fruit.

Buddha Śâkyamuni is renowed for having gone through "austerities" or extreme ascetic practices and for having rejected them. This means Brahmins, Jains, materialists & others had already been around long enough to become organized. So Yoga & Tantra, as different, in the process of being clearly differentiatedmethods of spiritual practice, were probably not earlier than the age of the earliest Upaniśads (Jaiminīya, Brihadâranyaka & Chândogya), i.e. mid first millennium BCE, while the Śramana Movement itself may at least have started a century earlier.

Can an underlying cultural connection between, on the one hand, (a) Vedic ritual, (c) subsequent Brahmanism, (c) native Indian religion and, on the other hand, mid first millennium, late Vedic Brahmanical practice (both priestly & ascetic) be plausibly denied ?

Although the Keśin Hymn (Rig Veda, X.136) mentions "breath" and the "fire & poison" endured by the extraordinary figure of the "long-haired one", called the "wind's steed", it is true the Rig Veda as a whole offers little textual evidence for an early Vedic system of Yoga or Tantra. But similarities with later Tantra, albeit as Vedic Shamanism, are present. The naked sage "drinks from the cup, drinking the drug with Rudra". The latter is the prototype for the later Śiva, linked with the later "skull-cup" ascetics, and not fully incorporated into the Vedic pantheon ! The Vedic seers communicate with the gods in ecstatic trances or altered states of consciousness, induced by the ritual consumption of Soma. Their visionary power results from direct contact with the Divine, the absolute. Yoga & Tantra are not yet distinct & differentiated, but seem merely resonating practices assisting the continuum of the trance-consciousness of the Vedic shaman-seer. The Vedas bring us in touch with the Shamanism of the Vedic religion, involving the direct experience of the absolute. And this in a direct, trance-induced, clan-based way. This created powerful symbolic tools, used to integrate the native religion during & after the Indo-Aryan migrations.

Early Vedic inner technology focused on visionary revelation of sacred knowledge (as hymns & statements), used in ritual contexts. At times Soma-induced, this Shamanism was eventually lost. But, these early Vedic seers did also use mantras, sacrificial formulas, animal sacrifices, yantra (magical diagrams) and visualisations. There is even evidence of "pûjâ", and the eagerness to acquire knowledge about the hidden planes of existence. Even the tantric "kundalinî" may have been present, as the term "kunamnamâ" (Rig-Veda, X.126.7) testifies. Indeed, meaning "she who is badly bent" may be a reference to the dormant serpent power, also called "kabjikâ" or "crooked one". In the Brâhmanas, as in the Vedas, sexual symbolism is pervasive, but the former are first to introduce "bîja-mantras" or "seed mantras". Vedic religion clearly integrated a "wild" side (Rudra, Śiva). Did this transgressive side facilitate the integration of the popular religion of the native Indians (the cultures of the subcontinent before the start of the Indo-Aryan migratory movements) ?

The (re)emergence in the late Vedic period, around the 6th century BCE, of an ascetic movement inspired by the Vedas (the "new" Vedic Śramanas) coincided with the redaction of the Upaniśads, probably composed by these new groups of ascetics. In these texts, union with "the One", hylic pluralism and the subtle anatomy with its sheets, channels, wheels ("cakra"), channels ("nâdî") and breaths ("prâna" or "vâyu") are mentioned. These authors return to the life of the Vedic seers, and experience the visions for themselves, i.e. directly, without intermediaries. As ritualists, they offered fire and most of them sought rebirth in (the Vedic) heaven. These texts mention the various bodies & subtle winds, but not yet a technology to "move" subtle energy (at that time in the hands of Chinese Taoism). In the early Upaniśads, perhaps as early as the 6th century BCE, the Yogas (as ways to change the mind) emerge.

Did Hindu Tantra begin as a "special" way introduced by these non-Vedic, skull-cup styled renunciants ?

At the time of Siddhârtha Gautama (ca. 563 - 483 BCE), various groups practiced renunciation (recently, scholars date the "parinirvâna" of Lord Buddha at ca. 400 BCE). Some of these "wandering" Vedic & non-Vedic (heterodox) ascetics were in the process of becoming more integrated (with resulting discussions and conflicts between various views). Gautama followed their ways (austerities & the meditative "jhânas"), but found these unsatisfactory. He discussed with many of them. His disciples did not keep a Vedic fire and wanted release from rebirth as such. They dropped the whole theo-ontology of Brahmanism and the Vedas. The wisdom of the Buddha rejected any form of self-sufficiency ("anâtman"), and, with one roar, this process-based view cleared millennia of substance-thinking.

In the common era, Hindu Tantra became foremost associated with Śiva, a deity who (as Rudra) had always retained a transgressive, antinomian side. Scholars conjecture the first Śaivite ascetics (leaving the "vrâtyas", the Vedic "fighting men", aside) were the "Pâśupatas" (cf. Pâśupata-sûtra), first mentioned in theMahâbhârata and known for their deliberately shocking behaviour. They were held to achieve the magical powers of a "siddha" (an "accomplished one"). Their legendary founder, Lakulîśa or Nakulîśa, is placed ca. 100 CE, but Śiva ascetics probably existed centuries earlier (cf. the Upaniśads dealing with Śiva). Were they already part of the non-Vedic renunciates of the early (poorly organized) Śramana Movement (6th century BCE) ? Skull-cup styled Śaivite yogis & tantrics ("Kâpâlikas", "Bhairavas") were usually "wilder" than the ascetics practicing purification and the worship of the Divine Śakti.

The proto-tantric form of Śaivism of the Pâśupatas (limited to male Brâhmin renunciates shunning the community) is also called "Atimârga" ("the Higher Path"). They practiced of yoga, rose through the planes of existence to realize liberation, and transcended karma through antinomian forms of behavior. On the other end, our first textual evidence for a system of Śaiva Tantra is the voluminous Niśvâsa-tattva-samhitâ, around 500 - 550 CE, clearly drawing on Atimârga teachings.

In view of the complexity of the Niśvâsa-tattva-samhitâ, is it unreasonable to suppose Śaiva Tantra, acquiring its systematic & textual Śaivite form by the fourth century CE, was initiated at least four centuries earlier by the Atimârga ? Conjecture oral lineages brought the latter in contact with the "false gospel" of even earlier "kâpâlikas" and other non-Vedic renunciants moving against the truth of the Vedas ("nâstika", unorthodox), taking us at least back to the early Śramana Movement, way before Buddha Śâkyamuni and Mahâvîra, at the beginning of the 6th century BCE (if not earlier). By contrast, the earliest Buddhist Action Tantras saw the light in the 2nd century CE, while the firstsystematic Higher Tantra ("mahâyoga", in Tibet, "anuttara tantra"), theGuhyasamâja Tantra, integrating transgressive elements, most probably only emerged in the early 7th century. It does not mention the subtle channels of the Vajra body and is relatively short. This textual chronology undermines the claim Buddhist Tantra brought Hindu Tantra into being ! It even suggests the latter being prior to the former.

While some texts emerged around the same time, and both Hindu & Buddhist tantrics extensively borrowed from each other, the roots of Hindu Tantra plunge deeper down, even to (late) Vedic times predating the arrival of Lord Buddha, if not earlier. Indeed, is it unreasonable to suppose Buddhist Tantra emerged (as part of the Mahâyâna) after proto-Śaiva & full-scale Śaiva Tantra (integrating desire into the path) had already been successful ? I think not.

Although it has been claimed Śaiva & Buddhist Tantra are more or less co-emergent, Buddhist Tantra is historically, thematically & energetically (in terms of subtle physiology) based on the Hindu spiritual heritage in general (bringing us back to early Vedic times) and (proto-) Śaiva Tantra in particular. The Śaiva tantrics of the Śramana Movement formed centres for highly cultivated experts in various branches of the "inner science" ("adhyâtmavidyâ"). When the first major Buddhist Tantras (Guhyasamâja, Cakrasamvara & Hevajra) appeared, Śaiva Tantra was already fully developed and had been practiced for centuries. Buddhist Tantra started as a minority interest when Śaiva Tantra was already a cultural phenomenon.

Śaiva Tantra has three outstanding components :

the identification with a powerful & transgressive male resident shaman-deity such as the wild Śiva (placed in a residence "mandala"), in the highest tantra (Vajñâna-Bhairava Tantra) he is identified with empty space ;

the cult of the fierce goddess ("Śakti") burning the knots in the subtle channel connecting her with her spouse, in the highest tantra she is identified with energy, and

a "subtle body" Kundalinî Yoga, involving the conscious manipulation (leading) of "prâna" or the subtle energy (wind) upon which the mind "rides", causing (a) accomplishments (a "siddha" has paranormal powers and can perform the Four Vajra Acts of pacification, increase, control & destruction) and finally (b) the union of the Lord with His Goddess.

The art of circulating life-force was probably derived from Chinese Taoism ("ch'i'"), although the underlying "subtle anatomy" can be found in the earliestUpaniśads (like the Taittiriya Upaniśad, dated to the fourth or fifth century BCE). The interaction between China, India & Tibet is however unmistaken. A set of multi-cultural & millenarian correspondences can be found :