CHAPTER VII

SIVA AND SAKTI
Though the Supreme Deity of the Tantras is known as Sakti, but our idea of the Sakti will be incomplete unless we look into the Hindu concept of Siva. We have already remarked that Siva and Sakti are quite inseparable, and the one goes with the other. They are not two double-stars, two independent co-existent things conjoined together, but Siva and Sakti are ultimately one and the same, because they are but two modes of the manifestation of the Eternal and Infinite Brahma, as Purasha and Prakriti, (not that of Sankhya,) i. e. Matter and Spirit, which the Tantras have described as Siva and Sakti.
Siva and Sakti are inseparable like heat from fire, whiteness from milk, sweetness from sugar. luminousity from light, weight from material bodies. We have, therefore, in the preceeding chapter used singular number in designating the Deity of the Tantras. The Deity of the Tantras is both Siva and Sakti, in other words, Brahma and His Divine energy. Therefore, it will be both wrong and inadequate to designate Sakti alone as the Supreme Deity of the Tantras, though, ofcourse, greater prominence has given to Sakti in the Tantras. The reason is obvious, because it is the Divine energy that has brought the universe into existence, and preserves and governs it, and it is that which primarily arrests our attention and overwhelms us with wonder and awe. Thus it is but natural that Sakti will occupy the first and foremost place in the Tantras, which have been written to emphasise this aspect of Brahma and to glorify the Motherhood of God,—a quite novel view in theo- logy, though as sound and as logical as the Father- hood of God, for Eternal and Infinite Brahma
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is both the Father and the Mother of the universe, but up till the Tantras no other scripture has viewed Brahma from this angle of vision. There is no mention of ‘it in any other creed.
God is both the Father and Mother of the uni- verse ; and, in this very sense, Kalidas,’ in his invocation for blessings for using proper expres- sions, bows down in the first verse of the Raghu- Vancam, to the Father and Mother of the universe, who are united together like a word and its meaning.
“Vagarthiva Sampriktau Vagarthapratipatye Jagatapitarau Vande Parvatiparameswarau.”’
Mallinath explains Pitarau as Matacha Pitacha, ' i.e. mother and father. In other words, Siva and Parvati, who are inseparably united together, are the parents of the universe.’
In philosophical terminology, Sakti is Kinetic energy of Brahma, and Siva represents the Static aspect of Brahma. The one is inseparable from the other. According to the Tantras, creation is not an illusion, but the creation is real, because it is a mode of Divine manifestation of Brahma, and there is, therefore, ‘a real nexus between Brahma as cause and the world as effect.’ The Tantras do not dismiss the creation totally as a Maya, but regard it as a Conditional Reality. “‘So it is held that the supreme experience—Amarsha—is by the self- Siva of Himself as Sakti who, as such is the ideal or perfect universe, not in the sense of a perfect world of form but of that ultimate formless feeling—Bhava, —of bliss, Ananda, which at the root of the whole
' The Raghuvancam, Kumarsambham, Meghduta and the Sakuntala conclusively prove that Kalidas was a Sakta by creed.
? Thus, it is evident that Tantric creed and Tantric form of worship were in vogue long before Kalidas.
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(6609 world is.” (A. Avelon). Thus Siva and Sakti are inseparable.
This is what the Tantras tell us: Siva and Sakti are inseparable, though the Tantras, we have already remarked, have emphasied the Mother- hood of God—a concept as logically sound
as any other philosophical concept of Brahma or God.
Before proceeding any further, the writer must offer an unqualified apology to the readers for one strange omission and also for a startling commission. After making over the Manuscript to the press, the writer left Calcutta for some months, and during his absence an: omission and a commission have been made. First, the omission, the title of the present treatise ; ‘Tantras, Their Philosophy And Occult Secrets’, except over the first page, has not been printed over any other page! A strange omission, though not a very material one, Next, to the commission. It is, indeed, for graver than the omission, for which the writer takes the whole blame upon himself. In transcribing Sanskrit words in Romanised forms I attempted to spell Sanskrit words from the phonetic point of view, as one may find with many English words in Bernard Shaw’s dramas. But in my absence it has proved a dangerous experiment. I wrote Prkriti instead of Prakriti. The proof- reader, however, following the general Bengali pronunciation of the word, supplied the missing vowel (after Pr) and in doing so instead of putting a (after Pr) which both the correct pronunciation and correct spelling of the word demand, he has inserted in place of a. Nodoubt, the writer’s weak vision is responsible for many misprints, but the readers, the writer hopes, willexonerate him for such silly mistakes,as they will credit him at least with knowledge of the correct spelling and pronunciation
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of the word Prakriti. The writer has nothing more to add but to apologise again to his generous readers for such omissions and commissions. We shall now discuss the Tantric conception of Siva and Sakti.
Strangely, there isa very wrong notion among some people that both Siva and Kali are non-Aryan god and goddess. Siva, the non-Aryan god of ghosts and fiends, and Kali a demonic goddess of the aborigines of ancient India, in course of time, have crept into Aryan theology and found their places in the pantheon of Aryan gods and goddesses. But please mark they donot occupy any subordi- nate or insignificant position, but they are the highest of the deities of the Hindu pantheon, ‘as Vishnu. What an absurd idea!
We donot know how such a monstrous notion came to be first cherished. Perhaps, such a strange theory was first promulgated by the vagaries of the so-called Sanskrit researches of the Western scholars, who more than often betray ‘their colossal ignorance of the real import of Sanskrit words and of Sanskrit works and interpret them in their own fanciful way ; or it may be the result of the propaganda of early Christian missionaries for the spread of christianity among the Hindus. Whatever might be the origin of such a misleading and erroneous idea, there is not an iota of historical evidence in support of this strange assertion.
First of all, their concepts are too high and too sublime even for an educated man’s grasp not to speak of a wild aboriginal savage. They are the products of the highest philosophical reflections. Secondly, it isa notorious fact that the aboriginal tribes are very slow in giving up their religious rites and practices. They keep themselves far from the contact of civilised people and hold fast to their primitive institutions and to their old, accustomed habits of life. In the fastness of hills and mountains, in dense forests, we still come
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across wild savages in India, the primitive children of the soil, who were driven from their homes by the onrush of the Aryan conquerors. Among these wild tribes up till now no evidence of the worship of Siva or Kali has been found. They still adhere to their primitive religious faith of Animism, and worship stock and_ stones. Among them evil spirits, fiends and ghosts still reign supreme. It is the medicineman who, with his magic and mysterious charms, wards off the evil spirits—often those of their dead enemies—and relieves these aboriginal people from their disease, distress and fears. One may search from the foot of the Himalayas up to the Cape Comorin in vain to find even the slightest trace of any Tantric form of worship, or of Siva or Kali among these wild aboriginal people. Not even a phallic symbol of Siva has yet been found worshipped by these wild tribes. They still worship stocks and stones and propitiate the evil spirits by the sacrifice of animals and other gifts. If it were a fact that both Siva and Kali were origi- nally non-Aryan god and goddess, one could have very reasonably expected to find some _ traces of the Tantric rites among these wild savages of India, from whom the Aryans are said to have taken Siva and Kali. Nor any Tantric creed is found among the savage tribes. Hence, such a prepesterous theory absolutely falls to the ground. Weneed not detain our readers over this untenable view. It should be put aside without further ado.
Certainly, no defiinite form, can be attributed to Indeterminate, Infinite Brahma. All forms are His, all attributes are His attributes, there is nothing besides Him. Therefore from the Rig Veda’s ‘Purusha Sukta’ down to the Updnishads, it has been declared by the great Hindu sages, that He has thousand faces, thousand feet, thousand
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eyes. His eyes are everywhere, His feet are every- where and wherever there are two persons, there is one more besides the two. This has been most beautifully and most emphatically declared in the Srimad Bhagavat Gita in its famous descrip- tion of the Viswarupa, that Lord Sree Krishna revealed to his great devotee, Arjuna.’
Then the question arises why different images of Brahma have been conceived by the Hindus ? Before answering that question, we shall first quote the famous apology of the great sage Vedavyas asking forgiveness of God. He says: Thou art without any form, yet I have imagined Thine images ; Thou art equally present at every place, yet I have extolled the sacredness of the places of pilgrimages.” Again, the Artharva Veda most emphatically declares: AlIl the gods find shelter in Him.”’
Then why the Hindus have imagined so many gods and goddesses; in other words, so many images of Brahma? The answer is quite obvious. Different images of Brahma have been conceived simply to help the devotees for enhancing his devotional ardour and for augmenting his concentration of mind; to fill his heart with enthusiasm and inspiration by setting up before him something tangible, symbollically representing certain Divine attributes or certain aspects of Brahma, for which the devotee loves and likes to worship God. Different images have been conceived to suit different tastes and also to represent different attributes of the Indeterminate and Infinite Brahma. Each image (i.e. each god or goddess) has particular significance of its own. Now, let us see in what light the Tantras look upon Siva and Sakti and what is the inner signi- ficance of each of the aforesaid two deities.
1 Vide the present writer’s Lord Sree Krishna for the Commen: on the Viswarupa, page 309.
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What is the highest virtue in man ? There is no unanimity opinion even about this! Some say it is charity ;—charity covereth every sin. Some hold it to be truthfulness; some, purity ; some piety and some, righteousness. Some, as the ancient Romans did, think it to be valour ; while others an all-round prefection. The last named virtue that is an all-round prefection found much preference both among the ancient Hindus and the ancient Greeks, but there is still great difference between the Greek ideal and that of the ancient Hindus. The Greeks were disposed to physical perfection, but the ancient Hindus gave preference to the perfection of the soul above all other kinds of perfection. The outlook of the ancient Greek art corresponds to this view Of physical perfection ; ofcourse, that also implied a sound mind in a sound body. But the ancient Hindu ideal of perfection is more spiritual or moral than that of the ancient Greeks. One or two solitary instances, like that of Socrates or of Plato, won’t make out a case for the whole national mind. Now, the ancient Hindus held another virtue to be the highest of all human _ virtues, that is the virtue of absolute Detachment. In the opinion of the ancient sages of India, detach- ment, in truth, is the mother of all virtues. If a man be thoroughly detached, all other virtues will necessarily find place in him. He will, thus by nature, be truthful, honest, just, upright, generous and charitable, for there is nothing to which he is attached; there is no interest uppermost in his mind, he will naturally be thoroughly selfless and absolutely disinterested in his actions and conduct towards _ others. No. joy can elate him, no sorrow can depress him, no suffering or despair can overwhelm him. He is above all earthly joys and sufferings, above all attachments to worldly things. Nothing can swerve him from the path of uprightness and
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virtue ; no interest can distract his mind. He is thus far above all others. Upon this great virtue of detachment, Lord Sree Krishna has laid the greatest emphasis and stress in his immortal teachings in the Gita, and his own life was the highest example of detachment from all worldly objects.
‘Now, the great God Siva is the highest personification of the virtue of detachment. He is the highest ideal of all Yogins and Sanyasins, He is the greatest ideal to all those who have renounced the world. Look at his serene and sublime image, white as a silver cliff, the emblem of purity, innocence and spiritual light. He is. above all temptations. Love or lust, that plays such a havoc among us, has been reduced to ashes by the fire of his indignation. Gold and ashes are same to him. Poison and nectar have no difference to him. He is immersed in his own self, self- contained and _ self-contented. He is Brahma, no external stimulus is necessary to stimulate him with gladness. He cannot have any desire for anything, for there is nothing but Him or outside Him. He is the fountainhead of joy, Ananda Ghana Murti. He reels with his own joy, with Bhuma- nanda. He is Nataraj, the Lord of arts. Thus self cantained and self-contented, Siva is the highest personification of detachment. And this should- be so in the very nature of things, for the idea of detachment is always closely associated with the idea of the ultimate end of all worldly things. In other words, the idea that everything is subject to dissolution and death, inspires one “with an inspiration of detachment. Nothing lasts, nothing is permanent, and everything melts and vanishes like mist or vapour. All that we love and prize in life will vanish, causing us disappointment and sorrow. Nothing is immutable or permanentin Nature. What mighty changes
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our own planet has uhder gone through millions of ages :—
“There rolls the deep where grew the tree, O earth what changes hast thou seen ? There where the long street roars, hath been The Stillness of the central.sea.”
“The Hills are shadows and they flow From form to form, and nothing stands, They melt like mist, the solid lands,
Like clouds, they shape themselves and go.”
—In Memoriam.
Siva is the great God of Destruction. He is the image of Brahma as the Destroyer of of the universe. Terrific destructive forces lie dorment in Him, as if in sleep. The moment they are awake the whole universe will come to its end. His mighty Trident will break the worlds into atoms when He will dance in the frantic joy of destruction, ‘i.e. when the destructive forces will commence their operation, the whole universe will reel in the wild rhythm of the Dance of Death. Then His matted locks will break asunder from their ties and will overcast the sky, and the crescent moon will shake and tremble on His forehead, the vast sky! He is Lord of death, but Himself deathless, the conqueror of death, Mrityanjaya. |
Thus Siva is the emblem of the Ultimate dissolution of the universe; to put in Tantric phraseology : Sakti will withdraw the world into Herself and withdraw Herself into the Tanscedental Siva.
Now, the very consciousness that everything is subject to death and decay fills one’s heart with feelings of Vairagya or non-attachment, if not. of detachment proper. We then readily realise the vanity of our desires and world attachments, and
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do then also realise that our attachments are vain and will cause us disappointment and sorrow. Hence, there grows instinctively an yearning to be above all attachments ; in other words, a desire for acquiring detachment in life.
Thus, in the fitness of things Siva, the God of destruction, should also be- the highest personifica- tion of the virtue of detactment.
Yet Siva is not the God of the Yogins and Savayasins alone, not the Deity of only of those who renounce the world, but he is the benignant
_ Deity of the householders too. He is God of one and all. He is Siva ie. auspicious and benign to everybody. He is Bholanath—He remembers no wrongs, no sins or transgressions. He _ forgives and tforgets every thing; so merciful is He. He
is, again, Ashutosh, readily and easily propitiated ; not at alla difficult one to please. Such is Siva, all forgiving, ever benign and merciful to man. He is God of no privileged class, no pompous ceremony is necessary for his worship, no elaborate rite needs be observed in his worship, but a wild Dhutura flower (Stramonium flower ) will gratify Lord Ashutosh.. No privileged priest needs officiate in his worship. You can worship him in any way you like, no particular shrine is necessaty for his worship, you may have his emblem even under a tree and worship him with only water. He is God of-every body, every body has access to him, and every body can touch his sacred image. It is the most unique feature about the image of Siva. A non-Brahmin is not allowed to touch
‘any Hindu idol or any other image of god or goddess, except that of Siva. He is the most democratic of deities, he is not the God of any privileged class, even an untouchable Chandala has an access to him! He is pleased with all, favours none, rejects none. Every body is
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welcome to him. He tejects no body’s worship ; whoever comes to him with devotion, faith and love receives his blessings and boons. God is ever kind to us and is even ready to bless us, to forgive us: and He makes no distinction between man and man.
Such is the lofty conception of Siva and Sakti, yet we are asked to believe that they are non- Aryan deities! Nothing can be more preposterous than this.
Now, no people like the ancient Hindus were so keenly alive to the transitory character of all worldly things, hence theyextolled the virtue of detachment over all other virtues. Detachment is the domineering ideal of the Hindus in every walk of life,
The poet Rabindra Nath, in one of his noble ‘verses, has said, ‘O India! Thou hast taught the sovereign to renounce the sceptre and to retire to the forest ( for meditation and prayer ).’ There was not a solitary Emperor like Marcus Aulerius of Rome among the Hindus, but all the great Hindu kings were great ascetics at heart.
In course of time, the sentiment of detachment filtered down from the highest to the lowest stratum of society; and by degrees the whole mass became permeated by this sentiment, and this has greatly changed the national character ot the Hindus and deeply affected the history of ancient India.
From the earliest time, the attention of the ancient Hindus was directed to the great mystery of Death, and they became alive to the inevitable end of all worldly things. This meditation of — the ultimate end made the Hindus a nation of philosophers, as Plato, at one place, has observed ; ‘philosophy is meditation of death.”
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The idea of the ultimate end was uppermost in the Hindu mind, so they did not attach much value to worldly success or material prosperity ; and all the Shastras have laid very great stress upon the virtue of detachment in all phases of life and religion.
But though the ancient Hindus extolled the virtue of detachment over every thing, though their attention from the earliest time was directed to the mystery of death, yet they never gave themselves up to despair. Pessimism does not find any place in Hindu philosophy. Contemplation of death made the Hindus a nation of philosophers, but it could not turn them sceptics or Agnostics. They refused to yield to sceptic doubts.
‘There was a door to which I found no key : There was a veil past which I could not see : Some little talk a while of Me and Thee There seemed —no more of Thee and Me.”’
Omar Khayyam’s Rubaiyat—Fitzgerald.
Such a sceptic note was never dominant in Hindu philosophy, religion or art, except in Charvaka, the world’s first uncompromissing Agnostic and materialist.
The Hindu sages, on the other hand, emphati- cally declared ‘‘Hear ye all, ye inheritors of im- mortality.
“Crinwantu Viscwey Amritasya Putra’—They prayed :—“Tamoso Ma _ Jyotirgamaya’’—Lead_ us from darkness to light.
Vrihadaranyaka 1-3-28.
Again, they have declared :—‘*Vedahametam - Purusham Mahantam Adityavarnam Tamsa Parastat’’ ;—I have known the great Being who is
light beyond the bounds of darkness.
1 We have translated these passages freely than literally to make their import clear to the non-Sanskritic readers.
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They have, again, proclaimed in joy :
“Apam Somam Amrita Abhuma Agauma Jyotirvidan Devan.”’
‘We have become immortals, we have obtained light, we have known the gods.”
Thus a bold note of robust optimism finds its expression in the Vedas and in Upnishadas.
In the midst of mundane changes, the great sages of India sought for what is permament, imperish- able and changeless, and this they found in their own Soul, a spark of a Blazing Fire (Vrihada- ranyak and Manduka) a bubble of the Ocean of light. - Human soul is but the Universal Soul imprisoned in a mortal frame. (Akacamekam Hi Jatha Ghatadishu Prithag Bhavet) It is a tiny spark of the Blazing Fire (Brahma) ; human soul isa part of the Divine Soul. This, in the words of Max Muller, is, the greatest discovery that man has made, and _ this great truth was discovered by the great Sages of India. Therefore, to know one’s Self is to know God. The knowledge of Soul is’ the knowledge of God. ‘‘Atmano Va Arey Darcanena Cravanen a Matya Vijnaneno Idam Sarvam
-Viditam Vrihadaranyaka 2/4/5.
Everything becomes known from the knowledge of the Soul.
Thus to a Hindu, human life is not a meaning- less existence. To put in the words of a great Tantric, who is no other than the world—famous Swami Vivekananda, “Life is a continual develop- ment and unfoldment of Being under circumstances that tend to press it down.”’
Human life is not a blind existence ; it has an end of its ownand that supreme end is to realise
Brahma or God.
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From the earliest dawn of civilisation, the attention of the Hindus was directed towards this supreme end of human life. This ever—cons- ciousness of the fleteing character of all worldly objects and their inevitable end urged them to set less and less value to material prosperity and worldly success, and a feeling of detach- ment became more and more prominent in their character. Therefore, God Siva is the most apt and typical Hindu creation of the embodiment of the virtue of detachment, rather the most appropriate conception of | God, consistent with the national character of the Hindus. And this great ideal gradually turned the Hindus indifferent to all vicissitudes of fortune that might befall in their individual lives or in the life of the the nation. What carlyle, in his Sarter Rasartus, has described as ‘‘The Great Centre of Indifference’, that comes from a living fatth in Divine Providence, is to be found even in the commonest, illiterate man among the Hindus. Such is the great, traditional heritage of Hindu culture even among the common people; and this, we believe, is the secret that has preserved the Hindus through centuries of revolutions, anarchy, foreign aggre- ssions and cruel oppressions. The ancient Greeks are dead;so are the ancient Romans, only their ruins survive; but the Hindus are still alive and there exists a distinctly tangible thread _ of continuity of culture between the Hindus of the Vedic times and of the present age! It is, in essence and in spirit, the same stream of culture that is flowing among the Hindus from the hoary time of the Vedas down to the. present age. And inspite of radical changes in different departments of life, inspite of all political, social and economic revolutions that divide the Hindus of today from those of the distant past, the Hindus even now cherish and pursue the same great ideals in religion and morality which the great sages of
Ge) the Vedas and the Upanishads held before their
contemporaries. There have been no doubt radical changes in Hindu Society and in manners and customs from the palmy days of Hindu civilisation, of prosperity and power, but the Hindus still cling fast to their paternal faith and to the great truths and ideals which the great sages of ancient India have enunciated to their country. Such is the wonderful continuity of Hindu culture through ~ thousand and thousand of years.
There is, however, another side of the shield. This indifference to worldly success and to material prosperity has rendered the people apathetic even to improvement and progress. From a_ false idea of detachment they have grown averse to all exertions and arduous endeavours to fight against adverse circumstances. A dark fatalism rules the majorfty of the people and they, calmly resign themselves to their fate. A feeling of eunui and indolence has possessed the mass. Lord Sree Krishna who, in his divine wisdom, has distinctly envisaged the probable effects that might arise from a false notion of detachment, raised his clarion voice against it in the Gita and urged the people to do their duties. Duty, for duty’s sake, will teach us the true virtue of detachment, and not cessation from all activities.
Against this baneful feature of lethargy and apathy of the people. the Tantras have urged for worship of Sakti or Divine Energy. Worship of Sakti will disturb the pathetic contentment of the people, rouse them from. the stupor of centuries and inspire them with energy to strive and to put one’s utmost energy for the attainment of perfection and power. And we venture to suggest that Tantric Sadhana rose by way of protest against abject fatalism which very often renders a man indolent and apathetic to all kinds of exertions.
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And the Tantras declare that the blessings of Sakti can undo fate. With this end, we think, great stress has been laid upon the worship of Sakti, by whose worship the devotees can attain perfection and power, and can, thereby, annul his fate.
Now, Sakti is almost the reverse of the concept of Siva. Siva is Sthnu, immovable: it is in one respect, the concept of Divine energy in its Static aspect, motionless, inert and without agitation ; whereas, Sakti is the concept of Divine energy in its Dynamic aspect. Sakti is the prersonitication of the Divine Energy that has brought the universe into existence, that . preserves it from disruptive forces. In other words, Sakti is the creative and preservative energy of Brahma. Mother Sakti has brought the universe into existence that lay within her and maintains _and preserves it from disintegration and dissolution. Whereas, Siva is the emblem of the drestructive forces that lie dorment in the universe. Goddess Sakti is the fullest conception of Brahma in all its aspects. i.e., as Creator, Preserver and Destroyer of the universe. Creation comes from Brahma, rather it is a mode of Divine existence. It is Divine energy that sustains the universe that binds the atoms with atoms. Again, Destruction is also an aspect of Divine energy that goes hand in hand with the creative energy, Thus, the creative, preser- vative and destructive forces are but the three aspects of the-same Divine Energy that exists in
Brahma, for there is nothing outside Brahma. Thus Sakti is the fullest conception of Brahma. It goes withcut saying that we can not think of “Brahma without thanking of some attribute of Brahma. Thegreat Ramanuja, the illustrious founder of the Vishista Advaitavad, holds that the absolute- ly distinctionless and divisionless and indeterminate Brahma which Sankara seeks to establish can not be proved to be real. Thus for the convenience
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of human thought there, we think, has arisen the conception of the Hindu Trinity :—Brahma as creator of the universe is Brahma; Brahma as Preserver of the universe as Vishnu; and Brahma as Destroyer of the universe, is Rudra or Siva.
“Ekam sad Vipra Vahudha Vadanti”
The Brahmins designate that one reality in vaious names.
Now, Sakti is the fullest conception of Brahma with all the three great aspects of Divine energy that creates, preserves and destroys.
We have already said that it is simply ridiculous to ascribe any definite sex to, Brahma. Nirvikalpa, Nirguna and Nirakara Brahma cannot have any sex, so to say. The Universal Soul is sexless. The Upanishadas also declare that Jiva or soul has no sex: “Na Stri Na Puman Esha Na Chaivayan Napunsaka.”” As the apprehension of a formless, attributeless Brahma is not possible ( for every apprehension is in the nature, it is such, and as such implies the presence of particular features) and we think of Brahma with some attributes in our imagination; likewise, we attribute sex to Brahma. Brahma devoid of all attributes, we have already said, has been designated by the Neuter Gender in the Upanishads. Now, logically speaking, Brahma is both the Father and the Mother of the universe; and Maha-Sakti is the fullest conception of Brahma with the three Gunas, Satwa, Raja and Tamas ; the personification of the creative, preservative and destructive, forces of the universe. Permit us to quote from the Devi Bhagavat a hymn named Sarva Vicwa Janani.
erin) “T call to mind the Mother of the whole universe Who has created this world both real and unreal! .
‘Real and unreal--Sat and Asat of Vedanta philosophy..
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And who by Her own power with three Gunas' Protects it, and having destroyed it, she then plays’,
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Commonly it is said that Brahma creates the universe, Yet the learned in Veda and Purana Speak of His birth from the novel lotus of Murari, Although it is said He creates, yet
He is Himself dependent therein. Even Murari, in the blossom of whose navel-lotus
Brahma was born— Deeply sleeps upon His serpent-bed at the time of dissolution, Therefore, Ananta, with his thousand hoods, is His support,
How can He who is Himself supported Be called a leader in the creation of the world ?
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Even the water of ocean which is a liquid substance, Can not exist without a container, therefore,
I take refuge with Her, the Mother of all beings Who exists in all things in the form of power.’
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Brahma in the lotus Seeing the eyes of Vishnu were closed in deep slumber Prayed to the Devi with whom I take shelter.”’ —A. Avelon’s Translation
We shall now speak about the Tantric conception of the Mahasakti, but before that allow us to quote the great Sankaracharyya’s Tripura Sundari- Stotra just for one thing. The hymn will show that the conception of Mahasakti is so abstrusely
1Satwa, Raja and Tamas.
*Having passed beyond the worlds, She plays, hence she is called Lalita. Her play is creation.
3Saktirupa
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philosophical that mere literary exegesis will fail to comprehend its deep metaphysical significance. Hence, it is not at all surprising that many things have been misinterpreted by superficial interpre- tation of the mystic expressions of the Tantras. Now, to turn to the Stotra by the great philo- sopher, Sankaracharyya :—
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“T seek refuge with Tripura Sundari Who wanders in the Kadamba forest, The Spouse of the Three-eyed one, Bank of cloud (in the sky of the heart) of number of sages ;
Whose hips defeat the mountains by their greatness, Who is served by celestial women, Whose eyes are like new bloom-lotus And who is dark as the colour of a
freshly formed rain-cloud.
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I seek refuge with Tripura Sundari The Spouse of the three-eyed one Who dwells in the Kadamba forest, And who is ever wandering. The large-eyed one who holds a golden Vina, Wearing a necklace of priceless gems, Whose face is glowing with wine, And who of Her mercy grants prosperity to Her devotees.
(3) Ever are we protected by Her whose
abode is the Kadamba forest, The weight of whose breasts are
garlanded with glittering gems,
Whose breasts are rising, And excel the mountain in greatness, W hose cheeks are flushed with wine,
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Ever singing sweet songs, the playful One,
dark as a cloud. Ever compassionate to all.
a) I seek refuge with Tripura Sundari The Spouse of the Three-eyed one Who stays in the Kadamba forest. Who is seated in the golden circle, Dwells in the six lotuses. Ever revealing like lighting the great power (of devotees)
Whose beauty is like that of the jaba flower And whose brow is adorned with the full moon.
a) I take refuge with Her, the sweet speaker, Daughter of the sage Matanga Whose breast is adorned with Vina, - And whose head is beauteous with
locks of curling hair.
Who dwells in the lotus, The destroyer of the wicked, Whose eyes are reddened with wine ~ The charmer of the enemy of the god of love.
(6) I take refuge with Tripura Sundari The spouse of the Three-Eyed one. Who should be meditated upon As in the first flush of her nubile youth. Her blue garment stained with drops of blood, Holding the wine cup; - Her eyes rolling with wine, ’ With heavy, high and close-set breasts, ~ Dark of colour and with dishevelled hair.
(7) At time of recitation, I remember the Mother Lustruous as the scarlet hibiscus,
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Her body pasted with saffron and sandal, Her hair kissed by musk.
The Mother with smiling eyes, With red garlands, ornaments and raiment Who holds the arrow, bow, noose and goad The charmer of countless men.
(8)
I worship the world-Mother
Who is served by celestial women,
The spouse of Indra,
Skilful in plaiting hair,
The devoted spouse of Brahma,
Anointed with sandal paste.
The spouse of Vishnu
Adorned wifh pleasing ornaments.” A. Avelon’s Translation.
We now respectfully draw the attention of the readers to certain mystic phrases of deep meta- physical significance in the above quoted hymn, and from this hymn alone it will be amply clear how difficult it is to follow the mystic and figura- tive expressions of the Tantras by which Mahasakti has been described and Her glory proclaimed, and the hymnsand prayers have been composed. We have marked only twenty three expressions from the above hymn, though they require more elaborate exposition. The readers will be pleased to read again the hymn after consulting the following notes. Ofcourse, we do not pretend to possess that amount of knowledge by which we can make everything clear to our readers, nor we presume that all our readers want to be enlightend on these things; rather, we confi- dently beleive that to the majority of readers our notes and interpretations will be superflous and tedious, like twice told tales, because they are sufficiently known to them. However, as some
) Sor *}
might require notes on these things, we have ventured to put them below.
(1) Tripura—The body of Siva became triple in the form of Brahma, Vishnu and Maheswara. The Devi is then (the spouse) the Sakti of the Paramsiva i. e. Divine energy of Brahma.
(2) Kadamba forest ie. the universe which the Devi permeates,. Sree Krishna too has been repre- ‘sented to stand under a Kadamba tree and playing upon his divine flute, calling all to his fold of love,
(3) Three-eyed, we are two eyed; the central eye is the eye of wisdom which Siva possesses.
(4) Sages—like a rain-cloud, she quenches the spiritual thirst of the sages and devotees.
(5) Greatness, obviously refers to the cosmic image of Sakti, like that of the Viswarupa in the Gita and of the Purusha Sukta in the Rig Veda, and this has been referred to in 8, 10 and 15. Priceless gems refer to stars and other heavenly bodies of the sky. Breasts in verse 10 refer to that in her Viswarupa ; full moon also to that of Viswarupa, her brow is the sky.
(6) Ever-wandering—Dynamic forces of the universe, the Divine energy that is ever working in the universe. There is indeed nothing stationary in nature, but every thing is in motion ; even the door nail is ever in motion. The word rest is a misnomer. (Vide The Restless Universe)
(7) Vina-lyre, stands for harmony. Harmony is the expression of the cosmos, the order of the universe. Out of harmony rose the world and in harmony does it exist. (Pythagoras).
(8) Wine—ambrosia.
(9) Glowing with wine—the spirit of gladness that: pervades the creation. She is the Fountainhead of gladness and joy.
Gta)
(11) Sweet songs—Reeling in her own joy or
self-contentment.
(12) Playful one—her play is her creation.
(13) Circle—Nebula of light.
(14) Six lotuses—Six Chakras of the human body, viz. Muladhara. (2) Svadshisthana
(3) Manipura (4) Anahata (5) Vishuddha (6) Ajnapadmas.
(15) Great power—awaking the great potan- tialities of yogic powers in the devotee.
(16) Daughter of Matanga, another name of Kali is Matangini.
(17) Hair—the clouds.
(18) Destroyer of the wicked ; so Sree krishna speaks of himself in the Gita : Vinashayetu Duskritan.
(19) Enemy of the god of love is Siva, who reduced Kama into ashes by the fire of his anger.
(20) Blue garment obivously the vast space
designated by the blue sky.
Drops of blood. At the florescent period of youth, garment stained with drops of blood shows that the woman is ready to bear. Here signs are seen which herald her creation,
(21) Paragraph 7 is the Dhyana Murti of Sakti, i.e. the image which the devotee has formed about Sakti in his mind for meditation.
(22) Charmer of countless men—She deludes the people with Maya.
(23) Spouse of Indra—Sakti or energy of Indra ” 29 Brahma— ” a Brahma soe stays ogg UB RTs Ot
She is the Sakti of every God ; in other words, she mainfests herself as Sakti, power, force or
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energy in every thing and in every being. The universe is the manifestation of Sakti.
In the famous Anada Lahari Stava of Sankaracharyja, the great philosopher, thus speaks of the great glory of Mahasakti :—
“O Devi ! How can we speak of Thy qualities Which are not to be described by any Nigama ? As the Sweetness of Ghee, (1) milk, the grape and honey.
Can not be distinguished and described by words, But may be perceived by the tongue only. In like manner, Thy beauty can be seen only
by the eye of Parameswara.”
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“Thou art the Mother of all Vedas,
The Regulator of all Tantras,
And the root of all wealth
Thou whose lotus-feet are worshipped even by
the wealth-giver.
O Mother ! Thou art the Primal cause of all desires,
Victrix of Kandarpa. ‘Thou art the seed of liberation for the good.
Thou art the spouse of the ParaBrahma” (1)
Again, the Adyakali stotra of the Mahanirvan Tantra begins thus:—
Hring—O Destroyer of time. (2)
Shring—O Terrific one. (3)
Kring-thou who art beneficent, (4)
Professor of all the arts, (5)
Thou art Kamala. (6)
(1) Spouse, wife in Sanskrit is also called Ardha- ngini. So it means half of Brahma, but it denotes, in purport, Divine energy. _
(2) Time and space are aninhilated in Brahma.
1The conqueror of lust, Kandarpa —Cupid.
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(3) The tetror of terror, We shall speak of it later on when we deal: with the image of the
Goddess Kali. (4) Merciful and the giver of all blessings.
(5) Goddess of learning, Saraswati, the presiding deity of knowledge and arts.
(6) Kamala, the goddess of prosperity, beauty and wealth and of every thing auspicious.
Such is the lofty concetion of the Goddess Sakti in the Tantras, yet, in all seriousness we are asked to beleive that Kali as a non-Aryan goddess of the wild aborigines of India, that, in course of time, has crept into the Hindu pantheon of gods and _ goddesses! Nothing can be more perposterous than this.
We shall now draw the attention of the readers to the image of the Goddess Kali (Sakti) as has been described in the Tantras, and then shall explain the different features of the image.
The Goddess Kali is of pitth-dark complexion, like the blackest night. Her dishevelled hair streames about her like banks of rain-clouds. She wears a necklace of skulls round her neck, and a girdle of severed palms round her loins. In the upper one of the two left arms, she holds an upraised sword, and from the lower arm dangles the severed head of a demon ' (Danava). She is surrounded by dreadful, ghostly phantoms on all sides. Blood trickles down from the two corners of her mouth. Of the two right hands, by raising the upper arm she assures protection to all creatures against all distress and fear, and she pours forth her blessings on all by the lower one of the right hands.
Mahakal (Mahadeva) his prostrate under her feet. Her face beams forth with divine beauty. Her
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expression indicates her bashfulness—she bites. her- own tongue, as if overwhelmed with a deep sense of shame! Bright light streaming from ‘the eye ot her forehead dispels all darkness around her. The effulgence of her divine beauty illumines the vast abyss of space.
Such is the image of Goddess Kali or Sakti. . The image is but the: figurative expression of a highly philosphical concept of Brahma, representing all the great divine attributes that we can think of possessed by Brahma or God. The Hindu Trinity, Brahma, Vishnu and Maheswara, stands for the concept, as every one knows, of Brahma as the creator; (2) Brahma as the preserver; (3) and Brahma as the destroyer of the universe; here the three aspects of the three great attributes of Brahma have been separately thought of but Brahma, the creator, Brahma, the pre- serrver and Brahma the destroyer are one and ‘the same,—the Indivisible, Infinite and Eternal God. Goddess Sakti stands for the image of the fullest concept of Brahma representing all the above three aspects or attributes of Brahma_toge- ther. Sakti is the creator, the preserver and, at the same time, the destroyer of the universe.
We shall now venture to offer the simplest ° possible explanations of the image, dvoiding all metaphysical intricacies as far as practicable.
The complexion of the Goddess Kali is pitch dark, like a Newmoon-night of the blackest hue. Why itis so? The reason is obvious. What is the concrete object that naturally suggests to us an idea of the Infinite? Evidently, the vast, illimitable and unbounded sky. And the sky is normally dark. Hence, the colour of the Goddess Saktiis dark, like that of Sree Krishna, who also stands for the conception of Brahma, as the Eternal Lord of.love, and of the Spirit of love that pe-
2
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* meates the universe, the love that appears in the physical world as the force of attraction that. preserves the universe ‘of things from disruption. Lord Sree Krishna is the incarnation of Vishnu, and the derivative meaning of Vishnu -is ‘the per-. vader of the universe i.e. He who exists by per- vading the universe. Vishnu is the preserver of the universe. He represents the divine love of Brahma, for the creation that sustains it. Lord Sree Krishna’s complexion is dark, because he is Infinite God. :
The dishervelled hair of Sakti that streams around her evidently signifies the vast banks of clouds that we ever find floating in the sky and these stand for, as we have already observed, the matted locks of Mahadeva or Siva.
She wears a necklace of skulls, a girdle of severed a palms; she holds an upraised sword - for destruction in the upper hand of her two left arms, and in the lower one she holds the severed head of a demon. She is surrounded by ghostly phantoms of hideous sights. Blood trickles down the two corners of her mouth. These are the indicative of the terrible aspect of universal death, destruction and dissolution that are ceaselessly and silently going on, i.e. occurring every moment around us. dt is a part of the Brahma’s Viswarupa. It inspires us with paralysing fear. This is exactly what has been described by Arjuna in the Srimad Bhagavat Gita, when Lord Sree Krishna revealed to him the Viswarupa.
—Vide Gita chap. II! verses 24 to 30.
_ This is what has been stated by the expression, “Shring, O Terrific one’ in the Adykali stotra of the Mahanirvan Tantra.
We have already said that the Hindus Pa the earliest time became keenly conscious about
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the ultimate end of all things and beings. This reflection about the ultimate’ end has turned them a philosophical people. It was not that the Hindus were afraid of death but they knew that death will, one day, come to all, and they kept themselves ready for that inevitable end. This is what Manu has said:—
“Donot hunger for life, nor hanker after death, keep yourself ready to respond to the Master's call whenever it comes.” This resignation and calm philosophical attitude of the Hindus towards death is what shakespeare has said, “Readiness is all.”
It is hard to restrain the temptation of quoting a few lines from a highly thoughtful and a theistic writer:— “The knowledge of the real facts about death at once destroys both the terror and the anxiety; the man who is instructed upon these points, recognises death as but an inicident in life and realises that the existence upon the other side is no more to be dreaded than is that upon this side’, —The Other Side of Death—The Rt, Rev. .