Light on Tantra in Kashmir Shaivism (Abhinavagupta's Tantraloka Set of 2 Volumes in 3 Chapters)

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As in Tantraloka Chapter (hankie) One, the original Sanskrit text used for Chapter Two is based on the Kashmir Series of Text and Studies (ASTS), XXIII, volume I, published in 1918 and edited by Pandit Mukund Ram Sastri. Chapter Three follows KSTS XXVIII, volume 2, published in 1921 and edited by Pandit Madhusudan Kaul Sastri.

Let us briefly review the history of the Kashmir Series, which today comprises more than eight seven volumes, published from 1911-1925 by the Research Department of Jammu and Kashmir State. This project was initial sponsored of His Highness Maharaja Pratap Singh, and was continued by his nephew, Maharaja Hari Singh Bahadur from 1926-1947.

The initial impetus to collect rare manuscripts was started by His Highness Maharaja Ranbir Singh (1830-1885). Fluent in both Sanskrit and Persian language, he had a great love for philosophy, and organized pundits and scribes to translate and transliterate various religious texts.

This work was continued during the ruling of Ranbir Singh's son and successor, Maharaja Pratap Singh (1848-1925), who like his father, exhibited great respect for all spiritual endeavors. Pratap Singh built numerous temples, refurbished those which stood dilapidated, and showed deep affection for saints and scholars of all traditions. On a small stretch of land adjacent to his palace he organized the construction of a kutiya (cottage) where he accommodated a renown saint of the Kula System of Kashmir Shaivism, Swami Mana Kak. The Maharaja often paid his respects to the mysterious saint, and on the Swami's passing from this world, that same respect was transferred to the saint's chief disciple, Swami Ram. It so happened that Swami Ram was the family priest of one Kashmiri Pandit, Narayan Das Raina, who happened to be the father of Swami Lakshmanjoo.

Pundit Narayan Das was very industrious, and apart from being one of the first Kashmiri Pandits to learn the English language, he also organized the construction of the first Houseboats for accommodating travelers to Kashmir. He had a close relationship with the Maharaja, and was often called upon to render his services in numerous of ways.

History records that this was a time of spiritual renaissance in Kashmir, but it is little known that it was Swami Ram who requested the Maharaja to gather all of the important manuscripts of Shaiva Philosophy, that had been scattered here and there during the 500 years of Mogul Rule (1320-1850). Naturally, the Maharaja acceded to the Swami's request, and thus was initiated the Kashmir Series of Text and Studies.

In 1906 Narayan Das and his wife, Arnimal, approached Swami Ram with the humble request that he bless them with a son. Swami Ram handed Arnimal five almonds and said, "Take these, and not only will you have a son, but he will be a great saint in the tradition of Kashmir's Trika Shaivism. Ten months later, on the 9th of May 1907, Swami Lakshmanjoo was born.

In the first ahnika of his Tantraloka, Abhinavagupta summarized the fundamental aspects of Trika (Kashmir Shaiva) philosophy and practice while also providing an outline for the topics to be discussed in cach ahnika (chapter). Here, in the second and third ahnikas, Abhinavagupta boldly thrusts into the very heart of the Trika philosophy by revealing the most efficient practices/means (upayas) for achieving the state of God consciousness. The top-down approach to contemplative practice, which was first introduced by Lord Siva in the Siva Sutras, typifies Abhinavagupta's method of instruction. Swamiji tells us:

"First I want to tell you that the capacity of digesting God consciousness is possessed by every individual being, and that capacity is secretly established in one's own nature. You can't know, even masters cannot understand, what kind of capacity a sadhaka (aspirant) has. So, our masters are advised to try from the top. They give the top treatment first. When it is not successful, then they come down for another lower treatment. When that, too, is not successful, they have to come down for another treatment, the lowest treatment.""

In his Yoga Sutras, Patanjali defines yoga (lit., union) as "the restraint of thought fluctuations (yogas citta vetti nirodhah)." According to the prevailing theories of Samkhya and Yoga, once thoughtless-ness is preserved, the individual soul (purusa) completely shuns (kaivalya) the objective world (prakrti) and remains in a state of inactive consciousness. Shaiva yoga, on the other hand, is defined as "the union of the individual with the Universal" in which the entire realm of the differentiated universe and the infinite energies therein are digested-not shunned or destroyed, but digested (samhara)-and held undifferentiatedly within the thought-less subject (pramiti bhava). By preserving this thought- less condition, the individual soul is not only united with the universe, but also with God (Lord Siva), who possesses the energies of all-consciousness (cit sakti), all-bliss (ananda sakti), all-will (icchasakti), all-knowledge (jnana sakti), and all-action (kriya Sakti). Abhinavagupta's forthcoming exposition of Matrka cakra (the wheel of the Sanskrit alphabet) will intricately detail how Lord Śiva's energies form the very foundation and substance of the universe, while pratibimbavada (the Doctrine of Reflection) will illustrate how the universe exists within God consciousness, not outside of it. As the differentiated universe is manifested (srsti) from, and is maintained (sthiti) within, the undifferentiated and thought- less Self, the universe is not to be shunned-indeed cannot be shunned-but rather wholly accepted and recognized as what Swamiji eloquently calls "the commentary" of one's Self. The Doctrine of Spanda (vibration) explains that the thought-less (nirvikalpa) Self (Lord Śiva) throbs with samanya spanda (undifferentiated vibration of consciousness), which is the supremely rapid interplay between the shining of the light of its own consciousness (prakasa/Siva) and its uninterrupted Self-awareness (vimarsa/Sakti) therein. So rapid is this oscillation between prakasa and vimarsa that Swamiji has aptly described this highest form of spanda as "movement-less movement" where the knower (pramatr) and the known (prameya) are indistinguishable and are one. The thought-full (savikalpa) self (purusa), on the other hand, throbs with visesa spanda (differentiated vibration of consciousness) where the knower and the known are distinguishable and are many. "The elevated soul", Swamiji tells us, "takes hold of that samanya spanda, not visesa spanda; in the activity of visesa spanda, he takes hold of samanya spanda, so he is fine, he does not go down, he is not trodden down, from the kingdom of God consciousness. His kingdom of God consciousness is still prevailing there, in visesa spanda also." The means (upayas) of Kashmir Shaivism help the aspirant to take hold of samanya spanda within the field of visesa spanda and thereby recognize the immanence of the undifferentiated and thought-less Self within the world of differentiation. As Swamiji once joyfully exclaimed: "Look around. Thought-lessness is everywhere!"