गान्धर्व तन्त्र (शैव-शाक्त आगम - मन्त्र-रहस्य, यन्त्र एवं देवतोपासना सटीक)

mouth, nose, jaw, eye, ears, and cavity in the head goes by the name of Ashtānga, Touching the earth with the skull goes by the name of Ugra 17TH CHAPTER In the 17th Patala worship, in the nine component parts of Srīchakra, of the attendant deities classified under nine categories technically called Prakatayoginīs etc is given along with the description of the Mudrās and their use In the first part called Trailokyamohana represented by the three rectangles the worship is to be conducted from the right unlike other parts in which the left side is to be adhered to. In the external rectangle Buddha as the great Lord of Yoginīs is to be worshipped with the mantra बुं बुद्धाय नमः along with the ten psychic powers Animā etc The first four powers occupy the quarters beginning with the west, the second four the sub quarters beginning with the northwest and the last two come below and above The mantra to be used in the worship of a psychic power is ह्रीं श्रीं and the name of the psychic power and श्रीपादुकां पूजयामि In the inner rectangle the eight mothers Brahmānī etc and the eight Bhairavas, Asitānga etc. are to be adored In the innermost rectangle the Mudrā-devīs Sarvasankshobhinī etc. receive their worship For the description of Sarvasankshobinı-Mudrā see the text. The Bīja of the Mudrā is द्रां In the second part i e sixteen-petalled lotus bearing the name of Sarvāśāpūraka sixteen datal eternities, and Brahmā receive their worship. The mantra of Brahmā and the Bīja of Drāvinī-Mudrā to be shown here are respectively ॐ ब्रह्मणे नमः and द्रीं

In the third part i e. eight-petalled lotus called Sarvasankshobhana, Śiva and Umā, the eight Guptatara Yoginīs Anangakusumā etc are adored, Mantras of Śiva and Umā, eight Guptatara Yoginīs and the Bīja of the Mudrā are क्लीं शिवाय नमः, ह्रीं उमायै नमः, Gutturals, Palatals, linguals, dentals, labials, Semivowels, aspirates, ळ, क्ष and क्लीं In the fourth i e. fourteen-sided figure called Sarva- saubhāgyadāyaka the sun-god, the Sampradāya-yoginīs Sarvasankshobhinī etc and the Mudrā called Sarvavaśakarī come in The Bīja of the Mudrā is ब्लूं In the fifth i e external decagon called Sarvārtha- sādhaka Vishnu (as Hrīshīkeśa), Kulakaulayoginīs and Sarvon- mādakarī-Mudrā find their worship The mantra of Vishnu and the Bīja of the Mudrā are क्लीं हृशीकेशाय नम and सः In the sixth part i e inner decagon called Sarva- rakshākara, Vishnu (Trailokyamohana) Nigarbhayoginīs Sarvajñā etc. and the Mahānkuśa-Mudrā receive their worship The Bījas of Vishnu and the Mudrā are क्लीं and क्रों. In the 7th part i e octagon called Sarvarogaharā, Rahasya-yoginīs Vaśinī etc receive their worship The Mudrā to be exhibited is khecharī of which the Bīja is हसख्फ्रें In the eighth part i e the traingle called Sarva- siddhiprada Kāmeśvarī, Vajreśvarī and Bhagamālinī, the three shaktis respectively of Rudra, Vishnu and Brahma are to be worshipped in the apex, left and right sides of the traingle These Shaktis are called Atirahasya yoginīs. Mudrā to be exhibited there is Bīja-Mudrā of which the Bīja is ह्सौः.

In the 9th part i e centre of the traingle called Sarvānandamaya Parāpara-rahasya-yoginī i e. Tripurā bhairavī is to be worshipped along with Mokshasiddhi and the lion the vehicle of the goddess. The Mudrā to be shown is Yoni-Mudrā of which the Bīja is ऐं. The deity-in-chief is to be worshipped in all the eight previous parts under eight different names—Tripura, Tripureśvarī, Tripurasundarī, Tripuravāsinī, Tripurāśrī, Tripura- mālinī, Tripurasiddhā and Tripurambhā. For the description of the Mudrās see the text. 18TH CHAPTER. The 18th chapter gives a detailed description of Japa It is said to consist in the repeated muttering of certain syllables. Meditation on and muttering of the mantra are prescribed to be successive, both being necessary for acquiring psychic powers The rosary meant for Japa is to be considered as consisting of the letters of the alphabet in both the orders successive and reverse as also of their eight groups It therefore contains 108 beads In absence of the rosary a devotee is to keep an account of his mutterings by using finger-joints The mid joint of the ring-finger is to serve as the starting point. Top and mid-joints of the index finger are to be avoided. The rosary made of crystal etc before being used for Japa is to be placed either in front or on the left hand and then to be sanctified with proper worship after being besprinkled with water The mantra of Mālā is

ऐं मां माले महामाले सर्वशक्तिस्वरूपिणि। चतुर्वर्गस्त्वयि न्यस्तस्तस्मात् मे सिद्धिदा भव After being so purified in the said manner, it is to be held in the right hand with the mantra ग्लौ अविघ्न कुरु माले त्वम् Care is to be taken in rotating it in a cautious manner, so that it may not slip down from the hand. The rosary along with Yantra, mantra and mudrā is strictly prohibited from being shown to any body The Index finger is not to be at all used in its rotation The five fingers thumb to the little finger are to be used in the Japa respectively meant for emancipation, destruction of the enemies, earning of wealth, pacification and attraction Vīrāsana is helpful to Japa Japa is of three kinds loud, low and mental, the loud being inferior to the low, and the latter to the mental It is to be done neither too quick nor too slow with the mind entirely withdrawn from the sense-objects Unlike a hymn, Japa is always to be mental in the case of Shrī- vidyā The minimum number of times that Japa is to be done comes to 108, the middle to a thousand and the maximum to ten thousand Rules to be observed in Japa are that the practitioner is lightly-dressed, must not have his hands wrapped up with cloth and must have his head naked and free from cares, be neither, angry nor hasty, neither diseased, nor hungry. He must above all have his mind concentrated

Japa at the end is dedicated to Śrīvidyā. Praṇava (Oṁkāra) as forming the essence of the Vedas is to precede and follow Japa is always to be accompanied with Homa (Sacrifice) Offerings in the Homa should be equal to the 10th part of the mutterings of Japa. In case a practitioner be not in a position to do Homa he is advised to mutter the Mulamantra twice the number of the offerings of Homa Worship offered to the deity with the various prescribed articles helps the practitioner to get desirable objects determined in each case by the former. The latter are described at length in the text The nine Mudrās are to be exhibited at the beginning and end of the worship. The following things lead to success in worship - Solitude, Spiritual purity, abundant purity of the worshipping material, presence of sweet-smelling substances, mental fortitude, affableness of manners, nobility of disposition, beautiful dress, devotional tone etc. 19th CHAPTER. In the 19th chapter worship and offering to Vaṭuka, Yoginīs, Kshetrapāla and Gaṇeśa are described The latter are to be located in the four diagrams drawn in, north- east, south-east, south-west and north-west of the seat of Shrīchakra. Offering is to consist of various edible (kind of meat) fish, sugar, curd, milk and flour Vaṭuka is to be meditated upon as dwarfish, lotus- eyed, gold-yellow and four-armed bearing in the hands mace,

conch, lotus and disc The mantras of worship and offering to Vatuka with the left hand thumb and ring-finger are ब्लों बटुकाय नम एह्येहि देवीपुत्र बटुकनाथ कपिलजटाभारभास्वर त्रिनेत्र ज्वा- लामुख सर्वविघ्नान् नाशय नाशय सर्वोपचारसहितं बलिं गृह्ण गृह्ण स्वाहा, Yoginīs These are of optional bodily form, gold- yellow wearing the garland of skeletons, dressed in red and bearing in arms liṅga, noose, skull and goad Mantra of the offering with the left hand thumb, mid finger and ring finger is या योगिनीभ्य सर्ववर्णयोगिनीभ्यो हुं फट् स्वाहा, Kshetrapāla He is described as collyrium-black and bearing sword, skull, trident and small hand-drum Mantra of the offering with the left hand fisted and having the index finger stretched is क्षांक्षींक्षूंक्षैंक्षौंक्षः क्षेत्रपाल धूपदीपादिसहितं बलिं गृह २ स्वाहा, Gaṇeśa He is described as elephant-headed, four- armed, naked, big-bellied, holding noose, goad, and skull-bowl filled with wine, with shakti in the lap Mantra of the offering with the left hand fisted having the mid finger raised up is गांगींगूं गणपतये वरवरद सर्वजन मे वशमानय बलिं गृह २ स्वाहा After making offerings to various kinds of beings the practitioner is to offer himself with the Mantra इतःपूर्व etc and the prayers imploring the goddess to accept the offerings overlooking the errors of commission and omission Towards the end of the chapter it is described how the Sādhaka has first to immerge the attendant deities in the goddess and then the goddess herself with the help of Prāṇāyāma withdrawn

from the outside world in the lotus of his own heart Soshikā the goddess that is entitled to the Nirmālya receives the practitioner's attention at the end. 20th CHAPTER In this Soshikā is described at length. Her Mantra is given in two forms as follows.- (a) उच्छिष्ट etc (b) ऐं ह्रीं etc. She is described as seated on a corpse, dressed in red, bearing in two arms skull-bowl and scissors The practitioner of her Mantra is to make offerings to her and soon after taking food and without washing his body mutter her mantra. Her Homa and Tarpana are to be performed in a rectangle drawn on the ground with curd, white mustard and rice. By offering various kinds of meat in the fire in her name the practitioner acquires certain desired objects These are detailed in the text 21st CHAPTER. In the above the last rites of worship are described The practitioner is first of all advised to offer Nirmālya to Ucchishtamātangī or Śoshikā taking care that no drop falls down on the earth The water in the conch is to be held in the left hand and after sanctifying the same with mutterings of the mantra the body is to be besprinkled with the same water through the right hand Washings of the feet of the goddess are to be drunk and

the remainder is to be used in rubbing the head and the remaining parts Arghya is offered to the Sun-god with his mantra for completing the ceremony. In this the knees of the worshipper are to touch the ground and the mind to be concentrated Salutation to and seeing of the sun are to begin and end the ceremony The place where the vessels have been arranged should be duly washed with the water and the washing should be thrown into the water or near the root of a tree After offering the food to the preceptor and his wife or in their absence to the girls, the remaining part of the same should be eaten by the devotee Such a food is considered as Amrita. Sipping water before and after is necessary as also reciting the following prayer - शिवो दाता शिवो भोक्ता etc Ladies and Brahmins are to be fed each time the worship is performed Offering of food to the peceptor, girls, Brahmins and cows helps to remove the sin of errors committed in worshipping In doing Japa the concentration of the mind is to be aimed at by believing in and feeling identity with Śrīvidyā either as transcendent or as immanent 22nd CHAPTER This chapter describes the duties of a Sādhaka. These are - (1) Realisation of the Supreme Reality as identical with the individual soul. Anything offered with this conviction receives sacredness (2) The worship of Tripurā

It is to be done either as Nitya or as Naimittika or as Kāmya By the first is meant that which is done every- day and omission of which is sinful By the second is meant that which is done occasionally with a definite end in view and failure in the performance of which is attended with the evil consequences The last denotes that kind of worship which is done avowedly to gain some object. In rendering all these kinds of worships it is to be kept in view that nothing is done contrary to the popular usage Worship in all its forms if done without any desire to gain this or that object is viewed as Sāttvika (3) Performance of the acts that are prescribed for him by the Shruti and Smriti such as service to the parents and entertainment of frien- ds and relations, maintenance and protection of the dependents, preservation of peace and order with a view to honouring the righteous and punishing the wicked (4) Meditation upon Tripura Sundari and Tripura Bhairva four times a day in the morning, mid-day, evening and mid night 23rd CHAPTER This describes the importance of worshipping the girls, their prescribed ages and the way in which they are to be worshipped Maidens also are mentioned in this chapter to receive the worship of the practitioner as representing the eight mothers Brāhmi etc.

24th CHAPTER It describes the importance and fruit of offering worship to the girls and the Prāyaścitta or penance that is to be done by the devotee when he misses performance of the daily worship. It lays stress on the daily worship as compared with the occasional or purposeful and instructs that, on the 14th, 8th or 15th days of the bright half of the month as also on the 14th day of the dark half falling on Tuesday Yajna or sacrifice should be offered to Tripurā. Yajna is considered as a body in which meditation, worship, muttering of the mantra and Homa constitute the four hands, devotion head, faith heart, skill in action eyes, knowledge of the Ātman the soul and Nyāsas the remaining parts of the body. Such a 14th day of the dark-half of the month on which Tuesday and the constellation Tishya fall simultan- eously is the most sacred day for the devotee of Tripurā. 25th CHAPTER This chapter is devoted to the description of the sacred spots in India and the merits that a devotee gains by offering worship in these places. The sacred places are river banks, caves, mountain tops, sources of water, confluences of rivers, forests, gardens, mountain feet, Tulasī-groves, cow- sheds, root of the Aśvattha or Āmalakī, temple of Shiva,

shore of ocean, solitary places and those where the preceptor lives or which help in the concentration of the mind, the cities of Benares and Dwārikā, the Vindhya mountain, Āryāvarta, Brahmāvarta, Prayāga, Pushkara, the river Karatoyā, Nandi kunda etc It also tells that the devotee is not held back from worship by the consideration of impurity arising from death or birth and that he should offer worship mentally in times of such a calamity 26th CHAPTER It deals with Dīkshā or initiation. It is necessary for the practitioner of mantras because it imparts right knowledge and removes sins Before having been done by man to man initiation was started by the holy line of nine divine teachers, viz Prakāśa, Vimarśa, Ānanda, Jñāna, Satya, Purna, Svabhāva, Pratibha, Subhaga, the first three living eternally in heaven, the middle three partly in heaven and partly on earth and the last three only on earth These receive their worship between Vimalā and Jayani in Shrīchakra Qualifications are laid down of both the initiator and the initiate The former among other things must have all good qualities = be free from vanity, greedless, healthy, pure, speaking truth and knowing sacred laws of the Tantras The latter must be orthodox, merciful, attached to the teacher, considerate and greedless. He should aviod all acts of indecency especially when in

presence of the teacher and should have as much faith in him as in his own God or Mantra and be respectful towards him The months which are described for initiation are given in the following order of importance:- Assoon, Katak, Baisakh, Phagan, Maghar, Chet, Har, and Magh Days of the lunar reckoning and the week days prescribed for the said purpose are 15th, 5th, 2nd, 7th, and 13th and 10th and Sunday, Thursday, Friday, Monday and Wednesday. The initiation is said to be of three kinds that of mantras, that of Shakti and that of Shiva. The first involves the use of mantras, worship, postures, meditation and con- centration etc The second has a reference to that in which the initiator infuses his own spiritual power in the initiate. The third is that in which a spiritualist par excellence sanctifies the person with no regard to qualifications merely by his glance to the extent that the Reality becomes visible to him. The end of the chapter explains the details of initiation such as selection and preparation of a place for initiation, making offerings to Vāstupāla together with the Vedic recitation and blessings of the learned Brahmins, sowing of seeds, and rendering worship to the Dikpālas with a view to invoking their help in performing initiation, puri- fication of the place, Shrichakra and the disciple with

Panchagavya, performing Homa and disclosing the mantra called Svapnamānava, i e , हिलि हिलि शूलपाणये स्वाहा to the disciple and putting him to sleep afterwards The disciple is instructed to carefully remember the dreams good or bad he has seen in sleep The good dreams are those in which the objects seen are a girl, an umbrella, a chariot, a lamp, a palace, a river, saffron etc Bad dreams on the other hand involve reference to an ass a crow, ditch etc The preceptor has to make a hundred offerings with the Astra matia in case the initiate sees bad dreams 27th CHAPTER This also is devoted to the description of initiation The seeker after initiation is to approach the initiator with the request for initiation after having duly done worship to gods and the manes Initiator is to enter the pavilion raised for the purpose and instal a water-pot of gold or silver or copper on the Shrichakra drawn on the earth The water-pot is to be filled with fragrant substances and certain herbs and varieties of earth, and wrapped with a couple of cloths The same is to be placed on a stand. The stand, the water-pot and the water respectively representing the Fire, the Sun and the Moon are to receive worship through their Kalās. The candidate for initiation is asked after this

to fill his hands with flowers and throw them so as to see whether their throw is in the auspicious direction or other- wise In the latter case the initiator is to ward off the evil by performing a Homa After performing worship to the attendant deities of Tripurasundarī sacrificial food is to be prepared of which a part is to be offered to her and the rest to the fire, care being taken that the fire is ablaze The candidate is to have his face covered with a cloth and then be besprinkled with the water from Viśeshārghya and the initiator is to request the goddess to be kind to the candidate and inspire him with her devotion After this he has to receive instructions from the initiator as to the line of action he should follow in future The initiator should imagine that the fetters of sins binding the body of the candidate have been burnt down with the fire of kuṇḍalinī rising from the Mulādhāra to the Brahmarandra and also enter his body through the Yogic power and unite his soul with his own After having him seated on a diagram of the alphabet, the initiator should bathe him with the water of the water-pot, muttering the three Bījas of the Mūlamantra and then dress him and oint him with sandal-wood and other pastes He should also instruct the candidate to perform the Mātrikā-nyāsa and the Mantra-nyāsa at the end of which his face is to be unveiled and he sees things required for the worship and takes food, while muttering the mantras of

the Tattvas, with the Mudrā of morsels. Then the initiator acquaints him with the mantras of the Guru and Bālā and the mantra of the candidate's choice or all mantras atonce In doing the latter the initiator keeps his foot on the head of the candidate He also gives him a new name of initiation consisting of two or three syllables with the word आनन्दनाथ coming at the end Having thus brought him up to the same footing with himself in the spritual sphere, the initiator should embrace him and smell him on the head In order to keep his own spritual power intact the teacher should also perform the Japá of the Mulamantra one thousand and eight times The candidate should offer due and costly presents so that his teacher may be satisfied

28th CHAPTER

In this are given the instructions regarding Purash charana which is necessary for obtaining success in the mantra Purashcharna means performance of the Japa of a mantra either one thousand and eight times or fiftythou- sand times This is necessary to remove the obstacles due to lack of faith, scepticism and the demerits of the previous lives This may be done either by the disciple or by the teacher or by some worthy Brahmin in some sacred place either on the 14th or the 8th or the 15th day of the dark half of the month The practitioner is to keep a fast for

the previous day and perform worship to Brahmins or teachers, Gaṇeśa, mother deities ad manes. The Japa is to be done in a suitable place which is to be selected carefully by testing the same with the help of the diagram called Kur- machakra consisting of nine sections in which the alphabet or the Mātṛkā is arranged in a prescribed manner The rosary to be used is to consist of the beads of pearl, crystal etc Beads may number a hundred, fifty or twentyeight One of them which stands for the Meru should be the biggest, the rest being gradually smaller in size and each bead should have a knot The holy articles of food such as curd, milk, Ghee etc should be taken and those of the opposed character should be avoided The practitioner should also observe sleeping on the earth, celibacy, silence, absence of envy, three daily baths, avoidance of mean acts, daily worship, daily charity, praising of the deity, occasional worship, reliance on the teacher and the deity and avoid the company of and eating with women, Sudra, outcast etc, lying, cheating, deceitful talk, hearing the music and seeing a dance etc Japa should not be done when the doer is without a Pavitra in the hand naked, with the head covered, without a seat, asleep, going or standing in the street, dark places or talking It should not be continued on seeing, talking to and hearing an outcast, sneezing, discharging the wind and yawning Everyday such an amount of Japa should be done from the morning till midday as has been fixed per day

44 There should not be a pause of even one day in the period of Puraścharana. At the end of Japa the offering should be made to the extent of its 10th part in the puri- fying fire. Tarpaṇa, Mārjana and the feeding of the Bramins should be done respectively to the extent of the 10th part of the Homa, 10th part of the Tarpaṇa and the 10th part of the Mārjana. The five acts of a sacred bath, purging of the sins, offering water to the Sun, sipping of water and Prāṇāyāma come after the above. The large scale worship is to be conducted at the end to complete the Puraścharana. There is yet another way of performing the same. According to this the practitioner is to keep a fast previous to the day on which a Solar or Lunar eclipse falls and stand in the river navel-deep and mutter the mantra during the time of the eclipse, and after having done so perform Homa etc. 29th CHAPTER In the above the practitioner is instructed to mutter the mantra of Devi with his wife at the time of midnight, because anything done of religious merit at this time has got far greater significance than if done at others. Perfor- mance of Japa nine-hundred-thousand times of Devi is calculated to qualify the practitioner for approach to her. This is to be done in the following manner:-

Three-hundred-thousand times when the practitioner has to concentrate his mind upon Kundalinī in the Mūlādhāra centre coiling herself round a phallic mass of light called Svayambhu. Again three hundred thousand times in the heart with the mind fixed on Kundalinī with the Liṅga as above called Bāna. Lastly the same number of times in the head with attention fixed on Kundalinī with the Liṅga called Itara. Mind loses its separate entity and becomes one with the object of meditation when Japa is performed a crore times. The serpent power lying dormant is to be awakened and raised from centre to centre in the body of the practitioner and these centres number nine and are located in the Mūlādhāra, Liṅga, navel, heart, throat, middle of the eyebrows and so on. The practitioner is advised further to see that the mantra when muttered is not subjected to the impurity, attendant on birth and death. Each breath before its beginning and termination is said to have this pollution. Immunity from such impurity is obtained by that practitioner who knows the meaning of the mantra, the life of the mantra and the Yonimudrā. The meaning of the mantra of Devī Tripurasundarī is said to be sixfold, i. e., literal meaning, traditional meaning, inner meaning, Kaulika meaning, occult meaning and real meaning. According to the literal meaning, the mantra is to be understood as implying the union of Śiva and Śakti because

44 There should not be a pause of even one day in the period of Puraścharaṇa At the end of Japa the offering should be made to the extent of its 10th part in the puri- fying fire Tarpana, Mārjana and the feeding of the Bramins should be done respectively to the extent of the 10th part of the Homa, 10th part of the Tarpana and the 10th part of the Mārjana The five acts of a sacred bath, purging of the sins, offering water to the Sun, sipping of water and Prāṇāyāma come after the above The large scale worship is to be conducted at the end to complete the Puraścharaṇa There is yet another way of performing the same According to this the practitioner is to keep a fast previous to the day on which a Solar or Lunar eclipse falls and stand in the river navel-deep and mutter the mantra during the time of the eclipse, and after having done so perform Homa etc 29th CHAPTER In the above the practitioner is instructed to mutter the mantra of Devī with his wife at the time of midnight, because anything done of religious merit at this time has got far greater significance than if done at others. Perfor mance of Japa nine-hundred-thousand times of Devī is calculated to qualify the practitioner for approach to her. This is to be done in the following manner:-

Three-hundred-thousand times when the practitioner has to concentrate his mind upon Kundalinī in the Mūlādhāra centre coiling herself round a phallic mass of light called Svayambhu. Again three hundred thousand times in the heart with the mind fixed on Kundalinī with the Liṅga as above called Bāṇa. Lastly the same number of times in the head with attention fixed on Kundalinī with the Liṅga called Itara. Mind loses its separate entity and becomes one with the object of meditation when Japa is performed a crore times. The serpent power lying dormant is to be awakened and raised from centre to centre in the body of the practitioner and these centres number nine and are located in the Mūlādhāra, Liṅga, navel, heart, throat, middle of the eyebrows and so on. The practitioner is advised further to see that the mantra when muttered is not subjected to the impurity, attendant on birth and death. Each breath before its beginning and termination is said to have this pollution. Immunity from such impurity is obtained by that practitioner who knows the meaning of the mantra, the life of the mantra and the Yonimudrā. The meaning of the mantra of Devī Tripurasundarī is said to be sixfold, i.e., literal meaning, traditional meaning, inner meaning, Kaulika meaning, occult meaning and real meaning. According to the literal meaning, the mantra is to be understood as implying the union of Śiva and Śakti because