परमार्थसार (महामाहेश्वर अभिनवगुप्त - त्रिक-दर्शन, अद्वैत शैव साधना एवं सान्वय सटीक)

Preface Kashmir Śaivism is a highly perfect school of Indian philosophy, but has remained more or less confined to the valley of Kashmir. Scholars in Indian plains and the South developed interest in it as late as the present century. The subject is now gaining popularity at some universities in north India as well as in the West. But the main difficulty in the spread of the study of its important works is the non-availability of an easy textbook that could pave the path to explore its finer and sophisticated principles and doctrines discussed in some very important works like Śivadṛṣṭi, Īśvara- pratyabhijñā, Tantrāloka etc. It appears that Abhinavagupta, the final authority on Kashmir Śaivism, must have felt such lacuna in the academic development of the subject. Why should he have otherwise taken so much interest in recasting and re-editing the Vaiṣṇavite Paramārthasāra of Patañjali for the purpose of expressing through it most of the main principles of the theistic and monistic absolutism of Kashmir Śaivism, by the means of an easy and simple method, not over burdened by terse logical arguments and discussions? That Paramārthasāra by Abhinavagupta has been serving students of Kashmir Śaivism as an easy textbook of a comprehensive character for centuries in the past. Students of Śaivism in Kashmir have all along been using such work as a textbook at the initial step of their study in the subject. Paramārthasāra of Abhinavagupta, being available only in Sanskrit language, could not at present serve the purpose of common man interested in the study of Kashmir Śaivism. It required to be brought out in English and Hindi with explanatory notes for such purpose. The author of the work in hand prepared such two editions of the text some years back. But both the manuscripts remained unpublished for all these years for want of a publisher prepared to invest a good amount for the purpose. Thank God, the director, Munshiram Manoharlal Publishers