Sandhabhasha

Symbolic language used in tantra, a
secret, ritually based religious practice. The literal translation of the term
is disputed; it is often translated as
“twilight language” because of its
shadowy and mysterious character,
but Agehananda Bharati is emphatic
that the term means “intentional language.” The elements of tantric worship and practice are described in a
coded language drawn from the parts
and functions of the human body considered private by most standards.
Such coded discourse is used to hide
the tradition’s essentials from noninitiates and also to project the speakers
into an altered understanding. For
noninitiates, such language reinforces
the general conception of tantric practitioners as completely debased.
Douglas R. Brooks reports in The
Secret of the Three Cities, 1990, that
although widely used in Buddhist
tantra, Sandhabhasha is less common
among Hindus, who for their coded
language favor using common words
with contextually technical meanings.
For further information see Swami
Agehananda. Bharati, The Tantric
Tradition, 1977; Appendix A in Linda
Hess and Shukdev Singh (trans.), The
Bijak of Kabir, 1983; and Douglas
Renfrew Brooks, The Secret of the Three
Cities, 1990.