27 The Worship of Kali According to the Todala Tantra

Sanjukta Gupta

To many Hindu Bengalis, Kali is the most important divinity. Identified with the great Goddess, Devi Bhagavati, she subsumes all other goddesses. She is held to be equal in status to Durga and their annual festivals, which occur close to each other, are celebrated with the greatest grandeur: feasts are held, gifts are ex

changed, and new clothes are worn in honor of the Goddess. Both Durga and Kali, facets of the same supreme Goddess, are fierce and aggressive. The Goddess is the embodiment of the divine power, potency, and dynamism. After the great dissolution of the worlds she regenerates the creation and sustains it until the time arrives when she must withdraw it into herself. She possesses both negative and positive elements in her divine personality. She is the nurturing Mother of created beings as well as the sovereign cosmic ruler who maintains cosmic law and order through her invincible power and irresistible energy. She punishes the evil and rewards the righteous. Above all, she protects all her creatures and is especially kind and sweet to her loyal devotees, like an indulgent mother to her devoted children.

The cult of Kali has a long history of development in which her character has undergone many changes. In an essay on “Saivism and the Tantric Tradition,” Alexis Sanderson explains that in the ninth and tenth centuries C.E., the Kashmiri Tantric exegetes classified and systematized Tantric texts according to the various cults, mainly of goddesses and fearsome gods. The main emphasis was on specific mantras and esoteric practices associated with those mantras, one of which is called the Seat of Awareness (vidya-pitha). The texts dealing with the most esoteric Kali cults are associated with the vidya-pitha. The practices they prescribe include the so-called left-hand tradition (vama-marga), antinomian practices that involve alcohol, blood, and sex; these came to be called Kaula practices. The name vidya. here denotes esoteric mantras that are considered embodiments of the supreme knowledge or awareness that is indeed Kali. Here she is called Kali not because of her dark complexion but because she absorbs and transcends Time (tola), and is thus the eternal transcendent reality (Kalasamkarsini). Kali thus became the464 SANJUKTA GUPTA

supreme godhead of this cult transcending even Siva. This Kali cult developed through various streams and survived in the cult of Guhyakali, worshiped in Nepal as Guhyesvari and in Mithila (Bihar) even today (Sanderson 1990: 138- 54). At the same period in Kashmir, there grew up a strong parallel Tantric cult known as the cult of the three goddesses, the Trika. They are Para, transcendent; Parapara, transcendent as well as material; and Apara, material. The second and the third are related to the cosmic process of creation; the second is the state in which the transcendent unity of reality is disturbed and the goddess experiences the stir of polarized existence within herself, which heralds the next moment in the cosmic evolution of diverse creation.

As Sanderson points out, these two cults affected one another. “The cult of the three goddesses and that of Kali were not sealed off from each other in the manner of rival sects. The Jay adrathayamala shows that the devotees of Kali had developed their own versions of the cult of the three goddesses. The Trika in its turn assim

ilated these and other new and more esoteric treatments from the left. Conse quently we find a later Trika in which Kalasamkarsini has been introduced to be worshipped above the three goddesses of the trident” (Sanderson 1990: 146). This tendency continued throughout the history of the Kali cult and is clearly noticeable in the Sakti-samgama Jantra (1.1.28-47), in which the three goddesses of the vidyas - Kali, Tara, and Chinna, that is, Chinnamasta - form a kind of triad. Indeed, Sanderson has described how the adherents of the Kali cult inter preted the name Kali. “So, as Abhinavagupta tells us in his Tantraloka, the auton omous consciousness which is the Absolute is called Kali (i) because it throws, in the sense that it projects the universe, causing to appear as though beyond it . . . ; (ii) because through it the projection returns to (‘goes to’) its identity as cognition . . . ; (iii) because it knows the projected, in the sense that it represents it as identical with its own identity . . . ; (iv) because it enumerates the projection, in the sense that it distinguishes each element from all the others within its own unity . . . ; and (v) because it sounds, in the sense that when it has dissolved the projection it continues as the resonance of internal self-awareness” (Sanderson 1990: 164).

In the Mahavidya cult, the primary goddess-emanations from Kali the supreme and absolute consciousness form a horizontal triad at the cosmic differentiated level, that is, Mahamaya, Sundarr and Bhairavi, to replace the Puranic triad of Brahma, Visnu, and Rudra/Siva (Brown 1974: 118-80). Although Brahma and so on were not totally removed from their cosmic functions, they moved to a subservient position.

The Todala Tantra, translated below, was probably composed relatively late, in the fourteenth century C.E, It is a small Tantra that contains ten chapters (patalas) with 398 verses. It became very popular in Bengal, especially in the early modern period, and has been quoted as a scriptural authority in many Bengali priestly handbooks such as the Purohita-darpana on the ritual worship of Daksina Kali, also called Adya Kali. Our text is mainly interested in the ritual worship of Kali and other Mahavidyas. It mentions all the Mahavidyas, who are here more than

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ten in number, and also mentions their companions, who are different manifes tations of Siva. It succinctly gives all the ritual sequences needed for the worship of the first two Mahavidyas, including the esoteric formulas (mantras) and the accompanying process of meditation (see Gupta 1977: 125-57). It also records a complete program of Siva worship with mantras and so on, which seems to be the same for every manifestation. According to it, it is imperative to worship Siva immediately after worshiping the relevant Mahavidya.

In the traditional way, the text is presented as a dialogue between Siva and his divine spouse Parvati, who is the pupil and the interlocutor, whereas Siva is the teacher of the sacred science (sastra). Very little theological or ontological dis cussion is found in the text, though often it refers to the ultimacy of Kali. The text gives important information about the esoteric meaning of the mantras of the first three Mahavidyas and the practice of Tantric yoga; the esoteric kundalini yoga receives special treatment. Inheriting the Krama tradition of monistic power theism (sakti-advaya), the Todala Tantra asserts that esoteric yoga is higher than esoteric rituals, as the latter involve differentiated awareness whereas yoga does not. This is elaborated by means of a description of kundalini-yoga, giving a detailed parallel of the microcosm with the macrocosm. Kundalini-yoga leads to release from samsara as the yogin becomes one with the Goddess, having severed the veil of delusion, maya, by means of vidya. In connection with esoteric yoga practice, our text gives three important yogic postures: the yoni mudra, svalpa yoni mudra, and kakicancu mudra. All are postures for practicing kundalini yoga, where controlling the flow of air in the body by blocking all natural outlets of air is of the highest importance. Although it presents mantras and rituals concerning the Mahavidyas, the treatment is so brief that the text needs to be supplemented by other handbooks, such as the Tantrasara of Krenananda or Kaulavalinirnaya of Jnananandagiri (see Goudriaan and Gupta 1981: 139, 144).

In order to understand the theological background of our text, we have to turn to other scriptural sources from the medieval period (roughly 1200 to 1800 C.E.). They mainly belong to eastern India, and some may be from Bengal. By this time the Tara-Ugratara-Ekajata cult of the Buddhist Tantric tradition merged into the Kali and other Mahavidya cults presented in the Todala Tantra. To understand the history and nature of Kali, the supreme Goddess, in eastern India in the medieval period (roughly 1200 C.E. to 1800 C.E.), three texts can be considered the most important. One is the Sakti-samgama Tantra (SsT), a large compendium of the rituals and mantras and other esoteric practices associated with Kali and her other manifestations. This text, as well as the Tantrasara and the Devima hatmya (DM), which constitutes the final section of the Markandeya Purana, have shaped the Tantric philosophy, theology, and practice of the Kali cult in Bengal. There the Devimahatmya is simply called Candi (the fierce lady), and devout Tan

tries recite it daily. In fact Kali’s iconography, as followed by the traditional image makers, shows traces of the description of the goddess Kali in that text. The Devimahatmya represents Kali as a minor emanation of the Goddess, a demonic figure, fearsome and grotesque. Having emanated from the angry third

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eye of the supreme Goddess to help the Goddess in her battle against the demon host of Sumbha and Nisumbha, she was employed to lick up every drop of blood of Raktabija, the demon general. Raktabija’s peculiarity was that even a drop of his blood shed on the earth produced countless clones. Kali’s lolling tongue sym

bolizes this blood-licking task. Her demonic nature is also symbolized by her fangs and by the countless severed heads and limbs dripping blood that cover her body. She is intoxicated by drinking blood, and in her frenzy she laughs loudly, baring her upper teeth.

The Kalika Purana (KP), on the other hand, describes Kali as possessing a soothing dark complexion, as perfectly beautiful, riding a lion, four-armed, hold ing a sword and blue lotuses, her hair unrestrained, body firm and youthful (KP 5.52). A third view is found in such Tantric texts as the Sakti-samgama Tantra, where Kali, naked, is seated on the supine body of Siva, immersed in the pleasure of reverse sexual intercourse with him. These three separate views of the supreme goddess Kali have influenced her modern iconography, although the third variety, the goddess seated on the inert body of Siva, is rarely used outside esoteric wor ship. In the Sakti-samgama Tantra, though, we get two quite different descriptions of Kali. In her supreme state, Kali is, as Sanderson describes, just the light of pure consciousness, but in the creating state she is depicted in a form more awe inspiring than charming.

The supreme Goddess is forever associated with the supreme god Siva, the pair forming an indivisible unit. But in this late tradition, Kali often supersedes Siva and acts independently to initiate creation. Although creation is based on her aspect as Maya, this often appears to be a biological activity. This point is em

phasized in the iconography of Kali and Tara, both of whom appear to be having coitus with Siva, who is lying like a corpse. Siva’s representation as a corpse emphasizes his total inertness and passivity in the act of creation; the initiative in creation belongs to the Goddess. Therefore Siva is not a corpse but is only de

picted as one. The Todala Tantra emphasizes this point. Kali’s association with Visnu as Visnu-maya is also underscored in this tradition. In order to enhance the supremacy of the Goddess, the Devimahatmya took over the early Vaisnava myth of the creation of the earth from the marrow and fat of two demons called Madhu and Kaitabha, and replaced Visnu with Devi as the slayer of the demons. The Kalika Purana, in fact, calls the cult of the supreme Goddess Vaisnavi Tantra, and the main mantra, which is a salutation to the supreme deity with some mystical syllables added, indeed addresses that deity: Om hrim srim vaisnavyai namam. This has been noted by Brown: “Thus does the Devi Bhagavati, although eternal, manifest herself again and again for the protection of the world, O King” (Devimahatmya 12.36), clearly echoing the famous description of Visnu/Krsna’s avataras in the fourth chapter of the Bhagavad Gita (Brown 1990: 133-34). Both the Todala Tantra and Sakti-samgama Tantra make some sort of equation between the ten avataras of Visnu and the ten great vidya emanations of the Goddess. Her closeness to Visnu/Krsna is often mythicized when she is cast as Visnu’s sister or the embodiment of Visnu’s maya. In late tradition the Goddess superseded all three cosmic gods - Brahma, Visnu, and Rudra.

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The Sakti-samgama Tantra describes the creative activity of the goddess Kali as follows: Daksina (compassionate) Kali, the primeval goddess, was dancing the dance of cosmic dissolution surrounded by howling jackals and other carrion devouring beasts. The destroyed universe lay at her feet like a heap of corpses. Kali is pure consciousness, totally transcendent, the unique Being. She subsumes both Siva and the divine Power, Sakti. At a certain primordial moment, Kali suddenly saw inside herself her own mirror image or shadow, which is indeed delusion, Maya. In that Maya, Kali created the imagined form of Siva, who became the primeval god and Kali’s spouse. Kali then created empty space, and the chaos of the destroyed universe disappeared as she engaged in sexual intercourse with Siva, taking the reverse position and the active role. After a long coitus, Kali produced one fetus, which developed into a perfectly beautiful girl whom Kali called Sundari, the beautiful lady. Her beauty completely deluded Siva, who wanted to put into words his agitation and longing. Siva’s longing and desire for self-expression produced Speech, which from its central unity developed into the system of sounds, letters, and language, and became all-pervasive. Siva, however, on creating Speech, first addressed the goddess Sundari as his heart’s desire, the loveliest in the three worlds, the exquisite sovereign deity and the ocean of nec tarlike compassion. Next Siva addressed Kali as most terrifying, howling like a jackal, cruel-fanged and fearfully ugly, with lolling tongue and frightening roar. As Siva uttered these two sentences addressing the two goddesses, Kali, as if offended, suddenly disappeared, leaving Siva with Sundari, the product of delu sion, to get on with the task of creation. Kali, who is transcendent and the essence of the creation, transformed herself into the abstract cosmic dynamic power. But Siva became utterly despondent and confused without Kali; therefore the com

passionate Kali removed Siva’s confusion and infused him with unimpeded cog nitive knowledge and desire to procreate. Moreover, in order to infuse him with power she taught Siva the method of Tantric kundalini yoga and gave him as his partner the beautiful goddess who is indeed the mother of the universe, Ambika, the cosmic Creatrix (SsT 1.1.22-45).

This myth neatly puts forward the idea that the transcendent supreme divinity is female; that she is the goddess Daksina Kali, who contains both the cosmic male and female polarity; that she is the sovereign cosmic ruler who regulates the system of creation; and that the creation is based on cosmic delusion, which is her mirror image. This divine delusion, named Maya or Mahamaya, is Kali’s divine capacity, which ensures that in spite of the perfect oneness of Kali and Siva, the latter is separated in an imaginary form by means of Kali’s delusory power. Siva is then deluded into thinking himself to be a separate divinity from Kali and so feels the attraction of the delusory image of Sundari. Thus the main idea of mo nism, which emphasizes the unity of a single universal essence, and establishes the illusoriness of the dualistic worldview, is put forward through a creation myth. The polarized male and female cosmic divinities are results of delusion. In reality, the supreme goddess Kali is unique and immutable, yet she is the source and foundation of all creation. Kali, the eternally existent Reality, transcends both creation and the dissolution of the creation. The appearance of her beautiful

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mirror image, Maya, heralds creation as an evolutionary process, and at that point of primeval creation Kali, the pure consciousness who exists beyond the reach of speech and phenomenal creation, disappears behind delusion and its influence - desire - and becomes the cosmic dynamic energy activating the ongoing process of creation. Siva at the point of creation is the primordial conscious entity, Purusa. He possesses vidya, omniscience, and iccha, sexual desire, to procreate; and he is called Sadasiva who, together with Sundari, becomes the primordial couple (SsT 1.1.103-6). In Tantric ontology, he is Siva-tattva, the cosmic self. The evolv

ing Sakti/Maya, who is identical with the supreme Goddess, is known as Vidya tattva. Together with the individual self, Atma-tattva, they constitute the cosmic realities who are ultimately one and same.

The nature of the supreme goddess, Mahadevi, and that of supreme delusion, Mahamaya, are expounded in the Devimahatmya. The Goddess is called Maha maya, the great delusion when she is seen as responsible for the unsatisfactory and transient nature of this life. The real cause of this is human desire for pos sesion and procreation, and Mahamaya deludes individuals by making desire their innate quality. But paradoxically the Goddess is also identified as supreme knowl edge, Vidya, which releases individuals from their bondage of desire and the consequent endless succession of lives and deaths. This is one of the many par adoxes that constitute the mystery of the Goddess’s divine nature.

Another important statement in Devimahatmya identifies Maya with Prakrti which, in the dualistic Samkhya philosophy, is the primordial evolving matter. This identity was first recorded in the Svetasvatara Upanisad (4.9-10). Coburn (1996: 34) explains this as follows: “On the basis of such passages (DM 1.59 and 4.6) it seems safe to say that the Devi” Mahatmya has shifted the focus of the Samkhya school and the Svetasvatara Upanisad by understanding prakrti not as the material shroud or possession of spirit but as itself supremely divine, as Devi herself." The Sakti-samgama Tantra (1.100) confirms this view by saying that the supreme Sakti, that is, the Goddess, is Prakrti whereas her mirror image is the evolving power Mahamaya. Thus Prakrti here refers to the supreme Goddess, who ultimately is the unique source and origin of all, there being nothing outside of her.

The Todala Tantra endorses this theological tradition in its accounts of the nature of the goddess Daksinakali and her other Vidya emanations. Other im portant texts for the development of Kali and her Mahavidya cult are the Cinacara krama Tantra, Matrka-bheda Tantra, Gupta-sadhana Tantra, Kalika Purana, Brahma-vaivarta Purana, Brahmanda Purana and other Tantric records of that pe riod. The salient feature of this tradition is the total supremacy of the goddess Kali. In the words of Brown (1990: 217-18),

of the two genders, the feminine represents the dominant power and the authoritative will in the universe. Yet both genders must be included in the ultimate if it is truly ultimate. The masculine and feminine are aspects of the divine, transcendent reality, which goes beyond but still encompasses them. The Devi, in her supreme

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form as consciousness thus transcends gender, but her transcendence is not apart from her immanence. Indeed this affirmation of the oneness of transcendence and immanence constitutes the very essence of the divine mother, as presented in the Purana (Devi-bhagavata). And here we see what may be called “the ultimate triumph” of the goddess in our text. It is not finally, that she is infinitely superior to the male gods - though she is that, according to the myths in the Devi-bhagavata - but rather that she transcends her own feminine nature as Prakrti without denying it.

The speciality of the Sakti-samgama Tantra myth is that it neatly puts forward just this point. Prakrti or the feminine source of the universe is Mahamaya, who is not Kali but her mirror image. Kali transcends her own evolving mirror image. In the universe of Mahamaya, both delusion and cognition function. In the case of Siva, his delusion is restricted to his sexual desire for Sundari, whereas his cognitive knowledge is otherwise untrammeled. In this sense, it is possible to find a parallel between the three goddesses Kali, Mahamaya, and Sundari and the three goddesses Para, Parapara and Apara of the Trika tradition. Sundari corresponds to the third deity of the Trika triad, that is, Apara (SsT 1.1.102). The Todala Tantra (1.7-8) confirms this with the statement that she is called the fivefold lady, Pancami, because she is differentiated as the five cosmic elements.

Kali and the Cult of the Ten Mahavidyas

The Todala Tantra describes the ritual worship of the ten sacred esoteric formulas, the Mahavidyas. The word vtdya has various Tantric connotations. The great God dess is Vidya because she is perfect knowledge unimpeded by any differentiated or discursive cognition - cognition without any reference to anything cognized. This pure cognition brings about release. Vidya also connotes an esoteric formula which, empowered by its Sakti deity, is capable of bestowing on its Tantric wor shiper great powers (bhukti) and eventually salvation (mukti). These ten Mahavi dyas or great mystic formulas are those of Kali, Tara, Sodasi (also known as Sundari or Tripurasundari, meaning the Beautiful One in the Three Worlds), Bhuvanesvari (Sovereign of the Three Worlds), Bhairavi or Tripurabhairavi (the Fierce Lady), Chinnamasta (the Beheaded Lady), Dhumavati (the Gray Lady, who is depicted in iconography as a widow with a crow as her symbol), Bagala (the goddess of battle), Matangi (the goddess of the hunter tribes), and Kamala (Laksmi). It is obvious that originally the number of formulas was not fixed at ten. Early texts, such as the Todala Tantra, mention a few other formulas, includ ing those of Durga, Annapurna, and Kulluka. The first two are universally popular goddesses, and the third became very important in the esoteric practices of the mantras and vidyas. The Sakti-samgama Tantra, being an encyclopaedic text, men tions both a group of ten Mahavidyas and also other lists of Mahavidyas not confined to ten members.

The importance of this group of great formulas and their power goddesses grew

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enormously in late Tantric, tradition and the goddess Kali became foremost amongst them. She is considered the original power deity, designated Adya, the primeval lady. The Todala Tantra deals only with the mantras and ritual worship of Kali and Tara, whereas Sundari is treated in a rather fragmentary fashion. But the full treatment of their mantras, especially the monosyllabic seed (bija) mantras, to some extent covers the other Mahavidyas too, except for Dhumavati. This last is a somewhat problematic figure: it is difficult to understand why she is included in this group of power goddesses. Like other ordinary deities, such as Ganesa, her seed mantra simply consists of the first syllable of her name, dhum. Thus, although the formulas of each of these goddesses are different, their identities are not always easy to determine and differentiate. It is also difficult to date the beginning of their popularity or the crystallization of the group of ten. The Brhad dharma Purana (BdhP) presents the myth of how the ten Mahavidyas appeared in the following manner:

Siva’s wife Sati heard that her father Daksa was arranging the performance of a huge sacrifice to which all the gods and other celestials were invited except herself and Siva. Incensed, she told her husband that she was going to her father’s sacrifice to teach him a lesson in sensible behaviour. Siva knew Daksa’s animosity toward himself and Sati, and feared that Sati would be insulted, with catastrophic results, and so tried to dissuade her from going. Sati became irritated, and changed into her true Kali form, which she had suppressed when she had agreed to be born as the beautiful daughter of Daksa and Prasuti, in order to marry Siva. Upon seeing her terrifying transformation, Siva became completely confused and began to run away. Even her reassuring words failed to stop him. Then the Goddess appeared in one of her manifestations in each of the directions as Siva tried to flee. Finally, at Siva’s request, the Goddess explained that she herself was the supreme reality Kali, the source of all phenomena. At the request of Daksa and his wife, she had manifested herself as their exquisitely beautiful daughter Sati and then married Siva. The ten manifestations who were blocking Siva’s way in every direction were her own vidya-manifestations. Before him, that is, to the east, appeared the Mahavidya Kali; above him, Tara; on his right (south), Chinnamasta; to his rear, (west), Bagala; on his left, (north), Bhuvanesvari; to his southeast, Dhumavati; to his southwest, Sundari; to his northwest, Matahgi; to his northeast, Sodasi; and immersed in his self was Bhairavi. At this revelation of the real identity and powers of the Goddess, Siva apologized to her for assuming spousal authority and stopped resisting her departure to her father’s home. As a result, Daksa was ruined, but escaped with his life; Sati, however, lost her life out of the anger and shame caused by her father’s actions (BdhP 2.6.65-89, 128-52).

Let us now attempt to find out who these ten Mahavidyas are. There seems to be nearly no difference between Kali and Tara in the eastern tradition. The Ma hacinacara-krama Tantra 2.37 explains that in the Mahacina tradition, antinomian practices are essential for Tara worship. The Todala Tantra agrees about these special features of Tara. Although the Todala Tantra prescribes for Tara’s worship the use of the five esoteric ingredients (meat, fish, alcohol, woman, and sexual

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fluids) that signify vamacara practice, it appears to believe that these practices are not essential for Kali worship. Perhaps this is why this text has been taken in Bengal to be the scriptural authority for the nonesoteric worship of Kali, both in temples and in private homes. Other texts like Brhat-nila Tantra and Maha-nirvana Tantra assert that these practices are essential for Kali worship. However, the Mahdcinacara-krama Tantra, having said that the four goddesses Daksina Kali, Tara, Sundari, and Bhairavi share the same style of worship, informs us in a later statement (2.38) that the latter two goddesses share another, presumably more orthodox, style of worship (that is, daksinacara), but that the former two must be adored with antinomian practices (that is, vamacara). In the Brhat-nila Tantra, Tara is called Nilasarasvati and is described as resting on the corpse, that is, Siva, in a fighting attitude with her left leg advanced and her right drawn back, young and smiling yet of awe-inspiring appearance, garlanded with severed heads, short, pot-bellied, powerful, and wearing a tigerskin. She has four arms and her tongue is lolling. She has flame-colored matted tresses held on the top of her head in a single mass on which the face of Aksobhya is placed. She is also addressed as Ekajata and Ugratara. The popular iconography of Kali, as already noted, is not very different from Tara’s, except for the hair: Kali’s hair is loose and disheveled. All these peculiar features of Tara show her close affinity with the Buddhist god dess Tara (Saviouress), who is very popular among the Buddhists of Tibet and other Himalayan regions. The Todala Tantra and Sakti-samgama Tantra also name Aksobhya as Tara’s spouse, although a curious myth is offered in the Todala Tantra to explain how Siva came to be known by that name. The Todala Tantra gives her seed mantra as strim. Another source, namely, the Pancaratra Laksmi Tantra, equates Tara with the supreme divine Power that is identical with Vac, the goddess Speech (Gupta 1972: 177-83; 286-96).

Sodasi and Bhuvanesvari are, it seems, variations of Sundari and Bala and be long to the cult of Tripurasundari or Lalita; on this, see the Parasurama-kalpa Sutra (PkS). Bhairavi alias Tripurabhairavi also belongs to the same cult. Chin namasta or the Beheaded Lady is depicted as a goddess standing in a fighting posture with her left leg forward and right leg drawn back. Her right hand holds a sword with which she has just severed her own head. Three streams of blood flow from her neck; that on her left is being drunk by a minor goddess called Dakini, that on her right by Varnini, and the middle one spouts upward and is being drunk by the goddess’s own severed head. She stands on a prone woman who is in coitus with a supine man lying under her. This couple is considered to be Madana, the god of sexual desire, and his wife Rati, sexual pleasure. The goddess is the embodiment of the powerful mantra hum, and is addressed as Vajravairocani, which again points to a Buddhist goddess (Kinsley 1997: 144- 66). A curious myth is recounted in Sakti-samgama Tantra 4.5.152-73 to explain this gory iconography. The goddess suddenly left her spouse Siva in the midst of their amorous play. When she reappeared, Siva asked her why she had disap peared so suddenly and why now she looked so pale. The goddess explained that she had had to go to bathe together with her friends Dakini and Varnini, who

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were hungry. After their bath, the goddess had provided meals for all three of them with her own blood as it gushed from her severed neck. Bagala or Bagalamukhi is a golden-complexioned form of Tripurasundari, the deity who presides over deadly weapons. It is difficult to identify Dhumavati, who is tall, dark, rough, and sick-complexioned. Her hair is thin and matted, and her disposition is restless and bellicose. She wears soiled clothes and rides a chariot with a banner displaying a crow. She is seen as an incarnation of all that is sordid, antisocial, and inauspicious in women, an antithesis of the goddess Sri. She is depicted as a widow, who has allegedly gobbled up her husband Siva in a fit of hunger. She was born from the smoking fire of the destruction of Daksa’s sacrifice and the death of Sati. Frowning, she howls desolately and carries a winnowing fan. Laksmana Desika, the commentator on the Saradatilaka Tantra (24.9-14), states that Dhumavati is the same goddess as Jyesthya.

The last two Mahavidyas are again familiar to the Lalita cult. Matangi is the same as Syamala in that cult. She is mainly considered to be the deity presiding over such fine arts as the power to compose poetry. She is exquisitely beautiful and is dark complexioned, but otherwise closely resembles Lalita in appearance (PkS 6.1-39). The tenth Mahavidya is goddess Laksmi alias Sri alias Kamala, the spouse of Visnu - although she too is closely related to the mantra of Tripurasundari.

Tantric Esoteric Practice

The Todala Tantra belongs to the corpus of Tantric scriptures that make up the Mantra marga or Mantra path. The term Mantra marga means the entire Tantric paradigm of ritual worship and meditation. Every mantra possesses a paradig matical ritual system of its own, a pattern that has become more or less fixed, with variations to fit the relevant mantra and its deity, as well as the performer’s intended application (Gupta, Hoens, and Goudriaan 1979: 121-57). Mantra marga is followed by Tantric practitioners for two broadly defined purposes: lib eration from the bondage of endless transmigration (samsara), or rewards such as supernatural power and achievements - mukti and bhukti respectively. The Todala Tantra is more concerned with mukti and hence does not deal with the esoteric worship of any Mahavidyas other than the first three: Kali, Tara, and Sundari (or Bhuvanesvari). Seekers of mukti are more respected than seekers of power and achievement, although the latter are held in awe and are much sought after by lay devotees for personal gain, such as protection from disease and mis fortune, and destroying enemies.

The four important constituents in such esoteric Tantric worship are the pre liminaries, invocation, ritual service, and conclusion.

Preliminaries. First, the divine is represented by esoteric formulas, hand gestures (mudras), symbols of the deity worshiped mainly on a diagram (yantra), and

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sometimes an image and a pitcher full of water. Second, the practitioner (sadhaka) must have been properly initiated by a competent sectarian guru. Third, the wor shiper, the symbol of the deity, and the objects used for offering must be physi cally and mystically purified. Fourth is the ritual of security. Tantric esoteric practices are considered to be full of dangers. Often they are personified as harm ful spirits that obstruct the worshiper’s every movement. Therefore the worshiper must take measures to remove these spirits from the sacred area of the ritual worship, by making threatening sounds; by stamping one’s foot, clapping, or snapping one’s fingers; by frowning and looking angry, and scattering threatening objects such as white mustard seeds; by making threatening gestures imitating shooting, and so forth. The fifth, and perhaps the most important, preliminary rite is called nyasa. This means the installation, limb by limb, of the sacred man tras, which are the sonic manifestation of the divine, onto the material body of the worshiper, thus replacing the mundane body of the worshiper with a sacred body. The same installation is performed onto the deity’s symbol for the same purpose.

Invocation. The goddess is invoked, first into the center or heart of the worshiper, and thence onto the seat he has ritually prepared for her adoration.

Ritual Service. The deity is first adored in meditative imagination, in which all the objects of offering are of an abstract nature. Next, the Tantric practitioner worships the Goddess with various objects of material enjoyment. This is followed by the service of the Goddess’s spouse, Siva, and then her entourage, the minor gods and goddesses encircling her. This is followed by the offering (ball), which in the Mahavidya cult almost always implies an animal sacrifice, that is, beheading an animal in front of the image. The animal offering is followed by a fire sacrifice. Then a short meditation is done by means of repeating the main mantra a certain number of times (japa). The ritual offerings culminate, for the followers of the vamacara, with the offerings of the five objects (meat, fish, etc.). Finally, the worshiper offers the deity all the merit he has accrued from performing the service. He also offers himself to the goddess. These last two ritual acts refer to two very important concepts: renunciation and loyal devotion. The first requires an utter annihilation of one’s ego and greed. Even the greed for accumulating merit for the ego-person must be destroyed. The second is rooted in the concept of bhakti, which came to mean total surrender to one’s adored deity. The devotee offers all that belongs to himself and then offers his individuality as well.

Conclusion. Having invoked a fierce manifestation of the Goddess and worshiped it with some parts of the already offered objects for his own success and that of his ritual service, the worshiper recites certain set formulas for his physical well being, and then recites hymns to the Goddess. Having partaken of a little of the offered food as the Goddess’s grace, the worshiper has fulfilled his daily obligatory ritual service of his Goddess and is free to follow his normal way of life.474 SANJUKTA GUPTA

Tantra Ritual Practice

The Todala Tantra does not discuss Tantric initiation, and indeed, it does not discuss any theological concepts at all. It starts by describing the procedure for the ritual worship of Kali. The first ritual act is to worship one’s guru mentally. The guru is identified with the supreme deity Kali when she is united with Siva immediately prior to creation. This text is meant for experienced Tantric practi

tioners who are versed in the Tantric meditation on the kundalini, the contracted and inert form of the creatrix goddess Kali as she remains immanent in every creature (Eliade 1969: 200-67). The aim of Tantric meditation is to arouse the kundalini by means of breath control (pranayama) and one-pointed meditation (dhyana) on the practitioner’s deity, who when awakened longs to unite with Siva and swiftly flies upward through the innermost passage of the practitioner’s yogic body, which contains six spiritual centers. At the top of this passage, just above the practitioner’s body, the creating Goddess is united with Siva, and this divine area, transcending the creation at a point prior to creation, is imagined as a sphere or a lotus with countless petals (sahasrara cakra). This united yet differentiated stance of the supreme Goddess and Siva is what the Tantric practitioner endeavors to understand and identify with. This is liberation because it transcends creation. The practitioner’s guru is already liberated and is thus one with this two-in-one divinity. Even before the practioner actually leaves his bed, he performs the kun dalinl meditation on his guru while repeating his name, declaring his total sub mission to him. Only then does he start his daily obligatory ritual acts (Gupta 1979: 130-39).

Bhutasuddhi

The next important ritual is the purification of the practitioner’s material body, which is composed of five cosmic elements (bhutasuddhi). This is again a form of meditation: the practitioner meditates on each of the five ontological elements, starting with the element of solidity/earth and ending with ether/undefined space. He eliminates each element by dissolving it into the element preceding it. Thus in his imagination he contracts the entire differentiated creation in its microcosmic form, arriving at the center of the countless-petaled lotus circle, where the energy of the Goddess burns away the impurities of his microcosm, eliminating any residual elements. Saturated and rejuvenated by the nectar produced by the coitus of the divine couple, the microcosm is recreated, pure and consubstantial with the divine. The import of such daily meditative rites as bhutasuddhi is to repeat the process of internalizing the theological explanation of salvation as a direct experience of one’s true identity with vidya, nondual pure awareness, which in turn is but the supreme goddess Kali in her transcendental form.

WORSHIP OF KALI 475 Mantra and Nyasa

After this renewed confirmation of his consubstantiality with Kali, the practitioner can replace his purified mundane body with the divine personality, that is, vidya, through the rite of nyasa. In this rite the mantras and their sonic source (matrka), the letters of the Sanskrit alphabet, are the most important concepts. Mantras are the sonic forms of their deities, just as the images are their visual forms. The mantras of Kali and Tara are therefore considered to be the mantra bodies of these two goddesses. The Todala Tantra explains the concept of the Goddess’s mantra physique in its sixth chapter. It is a Tantric custom to analyze the mantra of a deity into several components. The most important part is the seed or bija mantra. Mahavidyas like Kali or Tara have several such seeds, one of which is considered to be chief. The seed is the essence of a mantra. After the seed(s) comes the name of the deity. As the complete mantra is a sentence, the name is either inflected as a vocative, or is declined in the dative when it is followed by the term namas, which means “obeisance.” Conventionally, formulas known as vidyas are consid ered to be of feminine gender, which requires them to end in svaha. But in the case of the mantras found in the Todala Tantra, several seed mantras are often inserted before the word svaha. It is interesting to note that this word is used for offering Vedic oblations, and is mythologized as the name of the fire god Agni’s spouse. However, a practitioner receives his personal esoteric mantra from his guru who, knowing the initiate’s special disposition, chooses a specific variant of his chosen deity. This then becomes the initiated practitioner’s main or mula mantra. The main mantra, which is considered the full physical form of its deity, is divided into six main limbs (angas). These are the heart, the head, the tuft of hair, the eyes, the weapon, and the armored torso. These six limbs symbolize the deity’s entire body. In the rite of nyasa the worshiper first invests his hands and fingers with sacred formulas and then invests his six limbs with the same parts of his main mantra. Because the supreme goddess is Vac, Speech, the worshiper uses the matrka mantra for some specific nyasa, since that is the Goddess’s pri mordial manifestation. In the worship of Kali, matrka nyasa is performed in six different ways.

Mudra

Mudra has more than one meaning. Its primary meaning is “seal,” but in Tantric terminology, mudra means a hand gesture or a posture of seated meditation (usu ally called asana), and in the context of the five esoteric ingredients of offerings to the Goddess, it may either mean a female partner for ritual practice or just a snack. There are many uses of mudras or hand gestures as the practitioner pro ceeds mentally to encounter divine and spiritual beings in his rituals. All actions at this stage are accompanied by miming, and often they are so graphic that it is easy to understand their meaning. For instance, for the dhyana or envisaging of

476 SANJUKT A GUPT A

the deity, the worshiper utters the deity’s mantra of her iconography while acting out in gestures the deity’s special attributes. Thus, while uttering Kalika’s dhyana mantra - “Om, you seated on a corpse, of fierce appearance with terrifying teeth, who bestows desired objects [on her devotees], who laughs [all the time], who has three eyes, holds in her hands a skull and a sword, whose hair is untied and tongue is lolling out incessantly drinking the blood [of the asuras]. One should envisage you, O Goddess, [as] having four arms whose other two hands gesture fulfilment of the devotee’s wishes and who promises protection” - the adept ges tures with his fingers, graphically symbolizing the attributes described in that mantra. These are called the yoni, bhutini, vara, abhaya, khadga, and munda mudras (see Figure 27.1).

The Devanagari edition of the Todala Tantra was published in 1970, in Tantra sarngraha part 2, edited by Gopinath Kaviraj from the Yoga-Tantra department of Benares Sankrit University, Varanasi. There are several Bengali published editions, as well. The edition I have used is Todala Tantra, edited, translated, and com mented on in Bengali by Pancanana Sastri (Calcutta: Navabharata Publications, 1976).

Further Reading

For further study, my essay on Tantric rituals in Hindu Tantrism, by Sanjukta Gupta, Dirk J. Hoens, and Teun Goudraan (Leiden: E. J. Brill, 1979), pp. xxiii xxxiv; Introduction to Laksmi Tantra by Sanjukta Gupta (Leiden: E.J. Brill, 1972); and Hindu Tantric and Sakta Literature by Teun Goudriaan and Sunjukta Gupta (Weisbaden: Otto Harrassowitz, 1981) are useful. Alexis Sanderson’s essay “Saiv ism and the Tantric Traditions” in The World’s Religions: Religions of Asia, edited by Friedhelm Hardy (reprint London: Routledge & Kegan Paul, 1990), pp. 128- 72, is a good source for the history of Tantric traditions. Thomas B. Coburn’s essay “Devi: The Great Goddess,” in Devi: Goddesses of India, edited by John Strat ton Hawley and Donna Wulff (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1996), pp.

31-48; and Coburn, Encountering the Goddess: A Translation of the Devi-Mahatmya and a Study of Its Interpretation (Albany: State University of New York Press, 1991), are indispensible. The same is true of two books by C. Mackenzie Brown, God as Mother: A Feminine Theology of India - An Historical and Theological Study of the Brahmavaivarta Purana (Hartford, Vt.: Claude Stark, 1974), and The Triumph of the Goddess: The Canonical Models and Theological Visions of the Devx-Bhagavata Purana (Albany: State University of New York Press, 1990). For an understanding of the concept of the ten Mahavidyas one should read David Kinsley’s two works, Hindu Goddesses: Visions of the Divine Feminine in the Hindu Religious Tradition (Delhi: Motilal Bararsidass, 1987), and Tantric Vision of the Divine Feminine: The Ten Mahavidyas (Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press, 1997).

WORSHIP OF KALI 479

12cd-13cd. One should worship Siva as a headless trunk (kabandha) by the right side of Chinnamasta [the Beheaded Goddess]. He who does tantric ritual worship of Kabandha [Siva] certainly becomes the lord of all tantric perfection (siddhi). Dhumavati, the great Vidya, is manifest in the form of a widow [hence there is no form of Siva by her side].

14. The one-faced great Rudra (the Fierce One) is worshiped by the right hand side of Bagala. He is famed as the annihilator [performing the contraction] of the creation.

15. By Matahgi’s right side one should worship Matahga Siva. He indeed is the Daksinamurti who is in the form of universal bliss.

16. [A worshiper (sadhaka)] should worship Sadasiva in the form of Visnu by Kamala’s right side. O great sovereign Goddess, there is no doubt that he would achieve perfection (siddhi).

17. By the right side of Annapurna [a sadhaka] should worship the great sov ereign god [Siva], the bestower of great liberation (moksa), who is the manifest brahman and who possesses ten faces.

18-19ab. [He] should carefully worship [Siva as] Narada by the right side of Durga. The syllable na stands for the creator, and the syllable da always rep resents the protector. Because the syllable ra symbolizes the destroyer Narada, it is held [to represent the great god Siva who creates, sustains, and destroys the universe].

19cd-19ef. For all other Vidyas, the seer (rsi) [of the vidya] mentioned in the formula is indeed her [the vidya-sakti’s] husband and should be worshiped by her right side.

Explanation of Siva’s Transformation into a Corpse

Who Nonetheless Has Sexual Union with the Goddess

The blessed Goddess asked:

20. The [great Sakti] who is the first great Vidya and also the second supreme Bhairavi who is the mother of the three worlds and is eternal - how can she be mounted on a corpse?

The blessed Siva answered:

21-23. O great Goddess! she who is the primordial [divine being], herself Death/Time, exists [identified] as the heart [essence] of the glorious Siva in the form of the destroyer. Therefore the supreme Death/Time (Mahakala) is the destroyer of the universe. But when Kali as the embodiment of destruction manifests herself in her true form, immediately at that very moment, O God

dess, Sadasiva appears in the form of a corpse and at that instant, O Lady with dancing eyes, she [Kali] appears mounted on a corpse.

480 SANJUKTA GUPTA The blessed Goddess said:

24. The great god Sadasiva as a corpse is a lifeless body. How could it then perform the sex act?

The blessed Siva answered:

25. At the time that great Kali [actively] manifests herself, Sadasiva is devoid of active power. When, O Goddess, he is united with sakti, then he appears in the form of Siva; [but though] when devoid of sakti he is virtually a corpse, he still does not lose his manliness [his phallus].

End of the first chapter, called a dialogue between Hara and Gauri, of the most excellent of all Tantras, the Todala-tantra

CHAPTER TWO

Brief Enumeration of Kundalini Yoga

The blessed Siva said:

1-4. Listen O Goddess! 1 shall briefly recount the essence of yoga [meditation and Tantric mental adoration].

The [human] body is like a tree [in reverse form] whose roots are on top and branches hanging beneath. All the sacred places of the universe exist within this body. The very form of the macrocosm exists in the microcosm [of the human body]. There are thirty and a half million sacred places in the macro

cosm, O You who are praised by the heroes [Tantric practitioners]! Out of all of these, only a hundred and forty thousand sacred places are visible. Out of these, only fourteen [are noteworthy], and out of these [fourteen], only three are auspicious. Amongst these [three again], O supreme sovereign Goddess, [the one called] Mahadhira bestows liberation (mukti).

5. Vasuki [the divine serpent] is indeed Mahamaya [the cosmic goddess of delusion], who is manifest in the form of a serpent, coiled three and a half times, and resides in the region under the nether region (patala).

6-8. O supreme sovereign Goddess, listen carefully while I recount the seven heavens [upper regions] in their proper order. [These are] the region of the earth, of the atmosphere, of the celestials, then the region of maha [of the great saints], the region of jana [generation], the region of tapa [austerity] and, O Lady with an elegant face, the region of satya [truth]. Here ends the list of seven regions. O eminent lady! now listen carefully to the enumeration of the nether regions. [These are the regions of] atala, vitala, sutala, talatala, mahatala, patala, and after that rasatala.

9-17ab. The liberating [yogic duct, called nadi] Mahadhira ranges from ras atala to the end of satya, which exists inside the central [channel, that is, the

WORSHI P OF KALI 481

spinal column, meru]. Mahavisnu Siva resides in the satya region and Vasuki is full of intense longing to meet him. When Vasuki, having pierced the six regions (cakras), rises up [to that region of satya], all the other flowing rivers [that is, the ducts] become upward flowing. In the body [the microcosm], O sovereign Goddess, the ducts remain in the following order. If [the sadhaka] presses down air through both the ida and pingala ducts, which have the sus umna between them, O sovereign Goddess, while repeating the prana mantra [so’ham], then the coiled one [Vasuki] starts [moving upward through the susumna] following the order of the [six cakras], until she approaches the eternal and immutable lotus [the sahasrara cakra]. With anxiety the coiled one enters that eternal abode. Simultaneously all other down-flowing [ducts] start flowing upstream. At that moment, O Goddess! [the sadhaka] should concen

trate on the garland of letters. Then while repeating mentally 108 times his chief (mula) mantra [received from his preceptor at the time of initiation] the intelligent [sadhaka] should bring the coiled one back to his muladhara cakra [her original resting-place] in the same way, while refreshing the gods of the six cakras with the nectar [from the thousand-petaled lotus].

Yogic Mudras, or Special Physical Positions for Kundalini Yoga

17cd-22ab. Now, my dear, I shall describe another yoga posture called the yonimudra [the previous one was called sakti-calanl].

The mantra practitioner first sits down on his seat facing the east or the north. With his arms he firmly holds his two knees and then, O Queen of the gods, he brings his nose near the knees while sitting upright [that is, keeping his back straight]. O Queen of the gods, [as before] he presses air down by inhaling (but, O great Goddess! does not let the air escape by exhaling), and simultaneously continues repeating the prana mantra. At the same time, as described before, he should repeat [his chief mantra] 108 times in his upright pose, [only this time ] he repeats [the mantra ] in reverse order. While thus [repeating his mantra], O You of glorious face, he brings [the kundalini] back to the basic root cakra [muladhara] through the same path while refreshing the gods of the six cakras with nectar.

22cd-25. My dear, this yonimudra removes all illness. O Goddess, without elaborating I can just say that it destroys great diseases and, O Goddess, without exaggerating I can say that this mudra causes the realization of the mantra, brings about the direct perception of one’s [true] self, and bestows on the practitioner the great liberation, mahamoksa. Had I possessed a hundred faces I would not have been able to exhaust all its details; but with only five faces how much can I enumerate? A Tantric practitioner practicing this mudra be

comes as beautiful as Cupid even if he began as a leper.

Here ends the second chapter of the Siva-Parvati dialogue

in the Todala Tantra which is the best of all Tantras

4 8 2 SANJUKTA GUPTA

CHAPTER THREE

The blessed goddess asked:

1. 0 God of gods, great God, the saver from the ocean of transient and recur ring life [samsara], O Ocean of compassion, please tell me the great mudra called baddhayoni.

Siva answered:

2-4ab. Listen, O Goddess, I shall briefly tell you the method of baddhayoni. O great Goddess, the mantra practitioner covers his anus with the tip of his penis. Then, O great Goddess, the intelligent practitioner gradually applies his fingers [to cover other apertures of his body] starting with the thumbs, to [cover] his ears, [and then in turn [covering his] eyes, nose, and mouth [with rest of the pairs of fingers of his hands].

4cd-7 . [Thus covering all his bodily apertures] he should then inhale through his nose and fill his mouth with air and as before press it downward [through the ida and pihgala ducts]. When [the coiled goddess unites with Siva] the practitioner should envisage the primaeval Sound (sabda-brahman) and then envisage the garland of syllables (varnamala) while repeating his main mantra. Then, repeating the mantra so’ham, he brings, O Goddess, [the kundalini back to the muladhara cakra] through the same central channel. On the way he refreshes all the cakra gods [with the nectar produced by the union of the goddess and Sadasiva]. O great sovereign Goddess! O spotless One! I shall tell you [later] the achievements of one who peforms this [kundalini yoga seated in baddhayoni posture].

Kali’s Mantra or Vidya

The blessed Parvati asked:

8. O omniscient Isana! O most excellent of the erudite, who possesses all wisdom! O master of gods! please tell me the rare description of Kalika’s mantra system.

The Bija [Seed] Mantra.

The blessed Siva answered:

9-13 . O ever-blissful Goddess, listen to my account of the excellent Kalika mantra; even the mere discussion of its nature makes a man liberated in this life. For the first [seed mantra], cull the syllable ka, add to it i, r, and the bindunada [double nasalization, symbolized by a sickle shape topped by a point representing the normal nasalization]. O auspicious One! this is the very rare perfect vidya, the queen of all vidyas.

WORSHIP OF KALI 483 The Vidya

Now listen to me explaining the next one. First utter this seed [mantra krim] three times. Then cull the syllable ha connected with the nasal bindu and the vowel u [hum], [and utter] it twice [after the first three]; and now I tell you the next one [that is the third seed mantra]. Then, O sovereign Goddess [utter the syllable ha joined with r, i, and the nasal, and repeat it again [hrim hrim ]; then add [Kalika’s ] vocative, then again three of the first seed mantra, then twice the kurca mantra [hum] and twice the maya mantra [hrim] and finally svaha. This mantra of twenty-five syllables is the queen of all vidyas and is very rare.

14. When this great vidya is preceded by the vagbhava mantra [aim, the seed mantra of the supreme speech, Vac], its inherent deity is Srikali; when preceded by the pranava mantra [Om], its deity is known as Siddhikalika.

15-16. When the mantra consists of two of the goddess’s own mantras [krim] followed by one kurca mantra [hum], O great Goddess, this trisyllabic supreme vidya is known as Camundakalika. There is no vidya like this one for bringing about success. The six-syllabled vidya [krim krim krim phat svaha] and the three-syllabled vidya [krim krim hum] are of equal power.

17-18ab. O auspicious one! three of [Kalika’s] own seed mantra [krim krim krim] followed by the [vocative] smasanakalike, then again the three seed man tras and finally svaha, [together] constitute the fourteen-syllabled mantra that is worshiped in all the three worlds.

Eight Forms of the Kail Vidya

18cd-21ab. Daksinakalika, Siddhikalika, Guhyakalika, Srlkalika, Bhadrakali, Camundakalika, and the supreme Smasanakalika and Mahakali, O Goddess! These are the eight [forms of goddess Kali]. O sovereign Goddess! First utter Kali’s own seed mantra, then her name in the vocative followed by another Kalika seed mantra, and finally add svaha [krim kalike krim svaha]. These eight forms of Kalika’s mantra are secretly expressed in all Tantras.

The blessed Goddess said:

21cd-23ab. I have [now] heard the very secret mantras of the great Kalika. Now I wish to hear Tara’s royal mantra. O ISana! if you love me do tell me her mantra, whose mere mention prevents one from drowning in the ocean of [transitory] existence.

Tara Bijas

Sri Siva answered:

484 SANJUKTA GUPTA

Having uttered the moon seed [sam] add the syllable of fire [r] and t to it, to gether with the left eye [i]. My beloved, this royal mantra, this single-syllabled vidya [strim] is venerated in three worlds, liana [h] united with the nasal and the left ear [u] [forms] the monosyllabic vidya [hum], which is [Tara’s] second royal mantra.

The Tara Vidya

23cd-32ab. Siva [h] with the fire [r] and the left eye [i] and the nasal added to it [hrim] [should first be uttered]. Then the first seed [strim] and then the second [hum], then utter the weapon, astra mantra [hrim strim hum phat].

Different Forms and Efficacies of the Tara Vidya

When this vidya is preceded by pranava [Om], then [the Goddess] is called Ugratara. When without the pranava this vidya is called Ekajata, the bestower of supreme liberation (moksa). With neither pranava nor astra mantra [that is, hrim strim hum], this trisyllabic vidya is called Mahanilasarasvati. When the [trisyllabic] vidya is preceded by the vagbhava [seed mantra], it bestows [on the practitioner] the status of the god of speech. This supreme vidya when preceded by the seed mantra srim bestows wealth and prosperity. When this great vidya is preceded by the seed mantra maya [hrim], it bestows sure success and perfection (siddhi). When it is preceded by the kurca [hum], it reveals the entire system of speech. When this supreme vidya is preceded by the seed of the sky [ham], it bestows the liberation of total resorption. When this geat vidya starts with the prasada [seed mantra, haum] it brings about the union of the practitioner with Siva. When this mantra starts with the seed [mantra] of prana [prum] it bestows on the practitioner the fulfilment of whatever he wishes. When this supreme vidya opens with the seed of Kali [krim] it bestows both liberation and prosperity.

Ritual Worship of the Deity

32cd-50abc. Now 1 shall describe the method of worshiping Kali and Tara. Arising in the morning, the practitioner who knows his mantra [and its method of meditation] first mentally worships his guru in the topmost cakra consisting of a thousand petals. Then, having pierced the six cakras, he should repeat his main mantra 108 times. Thereafter, having bowed down [to his preferred deity] he should perform his ritual bathing. He should start this bathing ritual with the following declaration of his intention (samkalpa): “Today [here he men tions the day and date and then] the solar month, [I bathe myself] for the pleasure of the deity.” Then he bathes in the pure water.

Then he should utter Om and then gange ca, followed by yamune, then having uttered godavari, sarasvati, narmade and sindhu kaveri he utters the words asmin jale sannidhim kuru [Om the rivers Ganges, Yamuna, Godavari, Sarasvati, Narmada, Sindhu, and Kaveri please abide in this water]. [While uttering this mantra the practitioner] with the hand gesture called the goad

WORSHIP OF KALI 48 5

(ankusa) should [in imagination] pull these sacred rivers from the orb of the sun and settle them [in the water in which he is bathing] by carefully showing four relevant hand gestures. Then having protected the water with the hand gesture called the fish [and scooping a palmful of water and covering it with the other palm], the worshiper repeats his [deity’s seed] mantra [krim] eleven times. Then, throwing this water toward the sun, he should repeat his main mantra twelve times while [in imagination] washing [Kalika’s] feet three times. Then [in imagination] he should three times bathe himself with that rinse water flowing from [Kali’s] feet while repeating the mantra. This is done by showing the gesture of the water pot (kumbha) while repeating his main mantra three times.

Then, O Queen of gods! he should decorate his forehead according to the custom of his sect. Then he performs acamana [ritual cleansing of his mouth and hands] with water while uttering the mantras of the three tattvas - at matattva, vidyatattva, and sivatattva. The mantras consist of each tattva pre ceded by pranava and ending with svaha [this is the name of the wife of the god Agni, Fire].

[At this point he has left his bathing place, cleanly and decorously attired, and reached the actual place of worship, carrying a pitcher full of water brought from the water source. In this water pitcher] he invokes the sacred rivers with the same gauge ca, etc., mantra [following the aforesaid procedure]. Then he dips a bunch of kusa grass into the sanctified water and with it sprinkles water on the ground [where he will hold his ritual worship]. Then in the same way he should sprinkle himself seven times. Then he performs his anganyasa. Then, O Goddess of the celestials, he with his left hand [scoops up water] and repeats three times the [paficabhuta] bija mantras: ham, Mam,yam, lam and ram. Having thus encapsulated that water with that pancabhuta mantra, the practitioner should sprinkle himself seven times with his finger in the gesture of tattva [reality] while uttering his main mantra. This act at once removes all his sins.

Then, O great sovereign Queen, the adept transfers the rest of the water from his left hand to his right and in imagination inhales it through his ida duct [inside his left nostril], which water then cleanses his inner body. Thereafter, he should exhale that water through his pingala duct [inside his right nostril]. Here he imagines that water to be black and the embodiment of sins; he im

mediately throws the water onto a slab of rock with the mantra phat. Then he should wash his hands, perform acamana and, having performed breath con trol, offer libation to his lineage god and then offer arghya [an offering of a few rice grains, tips of durva grass and sanctified water] to the Sun god and arghya to his chosen deity.

50d-53. Thereafter he should repeat the great words of the [Kalika] gayatri [the famous Vedic mantra with which brahmans worship the Sun every day, as follows]: first one should take the pranava [Om], then utter kalikayai, then vidmahe; then smasanavasinyai dhimahi, then tan no ghore pracodayat. While486 SANJUKT A GUPT A

uttering this mantra, the worshiper should three times scatter the consecrated water upward.

54ab. Then, O great Goddess, having performed anganyasa the worshiper again performs acamana.

Tara’s Gayatri is Described with a Brief Mention

of the Deity’s Dhyana as the Sun Deity

54cd-56ab. O great Goddess! Having envisaged in meditation one’s chosen deity [here Tara] in the orb of the sun, one should utter Om tarayai vidmahe mahograyai dhimahi tan no devi pracodayat. Then, having performed breath control, he should repeat this mantra 108 times.

Now, O Queen of gods, I offer in the form of aphorisms (sirtrakara) an account of the system of worship

Preliminaries

56cd-58. First proclaim universal well-being (svasti-vacana), then the an nouncement of one’s intention to worship (samkalpa). Next, one should care fully place the pitcher [full of consecrated water], followed by the act of aca mana with mantras; next comes the setting the pitcher of water for arghya for

general purposes; then sprinkling the entrance [with consecrated water for purification], finishing that ritual by worshiping the entrance. Then, having removed the three categories of hindrances [concretized as evil spirits, belong ing to the ground, atmosphere, and close to the body of the worshipper and the material objects around him gathered for the ritual] he removes [other evil] spirits [with mantras, sprinkling of water and threatening gestures].

Starting the Actual Worship

59-60ab. Having adored the seat, the intelligent worshiper first of all bows down to his guru. Then he purifies his hands, claps them three times, and then performs the rite of consolidating and safeguarding the area surrounding his person (digbandhana). Then he encompasses himself with fire. Then he per

forms bhutasuddhi.

Nyasa

60cd-64ab. He should then first perform the nyasa of the six limbs of the matrka [the full Sanskrit alphabet], then the nyasa of the matrka on his inner body. Then he utters the dhyana mantra [the mantra that gives the deity’s iconography] of the matrka. He should perform the same nyasa on his external body. Then he performs the nyasa of the seat of the deity (pitha) before com

pleting his breath control. Then he performs the nyasa of the sage, and so on [the sage poet, the meter, and the deity of his mantra]. Then he performs nyasa of his hands and his limbs [identifying them with] the letters of the Sanskrit alphabet. Then he performs the six types of nyasa [of his main mantra]. Then

WORSHI P OF KALI 487

he performs vyapaka [extended] nyasa. With concentration he performs the nyasa of the tattvas; then, O Goddess!, he performs the nyasa of the seed mantra. He performs the vyapaka nyasa in seven different ways using his main mantra. Then in deep concentration he visualizes his deity, whereafter he wor

ships that deity mentally [with imagined ingredients].

Adoration of the Deity

64cd-68ab. [The adept] prepares the consecrated special liquid for special argyha. Then he worships [the deity’s] seat. Next he again performs the visu alization of the deity in deep meditation (dhyana) and this time he sees her with her eyes open. [All the time he utters specific mantras and appropriate gestures to accompany his ritual acts.] Then he in similar manner welcomes the deity. Then while purifying all objects of offering he shows the gestures of the cow’s udder, and so on. [These are called the dhenu mudra, the symbol for the celestial cow whose milk is nectar; the avagunthana mudra, which symbolizes safety and cover; the galini mudra which symbolizes the fusing of the sacred and the mundane water; and the naraca mudra, which symbolizes iron arrowheads to ward off any polluting evil spirits]. Then he performs the nyasa of the deity’s six limbs. Then he performs the rite of establishing life [in the image or other representation of the deity]. Then he worships [with offer

ings] his principal mantra and its deity, the Goddess. Then he requests the Goddess to authorize him [to exercise the power of the mantra]. Then he worships the deity’s attendant deities like Kali, and so on. [They are Kali, Kapalini, Kulla, Kurukulla, Virodhini, Vipracitta, Ugra, Ugraprabha, and Dipta. The second circle of her assistants consists of Nila, Ghana, and Valaka, and the third circle consists of Matra, Mudra, and Mita]. Then he worships her atten

dant mother-goddesses Brahmi, and so on, and their Bhairavas, Asitahga, and so on. [They are Brahmi, Vaisnavi, Mahesvari, Camunda, Kaumari, Aparajita, Varahi, and Narasimhi; and Asitahga, Ruru, Canda, Krodha, Unmatta, Kapali, Bhisana and Samhara.]. Then he worships [the deity’s consort] Mahakala. Then he worships the Goddess’s [weapons, that is,] her sword, and so on. Next he worships the lineage of his guru. Then the ritualist repeats the worship of Kali. This is followed by the offering of bali [a sacrificial animal, or in some cases nonvegetarian food for the spirits]. This is followed by the fire sacrifice. Then, having performed pranayama [as a preparation for japa], he performs mantra repetition (japa) of his main mantra [which is a form of one-pointed medita tion]. Finally, the intelligent worshiper dedicates the merit of his japa to the deity and then performs pranayama for a second time.

Esoteric Worship of the Goddess with Alcohol and Other Ingredients

68cd. At this moment the worshiper may, O Goddess, collect [esoteric ingre dients such as] alcohol [meat, fish, fried food/a partner for intercourse, and the sexual fluids].

4 8 8 - SANJUKTA GUPTA Concluding Section of the Worship

69-71 . Afterward, the worshiper offers the deity arghya and also dedicates himself to the Goddess. Then he recites the Goddess’s eulogy and then recites her protective kavaca [“armor,” a special hymn used as a mantra, which guards every part of the worshiper’s body]. Finally he prostrates himself. Afterward he mentally utters the formula, “I am Siva,” while making the gesture of bidding her farewell. He then draws a diagram on the southwestern corner and offers arghya and other offerings to the goddess Ucchistacandali. He then himself puts a mark on his forehead with the sandal paste offered to the Goddess and partakes of some of the offered food. Thereafter he can do whatever he wishes.

Alternative Brief Ritual

Alternatively, the initiated Tantric ritualist who has composed and fixed his mind in devotion and meditation may perform a shortened version of the wor ship.

First he performs the nyasa of the poet-sage, and so on, of his main mantra; then he purifies his hands [with nyasa] followed by nyasa of his fingers and the extensive nyasa of his body. Then he performs the nyasa of his six limbs. Then he claps his hands three times [to remove obstructing spirits], then en

circles his surroundings with [a fiery barrier]. Then he performs breath control followed by dhyana on his mantra deity and then mentally performs her wor ship. Then he prepares and places the pitcher of arghya water, and worships the seat [of the Goddess]. On that he invokes the Goddess after having med itated on her image. Then he performs her ritual welcome, and so forth, fol lowed by establishing life in her symbol, jivanyasa or pranapratistha, and finally worships the supreme Goddess. Then he worships the attendant deities Kali, and so on, as well as the eight Saktis, Brahmi, and so on, along with their bhairavas. Then having worshiped Mahakala he worships his guru’s lineage as well as the Goddess’s attributes and weapons such as the sword. This is fol lowed by a repeat of the worship of the Goddess. Then the foremost of all worshipers practices breath control before performing his japa. He dedicates the [merit of his] japa to the Goddess’s hand. He performs the concluding breath control, prostrates himself, recites the Goddess’s panegyric and kavaca and causes the special arghya to be offered. He then dedicates himself [to the Goddess] and bids her farewell with the gesture of resorption. He draws a diagram on his southwestern side and worships Ucchistacandali. In conclusion, he partakes of some of the offered food and then he may do as he pleases.