History of Dharmashastra (Ancient and Mediaeval Religious and Civil Law in India) v7.c92.47.3

v7.c92.47.3

Some of the Hindu Tantras contain sublime philosophical views derived from the Upanisads and the Gītā or from the Sānkhya and Yoga and the final goal according to them is *Mukti* (liberation from the cycle of births and deaths) for all men but to be secured by following the path laid down by the Tantras. As the number of published Hindu Tantras is considerable, reference will be made mainly to a few viz. Kulārṇava, Pārānandasūtra, Prapañcasāra, Māhānirvāṇatantra, Vāmakeśvaratantra (Ānan. ed.), Śaktisaṅgamatantra, Śāradātilaka and in the case of the Buddhist tantras to Āryamañjuśrīmūla-kalpa, Guhyasamājatantra, Prajñopāyaviniścayasiddhi, Jñānasiddhi, Sādhanamālā, Sekoddeśaṭīkā. The purpose of most Buddhist Tantras is to indicate a short path for attaining Buddha-hood through Yoga practices and they introduce the element of Śakti for Yogic practices and for securing miraculous powers (called *siddhis*). In the History of Dharmaśāstra not much need be said about Buddhist Tantras except for comparison and stress will have to be laid on the Hindu Tantras alone. The philosophical aspects of Tāntrik culture may be studied in the Paraśurāmakalpasūtra, the Vāmakeśvara-tantra, Tantrarāja, the works on Kashmir Śaivism, works of Bhāskararāya, Bhāvanopaniṣad. This last is a late work dignified with the title of Upaniṣad, as it deals with *bhāvanā* and summarises the Vāsanāpaṭala of Tantrarājatantra (vide Intro. to the latter p. 3).