History of Dharmashastra (Ancient and Mediaeval Religious and Civil Law in India) v7.c92.52
History of Dharmaśāstra (Ancient and Mediaeval Religious and Civil Law in India) v7.c92.52
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The Hindu tantras which are supposed to have embodied dialogues between Śiva and Devī or Skanda or Bhairava and rarely others as in Dattātreyatantra (D. C. ms. No. 962 of 1887-91) endeavour to show that they base themselves on the Vedas, Āgamas, Smṛtis and Purāṇas, that there is an easier and quicker way to the final goal of mokṣa and they often quote Vedic verses. For example, in the Kulārṇava, Śiva says to Devī 'I churned the great ocean of Vedas and Āgamas with the churning handle of (correct) knowledge. I knew the essence of these and took out the Kuladharma,¹⁶⁹² that the Kaulaśāstras are authoritative like Vedic texts and should not be nullified by ratiocination.' The same Tantra further asserts 'one who has studied the four Vedas but is ignorant of Kuladharma is inferior to a *cāṇḍāla*, while a cāṇḍāla who knows Kuladharmas is superior to a brāhmaṇa. If all dharmas such as sacrifices, pilgrimages and vratas are put on one side and Kuladharma on another side, Kaula (dharma) is superior.'¹⁶⁹³ It is, therefore necessary to understand what is meant by Kula or Kauladharma. The Guhya-samāja¹⁶⁹⁴ states that Guhya means the three viz. body, speech and mind and 'samāja' means 'coming together', that Kula may comprehend five matters or three or 101 and that Guhya (as defined) is *trikula*. God Śaṅkara¹⁶⁹⁵ declared five tattvas, viz.
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wine, flesh, fish, mudrā (hand and finger poses or the woman helper of a yogin) and sexual intercourse, that are acts that become the means for the attainment of the position of a *vīra* and that the mantra of Śakti does not confer perfection unless one follows the practices of Kula; therefore a person should be devoted to the Kula practices whereby he would attain to the sādhanā of Śakti; wine, flesh, fish, mudrā and sexual intercourse—these are declared to be the five tattvas in the procedure of the worship of Śakti. In another place the Mahānirvāṇa¹⁶⁹⁶ says that the individual soul, *prakṛti*, space, time, ākāśa, earth, water, fire and Vāyu—these are called 'Kula' and that way of life whereby one looks upon all these as brahma without distinction is called Kulācāra, that confers the four goals viz. dharma, artha, kāma and mokṣa. The Śaktisaṅgamatantra states that Kula means the upāsakas (worshippers)¹⁶⁹⁷ of Kālī. The Kulārṇava states 'Kula means gotra and that springs from Śakti and Śiva; that man is called Kaulika who knows that mokṣa is secured from that (i. e. Śakti and Śiva). Śiva is called 'Akula' and Śakti is called 'Kula', those who contemplate on Kula and Akula are the wise kaulikas." Various other definitions are given in Guhyasamāja (Ist paṭala p. 6), in the Preface p. VIII of the Śaktisaṅgama tantra, Tārākhaṇḍa But the same Tantra clinches the matter by declaring that "Śakti is known as *Kula*; her worship and the like are described;
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that should be known as 'Kulācāra', which is difficult of attainment even for gods. Worship, done with these alone viz. wine, flesh, fish, mudrā and sexual intercourse, is known as Kulācāra." The Pārānanda-sūtra¹⁶⁹⁸ provides that the highest self is one, that there are seven Lords (Īśvara) viz. Brahmā, Viṣṇu, Śiva Sūrya, Gaṇeśa, Śakti and Bhairava, that individual souls are countless, that there are three mārgas (paths) viz. Dakṣiṇa, Vāma and Uttara, each succeeding one being superior to each preceding one, that Dakṣiṇa-mārga is the one declared in the Veda, smṛtis and purāṇas, that the Vāma (way) is declared by the Veda and Āgamas, while the third (Uttara) is the one declared by the words of the Veda and of the Guru and that the Guruvākya is that of one's guru who is himself *Jīvan-mukta* and who gives instruction as to a mantra. That sūtra further provides that the Vāmācāra is of two kinds, *madhyama* (middling) and *uttama* (best), that uttama is the one which is concerned with wine, sexual intercourse and hand poses, while madhyama is one where all five, wine, flesh, fish, mudrā and *maithuna* are resorted to. It should be noticed that the Tantras themselves designate the use of five makāras in worship as Vāmācāra and not their orthodox partisans of Yoga, as Heinrich Zimmer alleges in 'The art of Indian Asia' vol I.
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p 130 Pārānandasūtra¹⁶⁹⁹ prescribes that the disciple has to undergo *dīkṣā* (consecration) from a qualified guru, who instructs the disciple as to the mantra, who holds a mouthful of water in his own mouth and passes it into the mouth of the disciple that accepts the mantra while he gulps down the water. This procedure applies if the guru is a brāhmaṇa, but if the guru is a kṣatriya he should recite the mantra in the right ear of the disciple. The Tantrarāja-tantra provides that the guru should wait for 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5 years according as the intending disciple belongs to the four varṇas or to a mixed caste, should test his qualities and devotion and then communicate to him the mantra; otherwise, both guru and disciple would come to grief (Tāntrik Texts, vol VIII. II. 37-38) Most works on Tantra provide that the knowledge conveyed by the guru and worship with five makāras must be kept secret and if made public falling in hell is the result. Vide Paraśurāmakalpasūtra I. 12 and Śaktisaṅgama-tantra¹⁷⁰⁰ After undergoing dīkṣā and receiving the mantra the disciple has to follow the orders of the guru till the former has a vision of the deity.¹⁷⁰¹ Guru is higher than all other men, mantra is higher than guru, the deity is higher than the mantra and the highest self is higher than the *devatā*. In order to attain *siddhis* the guru is to be served by disciples with devotion in all ways. There is only one way viz.
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*bhakti* (devotion) for those (disciples) that long for worldly pleasures, heaven or moksa, as the Śruti says ‘there is no other way’. Jīvan-mukti¹⁷⁰² means ‘to have a vision of the Deity worshipped’ and ‘one who is liberated, though living, is not tainted by his acts, whether meritorious or otherwise’. This doctrine closely follows what is said in some of the Upanisads about the man who has realised *brahma* that ‘he shakes off *puṇya* and *pāpa* and having cast aside the body he reaches the world of *brahma*; he does not return i. e. he never again undergoes *saṁsāra*’. One should strive for that stage. Therefore one who has obtained correct knowledge should become a *bhakta* (devotee). All these, viz. one in distress, the seeker after knowledge, one who seeks some desired object and one who has obtained correct knowledge, are noble, but the man, who has knowledge about God, when he becomes a devotee, reaches the world of the Highest Self, as the Vedic words say ‘one who knows brahma reaches the Highest’.
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With all this sublime philosophy as the background the Pārānandasūtra frankly provides that the guru, after completing the worship up to the offering of a handful of flowers and having offered into fire some food, should make a collection of *makāras*, should again come to the place for worshipping the Deity and offer food into fire, should hand over to the neophyte a bowl for drinking wine, mudrā, materials for dinner with condiments and a courtezan and should instruct the neophyte, that has accepted the three *makāras* (madya, mudrā and maithuna), as regards the kaula practices.¹⁷⁰³ Then the Pārānanda-sūtra devotes two pages (16-17) to the kauladharmas taught to the neophyte, from which a few striking passages may be cited. "A young¹⁷⁰⁴ courtezan is Śakti incarnate, is *brahma*; women are gods and the very life-breath and are ornaments (of the world); they should not be censured nor angered"; 'after worshipping the gods and gurus in the way laid down by the Veda and the Tantras a man does not incur sin if he drinks wine while remembering god or has sexual intercourse with a courtezan. He who partakes of wine and the rest merely for pleasing himself falls into a terrible hell. He who giving up the ordinances of śāstra acts as he pleases does not attain *siddhi* in this world, nor heaven nor the Highest goal (*mokṣa*). A worshipper should drink wine only up till his eyes do not begin to roll and up till his mind does not become unsteady;
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to drink beyond that stage is bestial'. The Pārānandasūtra (pp. 70-71) describes the procedure of a festival (utsavavidhi) among Tāntrikas The mantra is 'Īśvarātman, tava dāsoham', which may be given to even a cāṇḍāla or may be accepted from a cāṇḍāla. It is further provided that the followers of Vāma-mārga may employ the following mantras about the three makāras, that (the best among)