Tantrism: Hindu - Hinduism Dictionary on Tantrism

By Himalayan Academy

tantrism: The enlightenment path outlined in the Tantra scriptures.

1)    Tantrism is sometimes considered a parallel stream of history and tradition in Hinduism, running alongside and gradually interweaving with the Vedic brahminical tradition.

2)    Tantrism refers to traditions, mainly within Saivism and Shaktism, that focus on the arousal of the kundalini force, and which view the human body as a vehicle of the Divine and an instrument for liberation. Tantrism's ultimate aim is a channeling of the kundalini life force through the sushumna, the gracious channel, upwards into the sahasrara chakra and beyond, through the door of brahman (brahmarandhra) into Parasiva, either before or at the time of death. The stress is on the transformation of all spheres of consciousness, spiritual, psychic, emotional and material. It is a path of sadhana.

Shakta Tantrism: Brings a strong emphasis on the worship of the feminine force. Depending on the school, this may be symbolic or literal in rites involving sexual intercourse, etc. Shakta Tantrism's main principle is the use of the material to gain the spiritual. In certain schools, historically, this implies embracing that which is normally forbidden and manipulating the forces to attain transcendent consciousness rather than lower consciousness. There are three main streams:

-       the righthand path (dakshina marga or dakshinachara) of conservative Hindu practice,

-       the left-hand path (vama marga or vamachara) involving the use of things normally forbidden such as taking intoxicants, meat, ritual sex, etc., and

-       the yogic path of the Kaula sect. Gorakshanatha followers are sometimes grouped with the latter.

See: Shaktism, kundalini, kundalini yoga, raja yoga, tantra.

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For more articles related to Tantrism , see: Hinduism, Hinduism Dictionary, Tantrism , Body Mind and Soul.

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Courtesy to Himalayan Academy: An educational and publishing institution of Saiva Siddhanta Church founded by Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami in 1957. The Academy's objective is to share the teachings of Sanatana Dharma through travel-study programs, The Master Course, books and other publications- particularly the monthly newspaper Hinduism Today and Dancing with Siva, Hinduism's Contemporary Catechism- as a public service to Hindus worldwide. Please visit www.himalayanacademy.com for more information.