Kumari & Munis

[Guest guest]

, "Mahamuni" <mahamuni@c...>

wrote:

> What isn't Tantra?

 

 

 

How nice. I shall allow others to take up this question from the

MahaMuni. Anybody daring enough?

 

 

Im being told, the Munis are DEVI's worriors, gifted with Shiva

attributes to help DEVI in her combat with the demons. hahhaaaa. Good

to know we have the munis here with us.

[Guest guest]

Quote_________

> How nice. I shall allow others to take up this question from the

> MahaMuni. Anybody daring enough?

End Quote_____

 

Where angels fear to tread, fools do!! I am one of the latter and a

clown too.

 

What is not tantra?

>From an esoteric perspective of a shaktha, it is difficult to define

what is not than what is.

 

"Japo jalpa: shilpam sakalamapi mudthravirachana gathi: pradhakshinya

kramaNa mudhravirachana mashanaath yahuthi vidhi:

Pranama: samvesha: sookamakila-mathmarpaNadhrusha saparyaayasthva

bhavathu yanme vilasadheem"

 

SL verse 27, whose translation is given on the homepage of SS. In

essence, at all occasions, a sadhaka's spoken words are mantra (of

worship of HER), gestures = mudhras, walk = pradhakshinam, whatever

the sadhaka does, is a mode of worship to HER.

 

(Fully plagerized text from Basuranandanatha's definition:

http://shaktisadhana.org/shaktatantra.html)

"The greatest beauty of Tantra is that once the student becomes a full

fledged practitioner, s/he will no longer be governed by the normal

rules of Karma. Outwardly s/he will be leading a normal existence --

but inwardly s/he will be leading a very balanced life, so that all

actions are properly identified and hence s/he will not be bound by

the Karmic link and s/he will always be free from the Karma of all his

actions, because s/he has the right attitude. The Karmic bond is

snapped once for all once the student becomes a real Tantric. S/he is

no longer bound by the mundane differentiations of GOOD and BAD. The

dualities in life cease to have any role!!"

 

By the above definitions, it is difficult to say what is NOT tantra.

As the text encompasses all - tantra is the way a sadhaka lives and is

not something one does only in the puja.

 

Shankara's SL must be taken with a pinch of salt for a fledgling

sadhaka. Not because it is in doubt, but because Shankara is, for lack

of a better word, an expert in HER worship. He is the second great

guru, next to Shiva himself. What he had described is true only for

the people on the "same page." No doubt there must be a few out there,

who are on the "same page" as Shankara in terms of realization. But,

most are still somewhere on that path, but not quite there yet.

 

Basurananda states the same but in more colloquial terms. In

Basurananda's definition, a few key phrases are noticeable. "...once

the student becomes a full fledged practitioner" and "....once the

student becomes a real Tantric," are the riders in the contract!!

 

How does one know that (s)he is a real tantric? That is a bit

difficult as self-evaluation not always is neutral, until one becomes

a full tantric. If one becomes a full tantric, there will be no need

for self-evaluation. A perfect catch-22.

 

So until that state of mind (and sadhana) is achieved, what is not

tantra is what makes one feel bad afterwards or even when thinking of

doing something.

 

So when one is driving and someone cuts in front, saying "@#$^#$#

jerk" is not a mantra to worship HER. Or when someone provokes you

(this is a general reference, not "you" as in second person singular),

must not give into the temptation to retort. Or hate someone because

(s)he is a jerk. Or go and glutton on some delicious meal, because

whatever a sadhaka eats is performing yagnam to HER. Or because one is

a tantric, can do whatever within the capabilities of one's siddhis,

because of non-bonding karma.

 

As Shankara says, "Even if a man is a non-performer in the bed, once

he becomes YOUR devotee, young maidens will come running to him," does

not mean that when a fledgeling sadhaka attracts members of opposite

gender, should look for ways for "shiva-shakthi union" ;-).

 

Tantra as a way of life is filled with several tests. Somehow, the

seven cardinal sins (of Christianity) comes to my mind. Pride, greed,

wrath, sloth, gluttony, lust and envy (not necessarily in that order)

might be the ones a sadhaka need to be aware of during his/her days of

life in this World. These encompass basic negative human emotions.

Anything (or action/inaction) of a sadhaka which associates itself to

the above 7, might not be tantra. Only human emotion allowed for a

sadhaka is unconditional love. So until then, all one can do is to

train oneself and pray, "Bhavani tvam daase" and hope (is a shakta

allowed to ask for something for him/herself?) that SHE allows you to

become HER as SHE took over the full (body) of Shiva - a la Shankara

Bagavatpaadha.