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THE Kula Ritual ABHINAVAGUPTA THE Kula Ritual As Elaborated in Chapter 29 of the Tantraloka JOHN R. DUPUCHE Comments from scholars: "This work does ... provide us with the best detailed picture of the Kula world and its rituals that has been produced to date as that world reveals itself in this one chapter of the Tantraloka." - Paul E. Muller-Ortega, Prof, of Religion, University of Rochester "... Dupuche's work makes no doubt a substantial contribution to the study of the so-called Kashmir Saivism, and more generally to the study of Tantrism to which Kashmir Saivism belongs. The Kula tradition, as is well-known, forms one of the major components in Abhinava's synthesis of the various currents of Saiva tantra." - Prof. Raffaele Torella, Chair of Sanskrit, Dipartimento di Studi Oriental!, Universita di Roma 'La Sapienza', Rome "Abhinavagupta's Tantraloka is one of the most important work on the spirituality, philosophy and ritual of Kashmir Saivism and a mine of information on the Tantric traditions. So far only an Italian translation by R. Gnoli of the text without the commentary by Jayaratha has been published in 1972 and a French translation by Lillian Silburn and Andre Padoux of the first five chapters with comments and extracts from Jayaratha's Viveka (1998). No complete English translation of text and commentary has come out so far. Since Abhinavagupta's verses are very terse and often contain several levels of meaning, it is necessary to consult Jayaratha's commentary for a complete understanding of the text, as far as possible." "John R. Dupuche has undertaken a difficult and major work by selecting the most esoteric chapter 29 of the Tantraloka, containing the secret Kulayaga, for a complete translation and study..." - Prof. Bettina Baumer, Institute of Religious Studies, University of Vienna MOTILAL BANARSIDASS PUBLISHERS PVT. LTD. Delhi (INDIA) E-mail: [email protected] Website: www.mlbd.com SOUTH ASIA BOOKS. Code: 19799 Abhinavagupta, a leading figure in Kashmir Saivism, is increasingly being recognised as one of the chief contributors to the evolution of Indian thought. In his encyclopaedic work, the Tantraloka, 'Light on the Tantras', he describes the various tantras of his day and places at their apex the most extreme of them, the Kula ritual, which proposes the use of wine and meat and intercourse with women of the lowest castes. Is Abhinavagupta's esteem of the Kula ritual just the shadow side of genius, an aberration best forgotten? This work is a translation - the first into English of any chapter of the Tantraloka of Abhinava­ gupta's version of the Kula ritual. It also provides a translation - the first into any language - of Jayaratha's indispensable commentary. It shows the structure of the text, which is not a confused mass of codes and activities but is articulated as finely as an Indian temple. The translation is accompanied by a commentary, the appendices, including glossary and index of words. The Kula ritual leads the practitioner to ever more exalted stages of the mantra finally to reach the highest level of consciousness, the experience of mantravyapti, the 'pervasion of the mantra'. The person who knows this pervasion knows that he is Bhairava. The supreme mantra of consciousness is none other than the mantra SAUH, the supreme goddess Para, which expresses both the supreme reality and all manifested reality. In this way Abhinava­ gupta breaks down the dualism between sacred and profane, ritual and ordinary life so that the Kula practitioner is liberated while alive, his every act is worship and his every word is mantra. JOHN R. DUPUCHE is a priest of the Catholic Archdiocese of Melbourne. He is a member of the Ecumenical and Interfaith Commission of the Archdiocese and chair of its interfaith sub-committee and is involved with the Muslim Catholic Working Party. He is a member of the Australian Commission of Monastic Interfaith Dialogue and a director of the East-West Meditation Foundation. He is Chair of the Victorian Council of Churches Faith and Order Commission and an Honorary Research Associate at the Centre for Studies in Religion and Theology at Monash University. He conducts retreats and meditations in addition to his usual pastoral responsibilities. He is particularly interested in the interface between Christianity and Kashmir Saivism. ABHINAVAGUPTA THE KULA RITUAL As Elaborated in Chapter 29 of the Tantraloka JOHN R. DUPUCHE MOTILAL BANARSIDASS PUBLISHERS PRIVATE LIMITED DELHI First Edition: Delhi, 2003 ©JOHN R. DUPUCHE All Rights Reserved. ISBN: 81-208-1979-9 Also available at: MOTILAL BANARSIDASS 41 U.A. Bungalow Road, Jawahar Nagar, Delhi 110 007 8 Mahalaxmi Chamber, 22 Bhulabhai Desai Road, Mumbai 400 026 120 Royapettah High Road, Mylapore, Chennai 600 004 236, 9th Main III Block, Jayanagar, Bangalore 560 011 Sanas Plaza, 1302 Baji Rao Road, Pune 411 002 8 Camac Street, Kolkata 700 017 Ashok Rajpath, Patna 800 004 Chowk, Varanasi 221 001 Printed in India BY JAINENDRA PRAKASH JAIN AT SHRIJAINENDRA PRESS, A-45 NARAINA, PHASE - I, NEW DELHI 110 028 AND PUBLISHED BY NARENDRA PRAKASH JAIN FOR MOTILAL BANARSIDASS PUBLISHERS PRIVATE LIMITED, BUNGALOW ROAD, DELHI 110 007 In respect and affection this work is dedicated to my parents who gave me an upbringing full of variety and gentleness. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Thanks first and foremost to my supervisor, Dr. Greg Bailey, of the Asian Studies Department at La Trobe University, Melbourne. He encouraged me from the start to pursue this area of interest and gave every support both by his advice and particularly by the many hours spent in reading the text with me. Thanks also to Professor Alexis Sanderson of Oxford who pointed out the value of Chapter 29. Thanks to my mentor and friend, Fr. Chris Barnett, Pastor Emeritus, who supported me in pursuing this unusual endeavour and who, during the preparation of this work, provided a roof over my head and the pleasure of his conversation. Thanks to Archbishop Emeritus of Melbourne, T. Frank Little, who allowed me to open this door and provided the necessary financial support. Thanks also to his successor, Archbishop George Pell, who continued to provide financial assistance. Thanks to Pandit Hemendranath Chakravarti of Varanasi, India, whose knowledge of the Sanskrit language and of the literature of Kashmir Shaivism was invaluable in disclosing this arcane text. Over the three months we spent together his frankness and delicacy were always appreciated. Thanks to Dr. Anita Ray of the Asian Studies Department, La Trobe University, for providing finish to the text, but above all for her constant friendliness during the time of study. CONTENTS Acknowledgements, vii Preface . xiii How to Read this Monograph xiv PART I PROLEGOMENA TO THE TANTRALOKA 29 AND TO JAYARATHA'S INVESTIGATION Chapters 1. Abhinavagupta 3 2. The History of the Tantric Tradition 8 a. Other Traditions 8 b. The Saiva Tantric Scriptural Traditions 10 c. The Kula Reform 15 d. Abhinava's Hierarchy of Traditions 18 c. The Exegesis of the Saiva Tantric Traditions 19 3. The Tantraloka 23 a. The Purpose of the Tantraloka 23 b. Models of Composition 24 c. Generalities on Style 26 d. The Manuscript 27 4. Jayaratha 29 5. Parameters of the Tantraloka 34 1. The Absolute: a. As a Unitary Reality 34 b. As a Mutuality 36 c. As a Unity 38 2. The Emanation of the Absolute 41 a. As a Contraction of Splendour 41 b. As Word and Alphabet 42 c. As Cosmology 47 d. As the Human Being 52 x The Kula Ritual 3. Reabsorption of the Absolute 55 a. Six Pathways 56 b. Five Forms of Subtle-breath 57 c. Seven Levels of Bliss 58 d. Four Aspects of the Krama Cycle 59 e. Five States of Consciousness 60 f. Five Fields of Knowledge 61 g. Twelve Stages of Sound 62 h. Four Means to Reach the Highest State 64 i. Three Attitudes 66 6. Tantraloka 29 68 a. Structure of Tantraloka 29 68 b. General Topic The Secret Ceremony' 73 c. Sub-topic 1 "The Category 'qualified' 75 d. Sub-topic 2 'The Kula Lineage of the Perfected Beings and their Wives' 79 e. Sub-topic 3 'The Ritual of Adoration' 113 f. Sub-topic 4 'The Ritual with the Sexual Partner' 124 g. Sub-topic 5 'The Ritual of the Secret Teaching' 147 h. Sub-topic 6 'Initiation' 150 i. Sub-topic 7 'Consecration' 164 j. Sub-topic 8 'Penetration' 166 k. Rites to Conclude the Initiation 174 PART II THE TRANSLATION OF THE TANTRALOKA 29 AND JAYARATHA'S INVESTIGATION General Topic The Secret Ceremony 179 Sub-topic 1 The Category'qualified' 179 Part I: The Rituals for the Initiated 180 Sub-topic 2 The Kula Lineage of the Perfected Beings and their Wives 180 Sub-topic 3 The Ritual of Adoration 218 Sub-topic 4 The Ritual with the Sexual Partner 240 Sub-topic 5 The Ritual of the Secret Teaching 294 Contents xi Part II: The Rituals of Initiation 302 Sub-topic 6 Initiation 302 Sub-topic 7 Consecration 320 Sub-topic 8 Penetration 324 Rites to Conclude the Initiation 343 Appendices 1. The 36 Categories, the 5 Kala and the 4 Spheres 349 2. The Phonemes of Sabdarasi, Matrka and Malini and the Categories 351 3. The Uccara of OM 353 4. The Mantras 354 5. The Deities Named 355 6. The Perfected Beings etc. and their Lineages 358 7. The Installation of the Sacred Sites on the Body, According to TA 29.59-63 361 8. The Schools and Systems Named 362 9. The Text Named in TA 29 and in Jayaratha's Investigation 363 10. Index of Quotations and their Source 366 11. The places Mentioned in TA 29 and in Jayaratha's Investigation 374 12.
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