Aum Namo Bhagavate Sri Ramanaya Sri Bhagavan and Kashmir Shaivism Introduction Among the various Hindu philosophies, Kashmir Shaivism is one of most famous schools of thought and one of its major philosophical articulations is Pratyabhijña Sastra . Like Advaita Vedanta it is monistic, like Vaishnavism it is theistic, like Yoga it is practical, like Nyaya it is logical as also is appeasing like Buddhism. Therefore, Kashmir Shaivism is considered by scholars as idealistic and realistic in essence, strongly advocating a pragmatic approach to life. Kashmir Shaivism arose during the eighth or ninth century in Kashmir and made significant strides, both philosophical and theological, until the end of the twelfth century. It was householder religion based on a strong monistic interpretation of the Bhairava Tantras (and its subcategory the Kaula Tantras), written by the Kapalikas . Somananda , the first theologian of monistic Shaivism, his disciple Utpaladeva, Abhinavagupta and his disciple, Ksemaraja are celebrated exponents of Kashmir Shaivism. It is philosophically important to distinguish Kashmir Shaivism from the Advaita Vedanta of Upanishads. Both are non-dual philosophies which give primacy to Universal Consciousness (Chit or Brahman). In Kashmir Shaivisim, all things are a manifestation of this Consciousness. Hence, the phenomenal world is real as it has its being in Consciousness (Chit). In comparison, Advaita Vedanta holds Consciousness (Chit) real rejecting the phenomenal world as an illusion (maya). The goal of human birth according to Kashmir Shaivism is to merge in Shiva or Universal Consciousness and realize one's already existing identity with Lord Shiva. Hence it is categorized by various scholars as monistic idealism and also as theistic monism as Liberation [Mukti] is through Lord Shiva. Basic principles that govern Kashmir Shaivism 1. Citi : Universal Consciousness (citi) is the fundamental stuff of the universe. This Consciousness is one and includes the whole. It could also be called God or Shiva. 2. Mala : Consciousness contracts itself. The one becomes many. Shiva becomes the individual (jiva). This contraction is called mala(impurity). There are three malas, the mala of individuation (Anava mala), the mala of the limited mind (Maya mala), and the mala of the body (Karma mala). 3. Upaya : An individual caught in the suffering of embodied existence, afflicted by the three malas, eventually yearns to return to his or her primordial state of Universal Consciousness. To attain this, he or she undertakes sadhana or spiritual practice. Kashmir Shaivism describes four methods (upaya-s): Anavopaya , the method of the body, Saktopaya , the method of the mind, Sambhavopaya , the method of Consciousness, and Anupaya the ‘methodless’ method. 4. Moksha: The fruit of the individual’s sadhana is the attainment of Self-realization (moksha). In Kashmir Shaivism, the state of liberation (mukti) is called sahaja samadhi and is characterized by the attainment of unwavering bliss-consciousness while living one’s ordinary life. 5. Anuttara : is the ultimate principle and is the fundamental reality underneath the whole Universe. Among the multiple interpretations of anuttara are: "supreme", "above all" and "unsurpassed reality". As the ultimate principle, anuttara is identified with Siva, Sakti (as Sakti is identical to Siva), the supreme consciousness (cit), uncreated light (prakasa), supreme subject (aham) and atemporal vibration (spanda). The practitioner who realizes anuttara through any means, whether by her own efforts or by direct transmission by the Grace of Shiva/shakti, is liberated and perceives absolutely no difference between her and the body of the universe. Anuttara is different from the notion of transcendence in that, even though it is above all, it does not imply a state of separation from the Universe. 6. Aham is the concept of supreme reality as heart. It is considered to be a non-dual interior space of Siva, provides support for the entire manifestation & is identical with Sakti. 7 Kaula : Although domesticated into a householder tradition, Kashmir Shaivism recommends a secret performance of Kaula practices in keeping with its heritage. This was to be done in seclusion from public eyes, therefore allowing one to maintain the appearance of a typical householder. 8. Svatantrya, self-created free will : The concept of free will plays a central role in Kashmir Shaivism. Known under the technical name of svatantrya, it is the cause of the creation of the universe - a primordial force that stirs up the absolute and manifests the world inside the supreme consciousness of Siva. Svatantrya is the sole property of God, all the rest of conscious subjects being co-participant in various degrees to the divine sovereignty. Humans have a limited degree of free will based on their level of consciousness. Ultimately, Kashmir Shaivism views all subjects to be identical - "all are one" - and that one is Siva, the supreme consciousness. Thus, all subjects have free will but they can be ignorant of this power. Ignorance too is a force projected by svatantrya itself upon the creation and can only be removed by svatantrya. A function of svatantrya is that of granting divine grace - saktipat but dependent only on the will of God. Thus, the disciple can only surrender himself and wait for the divine grace to come down and eliminate the limitations that imprison his consciousness. Kashmir Shaivism texts 1. Agama Sastras are those writings that are considered as being a direct revelation from Siva. They include essential works such as Malin īvijaya Tantra, Svacchanda Tantra, Vijnanabhairava Tantra, Netra Tantra, M ṛgendra Tantra, Rudrayamala Tantra, Sivasutra and others. There are also numerous commentaries to these works, Sivasutra having most of them. 2. Spanda Sastra, the main work of which is Spanda Karika of Vasugupta, with its many Commentaries. Out of them, two are of major importance: Spanda Sandoha (this commentary talks only about the first verses of Spanda Karika), and Spanda Nir ṇaya (which is a commentary of the complete text). 3. Pratyabhijna Sastra are those writings which have mainly a metaphysical content. Due to their extremely high spiritual and intellectual level, they are the least accessible for the uninitiated. The most important works in this category are: Iśvara Pratyabhijna, the fundamental work of Utpaladeva, and Pratyabhijna Vimarsinī, a commentary to Isvara Pratyabhijna. Revival of Kashmir Shaivism in 20th Century Kashmir Shaivism went underground for a number of centuries. While there may have been yogis and practitioners quietly following the teachings, there were no major writers or publications after perhaps the 14th century. In the 20th century Swami Lakshmanjoo , himself a Kashmiri Brahmin, helped revive both the scholarly and yogic streams of Kashmir Shaivism. His contribution is enormous. He inspired a generation of scholars who made Kashmir Shaivism a legitimate field of inquiry within the academy. Nor should the contribution of Swami Muktananda be overlooked. He introduced Kashmir Shaivism to a wide audience in the West through his lectures & writings on this subject. Now our concern is with Pratyabhijna Sastra as it stands validated in all its entirety with Sri Bhagavan’s Direct Experience of the Universal Consciousness [Self or Lord Shiva]. Pratyabhijna Sastna, also known as Pratyabhijna Darshana, deals with Pratyabhijnanam. Pratyabhijna can be split as prati +abhi + jna . Prati means ‘in comparison with & abhi means ‘in front of or facing’ & jna means ‘to know’ . When one meets his friend after some 30years, in spite of the incidental differences like greying of hair, change in body constitution etc, one is able to identify his friend by his essential features like his eyes, mannerisms, voice modulations etc. For this identification, two things have to take place. First, your seeing him in front of you [abhi] which is the present knowledge [Pratyaksha Jnanam]. Second one is, immediately on seeing your friend, you go down the memory lane to identify a person in comparison with [Prati] the present person you have seen. This is knowledge of the past i.e Paraamarsha Jnanam. Both these knowledges of the present & past constitute the process called Recognition . Just as in the example quoted, Pratiabhijnanam consists of sudden flash of Knowledge of Self [Universal Consciousness –Lord Shiva] which is Pratyaksha Jnanam [Knowledge of the present] and the recognition of one’s own identity with Self [Lord Shiva] that existed already [Paraamarsha Jnanam- Knowledge of the past] by going down the memory lane. Hence, Pratiabhijna Sastra is defined as Philosophy of Recognition . It is time now to see how Sri Bhagavan shines as a live & monumental example of this Philosophy of Recognition. In Madurai [Tamil Nadu, South India], in 1896, a small boy aged 16, by name Venkataraman, all alone in the corner of a small room in the upstairs, unnoticed by the other inmates of the house and without premonition, was struck all of a sudden with this flash of Universal Consciousness about which Pratiabhijna Sastra so loudly talks about . Unable to bear this impact, the little boy thought that death had come and immediately laid down on the floor thinking that he would be dead in a few moments. To his surprise, in spite of rigor mortis having set in, he found that He was the Universal Spirit and not the body or the little ‘I’ whom he earlier thought he was. He could go down the memory lane and ascertain that He is the Eternal Universal Consciousness that pervades the entire Universe. In fact, the little boy, Venkataraman disappeared for ever but Lord Shiva or the Universal Consciousness rose up again as Sri Bhagavan Ramana Maharshi to live a life of Purity & Oneness with Lord Shiva for a further period of 54 years. It was Resurrection once again. Having got convinced about his identity with Lord Shiva & unable to bear even the physical separation from Him, Sri Bhagavan Ramana, nay, the Universal Spirit moved away from Madurai to Arunachala, the abode of his Father within a few weeks after this Death Experience, thus proving Pratiabhijna Sastra is, indeed, a Blessed, Divine Doctrine.