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Introduction
Reference Only when Shiva is united with Shakti does he have the power to
Glossary, Bibliography, create - Saundaryalahari
Different Traditions, Tantrik Texts,
Links to Other Sites, Message Board, Second-hand knowledge of the self gathered from books or gurus
Awards can never emancipate a man until its truth is rightly investigated
and applied; only direct realisation will do that. Realise yourself,
Search Site turning the mind inward. - Tripura Rahasya, 18: 89
Go Tantra, or more properly tantrika, is a diverse and rich spiritual
tradition of the Indian sub-continent. Although in recent years, in
the Western world, it has become almost exclusively associated
Nathas and Yoga with sex, in reality this is one aspect of what is a way of life. In
Akulavira Tantra, Chakras, India itself, tantra is now, nearly always, associated with spells
Chakras according to Goraksanath, Gorakhbodh, and black deeds.
Jnanakarika, Jogi Traditions, Kaulajnananirnaya,
Kulananda Tantra, Malinivijayottaratantra, Neither of these views is correct, and each wildly underestimates
Shrinathanavaratnamalika, Nathas in Nepala, Shiva the wide-ranging nature of the different traditions. Further, there
Sutras, Siddhasiddhanta Paddhati, Some Aspects of the remains an ocean of tantrik and agamic literature still to be
History and Doctrines of the Nathas, Tantrik yoga, The 36 discovered and translated, spanning a period of time which at
Tattvas, Vijnanabhairava, Yogavishaya, least reaches back to the 10th century of the common era (c.e.).
Yogis under the Raj,
Mahendranathi (Western) Tradition The tradition, or perhaps better, the traditions, underwent many
phases and schools over this period of time, ranging from an
Tantrik Ritual - Puja extremely heterodox viewpoint to, in some cases, a very orthodox
Armour (kavacha), Flower-Food-Fragrance, Gayatri, Guru, standpoint. Refer to this page to see the vast diversity of thoughts
Inner and Outer Ritual, Mala (rosaries), Mantra, Meditation and practices subsumed under the word "tantra". Much of the
(Dhyana), Nyasa, Pranapratishta, Puja (ritual), Sexuality, material on this site is related to the Kaula tradition in many of its
Virasadhana, Yantras guises. The work kaula is cognate with clan and the communities
venerated a huge number of gods (devas) and goddesses
Devata - Some Devis and Devas (devis).
Bagalamukhi, Bhairava, Chinnamasta, Female aspects,
Ganesha, Jvalamukhi, Krishna, Male aspects, Mrityunjaya, On this large Web site you will find yantra, mantra, tantra and
Shakti Mantras, Shiva, Tara Devi, The Ten Mahavidyas other material relating to some of the different traditions; texts on
the siddhas, gurus and yogis of the Natha sampradaya including
Kalikula - Kali Tradition Gorakhnath, Matsyendranath and Dattatreya; much about
Durga, Guhyakali, Kalika, Kali 100 Names, Kalihridaya, kundalini, nadis, chakras; images of tantric kula devas (gods) and
Kalinityas, Kaliyantra, Magic of Kali, Mahakala, Syama devis (goddesses) including Kali, Tripura, Shiva, Ganesha,
Upanisad Cchinnamasta, Durga and Tara; pujas and practices; meditations
and dharanas; the inner meaning of kaulachara, vamachara and
Shrikula - Lalita Tradition svecchacharya; an extensive bibliography, and original English
Bala Panchanga, Bhavanopanisad, Dakshinamurti translations as well as links to other sites.
Samhita, Fifteen Nityas, Gandharva Tantra, Jnanarnava
Tantra, Kurukulla, Lalita, Meditation on Lalita, Nityotsava, Although some tantras appear at first glance to be
Paradise, straightforward, most, if not all of them, employ a type of
Philosophy of Tripura Tantra, language which can be taken on many levels. According to the
Rajarajeshvari Kavacha, Shodhanyasa, Shrichakranyasa, tradition, everything has a gross, a subtle and a supreme
Shrinathanavaratnamalika, Shri Vidya Ratna Sutras, meaning and as the Devi is the goddess of letters, she can
Shripuja, Shoshika, Subhagodaya, Tripura, Varahi, bewilder with her Maya as well as enlighten.
Yakshinis, Yogini Hridaya
Many terms used in the tantrik tradition have meanings which
Tara, Nilasarasvati, Mahachinachara can be taken at face value but do not always have this meaning,
Tara Devi, Tararahasya, Rudrayamala thus making them difficult to understand to the literally-minded.
The mentality of the pashu, or a person with a herd-disposition, is
Tantrik Translations and Summaries said to predispose him or her to misunderstand the meaning.
Akulaviratantra, Brihadnilatantra, Devirahasya,
Devirahasya Chapter II, Ganesh Upanishad, This cryptic way of speaking pervades many of the texts. Should
Gandharvatantra, Guptasadhanatantra, Jnanarnava a cremation ground, for instance, be understood as the yoni, as
Tantra, Jnanasankalinitantra, Kankalamalinitantra, the real place where corpses are burnt, or as a symbol for the
Kaulajnana, Kaulavalinirnaya, Kaulopanishad PDF, Absolute? The answer may be all three. Is a crossroad a symbol
Kulananda Tantra, of the five elements, the place where roads meet, or four centres
Kulachudamanitantra (introduction), Kulachudamanitantra within the human body? Again, it may have one or any of these
(translation), Kularnavatantra, Malinivijayottaratantra, meanings. And is the union of Shiva and Shakti the symbol of
Netratantra 1, Netratantra 10, Niruttaratantra, Nityotsava, sexual intercourse, the union of vital breaths within the body or an
PDF Translations, Rudrayamala, Tantrarajatantra, Todala eclipse?
Tantra, Yogini Hridaya, Yoginitantra, Yonitantra
We can probably find the answers to these questions by going to
Works of Mahendranatha the root philosophy of the tantrik traditions. There is no Shiva
Works of Mahendranatha the root philosophy of the tantrik traditions. There is no Shiva
Adinathas, Dattatreya, Dhuniwala, Ecstasy-Equipoise- without Shakti and yoga is a realisation of the unity of all things.
Eternity, Hymn to Lord Shiva, Londinium, Mahashivaratri, That is not to say that everything in tantrik texts is figurative;
Morbid Menus, Magick Path of Tantra, Naked Saints of many describe practices which are said to bring about this
India, Notes on Pagan India, Snug in Smoky Shmashans, realisation.
Twilight Yoga, Zen's Zenith of Zest
It is also important to remember that legends and stories within
Jyotisha, Astrology, Kalachakra the tradition may be intended to appeal to parts of the human
Astrology in Yoga, Time and the Kalachakra, Planets mind which are not solely connected with logic.
(graha), Mahakala Shani hymn, Surya (the Sun), Nature of
the Planets, For example, in the Tripurarahasya (secrets of Tripura), a
Astrological Bibliography wonderful work available in an English translation (see
Bibliography), much of the teaching and practical philosophy of
Sanskrit Texts the tradition is told in story form, easy to digest but pregnant with
baTuka Bhairava 108, Chinnamastaa 108, meaning. Bear these considerations in mind when browsing this
shriikarpuuraadistotram.h, kaulopaniShat.h, site.
shaktisuutraaNi, shanaishchara stotram,
shiitalaaShTakam.m, shrii vidyaa ratna suutra, If you are new to the subject, we suggest you visit the glossary
yogaviShaya, yoginiihR^idayam.h page, where many of the terms on this site are explained in a
simple manner. The headings below each open out into sub-
To view the following, you will need the Sanskrit 98 font. As this site expands, pages where you can sample many of the mysteries of this
future pages will include Devanagari characters which use the Sanskrit 98 ancient tradition.
font. Please click on the link below for instructions.
yaeignIùdym!, The sections and the topics left also need some explanation. Very
broadly speaking, tantras fall into traditions belonging to greater
or lesser schools. The Kali tradition, for example, has a large
© 1975-2001. All rights reserved. None of this material may be reproduced, literature and there are specific areas in India where her worship
apart from purely personal use, without the express permission of the is concentrated. The Lalita, or Shri Vidya tradition, also has a very
Webmaster extensive literature, much of which is still unplumbed.
Web pages designed by Mike Magee.
[email protected] The Natha Sampradayas or lines relate to sects said to have
Original artwork is © Jan Bailey, 1996 originated mostly from Matsyendranath and Gorakhanath, and
Translations are © Mike Magee 1996. occupy an important position in the yoga schools of the
mediaeval period.
The U.K. Main Site
at http://www.shivashakti.com/ is Hosted by Hubcom Under other topics, we have included a selection of tantrik topics,
The North American Mirror Site each of which could form vast topics on their own.
at www.clas.ufl.edu/users/gthursby/tantra/ is
Hosted by Gene R. Thursby
Tantrik ritual is included because above all else the adepts of
people have turned to this page these schools insisted on practical work. Many tantras are
since the site was inaugurated practical manuals and this section will be expanded in the future.
in December 1996
We have also included some translations of parts of the tantrik
literature along with abstracts of other texts to give a feel for the
whole subject. If there are mistakes in the translations, please
forgive us. Also, let us know, and we will fix them.
The Sanskrit texts section will also be expanded in the future to
include material hard to find, out of print and also out of copyright.
Because the tradition still lives on in the last years of this
millennium, we have also included material written by HH Shri
Gurudev Mahendranath, the 23rd guru of the Adinatha
Sampradaya, who died just a few years ago.
To charges that in some way we have breached rules about
publishing mantras and the like, we can only respond that a great
deal of this information is available in Hindi and Sanskrit books
which are not hard to obtain, and also in manuscripts available to
anyone who takes the time to dig them out of libraries.
Suggestions, corrections and comments about the site are very
welcome, and can be posted to our Message Board. Additions to
the site will also be posted here.
