HYMN TO INTELLECTUAL BEAUTY. 

The awful shadow of some unseen Power 
Floats tho' unseen among us ; visiting 
This various world with as inconstant wing 
As summer winds that creep from flower to 
flower; 
Like moonbeams that behind some piny mountain shower, 

It visits with inconstant glance 

Each human heart and countenance ; 

Like hues and harmonies of evening, 

Like clouds in starlight widely spread, 
Like memory of music fled, 
Like aught that for its grace may be 
Dear, and yet dearer for its mystery. 
Spirit of Beauty, that dost consecrate 

With thine own hues all thou dost shine upon 
Of human thought or form, where art thou 
gone ? 
Why dost thou pass away and leave our state, 
This dim vast vale of tears, vacant and desolate? 
Ask why the sunlight not forever 
Weaves rainbows o'er yon mountain river; 
Why aught should fail and fade that once is 
shewn ; 
Why fear and dream and death and birth 
Cast on the daylight of this earth 
Such gloom, why man has such a scope 
For love and hate, despondency and hope ? 

No voice from some sublimer world hath ever 
To sage or poet these responses given : 
Therefore the names of Demon, Ghost, and 
Heaven, 
Remain the records of their vain endeavour : 
Frail spells, whose uttered charm might not 
avail to sever, 
From all we hear and all we see. 
Doubt, chance, and mutability. 

Thy light alone, like mist o'er mountains driven, 
Or music by the night wind sent 
Thro' strings of some still instrument, 
Or moonlight on a midnight stream, 

Gives grace and truth to life's unquiet dream. 

Love, Hope, and Self-esteem, like clouds, depart 
And come, for some uncertain moments lent. 
Man were immortal, and omnipotent, 
Didst thou, unknown and awful as thou art, 
Keep with thy glorious train firm state within 
his heart. 
Thou messenger of sympathies 
That wax and wane in lover's eyes; 
Thou, that to human thought are nourishment, 
Like darkness to a dying flame ! 
Depart not as thy shadow came: 
Depart not, lest the grave should be, 
Like life and fear, a dark reality. 


While yet a boy I sought for ghosts, and sped 
Thro' many a listening chamber, cave and ruin, 
And starlight wood, with fearful steps pur- 
suing 
Hopes of high talk with the departed dead. 
I called on poisonous names with which our 
youth is fed : 
I was not heard : I saw them not : 
When musing deeply on the lot 
Of life, at that sweet time when winds are wooing 
All vital things that wake to bring 
News of birds and blossoming, 
Sudden, thy shadow fell on me : 
I shrieked, and clasped my hands in extacy ! 

I vowed that I would dedicate my powers 
To thee and thine : have I not kept the vow? 
With beating heart and streaming eyes, even 
now 
I call the phantoms of a thousand hours 
Each from his voiceless grave : they have in 
visioned bowers 


Of studious zeal or loves delight 
Outwatched with me the envious night : 

They know that never joy illumed my brow, 
Unlinked with hope that thou wouldst free 
This world from its dark slavery, 
That thou O awful Loveliness, 

Wouldst give whate'er these words cannot ex- 
press. 

The day becomes more solemn and serene 
When noon is past : there is a harmony 
In autumn, and a lustre in its sky, 

Which thro' the summer is not heard or seen, 

As if it could not be, as if it had not been ! 
Thus let thy power, which like the truth 
Of nature on my passive youth 

Descended, to my onward life supply 
Its calm, to one who worships thee, 
And every form containing thee, 
Whom, Spirit fair, thy spells did bind 

To fear himself, and love all human kind. 


SONNET. 

OZYMANDIAS. 

I met a traveller from an antique land 
Who said : Two vast and trunkless legs of stone 
Stand in the desart. Near them, on the sand, 
Half sunk, a shattered visage lies, whose frown, 
And wrinkled lip, and sneer of cold command, 
Tell that its sculptor well those passions read 
Which yet survive, stamped on these lifeless 
things, 
The hand that mocked them and the heart that 
fed: 
And on the pedestal these words appear : 
" My name is Ozymandias, king of kings : 
Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!" 
Nothing beside remains. Round the decay 
Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare 
The lone and level sands stretch far away. 

FINIS. 

PERCY BYSSHE SHELLEY. 
LONDON: 
PRINTED FOR C. AND J. COLLIER, 
VERE STREET, BOND STREET. 
1819. 

TANTRA

            Pancharatra Philosophy

THE AGÀMAS

INDIAN philosophy is nothing but a versatile compcndium of

Dhanna in all ìts ramifieations and possìble proliferations. To an

Indian, whatever be the assumptiQtis about ihe ultimate reaiity,

whoever be the preeeptor and whatsoever be the ultimate source

oí ìnspiration and knowledge, Dharma is essentially a way of

liíe, a logieat way of thinking, a genial way of feeling and a

eongenial way of willing not only for one's ov^n individual wellbeing,

but also for the summum bomtm of his family, elan and

soeiety, for the weal and welfaie of Lhe whole of mankind at

large, nay for the general welTbeing of the IJniverse as a whole

wiQi all its living and non-living beings. This well-known tenn

Dharma is derived from the dhalu 'DHR' - whìch has three

eonnotatìons.

a) DHARANA

b) POS AN A

e) AVASTHÀNA

DHARMA is thaL which holds Logether the entire ereation

(the whole IJnìverse), nurtures and sustains 'it and helps it to

continue to be and perpetuate itself. Whatever be the system of

thooght, whcthcr in eonformity to the Vedas or in noneonformity,

whcther Vaidiki or Avaidikì, every Indian sehoohof

philosophy has emphasised Dharma one way or the olher. It is

Lbis prìneiple of Dharma that is the rendezvous of all the

difíerent sehools of Indian thought. Philosophers may differ in

lheirconclusions and eonvielions about the ulLimaie realily, they

may say n is one or more than one or none at all, some may say

the ultimatc reality is a.person, others may say it is.an

ìmpersonal pnneiple, they may have different ontologies and

divergent epistemologies, they may employ or underline

2 Philosophy of Panearatras

dif'ierent means of approaeh for the iiltimate realisaiion whcther

Jífana, Bhaktí or Kaima, they make lalk through their hats

whatever they like, but none of them have ever ignored Dhaima.

Dhanna is the runníng eord in and through every philosophieal

systein, on whìch ail the beads of the different sehools are stning

and by which the entire neeklaee of indian philosophy is held

together and presented to the world as an invaluable jewel,

immemorial, ineormptible, unfading, undying and rare . It is ihis

Dharma that has given every sehool of Indian thought an

undying fame and an amhentie note. Philosophy in India

whatever be its tinge or tone or tune, has never been a pure

aeademie pursuit, an item of ami-ehair thinking or ìntcllectual

pursuit for its own sake. Philosophies are bom in India by the

eonfrontation of dedieated men with evil, with the ills of life,

philosophies ate made to mlíeve mankind of their sorrows and

sufferings, to show them a path of self-realisation, to lead ihem

Lo permanent happiness unsullicd even by temporary relapses.

VVith this salutary end ìn view every one of the founders of

the varying sehools has in his iepertoire a seheme of praetiee, a

pieseiibed way oí' living, a dharma to put it in one word. Preeepi

and praetiee have never been divoreed. Eaeh illustrious

preeeptor was ìn himself an ìllustration of his philosophieal

eoneepts and imellectual eonvietions. He was hìmself the

cxemplar of his teaehings and the rest wouId fo!low siiil. VVhen

onee the desiination was detennined, the road of Dharma was

immediately paved to reaeh the destination. It was smooth going

for the foIlowers as they were eonfidenl of their destinations and

had absoiute trust in the paih-layers. Henee the walch word of

Indian Culturc and Phìlosophy is DHARMA vvhieh it has not

been possible for any westemer to translate it into a single word

of hís language. This is exactly the distinetion and cynosuro of

Indian thought.

' Dharmàt param nàsti ' - says the Bthadìranyaka Upanishad

<

1 4 - 14 )

,

There is nothìng beyond Dhamia.

' Dharmo viávasya jagatah pratishlhà' - The entire líniverse

is.sustaìned on the foundation of Dhamia. (Mahanarayana 2 - 6)

The Agamas 3

'* Dharmànnapramaditavyam ‘ -Taitiiriya- (1 - 11 - 1 ). Let

ihere be no negíeet of Dharma.

1 Dharma eva hato hanti - Dharmo rakshati rakshitah

(Manu - 8 - 15 ) Dharma is killed by the transgressor * The

iransgressor is ruined by himself in the proeess. He vvho proteets

Dharma, preserves himself therein.

The orthodox Hindu sineere to his heritage is of the

eonvietion that the Vedas are the ultimate source and the mie

neasurc-house of all Dharmas.

Vedokhilo Dharmamà lam ' - ( Manu - 2-6 ).

1 Vedo Dharmamiáam 1 - (Gautama Dharma Sitra - 1)

.

' (Jpadishio Dharmah prativedam 1 - (Bodhayana Dharma

Sutra - 1). Dharma is the means (Karana, Sadhana) to acquirc

truc knowledge.

Harita Maharshi has pronounced

Athàto Dhannam Vyàkhyàsyàmah I § ruti pramanako Dharmah I

ámtisea dvividhà

Vaidikì tantrikí ea -

Srutí the revealed tmlhs are two-fold in eharaeter -Vaidikí and

Tantrikf . As Yaksa the well-known eommentator on the Vedas

says

1 Mantra drashtaro risayah ' - The sages are those who have

seen the revealed tmtíis. That is why the original preeeptors are ealled Seers. Honest Hindus believe that the Srutis are Apt^vaeana ’ - trnths revealed, the tesiimony of God Himself

than whom a better well-wisher (apta ) eannot be even surmised.

The rcnowncd eommentator on Manus Dharma Sastra says

'Vaidikf tamrikf eaiva dvividhà smtih kíniià

1 - So God's

primeval revelations to mankind (^RUT1 ) are lwo-fold, namely

Vedie and Tantrie. Just as the vedas aie eonsidered to beThe

Simis, ihe Tantras are also taken to be the Srutis ihemselves.

4 Philosophy of PenearatrGS

1 VedaSástram ’ - ( Manu- 12-99).

' femtism Vedo vijnema ( Manu - 2-10 ).

Jnst as the pulses reveal a binary fission when broken, so

also the Srutis when probed into and nnderstood reyeal the two

pails of tlie Vedas and tlie Tantras, - it is presumed, Sometimes

the Vedas and the Tantras, the Nigamas and the Agamas are

eompared to that legendaty bird, Gandabhemnda which has two

neeks with faees eontained in one and the same body.

Often in aneíent Indian lore wc meet with the tenns, Smti,

Veda, Ágama and Amnàya almost as synonyms with an

interehangeable import (As paryàyavSeakas). In the contcxt of

cxplaining Vedie terms wc fínd referenees made as

-

' Ityàgítinát

Similarly in ihe coursc of cxplaining Tantrìe doetrines, we eome

aeross tefeienees made as

-

' Iti Smreh '

,

It is unfortunatc to find that sometimes some people look

down on the very word ' Tantra

1 as though it means somelhing

erooked, something undcsirablc, as though it is unbecoming of

honest beings and somelhing of a subterfugc and resorting to

eheap if nol reprehensible means of gaining one's end. This kind

of vicw is uncalicd for. Before delvíng into the meaning and

signifieanee of the Tanlra Sastras, it is neeessary lo knovv the

cxact meaning of the very term Tantra' itself. The Medìníkosa

kára says

' Tantram kutumbakrtye sýit sìddhínte ea ausadhottamc -

Pradhòne tantuvaye ea sastrabhede parieehade.

Snitisàkhàntare hetávubhayàrtha prayojake -

Iti kartavyafiyam ea

1

. The word ’Tantra’ has different meanìngs. It may mean any

of the following: Family-proteetion, an established system, the

best medieine, the most important or the outstanding, a spíder,

the eorollaries of any system of thought, a braneh.of vedie

knovvledge, a thing that may serve doubIe purposes, or that

which preseribes a paiticular way of doing a thing. In popiilar

The Àgamas 5

parlanee Tantra may mean a knoW“how; Often Tantra Sastra is

eharaeterised as a 'Prayoga Sastra' - a spirimal tcchniquc, a

religious teehnology, a

1 Do-it-yoursclf ' Sastra for the aspirants.

Often Tnatriki áruti is ealled a Siddhanta Agama, a Sàdhana

Sastra. Amarasimha says

' Tantriko jfíatasiddhantah

1 -

He means thereby that Tantra is Siddhanta - an established

system of knowledge and praetiees. He who*is wcll-veised in the

Siddhanta is ealled a Tantrika. The different established systems

of thought such as the Mimamsa, Nyaya, Vaiseshika usually

delineated as Darsanas are also often referred to as Taniras. For

instanee Sankara inhis Brahma Sutra Bhashya (3. 3. 53 ), while

eommenting on Purvamimamsa Darsana refers to it in the style -

Prathama-tantre - thereby implying that Darsana and Tantra are

interehangeable terms. Often great seholars are eonferred with

the title ’Sarvatantra Svatantra’ extolling their erudition and

mastery of the Sastras. If Manu could eall the Vedas ’Veda

Sastra, - Veda Sastram sanàtanam ( 12-99 ), the Tantras ean

be ealled 'Siddhanta Sastra’ with equal foree. For instanee

Sankara ealls Samkhya, a Tantra. Why , the Sàmkhya Karika

does so iiself, by ealling its own Darsana a Tantra in Karika - 70.

There is of course the long-standing eontroversy whether

the Vedas are really ’ Apaurusheya - Authorless' - While the

orthodox Hindus believe so, indologists both eastem and

westem are of the opinion that the authors of Lhe Vedas may be

assigned various dates upto 1500 B.C, Reeent excavations at

Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro and also Tìlak’s researehes have

pushed baek the orìgin of the Vedas by many thousands of

years. I do not wish to enter into the eontroversy whether the

Vedas are Apàurusheya or Pàurusheya. The point relevant here is

that the Smtis lose their elaim as revealed literatme. If the Vedas *

have theìr authors, then the Tantras will have to have their

aulhors. These very same indologists are of the opinion that

the Agamas and Tantras are of later origin than the Vedas and

that they are definitely later than the Purànas. They are of the

6 Phllosophy of Penearatros

farther opinion that the Parànas themselves are ncwly ereated

Post-Buddhístic litcrature speeially formulatc

to offset Buddhìsiì^ìnriuences and boost Hindiiism If that is so

Tantrie Literature is 10 be eonsidered as of veiy laie origin and

eannot be deemed as pari passu with the Vedas as elaimed

earlìer ìn terms of the aeeredited eonvietions of ìhe ortliodox

sehools.

The above argument of the Indologists that the Tantras aie of

reeent origin later to the Pates, ean be easily refutcd by

pointing out that Ìn the various Purànas themselves we find

mention made bolh of the Vaidiki and Tantriki foims of worehip,

So also the allegation that the Tantras are of Post-Buddistic

origin ean be easily rcfutcd. Lord Buddha liimself eondemned

the Tantrie worships of Brahma, Indra, Vìsnii, Kàtyàyìnì,

OinapaEi and others. Lalitavislàra, a gieat Biiddhistie work,

makes mentíon of Buddha's denounccmcnt of Tantne culls in its

I 7th ehapter, After Buddha, vve find Buddhists ihemselves

began to have theìr own innumcrable Tantras. Tliey veritably

began to worship innamerable deilìes sneh as Àdibiiddha,

Prajnapàramita, Manjusií( Tàrá,Árya-T'aràand so on , In other

words Baddhists eoald not resist tlie temptations of having iheir

ownTantras on the lìnes sìmìlar lo those of the IIindus.

Thus if Buddha could denigrate Tantrie worship, Ihe Tantras

shoaid have existed earlier to Buddhism.

Quile in eontrast with the eonsidered opinion of ihe

Indologists, one of tlie Tantras themselves, namely the

Naràyàníya Tantra poìnts out that íhe Vedas themselves have

originated from the YAMALAS, a elass of Tantras of

eonsiderable importanee and also magnUude, The prineipal

Yamalas are eight in number namely:

Rudra Yàmala

Kanda (skanda) Yìmala

Brahma Yàmala

The Agamas 7

Visnu Yamala

Yama Yàmala

Vayu Yàmala

Kubcra Yàmala

Indra Yamala.

Just as the original Siva Tantras or Agamas represent Ltie

Rudra or Sadasiva tradition, the Yàmalas represent the

BHAIRAVA tradition and it is further narrated that the

Yamalas vvere fìrst communicated to mankind by the follovving

eight Bhairavas:

Svaeehanda,

Krodha,

Unmatta,

Ugra and Kapalin

Jhankàra,

Sekhara,

Vijaya.

The Yàmala tradition believes ìn a huge pantheon of gods

and goddesses. Tantrie Sadhana is open to all eastes.

It is believed that the Rigveda has originated from Rudra

ìíimala, Sama Veda from the Brahma Yàmala, Yajur V,eda

from Vishnu Yàmala and Ahtarva Veda from the Sakti Yàniala.

Siddha Sarvánanda in his compendium ealled Sarvollàsa

Tantra means to eonvey the idea that the Yàmalas are so aneient

that they preeede even the Tàntras. All these of course are highly

eontroversial issues. Aeeording to Brahma Yamala it is

believed Isvara communicated the seeret knowIedge to

Srikantha. This Srikantha reineamated himself near Prayag and

communicated the Tantra in 1,25,000 anushtubh slokas to

various diseiples and that one of those diseiples was a Bhairava

and that that v 'as how many Bhairavas eame to know of it.

8 Philosophy of Panearatras

Aeeording to Mahà-Siddhasàra Tantra, Bharatavarsha is

divided into three KRÁNTAS or sub-dÌvisions and eaeh Kr ánia

is said to possess 64 Tantras. The three KRANTAS are :

Vishnu Kràita

Ratha Krànta

Asva Krànta.

Saktimangala Tantra defines the Krantas.

i) The land east of the Vindhya hills extending upto JAVA

eomprises Vishnu Krànta.

ii) The country north of Vindhya hiils including mainland

OHINA forms Ratha Krlnta.

iii) Rest of India westwards is Asva Krànta.

Hindu temples could be found in Indo China, Indonesia, Bali

and many other islands. Images of Kàli, Tára, Rudra could be

found all over the far east and south -east Asia,

Even Egypt eame under Asva Krànta and worship of the

Indían phallus was very popular there, In the Brihannila Tantra it

is said worship of Paramananda was in voguc in Persia. In

Rhodesia phallie emblems made of gold have been diseovered.

The worship of ASHTAROTH, ASTARTE, ISHTAR referred to

in.the Oìd Testament of ihe Bible is interpreted to be none other

than the Bljàksara - ‘STRÌM' - thé bíja of TARA. Thus it is

evident that Tantrie worship was widely prevalent in aneient

times in many parts of the world other than India even and thaL

Indian influence was all over Asia, Afriea and the middle éast

too, The Shat-Sambhava-Rahasya mentions 4 famous

Sampradàyas of Bharata - 4 fánious sehools very popular all

over Gauda in the east > Kelara in the middle Kàshmíra in the west The Agemas 9 Vilasa - all over ( an eeleede Sampradaya ). V/hether we agree with the vìew or not ihat ihe Vedas Lhemselves have iheir source ìn the Yamalas, we ean atleast be eonvineed that the Tantras are of very aneient orígín and that they are not postpuranic or post-buddhistic lìteramre. There is then another insinuatìon against the Tantras namely that the Agamas and Tantras represent a revolt against the Vedas. The objeetioners quote the Bhagavadgita sometimes, stanzas 45 and 46 in Canto IL In the same Bhagavadgila Canto X, stanza 22 Krishna says - " Of the Four Vedas, I am the Smaveda " - Again in Oanto XV Stanza No. 15 Krìshna says - " I am Lhe Tmth which all the Vedas seek to know. The author of the Vedànta ( the Upanishads) am I ; And I too am the real Knower of the Vedas " - Sometimes it is argued that the Tantras eannot be on a par wìth the Vedas for the simple reason that ìn many plaees blaek magie is deserìbed ìn the Tantras, that in some parts ihey eontain obseenities and that therefore they are not of good taste. In reply we may raise the qucstion - what about the Vedas themselves? Manu says -(11-33) Smtiratharvàngirasih kury adityavieárayan 1 Vak sastram Vai Bràhmamsya tena hanyàdarin dvijah II- On eertain oeeasìons a brahmin ean undoubtcdiy make use of the Atharvaveda. A brahmin's strength lies in his tongue (Vak) meaning thereby Mantra, To overeome an enemy a brahmin is permìtted to resort to the praetiees enjoìned in ihe Alharvaveda. The followìng Suktas diieetly deal willi blaek Arts ríagie in the Athaivaveda. . First Khanda Suktas - 14-17 Seeond n ii 17-31 Third it 11 25-30 Fomth it tt 12-16-36 10 Phllosophy of Panearatras Fifíh Khanda Snktas 14-23-27 Sixth “ " 37-105-130 Even in Rigvgela atul Yajurvcda there are referenees to 'AbhieSra Kftya ' Blaek Arts and Magie. Referenee : JjtGVEDA - Eìghth Astaka - " - Tenth Mandala 14th Síikta. " - 11 16thSíikta, " - " 163rd Sukta. ” - " 58-60 Sukta. YAJURYEDA - Taittirya Brahmana Kt$a - 2 Pra - 4 Anu - 2 To make a svveeping remark that all 7’antras teaeh Blaek Àrt and tiothing else is wrong and smaeks of an \mwammted hasty generaljsatìon and |>ad faith. Thore may be separate Tantras exclusively moant for Blaek arts and they are cjídusively known by theìr dìstlnPtìve apppdattons such as Gàruda, Daksìna, Vana, Bhpta ote. " Athábhietrah satriinám vedadharmadmham sm.tà h " If the Vedas themselves could advoeate and enuneiate a few items of blaek arts to bring couple$ together or punìsh fhe enemies of the Vedie brahmìns, why shonld any ope denounce an assemblage of Tantras most of which do not ovon toneh upon thp blaek arts or magìe or any sneh thing. When we take ìnto eonsideration any diseonrse on ereation in the Vedas, we ean easlly obsprvp Simiiarity of vìews between the Vaidiki and Tmtriki smtis. Rigveda ; 10 - 90 , * ? " Tasmàdyajhatsarvahuta!h teah sàmmì jajhire " - Atharveda ; 10.7.14 “Yatra tsayah prathamajà reah Samayajumiahì ekarshi yasmi - The Agomae 1 1 Unapiiah skambham lam brghi Kathamassmi devasah " ( Every one is avvare of tho Panea J3rahmu Mantras beginning wiih 'Sadyojfltam prapadyami ' and ending wìlh 'IsDnali sarva vidyàmm ' - To iinderstand the Panea Braiima mantras, wc have lo know elearly about the Paneasadakhyas. So also about the mantias as 'Adhvanimadhvapate 1 ete. - To nnderstand the signifteanep Qf ífiese mantras it is absointely neeessary to have rccourse into the Agamg$. Othcj*wisc it is impossible. The Brahmft Svoiàpfl fls ^Hggesfed ífl fh? Vaidiki snjtìs is elearly cxplained and illustratod in the Tintríki snitis, 5o also there is elose assoeialion and muuial substantiation between the Bràlimanas of the Vaidiki srntis and ihe Tfmtrjki srulis, For inatflnpp in Arsheya Brálimara ; (Arsheya - 1 ) ,r Yo-hava avìdÌums;eyacc)]ítndQ daivatabrahmanena niantiena yajayati va adhyapayati va Sthfti.ium Vàreehaii-gartan và pratìpadyate " - The same Ìdea that not knovving the Risi, Chandas and Daivata viniyoga of any Mantm if a person instmets or praeiises a Yantra worsliip he is surc to be a sinner only - ís cxprcsscd in the Agamas also- " Avidilvà Rsìm Chando Daivatam Yogamevaea Yo adhyàpayedjapedvàpi papfyan jàyate tiisíih" - Thflt is why it is often said about the Tantras, 1 Sruti - sàkhàvlsesati r a distinetive braneh of the SruUs. Rooted in the Smtis, it is elassed with the Vedas. In the Kasikavrtti, the word Tantra is derived from the root 'TAN 1 - whieh means ' to spread'- some later seholars have derived it from the rooi 1 TATRI 1 or 1 Tantri ’ meaning 'Orígination' or knowlcdgc. In a speeial sense Tantra is defined 12 Phílosophy of Panearatras " Tanyate Vistáryate Jnanam anena ili " -that which amplifies and nurtures knowJedgc, Tantra ìs that braneh of knowlcdgc that notonly enlarges and iUustratcs, but also sustains Smtijmna. In Kaníkagama il is stated about the Taniras : " Tanoti vipulíinarthm tattvamanlra samanvitfm, Trananea kurutc yasm at tantram iLyabhìdliíyate ", Not only does Tantra promulgatc profound knowlcdgc eoneeming Tattva (Cosmic prineiples) and Mantra (the seienee of mystie sounds), it breathes life into tliem so to say and makes them praetieable, It helps ín true praetieal realisation the greatness of ttie Tantras and Maniras, ít helps in self-realisation through self-elevation so to say, One of ihe oldesi Tantias, the Nisvasa tanlra Samhita ìs of the view that Tantra is jusL a culmination of the esoieiie aspeets of Vedanta and Samkhya for the reason that it upho!ds the ullimacy of Sìva with the validity of the world as an expicssion of His Sakti. Siva, the supremc Lord is saíd to have taught his eonsort íìrst the Vedanta, then the twcntyfive Samkhya tattvas and finally Siva tantra. Pingalamata, another tantrie tcxt says that Tantra was fir.^L communicaied by Siva to Parvati. It ìs Agama with the eharaeteristies of Chandas (Vedas). Knlamava Tantra (II 140-41 ) says ihat kiiladhamia is based on and inspired by Lhe trmh of the Vedas. This Tantra says that there is- no knowledge (vidya) higher than that of the Vedas and no doetrine (Darsana ) equal to Kaula - ' Na hi Vedadhika vidya ’ - III - 113. Prapaneasara eites Vaidikì mahavakyas and mantras. Meru Tamra says, as mantras are part of the Vedas, Tantra is also a part of the vedas (Pranatoshini - 70). NimtLara Tantra ealls Tantra the fifth Veda and Kulacara the fifth Ásrama (Pranatoshini ), Kulamava tantra reiterates that the Sastras have as theìr heart both the Veda and the Kaula tantra - ,l Tasmadvedatmakansastran Viddhi Kaulatmakan , priye - (II 140-141). Matsyamukha mahstantra says that the Tantrie díseiple must be pure of soul (Suddhatma ) and a knower of the The Agamas 13 Vedas. Knowledge of Ihe Vedas is an essential preliminary lo initiation into the Tantrie cult. Maharudra Yamala says that a person berefi of Vedie Kriya - ‘Vedakriya Vivarjita' is disqualificd for Hhe study and praetiee of Tantrie Sadhana (Mahamdra Yamala - Khanda I , Chap. 15. Khanda II, Ohapt. 2; Pranatosiiini - 108). Gandharva Tantra (Chapt. 2; Pranatoshini - 6) says that the Tanirie sadhaka must be an asiìka, a believer in the Vedas, ever attaehed to Brahman, ever speaking of Brahman, living in Brahman and taking shelter in Brahman. Tliat Hinduìsm is revealed in ihe six darshanas is a well-known faet. The sìx darshanas are the six stages lhrough which the mind progressess in its quest for Brahman. The six darshanas aie the six limbs. These six systems are not to be trealed separately, They must be taken together as darsana is not a philosophy as such, but oniy a vicw point. Tantra is preeisely a darsana and a sadhana sastra. In general it lays down differeni forms of praeiiee for the aitainment of the highest aim of hiiman cxistcnce by one lìving the ordinary iife of a housc-holdcr. In this respeet Tantra eorresponds to the Upasana Khanda of-ihe Sruti. The Tantras aie elassified undcr five heads namely: Saiva Sakta Vaishnava Saura and Gìnapatya. These five elasses of worshippers are eolleetively ealled PANCOPASAKAS. Eaeh elass of worshippcrs has iis own tantras. In Mahanirvana lantra, I. 18, 19, II.8 - 15, III. 72, the Mantra 1 Aum Saeeidekam Brahma' is stated and Tantra is aeelaìmed as a darsana. As already staied the teim ‘Tantra' is derived from the root ‘TAN' lo spread. Il means a system, a melhod a dìseipline. It helps in aehieving two ends, namely I 4 Phìlosophy o f Panearatras i. Abíiyiidaya - General progress or iiplift, ii. Nihartíyflsa- Attaining liie suprcme god nflitiely Salvation oi liberátion Tflhtra inay aptly be deserìbed as Sadhana rcduccd to a seienee, The Síddhi aehieved is a demonstrable faeL, cxpcrìtncntally verìfied. Tantra noL only helps in aehieving the suprcme end of self-realìsation and liberation but also helps to aehieve the ordinary ends of living cxistence such as Dharma, Artha and Kaína. The Tantra Sastra is based on the firm eonvietions that f Mamra ' is efficacious, ihat 'Yantra ' is potent and tiiat uitimatc siddhi at the level of Saeeidananda - ' Being - consciousness - bliss ' - is a eertaínty. It helps ìn the eoordination of Karma, Yoga, Jnana and Bhakti. Although il emphasises will and effon on the part of the individual sadhaka, it glorifies self-stirrender to ihe Alinìghty and seeking His merey and graee. It demands Bhakti and Prapatti, yeaming love of the votary, the upasaka. The Tantrie sadhana einploys both the cxoteric rituals of the Vedie type and the esoterie riluals of the Yogie type, The'Tantras just simpiify the Vedie rimaís and make greater use of esoterie symbols. We know the esoterie symbolism was evident even in the Brahmanas and Upanishads , Ex: Satapaiha Brahmana I. 3. 2-3. The same account ìs repeated in the opening verses of the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad also. The Tantras plaee greaier emphasis on the esoterie saerifiee. So we need not hesitate to say that the Tantras have emerged from the Vedie religion and saerifiees. In ihe vast reservoir of aneie/it ‘Hi

Huge growth in use of quartz for tools shows sophistication of ancient communities

by University of Exeter

Credit: CC0 Public Domain

A growth in the use of crystal quartz to make tools thousands of years ago shows the sophistication of ancient communities, according to new research.

The mineral was chosen because of its powerful symbolism, even though it involved painstaking work and other materials that would have been easier to use were available to prehistoric toolmakers, archaeologists argue.

Archaeologists have found there was a sudden spike in the number of tiny hand-made tools of less than 1cm made of crystal quartz in southern Africa around 14,000 years ago.

World War Zero brought down mystery civilisation of ‘sea people

Possibly the most famous horse in the world

Universal History Archive /Universal Images Group/Superstock/Getty
By Colin Barras

The Trojan War was a grander event than even Homer would have us believe. The famous conflict may have been one of the final acts in what one archaeologist has controversially dubbed “World War Zero” – an event he claims brought the eastern Mediterranean Bronze Age world crashing down 3200 years ago.
And the catalyst for the war? A mysterious and arguably powerful civilisation almost entirely overlooked by archaeologists: the Luwians.

By the second millennium BC, civilisation had taken hold throughout the eastern Mediterranean. The Egyptian New Kingdom coexisted with the Hittites of central Anatolia and the Mycenaeans of mainland Greece, among others.

In little more than a single generation, they had all collapsed. Was the culprit climate change? Some sort of earthquake storm? Social unrest? Archaeologists can’t seem to agree.

Eberhard Zangger, head of international non-profit, Luwian Studies, based in Zurich, Switzerland, says that’s because one crucial piece of the puzzle is missing. Another powerful civilisation in western Anatolia played a crucial role in the downfall (see video below).

His investigations of the published literature show that western Anatolia is extraordinarily rich in mineral and metal ore deposits, meaning it’s likely to have been an important region in antiquity.
Through studies of satellite imagery, Zangger has also found that the area was densely populated during the Late Bronze Age. Only a handful of the 340 large city-like sites he has identified have been excavated.
“Some of these sites are so large you can see them from space,” says Zangger. “There’s so much waiting to be found it’s really just mind-boggling.”

Hittite texts talk of several petty kingdoms in western Anatolia speaking versions of a common language – Luwian. According to Zangger, that means we can legitimately talk of them as forming a Luwian civilisation in their own right.

We know from Hittite texts that the Luwian kingdoms sometimes formed coalitions powerful enough to attack the Hittite empire. Zangger thinks that 3200 years ago the Luwians did just that and destroyed the Hittite Empire (see map, above).

Shortly after the demise of the Hittites, Egyptian texts document an attack force they termed the “Sea People”. Zangger says it makes sense to view these Sea People as the Luwians, continuing their campaign for wealth and power and, in the process, weakening and destabilising the Egyptian New Kingdom.
The Mycenaeans, perhaps anticipating an attack on their territory, formed a grand coalition of their own, says Zangger. They sailed across the Aegean and attacked the Luwians, bringing down their civilisation and destroying its key cities like Troy – events immortalised in Homer’s Iliad.

On returning to Greece, however, and in the sudden absence of any other threat, Zangger believes the Mycenaeans squabbled and fell into civil war – events hinted at in Homer’s Odyssey. Their civilisation was the last in the area to collapse.

Zangger says that only such a sequence of events fits with the evidence documented in ancient texts across the eastern Mediterranean, and also explains why the archaeological record shows that almost every large city in the region was destroyed in warfare at the end of the Bronze Age. He sets out his ideas in a new book, and on a website that launches in English today.

Bombastic storytelling – but is it true?
So what do other archaeologists make of this idea of a lost Luwian civilisation? Many stopped trying to impose this sort of monolithic cultural identity on ancient peoples decades ago, says Christoph Bachhuber at the University of Oxford.

“Archaeologists will need to discover similar examples of monumental art and architecture across western Anatolia and ideally texts from the same sites to support Zangger’s claim of a civilisation,” he says.
The textual evidence available is mainly from post-Bronze age and it paints a slightly confusing picture, which could be seen as both supporting and undermining Zangger’s theory, says Ilya Yakubovich, a historical linguist at the Philipp University of Marburg, Germany.

Zangger’s broader “World War Zero” narrative is also debatable. “He’s bringing in this idea of ancient international warfare,” says Michael Galaty at Mississippi State University. “Most archaeologists would balk at using such terminology.”

Bachhuber calls it “big bombastic storytelling” and points out that today, archaeologists are sceptical that ancient narratives like Homer’s approximate historical truth.

Zangger, however, says there are several other ancient accounts of the Trojan War that all tell a similar story to Homer. One, written in the first century AD, even refers to now-lost Egyptian monuments that documented the conflict 

Despite these criticisms, though, there is near-universal praise for the fact that Zangger’s ideas will raise the profile of Late Bronze Age archaeological research in long-neglected western Anatolia, which can only benefit the scientific community 

“He’s really getting the ball rolling to do larger holistic studies of the area,” says Bachhuber. “I’m actually quite excited that he’s bringing attention to this region.”

IN THE DICTIONARY UNDER WHITE PRIVILEGE 

“The rise of populists and polemicists has created a micro-industry in bashing private schools.”

THEGUARDIAN.COM

Head likens criticism of private schools to antisemitic abuse

Anthony Wallersteiner, head of Stowe school, under fire for ‘tasteless analogy’

1938-1939 Nazis in Madison Square Garden 

http://mashable.com/2016/07/27/nazis-madison-square-garden/#uCfB3p1zpaq3 

 

http://rarehistoricalphotos.com/american-nazi-organization-rally-madison-square-garden-1939/ 

https://www.theatlantic.com/photo/2017/06/american-nazis-in-the-1930sthe-german-american-bund/529185/

 Disturbing Pictures From The History Of America's Nazis Since the 1930s, American Nazi parties have sought to advance their agenda of hate, bigotry, and ignorance. https://www.buzzfeed.com/gabrielsanchez/american-hate?utm_term=.usO4MdRjg#.nvkvkAM9L 

 

A Look Back at the 1939 Pro-Nazi Rally at Madison Square Garden and the Protesters Who Organized Against It 

https://longreads.com/2017/08/14/a-look-back-at-the-1939-pro-nazi-rally-at-madison-square-garden-and-the-protestors-who-organized-against-it/

 Intersections: Pro-Nazi Rally at Madison Square Garden, 1939 - Amplify ampthemag.com/the-real/intersections-pro-nazi-rally-at-madison-square-garden-1939/ 

The Nazi Rally in Madison Square Garden https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0gU9op16rjQ

In the 1930s, thousands of American Nazis hailed George Washington as the ‘first fascist’ The history of Nazi summer camps and rallies in NYC Nazis Hail George Washington As First Fascist,” read a March 7, 1938 headline in Life magazine. The brief article reported on a boisterous group of pro-Nazi Americans who called themselves the German American Bund. The organization, whose antagonistic rallies and assemblies were rife with anti-Semitic and ethno-nationalist rhetoric, had begun to capture mainstream attention as the very politics they embraced were driving Europe toward war. https://timeline.com/nazis-america-camps-rallies-4fc6dfe5e3b3 

'They Didn't Just Go Away': Historian Talks About NYC's 1939 Nazi Rally http://gothamist.com/2017/08/14/nazi_rally_history_msg_nyc.php via Gothamist 

Nazi Summer Camps In 1930s America? https://n.pr/1P09Pob 

There Were American Nazi Summer Camps Across the US in the 1930s http://gizmodo.com/how-american-nazis-used-summer-camps-to-indoctrinate-th-1743267747? 

American Bund The Failure of American Nazism: The German-American Bund’s Attempt to Create an American “Fifth Column” The Battle of Charlottesville http://www.newyorker.com/news/daily-comment/the-battle-of-charlottesville 

It would have been naïve to expect the President to unambiguously condemn neo-Confederates (“Heritage, not hate,” etc.), but Nazis? For reasons that are not hard to discern, the swastika, at least in the United States, has always been more clearly legible as a symbol of racial bigotry than the Confederate flag. This country has countenanced more gatherings of white supremacists than it is possible to count, yet Nazism, precisely because Americans do not feel implicated in its worst predations, has typically been easily recognizable as intolerable. In the wake of Rockwell’s gathering, Chicago’s mayor, Richard Daley, denounced the group as “thugs and hoodlums.” Following the Bund rally in New York’s Madison Square Garden, Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia ordered an investigation into their tax compliance—a move that uncovered embezzlement that proved fatal to the organization. In that context, Trump’s decision in February to remove white supremacists from a federal program to counter violent extremists (while maintaining focus on Muslim terrorists) is telling. This had the effect of emboldening the reactionary legions. It was predictable that Richard Spencer’s coalition of the contemptuous would come together. Rockwell was never more than a fringe character, but Spencer increasingly looks like the vector of a formidable anger—one that needs to be confronted at direct angles, not oblique ones. When questioned about the rationale for Trump’s even handedness, the White House clarified that both the protesters and the counter-protesters had resorted to violence. This is notable in that the United States was once a country that did not see Nazis and those willing to fight them as morally equivalent. Aside from that, however, there were no images of anti-fascist protesters mowing down reactionaries with their cars. In 1939 Nazis rallied in Chicago to make Germany great again Four thousand supporters gave the Nazi salute in a northwest-side park.

 https://www.chicagoreader.com/chicago/1939-nazi-fascist-rally-chicago-history/Content?oid=21376284

 It can’t happen here? Confronting the fascist threat in the US in the late 1930s By Joe Allen Issue #87: Features Share The first article in this series (ISR 85, Sept.–Oct. 2012) focused on the struggle against the Silvershirts in Minneapolis.1 Part 2 focuses on the struggle against the German American Bund and the Christian Front in New York City. http://isreview.org/issue/87/it-cant-happen-here 

Nazi Party Sympathizers in Philadelphia Before the War (Part 1) https://hsp.org/blogs/fondly-pennsylvania/nazi-party-sympathizers-in-philadelphia-before-the-war-part-1 

Nazi Party Sympathizers in Philadelphia Before the War (Part 2) https://hsp.org/blogs/fondly-pennsylvania/nazi-party-sympathizers-in-philadelphia-before-the-war-part-2 

The Bund: The American Arm Of The Nazi Party Before And During WWII By John Kuroski on April 2, 2017

 http://all-that-is-interesting.com/german-american-bund-fritz-kuhn 

When Nazis came to New York 

Support for the Nazi party wasn't limited to Europe. During WWII, American support for the Nazis was growing, as is evident in these jarring images of Nazis in New York. From the suburbs of Long Island to the Big Apple, we take a look back at when Hitler and his Nazis' attempt to infiltrate the American public in New York. http://www.nydailynews.com/news/nazis-new-york-gallery-1.2856907?pmSlide=1.2856893

888 GEMATRIA AND THE TRUMP, ANTICHRIST SIGNIFICANCE ...

prophecyinthemaking.blogspot.com/2016/06/888-gematria-and-trump-antichrist.html

Jun 6, 2016 - 888 GEMATRIA AND THE TRUMP, ANTICHRIST SIGNIFICANCE!!! .... an authority on Jewish law and master Kabbalist who lived in Baghdad ...