Somananda
Somananda (875–925 CE) was one of the teachers of Kashmir Shaivism, in the lineage of ''Trayambaka'', author of the first philosophical treatise of this school, ''Śivadṛṣṭi''.History of Kashmir Shaivism, B N Pandit, page 27 A contemporary of '' Bhaṭṭa Kallaṭa'',History of Kashmir Saivism - B.N. Pandit, p. 27 the two formed the first wave of Kashmiri Shaivites to propose in a rigorous and logical way the concepts of nondual Shaivism. Somananda lived in Kashmir, most probably in Srinagar, where most of the later philosophers of the school lived, as a householder. Lineage There is considerable myth surrounding the origins of ''Somananda''. He claimed he was a descendant of the sage Durvasa. ''Durvasa'' received from Shiva the spiritual mission of keeping the tradition and secrets of Agamic Shaivism alive. It is said that ''Durvasa'' created his son, ''Tryambaka'', directly from the mind (in a similar way with the creation of Athena directly from the mind of her fa ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Kashmir Shaivism
Kashmir Shaivism or Trika Shaivism, is a nondualist tradition of Shaiva-Shakta Tantra which originated sometime after 850 CE. Since this tradition originated in Kashmir it is often called "Kashmiri Shaivism". It later went on to become a pan-Indian movement termed "Trika" (lit. The Trinity) by its great exegete, Abhinavagupta, and particularly flourished in Odisha and Maharashtra.Wallis, Christopher; Tantra Illuminated, chapter II, The History of Śaiva Tantra Defining features of the Trika tradition are its idealistic and monistic ''Pratyabhijna'' ("Recognition") philosophical system, propounded by Utpaladeva (c. 925–975 CE) and Abhinavagupta (c. 975–1025 CE), and the centrality of the three goddesses Parā, Parāparā, and Aparā. While Trika draws from numerous Shaiva texts, such as the Shaiva Agamas and the Shaiva and Shakta Tantras, its major scriptural authorities are the ''Mālinīvijayottara Tantra'', the ''Siddhayogeśvarīmata'' and the ''Anāmaka-tantra.'' ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Kashmiri Shaivism
Kashmir Shaivism or Trika Shaivism, is a nondualist tradition of Shaivism, Shaiva-Shaktism, Shakta Tantra which originated sometime after 850 CE. Since this tradition originated in Kashmir it is often called "Kashmiri Shaivism". It later went on to become a pan-Indian movement termed "Trika" (lit. The Trinity) by its great exegete, Abhinavagupta, and particularly flourished in Odisha and Maharashtra.Wallis, Christopher; Tantra Illuminated, chapter II, The History of Śaiva Tantra Defining features of the Trika tradition are its Idealism, idealistic and Monism, monistic ''Pratyabhijna'' ("Recognition") philosophical system, propounded by Utpaladeva (c. 925–975 CE) and Abhinavagupta (c. 975–1025 CE), and the centrality of the three goddesses Parashakti, Parā, Parāparā, and Aparā. While Trika draws from numerous Tantras (Hinduism)#Classes of Hindu Tantra, Shaiva texts, such as the Agama (Hinduism)#Shaiva Agamas, Shaiva Agamas and the Tantras (Hinduism)#Classes of Hindu T ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Pratyabhijna
Pratyabhijñā or Pratyabhigyā ( sa, प्रत्यभिज्ञा, pratyabhijñā, re-cognition) is an idealistic, monistic, and theistic school of philosophy in Kashmir Shaivism which originated in the ninth century CE. The term ''Trika'' was used by Abhinavagupta to represent the whole of Kashmir Shaivism, or to designate the Pratyabhijñā system. The name of the system is derived from its most famous work, ''Īśvara-pratyabhijñā-kārikā'' by Utpaladeva. Etymologically, ''pratyabhijñā'' is formed from ''prati-'' ("re-") + ''abhi-'' ("closely") + *''jñā'' ("to know"), so the meaning is "direct knowledge of one's self," "recognition." The central thesis of this philosophy is that everything is absolute consciousness, termed ''Śiva'', and it is possible to "re-cognise" this fundamental reality and be freed from limitations, identified with Śiva and immersed in bliss. Thus, the slave (''paśu'': the human condition) shakes off the fetters (''pā ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Vasugupta
Vasugupta (~ 800 – 850 CE) was the author of the ''Shiva Sutras'', an important text of the Advaita tradition of Kashmir Shaivism, also called ''Trika'' (sometimes called ''Trika Yoga''). Biography Little is known about Vasugupta's life, other than he lived in Kashmir and in the first half of the 9th century. He probably was born in late 8th century to a Kashmiri Hindu family. This dating is based on mentions of his work in other Indian texts, and the biography of his students particularly Kallata and Somananda, both of whom are dated to have actively composed philosophical texts sometime between 825 and 900 CE. He probably was a contemporary and aware of the ideas of Advaita Vedanta, and of Buddhist scholars of the 8th and 9th century. The author is believed in Shaiva tradition to have amassed knowledge and recognition through direct realization. He was a native of Kashmir and a Shaiva. It is unclear how and what inspired him to write the Shiva Sutras, and early texts mention ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Cit (consciousness)
Chit ( sa, चित् or Cit) is a Sanskrit word meaning consciousness. It is a core principle in all ancient spiritual traditions originating from the Indian subcontinent, including Hinduism, Sikhism and Jainism. Hinduism In Upanishads it is referred to as ''the Drshta'' or ''the Seer'', and the sense that makes all other sense experiences possible. Chit is one of three aspects forming the satcitananda nature of the Absolute, according to the Vedic scriptures. See also * Satcitananda * Citta * Siddhar The Siddhar (Tamil: சித்தர் ''cittar'', from Sanskrit: '' siddha'') in Tamil tradition is a perfected individual, who has attained spiritual powers called ''siddhi''. Historically, Siddhar also refers to the people who were earl ... References Further reading * External links Arthur Avalon, ''Shakti and Shâkta. Chapter 14: Cit-Shakti (The Consciousness Aspect of the Universe)'' Sanskrit words and phrases {{IndoAryan-lang-stub ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Svatantrya
Svātantrya (from the Sanskrit ''sva'' meaning ''self'' and ''tantram'' meaning ''dependence''Siva Sutras – Jaideva Singh, p. 9 – 'self-dependency', or 'free will') is the Kashmiri Shaivite concept of divine sovereignty. ''Svātantrya'' is described as an energy that emanates from the Supreme (''Paramaśiva''), a wave of motion inside consciousness (''spanda'') that acts as the fundament of the world, or in another view, the original word (logos, pārāvak).Pratyabhijnahrdayam – J. Singh, p. 16 It does not use any external instrument as it itself is the first stage of creation. In antithesis with the Vedantic concept of Brahman, which is a mere conscious witness without effective power, being inflicted by the illusory power (or ''maya'' of the Brahman), in the Kashmiri Shaivite viewpoint creation is actively willed into existence by the supreme consciousness (''Śiva'') by the means of his irresistible will-force (''Svātantrya''). This is an important aspect of ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Monism
Monism attributes oneness or singleness (Greek: μόνος) to a concept e.g., existence. Various kinds of monism can be distinguished: * Priority monism states that all existing things go back to a source that is distinct from them; e.g., in Neoplatonism everything is derived from The One. In this view only the One is ontologically basic or prior to everything else. * Existence monism posits that, strictly speaking, there exists only a single thing, the universe, which can only be artificially and arbitrarily divided into many things. * Substance monism asserts that a variety of existing things can be explained in terms of a single reality or substance. Substance monism posits that only one kind of substance exists, although many things may be made up of this substance, e.g., matter or mind. * Dual-aspect monism is the view that the mental and the physical are two aspects of, or perspectives on, the same substance. * Neutral monism believes the fundamental nature of reality ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Shakti
In Hinduism, especially Shaktism (a theological tradition of Hinduism), Shakti (Devanagari: शक्ति, IAST: Śakti; lit. "Energy, ability, strength, effort, power, capability") is the primordial cosmic energy, female in aspect, and represents the dynamic forces that are thought to move through the universe. She is thought of as creative, sustaining, as well as destructive, and is sometimes referred to as auspicious source energy. Shakti is sometimes personified as the creator goddess, and is known as "Adi Shakti" or "Adi Parashakti" ("inconceivableprimordial energy"). In Shaktism, Adi Parashakti is worshipped as the Supreme Being. On every plane of creation, energy manifests itself into all forms of matter; these are all thought to be infinite forms of Parashakti. She is described as ''anaadi'' (with no beginning, no ending) and ''nitya'' (forever). Origins One of the oldest representations of the goddess in India is in a triangular form. The Baghor stone, found in a ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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The 36 Tattvas
The tattvas in Indian philosophy are elements or principles of reality. Tattvas are the basic concepts to understand the nature of absolute, the souls and the universe in Samkhya and Shaivite philosophies. Samkhya philosophy lists 25 tattvas while later Shaivite philosophies extend the number to 36. Tattvas are used to explain the structure and origin of the Universe. They are usually divided into three groups: ''śuddha'' (pure tattvas); ''śuddhaśuddha'' (pure-impure tattvas); and ''aśuddha'' (impure tattvas). The pure tattvas describe internal aspects of the Absolute; the pure-impure tattvas describe the soul and its limitations; while the impure tattvas include the universe and living beings that assist the existence of soul. Overview ''Tattva'' () is a Sanskrit word meaning 'thatness', 'principle', 'reality' or 'truth'. Samkhya philosophy enumerates only 25 ''tattva''s; twenty-four ''ātma tattva''s along with ''purusha'', which is ''ātman'' or the soul. Shaivite philosoph ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |