Sādhana

''Sādhana'' (; ; ) is an ego-transcending spiritual practice. It includes a variety of disciplines from any culture like Hindu, Buddhist, Jain and Sikh traditions that are followed in order to achieve various spiritual or ritual objectives.

Sadhana is done for attaining detachment from worldly things, which can be a goal of a Sadhu. Karma yoga, Bhakti yoga and Gnyan yoga can also be described as Sadhana, in that constant efforts to achieve maximum level of perfection in all streams in day-to-day life can be described as Sadhana.

''Sādhana'' can also refer to a tantric liturgy or liturgical manual, that is, the instructions to carry out a certain practice.

Definitions

The historian N. Bhattacharyya provides a working definition of the benefits of sādhana as follows:

B. K. S. Iyengar (1993: p. 22), in his English translation of and commentary to the ''Yoga Sutras of Patanjali'', defines sādhana in relation to abhyāsa and kriyā:

Paths

The term sādhana means "methodical discipline to attain desired knowledge or goal". Sadhana is also done for attaining detachment from worldly things which can be a goal, a person undertaking such a practice is known in Sanskrit as a sādhu (female ''sādhvi''), sādhaka (female ''sādhakā'') or yogi (Tibetan '' pawo''; feminine yogini or dakini, Tibetan ''khandroma''). The goal of sādhana is to attain some level of spiritual realization, which can be either enlightenment, pure love of God (prema), liberation (moksha) from the cycle of birth and death ( saṃsāra), or a particular goal such as the blessings of a deity as in the Bhakti traditions.

Sādhana can involve meditation, chanting of mantra sometimes with the help of prayer beads, puja to a deity, yajña, and in very rare cases mortification of the flesh or tantric practices such as performing one's particular ''sādhana'' within a cremation ground.

Traditionally in some Hindu and Buddhist traditions in order to embark on a specific path of sādhana, a guru may be required to give the necessary instructions. This approach is typified by some Tantric traditions, in which initiation by a guru is sometimes identified as a specific stage of sādhana. On the other hand, individual renunciates may develop their own spiritual practice without participating in organized groups.

Tantric ''sādhana''

The tantric rituals are called "''sādhana''". Some of the well known ''sādhana-s'' are:

# '' śāva sādhana'' (''sādhanā'' done while visualizing sitting on a corpse).
# ''śmaśāna sādhana'' (''sādhana'' done while visualizing being in a crematorium or cremation ground).
# ''pañca-muṇḍa sādhana'' (''sādhana'' done while visualizing sitting on a seat of five skulls).

Buddhism

In Vajrayāna Buddhism and the Nalanda tradition, there are fifteen major tantric ''sādhanas'':
# Śūraṅgama/ Sitātapatrā
# Nīlakaṇṭha
# Tārā
# Mahākāla
# Hayagrīva
# Amitābha
# Bhaiṣajyaguru/Akṣobhya
# Guhyasamāja
# Vajrayoginī/Vajravārāhī
# Heruka/ Cakrasaṃvara
# Yamāntaka
# Kālacakra
# Hevajra
# Chöd
# Vajrapāṇi
#Avalokiteśvara
#
Not within this list but a central sādhana in Vajrayana is that of Vajrasattva.

All of these are available in Tibetan form, many are available in Chinese and some are still extant in ancient Sanskrit manuscripts.Digital Sanskrit Buddhist Canon – University of the West Archives of Ancient Sanskrit Manuscripts

Kværne (1975: p. 164) in his extended discussion of sahajā, treats the relationship of sādhana to mandala thus:

See also

* Chilla (retreat)
* Guru–shishya tradition
* Lojong
* Mahayana
* Transfer of merit
* Vedic chant
* Monasticism
* Samyama (Holding Together)

Notes

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Hindu practices
Buddhist meditation
Tibetan Buddhist practices
Spiritual practice