Kashmir shaivism Quotes

“In his discussion of Trika Yoga Abhinavagupta begins with the most advanced approach, and then presents successively easier methods one by one in descending order. This is another example of his particular approach to yoga. His intention is to make the best and the quickest method of yoga immediately available to all aspirants. If they succeed at the highest level, they need not go through the long chain of lower stages. However, if certain aspirants feel that they cannot handle the most advanced path successfully, then they are free to move along a more structured path and to choose any of the methods that accommodate their psychophysical capacity. The important point is that spiritual students should not assume that they are not fit for the most advanced method. Why should people resort to riding on a bullock cart when an airplane is at their disposal? If, however, they are unable to handle the superior vehicle successfully, they can choose some other more appropriate form of transportation.— B. N. Pandit, Specific Principles of Kashmir Shaivism (3rd ed., 2008), p. 94–95.”

“God, bearing the whole psycho-physical existence as reflections, is also not involved in any transformation of His essence. He remains pure Consciousness alone while appearing as infinite phenomena. The whole universe exists in the transcendental aspect of God, shining there as infinite, pure, and blissful I-Consciousness. It shines within Him as Him alone, and not as anything other than Him . . . . The Universe exists in Him as pure Consciousness alone, just as all milk products are present in milk in the form of milk alone. All that is, shines within Him as “I” alone. In Him there is no trace of “this-ness” or “that-ness”. Rather, it is the outward reflections of His divine powers that appear as “this-ness”.— B. N. Pandit, Specific Principles of Kashmir Shaivism (3rd ed., 2008), p. 19.”

“All of the blissful and beautiful aspects of the Absolute are present in each and every person and living thing, but they remain dormant because they are hidden behind the mask of maya. In other words, we are all blinded to this inner bliss and beauty by our limited sense of who we are, and by the habit of directing so much of our attention out into the world. Everyone can have momentary glimpses of inner bliss when they experience something that is extremely pleasing to the senses and the mind. But usually these situations are fleeting and simply leave a person unfulfilled and longing for more. They then pursue the outer object in an attempt to rediscover the blissful state, not realizing that the source of bliss is within and need not be attached to an outer stimulus at all. This inner beauty can be discovered and contacted at will through simply turning our attention within, and through the various practices outlined in this yoga.— B. N. Pandit, Specific Principles of Kashmir Shaivism (3rd ed., 2008), p. 123.”

“According to the Trika system, yoga is that theological practice which helps in attaining the realization of absolute unity between the practitioner and Absolute Reality, that is, between the yogin and God. As it says in the Malinitantra:The unity of one (a finite being) with another (Almighty God) is called yoga by Shiva yogins (Malinivijayatantra, IV.4).Practitioners of yoga are advised to realize their forgotten true nature and to recognize themselves as none other than the Absolute, Paramasiva. This realization is said to be readily attainable through Trika yoga, when aided by both an intense devotion for the Lord and by the correct theoretical knowledge of the pantheistic absolutism of Shaiva monism. Theoretical knowledge removes the yogins’ mental confusion and misconceptions about Reality, and devotion refines their hearts so that they become capable of actually feeling and experiencing the truth of Shaiva monism. The yoga of Abhinavagupta is thus an integral process of developing both the head and the heart. People with no mental clarity cannot understand the truth, while those without heart cannot digest.— B. N. Pandit, Specific Principles of Kashmir Shaivism (3rd ed., 2008), p. 95–96.”

“A special and very important characteristic of Trika yoga, which is not found in other systems, is its doctrine of “possession” (samavesa). In samavesa practitioners are suddenly infused and possessed with Shivahood, and feel themselves to be omniscient and omnipotent. This is not the kind of possession or haunting that occurs when the power that haunts and the person who is haunted are different. Rather, yogins in samavesa enter a state of unity, and their limited individual personalities get expanded into universal I-consciousness which they feel to be divinely potent in all respects. Samavesa has been defined as the immersion of the dependence of a dependent consciousness into the independence of the Independent Consciousness (Tantraloka, I.73). It is actually the sudden and direct intuitional realization of one’s Divine Essence, called Isvarapratyabhijna.Sufficient practice in samavesa results in a state of jivanmukti (liberation in this very life) in which a yogin develops supernatural divine powers (siddhis). A jivanmukta can use these divine powers simply by willing them to be (Isvarapratyabhijnavimarsini, IV.i.15), though such a refined individual would most probably avoid meddling with the natural order, or in matters of divine administration, which are the province of a long hierarchy of male and female deities at different levels of authority. This kind of yogic attainment is not considered to be an obstacle on the path of final liberation. Rather, it is said to be helpful, as it removes any lingering doubt about the divine nature of the Self, and develops a firm faith in the eventual attainment of absolute unity with Paramasiva when the individual dies (Tantraloka, XII, 183–85). Further, these abilities help create faith and confidence in the mind of worthy disciples who feel that the preceptor, being liberated, can liberate others as well.— B. N. Pandit, Specific Principles of Kashmir Shaivism (3rd ed., 2008), p. 96–97.”