Tantra Tradition of Kamakhya

Introduction to Tantra

Tantricism has a long-illustrated history in India, Tibet and Nepal. Once widely celebrated, during the British Raj it acquired a notoriety that led to its suppression and almost complete disappearance in India.

Tantra still remains one of the least understood of the yogic traditions. The spiritual and meditational side of Tantra has not been explained in detail or in depth, particularly from the standpoint of Hindu tradition. Tantra can perhaps best be defined as an energetic approach to the spiritual path, using various techniques including mantra, ritual, pranayama and meditation. It contains a way of knowledge, directing us to self-realization and the realization of the absolute.

Tantra contains teachings dealing with the whole spectrum of human concerns; for the stages of life from youth to old age, for the different classes of society, rituals for public welfare, rules for temple worship, sacraments of various kinds and, most importantly Yogic practices. Tantra has a universal approach that uses all available methods and rejects nothing.

The emergence of ‘Tantra’ as a term for the applied or practical tool for psycho-physical-yogic sciences (Abyasavigyana), has been ascertained within the period of 2^nd Century B.C. to 2^nd Century A.D. as the term appeared in the first textbook of Tantra Guhyasamaja by Nagarjuna. Prior to the documented evidence, the existence of the term and the tradition has been analyzed by various scholars using different academic hypothesis. According to these theories, the term and the tradition was present with the clans of non-Vedic and even pre-Vedic sages like the asuras, nagas, yakshas, kinnaras, as well as other nature-worshipping communities and interestingly the tradition has continued as a complex mixture spiritual practice dominated by non-Vedic elements till today.