Kapiolani
Community College Horizons 2001
Kapiolani
Community College
Horizons 2001
The first deity that mankind identified was the Earth Goddess. Paleolithic inscriptions
reveal the earliest drawings and conceptions of her. Goddess worship has evolved
over time, with the goddess assuming different names and faces, her characteristics
reflecting the beliefs of her followers. To some she is the creator, the mother,
the huntress; to others she is the healer, the protector, the nurturer. Basic
aspects of the goddess are consistent throughout time and culture, such as associations
with fertlity and death. In most cases Goddess worship is a balance of both
male and female deities. The Tantric religion worships only female deities,
believing that she embodies both the male and female principles and is the supreme
Divinity.
Tantra is by definition a form of Hindu and Buddhist religious practice. The central theme in Tantra is the realization of the macrocosm within the microcosm, represented in the human body (Kinsley, 51). The goal is to reach an awakened state of higher consciousness by incorporating all the physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual aspects. Tantrikas, those who practice Tantra, use a meditation technique in which they attempt to visualize each part of themselves in order to liberate it.
The female energy that is attempting to be liberated is represented by a coiled serpent (kundalini sakti) sleeping at the base of the spine in one of seven chakras, or centers. Through meditation and mental orientation, the serpent is awakened and travels up the spine through the other chakras. The final chakra is at the top of the head, the site of blissful awakening. As each chakra is opened, the sadhaka (aspirant) experiences different states of consciousness. All the thoughts in one’s mind can be utilized as a stepping stone to reach spiritual enlightenment, enabling one to transcend all earthly concepts and to see everything in divine function. High spiritual enlightenment is only reached when one learns how to harness every force in life (Blofield, 75).
The goddesses represent aspects of the cosmos that relate to human aspects, mental, physical, or both. The sadhaka works to identify a specific deity, and locate and awaken it within himself. The hope is that once the goddess has been awakened within, the sadhaka will then be able to awaken the quality that that goddess represents. Worship of the goddess, or puju, occurs within the person once he or she has awakened her. Some of the qualities said to be discovered after invoking the goddess are wisdom, increased senses and perceptions, and magical powers (Kinsley, 51).
There are many different goddesses associated with Tantra, and almost all of them overlap with Hinduism. There is a group of goddesses, referred to as the Ten Mahavidyas, who are primarily associated with Tantric worship, and are explained by Tantric principles. Mahavidya means “great knowledge,” and vidya specifically refers to female deities.
The most important of these goddesses is Kali, the Black Goddess. Seen in Hinduism as the Great Mother, her name means “time. ” She is the annihilator of all and anything that is not worthy of keeping. She is depicted with black or blue skin, a hideous face smeared with blood, and a necklace of dripping skulls around her neck. She has four arms, holding in one a weapon, in another a skull dripping blood. The other two are raised to bless her worshippers. Her tongue protrudes from her mouth and she dances naked upon the body of her husband, Shiva (Ions, 92). She prefers offerings of flesh and blood. Despite her dark depiction, Kali is revered as the primordial mother goddess and protectress. ’She is the most widely worshipped goddess in India and her role in Tantrism is very important. She represents death, destruction, fear, and independence. She is forerunner of the Mahavid because she symbolizes the fully awakened consciousness. That is, to acknowledge all aspects of life and view them as part of Divinity is the supreme goal of Tantric practice. Kali represents man’s greatest fear Ð death Ð and to confront her without fear is to make her a vehicle of salvation (Kinsley, 78-9).
Kali also conveys a strong sense of sexuality. Her body is described as young and firm and having a beautiful face. Her tongue suggests sexual gratification or desire. She represents independence from everything: life, society, boundaries. The depiction of her standing or dancing on top of her husband Shiva demonstrates freedom from men. She is the most widely worshipped and sought after because of her representation of the ultimate reality (80 - 84). Two other goddesses who closely resemble Kali are Tara and Chinnamasta. Tara is adored for her protection from evil and the ability to overcome obstacles. Her name is derived from the verb tara, which means “to cross,” symbolic of her ability to carry worshippers across the ocean of existence. She is depicted in many different forms, and her Tantric form is very similar to that of Kali. She is youthful, short statured and wears a garland of skulls. Her skin is blue or black and she has four arms and three faces, each with a set of eyes. In her right hands she holds a sword and knife, and in her left hands, a skull and lotus (Bhattacharyya, 351). She prefers to be given sacrificial blood from her worshippers, drawn from specific areas of the body corresponding to certain chakras. Her significance is similar to Kali’s, for she represents the forbidden.
Chinnamasta, another gory goddess, is described as the self-decapitated goddess. She stands naked with her head in one of her hands, happily drinking her own blood, while Kama and Rati fornicate beneath her feet. Chinnamasta does not have a large following, and it is believed that she was copied from early figures. She represents sexual activity, life, and nourishment. Her decapitated head and flowing blood is said to depict her desire to give blood to her followers rather than receive it Her image is believed to display the reality of sex, death, creation, and destruction in life. Her harmonious depiction of life feeding off of death gives worshippers the revelation that everything is interconnected and that there is a defined cycle in life (Kinsley, 144-147).
Dhumavati, the Widow Goddess, is “ugly, unsteady, and angry ... her eyes are fearsome, and her hands tremble ”(76). She wears rags from the cremation grounds and her skin is black. She is very old and she does not stop frowning. Aside from the Mahavidyas, Dhumavati is hardly known. She resembles many early Vedic goddesses, but she has no current cult following outside of Tantric worshippers. Her descriptions are overexaggerated in order to portray the difficult and painful time she represents in life. Taken in the context of Hindu society, she is a symbol of all that is unfortunate and unlucky. The crow that sits atop her horseless chariot is a symbol of death. Very few actually worship her, especially married people, as she is considered bad luck. Those who worship her report experiencing the desire to be alone, which is one indication that worship is appropriate for those who seek to denounce the world (176-94). It seems unclear why she is included in the Malavidyas since worshippers tend to avoid her.
Another commonly worshipped Mahavidya is Kamala, the Lotus Goddess. Unlike many of her sister goddesses, Kamala is depicted with a beautiful golden complexion, a silken dress, and outstretched hands holding lotus flowers. Her breasts are accentuated and she has three lotuslike eyes, She is one with the goddess Laksmi. Like Kali, she is extremely popular in India and has the oldest following aside from Tantra of all the Mahavidyas. Her position at the end of the list indicates her inferiority. She is the opposite of Kali; she represents everything desirable and favorable. To her followers she gives wealth and costly ornaments, as well as symbolizes fertility and development. The lotus represents purity, power, and authority, and her association with it suggests that she is a symbol of perfection that rises above the material world while still being connected to it. Despite her connection with Vishnu in Hinduism, in the Tantric tradition she is entirely independent from male attachments (223-232).
There has been much fascination as of late in the Western world regarding Tantra and its erotic essence. Tantra has been mistaken as “female-centered sex-worship” where men do not possess sexual energy apart from union with a woman. The goal in this practice is to control orgasm in order to prolong sexual intercourse and represent Shiva, the God in perpetual union with a Goddess (Tantrism). While sexuality and physical function are aspects of attaining full enlightenment, the basis of Tantra is to evoke the Goddess within and learn from her, not just to increase sexual function. Unfortunately, the Western world is still ready to understand and integrate the mental concepts behind Tantric goddess worship.
An essential aspect of goddess worship is not in congregational methods, but in an individual’s connection to the deity. Tantra is a method of worship aimed at integrating the physical and spiritual realms in order to arouse the divine power (shakti) that lies dormant within us all.
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