Goddess Traditions in India: Theological Poems and Philosophical Tales in the Tripurārahasya

317 Pages·2022·7.085 MB·English

by  Silvia Schwarz Linder

Goddess Traditions in India
This book on the Tripurar̄ahasya, a South Indian Sanskrit work which occu-
pies a unique place in the Śākta literature, is a study of the Śrıv̄ idyā and
Śākta traditions in the context of South Indian intellectual history in the
late middle ages.
Associated with the religious tradition known as Śrıv̄ idyā and devoted to
the cult of the Goddess Tripurā, the text was probably composed between
the 13th and the 16th century CE. The analysis of its narrative parts
addresses questions about the relationships between Tantric and Purāṇic
goddesses. The discussion of its philosophical and theological teachings
tackles problems related to the relationships between Sākta and Śaiva tra-
ditions. The stylistic devices adopted by the author(s) of the work deal
uniquely with doctrinal and ritual elements of the Śrıv̄ idyā through the
medium of a literary and poetic language. This stylistic peculiarity distin-
guishes the Tripurar̄ahasya from many other Tantric texts, characterized by
a more technical language.
The book is intended for researchers in the field of Asian Studies,
Indology, Philosophical, Theological or Religious Studies, Hindu Studies,
Tantric Studies and South Asian Religion and Philosophy, in particular
those interested in Śākta and Śaiva philosophic-religious traditions.
Silvia Schwarz Linder holds a PhD in South Asian Studies from the Insti-
tute of South Asian, Tibetan and Buddhist Studies, Vienna University, Aus-
tria. She is currently a Research Associate at the Institute for Indology and
Central Asian Studies, Leipzig University, Germany and Research Fellow
at the Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies, UK. Her interests focus on the
Tantric religious traditions of the Śrıv̄ idyā and the Pāñcarātra.
Routledge Hindu Studies Series
Series Editor: Gavin Flood
Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies
The Routledge Hindu Studies Series, in association with the Oxford Centre for
Hindu Studies, intends the publication of constructive Hindu theological,
philosophical and ethical projects aimed at bringing Hindu traditions
into dialogue with contemporary trends in scholarship and contemporary
society. The series invites original, high-quality, research-level work on
religion, culture and society of Hindus living in India and abroad. Proposals
for annotated translations of important primary sources and studies in the
history of the Hindu religious traditions will also be considered.
THE GODDESS AND THE SUN IN INDIAN MYTH
Power, Preservation and Mirrored Māhātmyas in the Mārkaṇḍeya Purāṇa
Raj Balkaran
INDIAN PERSPECTIVES ON CONSCIOUSNESS, LANGUAGE AND
SELF
The School of Recognition on Linguistics and Philosophy of Mind
Marco Ferrante
VAIŚEṢIKASUˉTRA – A TRANSLATION
Ionut Moise and Ganesh U. Thite
POLITICS AND RELIGION IN EIGHTEENTH-CENTURY INDIA
Jaisingh II and the Rise of Public Theology in Gaudıȳa Vaiṣṇavism
Sachi Patel
HINDU-CHRISTIAN DUAL BELONGING
Daniel Soars and Nadya Pohran
GODDESS TRADITIONS IN INDIA
Theological Poems and Philosophical Tales in the Tripurārahasya
Silvia Schwarz Linder
For more information about this series, please visit: https://www.routledge.
com/asianstudies/series/RHSS
Goddess Traditions in
India
Theological Poems and Philosophical
Tales in the Tripurarahasya
̄
Silvia Schwarz Linder
First published 2022
by Routledge
4 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN
and by Routledge
605 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10158
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa
business
© 2022 Silvia Schwarz Linder
The right of Silvia Schwarz Linder to be identified as author of
this work has been asserted in accordance with sections 77 and
78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted
or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic,
mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented,
including photocopying and recording, or in any information
storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from
the publishers.
Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks
or registered trademarks, and are used only for identification
and explanation without intent to infringe.
British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British
Library
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Schwarz Linder, Silvia, author.
Title: Goddess traditions in India : theological poems and
philosophical tales in the Tripurar̄ahasya / Silvia Schwarz Linder.
Description: 1. | New York : Routledge, 2022. | Series: Routledge
Hindu studies series | Includes bibliographical references and
index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2021050038 (print) | LCCN 2021050039
(ebook) | ISBN 9780367277031 (hardback) | ISBN
9781032232867 (paperback) ISBN 9780429297380 (ebook) |
Subjects: LCSH: Tripurārahasya--Criticism, interpretation, etc. |
Tripurasundarı̄ (Hindu deity)--Cult. | Tantrism--Early works to
1800. | Tripurasundarı̄ (Hindu deity)--Prayers and devotions--
Translations into English.
Classification: LCC BL1225.T732 S34 2022 (print) |
LCC BL1225.T732 (ebook) | DDC 294.5/2114--dc23/
eng/20211117
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2021050038
LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2021050039
ISBN: 978-0-367-27703-1 (hbk)
ISBN: 978-1-032-23286-7 (pbk)
ISBN: 978-0-429-29738-0 (ebk)
DOI: 10.4324/9780429297380
Typeset in Baskerville
by SPi Technologies India Pvt Ltd (Straive)
To the ever living memory of my mother, Vera

Contents
List of Abbreviations ix
Acknowledgments xi
Introduction 1
PART I
Myths and Rituals 15
1 The Tripurārahasya and the Śrıv̄ idyā Tradition 17
2 The Iconic Form of the Goddess 42
3 Tripurā as Kāmākṣı ̄and Lalitā 53
4 The Island of Jewels and the Śrıc̄ akra 69
PART II
Philosophical and Theological Teachings 99
1 Tripurā as Immanent and Transcendent Divine Consciousness 101
2 The Reformulation of the Svātantryavāda and Ābhāsavāda 115
3 The Goddess as Word-Energy 134
4 The Path towards Jıv̄ anmukti 149
viii Contents
PART III
Synopsis of the Māhātmyakhaṇḍa of the Tripurārahasya: With
an Annotated Translation of the Stotras and of Selected Passages 179
Descent of the Scripture (Śāstrāvatāra) 180
Presentation of the Spiritual Teachers 183
Story of Paraśuram̄ a 183
The Sage Saṃvarta 184
Dattat̄reya and His Teaching 185
Tripura ̄as Mother of the Worlds 187
The Goddesses as Forms of Tripura ̄ 194
The Threefold Kumar̄ı ̄ 194
Lakṣmı ̄and the Deeds of her Son Kam̄ a 197
Kam̄ a and Tripura ̄ 202
Gaurı ̄ 206
Marriage of Par̄ vatı ̄and Śiva 209
Origin of the Cult of the Śivaliṅga 213
Kam̄ a and Tripura/̄ Kam̄ ak̄ ṣı ̄ 214
Birth of Skanda 215
Bhar̄atı ̄ 216
Kat̄yat̄yanı ̄ 220
Caṇḍika ̄ 220
Kal̄ı ̄ 222
Durga ̄ 224
Lalitam̄ ah̄ at̄mya 226
Rebirth of Kam̄ a 226
Birth and First Deeds of Bhaṇḍa 228
Maṇidvıp̄ a and Śrıc̄akra 233
Antecedents of the Fight between Bhaṇḍa and Lalita ̄ 242
The Battle 246
Lalita ̄Triumphant 253
Conclusion 254
Bibliography 286
Index of the Translated Passages and Stotras 296
General Index 299
Abbreviations
AS Ahirbudhnyasaṃhitā
BāPur Brahman̄ ̣ḍapuran̄ ̣a
BhG Bhagavadgıt̄ā
BhPur Bhaḡ avatapuran̄ ̣a
BVPur Brahmavaivartapuran̄ ̣a
DBhPur Devıb̄haḡ avatapuran̄ ̣a
DM Devım̄ ah̄ at̄mya
HV Harivaṃsá
IP̄ K Is̄v́ arapratyabhijñak̄ ar̄ikā
JaT Jñan̄ ar̄ṇavatantra
KāPur Kal̄ikap̄ uran̄ ̣a
KaT Kular̄ṇavatantra
KKV Kam̄ akalav̄ ilas̄a
LPur Liṅgapuran̄ ̣a
LSN Lalitas̄ahasranam̄ a
LT Lakṣmıt̄antra
LTS Lalitat̄risá tıs̄totra
LU Lalitopakhyan̄ a
MāPur Mar̄kaṇḍeyapuran̄ ̣a
MBh Mahab̄har̄ata
MPur Matsyapuran̄ ̣a
MUṬ Mokṣopaȳatı̣k̄ā
NṢA Nityaṣ̄oḍası́k̄ar̄ṇava
NU Nityotsava
PH Pratyabhijñah̄ ṛdaya
PKS Parasú ram̄ akalpasūtra
PS Paramar̄thasar̄a
PST Prapañcasar̄atantra
PTLV Parat̄rıs̄íkal̄aghuvṛtti
PTV Parat̄rıs̄íkav̄ ivaraṇa
RĀ Ram̄ aȳaṇa
RY Rudrayam̄ ala
ŚD Sívadṛṣtị