Ritual

A group of tantrika ascetics.
Rajasthan, c. 18th century.
Bronze.
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advanced aspirant's initiation is higher and imparted through a
disciple imbued with deep spiritual experience.
Three kinds of spiritual aspirants have been distinguished in the
tantras according to their mental dispositions or stages of spiritual
consciousness: Pasu, Vira, and Divya. When one is still in bondage
(pasu) and subject to the common round of conventions, he is led
along the tantric way by devices suitable to his competency. One
who is more capable of psycho-spiritual experience of a stronger
ethical nature (vira) and had the inner strength to 'play with fire', as
tantra says, is at the middle of the extremes. A man of divya
disposition is the most developed. His meditative mood is
spontaneous in him and he is always ready to imbibe spiritual
experiences, always in ecstasy enjoying the 'inner woman' and
'wine'. In this state the 'inner woman' is the Kundalini Sakti in the
body of the worshipper and 'wine' the intoxicating knowledge
derived from yoga, which renders the worshipper senseless, 'like a
drunkard'.
There are several kinds of tantric practices for the awakening of
the Kundalini Sakti; among them and most important are
Dakshinachara or Dakshina Marga, the right-hand path; Vamachara
or Vama Marga, the left-hand path, in which woman
(vama) is included; and Kulachara, which is a synthesis of the other
two. In addition, there are also the mixed practices, such as the
Vedic, Saiva and Vaishnava. The followers of the left-hand path
practise the Pancha-Makara rites (five M's), whose name refers to