Introduction to Tantra Sastra - Aghori

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INTRODUCTION TO TANTRA ŚĀSTRA
bad actions, regarding both friend and foe as one and
the same. He himself ever speaks the truth, and avoids
the company of those who decry the Devatā. He worships
thrice daily, and meditates upon his guru daily, and, as
a Bhairava, worships Parameśvari with divya-bhāva.
All Devas he regards as beneficial. 1 He bows down at
the feet of women regarding them as his guru 2 (strinām
pāda-talam dṛ ṣṭ va guru-vad bhāvayet sadā). He
worships the Devī at night, 3 and makes japa at night
with his mouth full of pān, 4 and makes obeisance to the
kula vṛ kṣa. 5 He offers everything to the Supreme Devī.
He regards this universe as pervaded by strī (Śakti),
and as Devatā. Śiva is in all men, and the whole brahmanda
is pervaded by Śiva-Śakti. He ever strives for
the attainment and maintenance of devatā-bhāva, and
is himself of the nature of a Devatā.
Here, again, the Tantra only seeks to give a general
picture, the details of which are not applicable to all
men of the divya-bhava class. The passage shows that it,
or portions of it, refer to the ritual divya, for some of the
practices there referred to would not be performed by
the avadhata, who is above all ritual acts, though he
1 He worships all Devas, drawing no distinctions. For instance, an orthodox,
up-country Hindu who is a worshipper of Rāma cannot even bear to hear
the name of Kṛ ṣṇa, though both Rāma and Kṛ ṣṇa are each avatārā of the
same Viṣṇu, who is again himself but a partial manifestation of the great
Śakti.
2 He is even strī-khanda-paṇajā-rudhira-bhūṣītah, for he is unaffected by
the pāśa of ghrnā or lajjā.
3 Vaidik worship is by day.
4 That is, after eating, pān being taken after meals.
5 An esoteric term, as to which see Tantrābhidhāna. Similarly (in Nityā-
Tantra), he does obeisance to the kulastrī, who is versed in Tantra and
mantra, whether she has been brought by a dūti, is pūmśchāli, or veśyā and
whether youthful or old.