Hugh B. Urban
- Published in print:
- 2001
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780195139013
- eISBN:
- 9780199871674
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0195139011.001.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
This book is a companion volume to the author's The Economics of Ecstasy: Tantra, Secrecy, and Power in Colonial Bengal, but while The Economics of Ecstasy engages the theoretical issues of secrecy ...
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This book is a companion volume to the author's The Economics of Ecstasy: Tantra, Secrecy, and Power in Colonial Bengal, but while The Economics of Ecstasy engages the theoretical issues of secrecy and concealment associated with the Kartābhajās — a Bengali sect devoted to Tantra, an Indian religious movement notorious for its alleged use of shocking sexual language and rituals, this book presents the first English translation of the sect's body of highly esoteric, mystical poetry and songs. The period from the late eighteenth to the early nineteenth centuries, during which these lyrics were written, was an era of change, experimentation, and transition from the older medieval styles to the new literary forms of “modern” Bengal. The original songs presented are an important part of this transitional period, reflecting the search for new literary forms and experimentation in new poetic styles. Long disparaged as an inferior, low‐class, or corrupt form of Bengali literature, these songs are concerned with contemporary social life in colonial Calcutta and with the real lives of common lower‐class men and women. With their vision of a universal “religion of humanity,” open to men and women of all classes, the Kartābhajā songs offer an alternative model of community, which made a special appeal to the working classes of colonial Calcutta. They delight in ridiculing and satirizing the foppish British rulers and pretentious upper classes, although at the same time, however, the satirical urban imagery is mingled with older Tantric connotations and employed in ingenious new ways to express profoundly esoteric and mystical religious ideas.Less
This book is a companion volume to the author's The Economics of Ecstasy: Tantra, Secrecy, and Power in Colonial Bengal, but while The Economics of Ecstasy engages the theoretical issues of secrecy and concealment associated with the Kartābhajās — a Bengali sect devoted to Tantra, an Indian religious movement notorious for its alleged use of shocking sexual language and rituals, this book presents the first English translation of the sect's body of highly esoteric, mystical poetry and songs. The period from the late eighteenth to the early nineteenth centuries, during which these lyrics were written, was an era of change, experimentation, and transition from the older medieval styles to the new literary forms of “modern” Bengal. The original songs presented are an important part of this transitional period, reflecting the search for new literary forms and experimentation in new poetic styles. Long disparaged as an inferior, low‐class, or corrupt form of Bengali literature, these songs are concerned with contemporary social life in colonial Calcutta and with the real lives of common lower‐class men and women. With their vision of a universal “religion of humanity,” open to men and women of all classes, the Kartābhajā songs offer an alternative model of community, which made a special appeal to the working classes of colonial Calcutta. They delight in ridiculing and satirizing the foppish British rulers and pretentious upper classes, although at the same time, however, the satirical urban imagery is mingled with older Tantric connotations and employed in ingenious new ways to express profoundly esoteric and mystical religious ideas.
Jiang Wu
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- May 2008
- ISBN:
- 9780195333572
- eISBN:
- 9780199868872
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195333572.003.0008
- Subject:
- Religion, Buddhism
This chapter explores the disputed issues in the first controversy, which are: (1) using Chan principle as standard to test students' enlightenment experience, (2) the perfect circle as the origins ...
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This chapter explores the disputed issues in the first controversy, which are: (1) using Chan principle as standard to test students' enlightenment experience, (2) the perfect circle as the origins of five Chan schools, and (3) proper understanding of encounter dialogues.The chapter explores the practice of dharma transmission, esoteric ritual, and encounter dialogue in 17th‐century Chan Buddhism.Less
This chapter explores the disputed issues in the first controversy, which are: (1) using Chan principle as standard to test students' enlightenment experience, (2) the perfect circle as the origins of five Chan schools, and (3) proper understanding of encounter dialogues.The chapter explores the practice of dharma transmission, esoteric ritual, and encounter dialogue in 17th‐century Chan Buddhism.
Hugh B. Urban
- Published in print:
- 2001
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780195139020
- eISBN:
- 9780199834778
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/019513902X.001.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
This is a study of the Bengali Kartābhajā sect and its place in the broader movement of Tantrism, which is an Indian religious movement, notorious for its alleged use of shocking sexual language and ...
More
This is a study of the Bengali Kartābhajā sect and its place in the broader movement of Tantrism, which is an Indian religious movement, notorious for its alleged use of shocking sexual language and rituals. The author looks closely at the relationship between the rise of the Kartābhajās, who flourished at the turn of the nineteenth century, and the changing economic context of colonial Bengal. Made up of the poor lower classes labouring in the marketplaces and factories of Calcutta (India), the Kartābhajās represent “the underworld of the imperial city.” It is shown that their esoteric poetry and songs are saturated with the language of the marketplace and the bazaar, which becomes for them the key metaphor used to communicate secret knowledge and mystical teachings. Not only do they employ the imagery in the market of moneylending and brokering, but also name their sect after the British East India Company, giving themselves the ironic title of the “Poor Company.” The case of the Kartābhajās opens many new insights not merely into the specific case of one Bengali cult, but also into much larger cross‐cultural and theoretical issues, including the changing role of the lower class, marginalized groups under the changing conditions of colonialism, the changing role of Tantric traditions during the period of British rule, and the topic of secrecy as a cross‐cultural category in the study of religion. The book is arranged in three parts: I. The Secret Marketplace: Historical Origins and Socioeconomic Contexts; II. The Power of Secrecy: Esoteric Discourse and Practice; and III. The Liability of Secrecy: Secrecy as a Source of Scandal and Slander, Elitism, and Exploitation.Less
This is a study of the Bengali Kartābhajā sect and its place in the broader movement of Tantrism, which is an Indian religious movement, notorious for its alleged use of shocking sexual language and rituals. The author looks closely at the relationship between the rise of the Kartābhajās, who flourished at the turn of the nineteenth century, and the changing economic context of colonial Bengal. Made up of the poor lower classes labouring in the marketplaces and factories of Calcutta (India), the Kartābhajās represent “the underworld of the imperial city.” It is shown that their esoteric poetry and songs are saturated with the language of the marketplace and the bazaar, which becomes for them the key metaphor used to communicate secret knowledge and mystical teachings. Not only do they employ the imagery in the market of moneylending and brokering, but also name their sect after the British East India Company, giving themselves the ironic title of the “Poor Company.” The case of the Kartābhajās opens many new insights not merely into the specific case of one Bengali cult, but also into much larger cross‐cultural and theoretical issues, including the changing role of the lower class, marginalized groups under the changing conditions of colonialism, the changing role of Tantric traditions during the period of British rule, and the topic of secrecy as a cross‐cultural category in the study of religion. The book is arranged in three parts: I. The Secret Marketplace: Historical Origins and Socioeconomic Contexts; II. The Power of Secrecy: Esoteric Discourse and Practice; and III. The Liability of Secrecy: Secrecy as a Source of Scandal and Slander, Elitism, and Exploitation.
Vesna A. Wallace
- Published in print:
- 2001
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780195122114
- eISBN:
- 9780199834808
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0195122119.003.0002
- Subject:
- Religion, Buddhism
The first part of this chapter gives a general introduction traditions and theory to the Kālacakratantra, which is described as belonging to the class of the unexcelled yoga‐tantras ...
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The first part of this chapter gives a general introduction traditions and theory to the Kālacakratantra, which is described as belonging to the class of the unexcelled yoga‐tantras (anuttara‐yoga‐tantra). Together with its most authoritative Indian commentary, the Vimalaprabhā it stands as the most comprehensive and informative tantra of its class. According to the Kālacakra tradition itself, the Kālacakratantra is the most explicit tantra, which imparts its teaching by revealing the actual meanings, whereas the other anuttara‐yoga‐tantras, which are regarded as secret or concealed tantras, convey their meanings in an implicit manner. The topics covered in the further sections of the chapter are the classification of the families in the Kālacakra tradition; a critique by the Mādhyamika system of Buddhist philosophy of other philosophical systems in the Kālacakratantra; the concept of the Ādibuddha in the Kālacakra tantric system; and the Kālacakratantra and the Mañjuśrīnāmasaṃgīti [a fairly early devotional tantric text of unknown origin (circa 7th century) for communal recitation centring on the praises of the bodhisattva Mañjuśrī, the Buddhist patron saint of wisdom and learning]. The last section of the chapter presents a brief analysis of the Inner Kālacakratantra.Less
The first part of this chapter gives a general introduction traditions and theory to the Kālacakratantra, which is described as belonging to the class of the unexcelled yoga‐tantras (anuttara‐yoga‐tantra). Together with its most authoritative Indian commentary, the Vimalaprabhā it stands as the most comprehensive and informative tantra of its class. According to the Kālacakra tradition itself, the Kālacakratantra is the most explicit tantra, which imparts its teaching by revealing the actual meanings, whereas the other anuttara‐yoga‐tantras, which are regarded as secret or concealed tantras, convey their meanings in an implicit manner. The topics covered in the further sections of the chapter are the classification of the families in the Kālacakra tradition; a critique by the Mādhyamika system of Buddhist philosophy of other philosophical systems in the Kālacakratantra; the concept of the Ādibuddha in the Kālacakra tantric system; and the Kālacakratantra and the Mañjuśrīnāmasaṃgīti [a fairly early devotional tantric text of unknown origin (circa 7th century) for communal recitation centring on the praises of the bodhisattva Mañjuśrī, the Buddhist patron saint of wisdom and learning]. The last section of the chapter presents a brief analysis of the Inner Kālacakratantra.
Rachel Fell McDermott
- Published in print:
- 2001
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780195134353
- eISBN:
- 9780199834457
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0195134354.003.0003
- Subject:
- Religion, Hinduism
This is a study of the Hindu Śākta poet Rāmprasād Sen (ca. 1718–1775), who has long been recognized as the premier Bengali Śākta poet, although very little is actually known about him. The approach ...
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This is a study of the Hindu Śākta poet Rāmprasād Sen (ca. 1718–1775), who has long been recognized as the premier Bengali Śākta poet, although very little is actually known about him. The approach adopted is to combine what historical material there is with looking at his poetry and various biographical legends. The largest section of the chapter looks at the available manuscripts on Rāmprasād, and includes quotations from his poetry and various historical illustrations; this is followed by a brief look at Rāmprasād's temple in Halishar. The next part of the chapter tries to create a composite portrait of Rāmprasād by examining the nature of his relationship with the Nadia rajas, the degree to which he should be treated as a Tāntrika, and his place within the Śākta tradition; these topics provide clear examples of the way in which Rāmprasād has been used and interpreted by his descendants and admirers. The last part of the chapter draws inferences on the “real” Rāmprasād.Less
This is a study of the Hindu Śākta poet Rāmprasād Sen (ca. 1718–1775), who has long been recognized as the premier Bengali Śākta poet, although very little is actually known about him. The approach adopted is to combine what historical material there is with looking at his poetry and various biographical legends. The largest section of the chapter looks at the available manuscripts on Rāmprasād, and includes quotations from his poetry and various historical illustrations; this is followed by a brief look at Rāmprasād's temple in Halishar. The next part of the chapter tries to create a composite portrait of Rāmprasād by examining the nature of his relationship with the Nadia rajas, the degree to which he should be treated as a Tāntrika, and his place within the Śākta tradition; these topics provide clear examples of the way in which Rāmprasād has been used and interpreted by his descendants and admirers. The last part of the chapter draws inferences on the “real” Rāmprasād.
Rachel Fell McDermott
- Published in print:
- 2001
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780195134353
- eISBN:
- 9780199834457
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0195134354.003.0008
- Subject:
- Religion, Hinduism
An assessment is made of Kamalākānta Bhaṭṭācārya's poetic contributions to the Bengali Hindu Śākta literature in the light of the textual precedents examined in Ch. 5. The first part of the chapter ...
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An assessment is made of Kamalākānta Bhaṭṭācārya's poetic contributions to the Bengali Hindu Śākta literature in the light of the textual precedents examined in Ch. 5. The first part of the chapter looks briefly at the texts, editions, and musical notations. The remainder is devoted to the Kālī‐centered poetry, examining in turn the Śākta padas, and a Tantric meditation manual, Sādhak Rañjan (which is treated more briefly). Many quotations are included. A short conclusion assesses Kamalākānta's role in evolving trends in the goddesses Kālī and Umā.Less
An assessment is made of Kamalākānta Bhaṭṭācārya's poetic contributions to the Bengali Hindu Śākta literature in the light of the textual precedents examined in Ch. 5. The first part of the chapter looks briefly at the texts, editions, and musical notations. The remainder is devoted to the Kālī‐centered poetry, examining in turn the Śākta padas, and a Tantric meditation manual, Sādhak Rañjan (which is treated more briefly). Many quotations are included. A short conclusion assesses Kamalākānta's role in evolving trends in the goddesses Kālī and Umā.
Hugh B. Urban
- Published in print:
- 2001
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780195139020
- eISBN:
- 9780199834778
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/019513902X.003.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
The phenomena of secrecy and esotericism remain among the most persistent and pervasive, yet poorly studied and misunderstood aspects of the history of religions. The field of South Asian studies is ...
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The phenomena of secrecy and esotericism remain among the most persistent and pervasive, yet poorly studied and misunderstood aspects of the history of religions. The field of South Asian studies is no exception to this trend, although it has generated a growing interest in the role of secrecy in Indian traditions, and specifically in the texts and rituals of Tantrism. However, Tantric studies have hardly made any inquiry into the real historical and social contexts in which Tantra is practised, have not looked at any of the broader comparative issues involved in the study of esoteric traditions, and have yielded little critical reflection on the historical construction of the category of Tantrism. This book aims to address these issues through the study of one specific esoteric and secret sect: that of the Kartābhajās or “Worshippers of the Master,” which spread throughout Calcutta (Bengal, India) in the late eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, and still has some living and practising representatives. The first half of this introduction provides a general background on the Kartābhajās and their importance for the scholarly imagining of Tantrism, and the study of esoteric traditions as a whole; the second half engages the larger theoretical snarls inevitably involved in the study of something that is supposed to be secret.Less
The phenomena of secrecy and esotericism remain among the most persistent and pervasive, yet poorly studied and misunderstood aspects of the history of religions. The field of South Asian studies is no exception to this trend, although it has generated a growing interest in the role of secrecy in Indian traditions, and specifically in the texts and rituals of Tantrism. However, Tantric studies have hardly made any inquiry into the real historical and social contexts in which Tantra is practised, have not looked at any of the broader comparative issues involved in the study of esoteric traditions, and have yielded little critical reflection on the historical construction of the category of Tantrism. This book aims to address these issues through the study of one specific esoteric and secret sect: that of the Kartābhajās or “Worshippers of the Master,” which spread throughout Calcutta (Bengal, India) in the late eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, and still has some living and practising representatives. The first half of this introduction provides a general background on the Kartābhajās and their importance for the scholarly imagining of Tantrism, and the study of esoteric traditions as a whole; the second half engages the larger theoretical snarls inevitably involved in the study of something that is supposed to be secret.
Hugh B. Urban
- Published in print:
- 2001
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780195139020
- eISBN:
- 9780199834778
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/019513902X.003.0003
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
Like the economic field of the late eighteenth century, the religious world of early colonial Bengal was also a vast “bazaar,” a marketplace of spiritual goods, both genuine and fake, in which ...
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Like the economic field of the late eighteenth century, the religious world of early colonial Bengal was also a vast “bazaar,” a marketplace of spiritual goods, both genuine and fake, in which traders from all lands haggled and bartered; amidst this teeming market, with its host of Hindu, Muslim, Christian, and other competing factions, the Kartābhajā sect would emerge as perhaps the most successful of the various minor sects that spread among the lower classes. It is argued in this chapter that not only did the Kartābhajās emerge at a key locus and critical historical moment but they also represented a profound transformation within the older Sahajiyā tradition, which was especially well suited to this changing social context, and which offered a highly marketable set of spiritual commodities. The primary appeal of the Kartābhajās, and the main reason for their striking growth and success, lay in their remarkable capacity for synthesis; their tradition represents a rich bricolage (a method of borrowing elements from a variety of different “exoteric” traditions, while weaving them into a new esoteric synthesis that transcends them) of diverse elements, operating on at least three levels, which are examined in each of the three sections of this chapter. First, on the religious level, the Kartābhajās skilfully combine elements of esoteric Sahajiyā Tantric teachings, more orthodox Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇava theology, a strong element of Sufism, and even a degree of Christian influence; second, on the social level, the Kartābhajās bring together members of all classes and social factions, rejecting caste distinctions and proclaiming the divinity of all human beings; and third, on the gender level, the Kartābhajās offered a new social space in which men and women could mix freely, even providing new opportunities for women in roles of spiritual authority. The result is a rather ingenious religious fusion – or “subversive bricolage,” which skilfully adapts and reconfigures elements from a wide range of sources – a kind of poaching or pilfering by poor lower‐class consumers in a dominated religious market that demanded the subtle use of secrecy, both, as a tactic of appropriation, and as a key social strategy or way of life.Less
Like the economic field of the late eighteenth century, the religious world of early colonial Bengal was also a vast “bazaar,” a marketplace of spiritual goods, both genuine and fake, in which traders from all lands haggled and bartered; amidst this teeming market, with its host of Hindu, Muslim, Christian, and other competing factions, the Kartābhajā sect would emerge as perhaps the most successful of the various minor sects that spread among the lower classes. It is argued in this chapter that not only did the Kartābhajās emerge at a key locus and critical historical moment but they also represented a profound transformation within the older Sahajiyā tradition, which was especially well suited to this changing social context, and which offered a highly marketable set of spiritual commodities. The primary appeal of the Kartābhajās, and the main reason for their striking growth and success, lay in their remarkable capacity for synthesis; their tradition represents a rich bricolage (a method of borrowing elements from a variety of different “exoteric” traditions, while weaving them into a new esoteric synthesis that transcends them) of diverse elements, operating on at least three levels, which are examined in each of the three sections of this chapter. First, on the religious level, the Kartābhajās skilfully combine elements of esoteric Sahajiyā Tantric teachings, more orthodox Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇava theology, a strong element of Sufism, and even a degree of Christian influence; second, on the social level, the Kartābhajās bring together members of all classes and social factions, rejecting caste distinctions and proclaiming the divinity of all human beings; and third, on the gender level, the Kartābhajās offered a new social space in which men and women could mix freely, even providing new opportunities for women in roles of spiritual authority. The result is a rather ingenious religious fusion – or “subversive bricolage,” which skilfully adapts and reconfigures elements from a wide range of sources – a kind of poaching or pilfering by poor lower‐class consumers in a dominated religious market that demanded the subtle use of secrecy, both, as a tactic of appropriation, and as a key social strategy or way of life.
Hugh B. Urban
- Published in print:
- 2001
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780195139020
- eISBN:
- 9780199834778
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/019513902X.003.0004
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
This chapter and the following two delve into the most esoteric and hidden dimensions of the Bengali Kartābhajā sect, as they explore the use of secret discourse and bodily practice. This is perhaps ...
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This chapter and the following two delve into the most esoteric and hidden dimensions of the Bengali Kartābhajā sect, as they explore the use of secret discourse and bodily practice. This is perhaps nowhere more apparent than in the cryptic songs of the Kartābhajās and their own unique form of the Tantric sandhābhāṣā(intentional language with elaborate use of imagery, metaphors, and riddles), which they called the “Language of the Mint.” This is examined not so much in terms of its professed hidden content (the usual approach), but rather in terms of form and strategies. After briefly outlining the form and content of the Mint Sayings, the chapter delves into the hermeneutic problems involved in trying to make sense of these cryptic utterances, and offers the author's own reading, based on a modified version of Bourdieu's model of symbolic capital. Finally, it looks at the problem of secrecy as played out in contemporary field research from conversations with Kartābhajā gurus.Less
This chapter and the following two delve into the most esoteric and hidden dimensions of the Bengali Kartābhajā sect, as they explore the use of secret discourse and bodily practice. This is perhaps nowhere more apparent than in the cryptic songs of the Kartābhajās and their own unique form of the Tantric sandhābhāṣā(intentional language with elaborate use of imagery, metaphors, and riddles), which they called the “Language of the Mint.” This is examined not so much in terms of its professed hidden content (the usual approach), but rather in terms of form and strategies. After briefly outlining the form and content of the Mint Sayings, the chapter delves into the hermeneutic problems involved in trying to make sense of these cryptic utterances, and offers the author's own reading, based on a modified version of Bourdieu's model of symbolic capital. Finally, it looks at the problem of secrecy as played out in contemporary field research from conversations with Kartābhajā gurus.
Hugh B. Urban
- Published in print:
- 2001
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780195139020
- eISBN:
- 9780199834778
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/019513902X.003.0007
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
This chapter engages the more problematic side of Kartābhajā secrecy as a source of scandal and embarrassment – above all, with regard to Tantric sexual practices, and the corresponding ...
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This chapter engages the more problematic side of Kartābhajā secrecy as a source of scandal and embarrassment – above all, with regard to Tantric sexual practices, and the corresponding “meta‐strategies” of self‐censorship, concealment, deodorization, and disguise, which esoteric traditions must often employ in order to protect themselves. After a brief summary of the history of the debate surrounding parakīyā love (intercourse with another man's wife) in the Tantric Vaiṣṇava and Sahajiyā traditions, an examination is made of the rise of the Bengali Kartābhajā sect within the context of colonial Bengal, and of their highly enigmatic songs describing the “stinking fruit” of parakīyā love. The chapter concludes by suggesting that this basic ambivalence at the heart of the Kartābhajā tradition opens up a number of larger questions for the study of Tantra in Bengal. First, it demonstrates the ways in which Tantric traditions are deeply rooted in real social, political, and cultural conditions and the ways in which these traditions change historically, creatively adapting in the face of changing circumstances; second, it raises the critical question of censorship – the central ambivalence surrounding Tantra and the constant attempts to mask, suppress, or eradicate any elements smacking of scandal or immorality; and last, and perhaps most important, the Kartābhajās also raise the question of the very definition of Tantra itself – i.e.,, how certain groups come to be identified (or attacked) as “Tantric,” and how the term Tantra has come to be constructed in the popular and scholarly imaginations.Less
This chapter engages the more problematic side of Kartābhajā secrecy as a source of scandal and embarrassment – above all, with regard to Tantric sexual practices, and the corresponding “meta‐strategies” of self‐censorship, concealment, deodorization, and disguise, which esoteric traditions must often employ in order to protect themselves. After a brief summary of the history of the debate surrounding parakīyā love (intercourse with another man's wife) in the Tantric Vaiṣṇava and Sahajiyā traditions, an examination is made of the rise of the Bengali Kartābhajā sect within the context of colonial Bengal, and of their highly enigmatic songs describing the “stinking fruit” of parakīyā love. The chapter concludes by suggesting that this basic ambivalence at the heart of the Kartābhajā tradition opens up a number of larger questions for the study of Tantra in Bengal. First, it demonstrates the ways in which Tantric traditions are deeply rooted in real social, political, and cultural conditions and the ways in which these traditions change historically, creatively adapting in the face of changing circumstances; second, it raises the critical question of censorship – the central ambivalence surrounding Tantra and the constant attempts to mask, suppress, or eradicate any elements smacking of scandal or immorality; and last, and perhaps most important, the Kartābhajās also raise the question of the very definition of Tantra itself – i.e.,, how certain groups come to be identified (or attacked) as “Tantric,” and how the term Tantra has come to be constructed in the popular and scholarly imaginations.
Hugh B. Urban
- Published in print:
- 2001
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780195139013
- eISBN:
- 9780199871674
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0195139011.003.0002
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
This first chapter summarizes the main arguments of the author's companion volume, The Economics of Ecstasy:‐ Tantra, Secrecy, and Power in Colonial Bengal. In doing this it places the Songs of ...
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This first chapter summarizes the main arguments of the author's companion volume, The Economics of Ecstasy:‐ Tantra, Secrecy, and Power in Colonial Bengal. In doing this it places the Songs of Ecstasy of the Kartābhajās, a Bengali sect devoted to Tantra in colonial Calcutta, in a historical and literary context. The different sections of the chapter look at the style and structure of the Bhāver Gīta (the main song text, which translates literally as Songs of Ecstasy), the mystical imagery and social ideals found within it, the ambivalent status of Tantra in colonial Bengal, and the decline into obscurity of the songs following a period of scandal, slander, corruption, and disrepute.Less
This first chapter summarizes the main arguments of the author's companion volume, The Economics of Ecstasy:‐ Tantra, Secrecy, and Power in Colonial Bengal. In doing this it places the Songs of Ecstasy of the Kartābhajās, a Bengali sect devoted to Tantra in colonial Calcutta, in a historical and literary context. The different sections of the chapter look at the style and structure of the Bhāver Gīta (the main song text, which translates literally as Songs of Ecstasy), the mystical imagery and social ideals found within it, the ambivalent status of Tantra in colonial Bengal, and the decline into obscurity of the songs following a period of scandal, slander, corruption, and disrepute.
Hugh B. Urban
- Published in print:
- 2001
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780195139013
- eISBN:
- 9780199871674
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0195139011.003.0003
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
A series of select translations is presented from the Bhāver Gīta, the main song text of the Kartābhajās, a Bengali sect devoted to Tantra in colonial Calcutta, Bengal. The author has chosen the ...
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A series of select translations is presented from the Bhāver Gīta, the main song text of the Kartābhajās, a Bengali sect devoted to Tantra in colonial Calcutta, Bengal. The author has chosen the songs that he considers most significant and organized them under thematic headings: Company songs, Songs of the marketplace, Songs of mystical belief and esoteric practice, Songs of lust and love, and Other songs of faith and worship. Each set of songs is introduced by explanatory text.Less
A series of select translations is presented from the Bhāver Gīta, the main song text of the Kartābhajās, a Bengali sect devoted to Tantra in colonial Calcutta, Bengal. The author has chosen the songs that he considers most significant and organized them under thematic headings: Company songs, Songs of the marketplace, Songs of mystical belief and esoteric practice, Songs of lust and love, and Other songs of faith and worship. Each set of songs is introduced by explanatory text.
Hugh B. Urban
- Published in print:
- 2001
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780195139013
- eISBN:
- 9780199871674
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0195139011.003.0004
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
The collection of “Mint Sayings” (Ṭyāṅkśālī) for which translations are presented in this chapter was compiled in 1902 by Manulāl Miśra, a Kartābhajā author who tried to systematize this ortherwise ...
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The collection of “Mint Sayings” (Ṭyāṅkśālī) for which translations are presented in this chapter was compiled in 1902 by Manulāl Miśra, a Kartābhajā author who tried to systematize this ortherwise wildly eclectic and confusing esoteric tradition of the Kartābhajās (a Bengali sect devoted to Tantra in colonial Calcutta). The sayings are intentionally obscure, enigmatic, and in a deliberately confusing form, and are clearly designed to mislead and befuddle the uninitiated outsider. They have no written commentary of their own and are intended to be transmitted in the secret oral context of a master‐disciple relationship. The value of the sayings does not appear to lie in their meaning or content; indeed, they often appear quite intentionally meaningless and absurd, but rather in their form and the ways in which they are exchanged. Miśra explains that the sayings are called “mint” sayings precisely because this secret discourse operates much in the same way as a physical mint. Just as a mint transforms ordinary metals into legal currency, so too the Mint language transmutes ordinary words into highly valued commodities, which can be exchanged in the secret marketplace, which is the Kartābhajā sect itself.Less
The collection of “Mint Sayings” (Ṭyāṅkśālī) for which translations are presented in this chapter was compiled in 1902 by Manulāl Miśra, a Kartābhajā author who tried to systematize this ortherwise wildly eclectic and confusing esoteric tradition of the Kartābhajās (a Bengali sect devoted to Tantra in colonial Calcutta). The sayings are intentionally obscure, enigmatic, and in a deliberately confusing form, and are clearly designed to mislead and befuddle the uninitiated outsider. They have no written commentary of their own and are intended to be transmitted in the secret oral context of a master‐disciple relationship. The value of the sayings does not appear to lie in their meaning or content; indeed, they often appear quite intentionally meaningless and absurd, but rather in their form and the ways in which they are exchanged. Miśra explains that the sayings are called “mint” sayings precisely because this secret discourse operates much in the same way as a physical mint. Just as a mint transforms ordinary metals into legal currency, so too the Mint language transmutes ordinary words into highly valued commodities, which can be exchanged in the secret marketplace, which is the Kartābhajā sect itself.
Hugh B. Urban
- Published in print:
- 2001
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780195139013
- eISBN:
- 9780199871674
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0195139011.003.0005
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
In addition to the songs of the Bhāver Gīta (the main song text of the Kartābhajās, a Bengali sect devoted to Tantra in colonial Calcutta), there is also a large body of other Kartābhajā songs ...
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In addition to the songs of the Bhāver Gīta (the main song text of the Kartābhajās, a Bengali sect devoted to Tantra in colonial Calcutta), there is also a large body of other Kartābhajā songs scattered over a wide range of sources. Most of these are quite different in form and structure from the songs of the Bhāver Gīta, and many are almost indistinguishable from more popular folk forms like the Bāul songs. These have been gathered together, and translations of them are presented in three groups under the titles: Popular songs of unknown origin; Songs from the works of Manulāl Miśra (the Kartābhajā theologian of the early twentieth century); and Songs of the “Wealthy Gentlemen” (Sāhebdhanī): Other Kartābhajās and related groups. The Sāhebdhanīs are most important of the related groups and are a closely related sister movement to the Kartābhajās; they spawned some of the most important folk songs of rural West Bengal. Each set of songs is introduced by explanatory text.Less
In addition to the songs of the Bhāver Gīta (the main song text of the Kartābhajās, a Bengali sect devoted to Tantra in colonial Calcutta), there is also a large body of other Kartābhajā songs scattered over a wide range of sources. Most of these are quite different in form and structure from the songs of the Bhāver Gīta, and many are almost indistinguishable from more popular folk forms like the Bāul songs. These have been gathered together, and translations of them are presented in three groups under the titles: Popular songs of unknown origin; Songs from the works of Manulāl Miśra (the Kartābhajā theologian of the early twentieth century); and Songs of the “Wealthy Gentlemen” (Sāhebdhanī): Other Kartābhajās and related groups. The Sāhebdhanīs are most important of the related groups and are a closely related sister movement to the Kartābhajās; they spawned some of the most important folk songs of rural West Bengal. Each set of songs is introduced by explanatory text.
Hugh B. Urban
- Published in print:
- 2001
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780195139013
- eISBN:
- 9780199871674
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0195139011.003.0006
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
This last chapter presents a translation of a humorous satirical poem by the famous Bengali poet, Dāśarathī Rāy (1805–57). He was particularly well known as a master of the Pāñcālī form, which are ...
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This last chapter presents a translation of a humorous satirical poem by the famous Bengali poet, Dāśarathī Rāy (1805–57). He was particularly well known as a master of the Pāñcālī form, which are basically songs interspersed with short hymns to various deities. He is also noteworthy for his rather raw and gritty—and very funny—depictions of the lives of the lower orders of Calcutta during the colonial era. Largely conservative in his religious views, Dāśarathī singled out the Kartābhajās (a Bengali sect devoted to Tantra in colonial Calcutta) as the very worst example of all that was wrong with the Hindu society of his day—their sexual licentiousness, idolatry, violation of caste, overturning of traditional laws of purity, chicanery, and fraud. Hence, he provides a window onto the perception of the Kartābhajās in the eyes of the upper class elites of the day.Less
This last chapter presents a translation of a humorous satirical poem by the famous Bengali poet, Dāśarathī Rāy (1805–57). He was particularly well known as a master of the Pāñcālī form, which are basically songs interspersed with short hymns to various deities. He is also noteworthy for his rather raw and gritty—and very funny—depictions of the lives of the lower orders of Calcutta during the colonial era. Largely conservative in his religious views, Dāśarathī singled out the Kartābhajās (a Bengali sect devoted to Tantra in colonial Calcutta) as the very worst example of all that was wrong with the Hindu society of his day—their sexual licentiousness, idolatry, violation of caste, overturning of traditional laws of purity, chicanery, and fraud. Hence, he provides a window onto the perception of the Kartābhajās in the eyes of the upper class elites of the day.
Corinne G. Dempsey
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- January 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780199860333
- eISBN:
- 9780199919598
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199860333.003.0003
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
This chapter emerges from conversations between the author and Aiya, the head priest/guru at an upstate New York temple, in what amounts to a comparison of liberation theologies set against the ...
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This chapter emerges from conversations between the author and Aiya, the head priest/guru at an upstate New York temple, in what amounts to a comparison of liberation theologies set against the backdrop of religious orthodoxies. Informed by his largely nondualistic Tantric goddess tradition, Aiya shares with Christian feminist and Latin American liberation theologians a concern for those marginalized by traditional religious authority structures. He also shares with them a rejection of the earth- and body-negating theologies that sequester the sacred to exclusive or transcendent realms and that lay the foundation for social marginalization. While the varieties of discrimination practiced within Hindu and Christian contexts are far from identical, the strategies Aiya and liberation theologians prescribe to combat them, fueled by shared understandings of divine immanence, hold some compelling similarities. In the end, a conundrum faced by all parties is that of an earthly Utopia—a logical aim for idealistic earthbound theologies, the achievement of which is not only impossible but ultimately undesirable.Less
This chapter emerges from conversations between the author and Aiya, the head priest/guru at an upstate New York temple, in what amounts to a comparison of liberation theologies set against the backdrop of religious orthodoxies. Informed by his largely nondualistic Tantric goddess tradition, Aiya shares with Christian feminist and Latin American liberation theologians a concern for those marginalized by traditional religious authority structures. He also shares with them a rejection of the earth- and body-negating theologies that sequester the sacred to exclusive or transcendent realms and that lay the foundation for social marginalization. While the varieties of discrimination practiced within Hindu and Christian contexts are far from identical, the strategies Aiya and liberation theologians prescribe to combat them, fueled by shared understandings of divine immanence, hold some compelling similarities. In the end, a conundrum faced by all parties is that of an earthly Utopia—a logical aim for idealistic earthbound theologies, the achievement of which is not only impossible but ultimately undesirable.
Rachel Fell McDermott and Jeffrey J. Kripal
- Published in print:
- 2003
- Published Online:
- May 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780520232396
- eISBN:
- 9780520928176
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of California Press
- DOI:
- 10.1525/california/9780520232396.003.0002
- Subject:
- Religion, Hinduism
This chapter, a reprint of the chapter on Kālī in David Kinsley's book Hindu Goddesses: Visions of the Divine Feminine in the Hindu Religious Tradition, provides an introduction to Kālī's basic story ...
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This chapter, a reprint of the chapter on Kālī in David Kinsley's book Hindu Goddesses: Visions of the Divine Feminine in the Hindu Religious Tradition, provides an introduction to Kālī's basic story for those who are unfamiliar with it. It surveys Kālī's Sanskrit and Bengali textual history, proposes likely reasons for her growing importance in Tantra during the medieval period and in devotionalism in late eighteenth-century Bengal, and concludes by explicating her theological significance as a symbol of unconventionality, death, and the possibility of spiritual awakening. Iconographic representations of Kālī and Śiva nearly always show Kālī as dominant. She is usually standing or dancing on Śiva's prone body, and when the two are depicted in sexual intercourse, she is shown above him. Kālī occupies a central position in Hindu piety and is of central importance in Tantrism, particularly left-handed Tantrism, and in Bengali Śākta devotionalism.Less
This chapter, a reprint of the chapter on Kālī in David Kinsley's book Hindu Goddesses: Visions of the Divine Feminine in the Hindu Religious Tradition, provides an introduction to Kālī's basic story for those who are unfamiliar with it. It surveys Kālī's Sanskrit and Bengali textual history, proposes likely reasons for her growing importance in Tantra during the medieval period and in devotionalism in late eighteenth-century Bengal, and concludes by explicating her theological significance as a symbol of unconventionality, death, and the possibility of spiritual awakening. Iconographic representations of Kālī and Śiva nearly always show Kālī as dominant. She is usually standing or dancing on Śiva's prone body, and when the two are depicted in sexual intercourse, she is shown above him. Kālī occupies a central position in Hindu piety and is of central importance in Tantrism, particularly left-handed Tantrism, and in Bengali Śākta devotionalism.
Hugh B. Urban
- Published in print:
- 2003
- Published Online:
- May 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780520230620
- eISBN:
- 9780520936898
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of California Press
- DOI:
- 10.1525/california/9780520230620.003.0006
- Subject:
- Religion, Religious Studies
This chapter looks at the “revalorized” place of Tantra—and perhaps even Tantro-centrism—in the work of twentieth-century historians of religions, such as Mircea Eliade, Heinrich Zimmer, and Julius ...
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This chapter looks at the “revalorized” place of Tantra—and perhaps even Tantro-centrism—in the work of twentieth-century historians of religions, such as Mircea Eliade, Heinrich Zimmer, and Julius Evola. It shows that there were often many political—and in Evola' case, explicitly fascist—ramifications in their scholarly reconstructions of Tantrism. However, it also examines the role of Tantra in modern Indian scholarship, where it likewise has become a key part of various cultural and political discourses surrounding Indian national identity and even the rise of communism in regions like West Bengal. Zimmer, Evola, and Eliade have had a formative impact on the fields of Indology (in the case of Zimmer), esotericism and right-wing politics (Evola), and comparative religions (Eliade). And all three felt a strong attraction to Tantra, a tradition that they defined as the culmination of all Indian thought: the most radical form of spirituality and the archaic heart of aboriginal India. In what they described as this modern “age of darkness,” they felt an intense sense of dislocation and a longing for an idyllic traditional past.Less
This chapter looks at the “revalorized” place of Tantra—and perhaps even Tantro-centrism—in the work of twentieth-century historians of religions, such as Mircea Eliade, Heinrich Zimmer, and Julius Evola. It shows that there were often many political—and in Evola' case, explicitly fascist—ramifications in their scholarly reconstructions of Tantrism. However, it also examines the role of Tantra in modern Indian scholarship, where it likewise has become a key part of various cultural and political discourses surrounding Indian national identity and even the rise of communism in regions like West Bengal. Zimmer, Evola, and Eliade have had a formative impact on the fields of Indology (in the case of Zimmer), esotericism and right-wing politics (Evola), and comparative religions (Eliade). And all three felt a strong attraction to Tantra, a tradition that they defined as the culmination of all Indian thought: the most radical form of spirituality and the archaic heart of aboriginal India. In what they described as this modern “age of darkness,” they felt an intense sense of dislocation and a longing for an idyllic traditional past.
André Padoux
- Published in print:
- 2017
- Published Online:
- September 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780226423937
- eISBN:
- 9780226424125
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of Chicago Press
- DOI:
- 10.7208/chicago/9780226424125.003.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, Hinduism
This chapter provides an introduction to Tantra in hopes of elucidating its very nature, extent, and continuity in time. Tantra is a phenomenon born in India that has spread across almost the whole ...
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This chapter provides an introduction to Tantra in hopes of elucidating its very nature, extent, and continuity in time. Tantra is a phenomenon born in India that has spread across almost the whole of Asia: central Asia (Tibet, Mongolia), Southeast Asia (Indochina, Indonesia—Bali down to our days), and even the Far East. It is not easy to explain the appearance and the gradual overall diffusion of practices and notions that, albeit diverse, have enough common traits to permit their being considered as forming a specific, recognizable, perhaps definable socioreligious phenomenon in the Indian religions (Hinduism, Buddhism, even Jainism) in India and in a large portion of Asia. The chapter first discusses the meaning of the term “Tantrism,” or “Tantra,” before explaining when and how the Tantric aspects of Hinduism were discovered and interpreted by Europeans, then how they were seen in ancient India.Less
This chapter provides an introduction to Tantra in hopes of elucidating its very nature, extent, and continuity in time. Tantra is a phenomenon born in India that has spread across almost the whole of Asia: central Asia (Tibet, Mongolia), Southeast Asia (Indochina, Indonesia—Bali down to our days), and even the Far East. It is not easy to explain the appearance and the gradual overall diffusion of practices and notions that, albeit diverse, have enough common traits to permit their being considered as forming a specific, recognizable, perhaps definable socioreligious phenomenon in the Indian religions (Hinduism, Buddhism, even Jainism) in India and in a large portion of Asia. The chapter first discusses the meaning of the term “Tantrism,” or “Tantra,” before explaining when and how the Tantric aspects of Hinduism were discovered and interpreted by Europeans, then how they were seen in ancient India.
Mandakranta Bose
- Published in print:
- 2018
- Published Online:
- July 2018
- ISBN:
- 9780198767022
- eISBN:
- 9780191821226
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/oso/9780198767022.003.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, Hinduism, World Religions
Beginning by recognizing that the idea of female divinity in Hinduism has been a mystery from the inception of Hindu theology, this Introduction proceeds to an overview of the contents of this ...
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Beginning by recognizing that the idea of female divinity in Hinduism has been a mystery from the inception of Hindu theology, this Introduction proceeds to an overview of the contents of this volume. Presenting the chapters, arranged thematically and historically into four related parts, this Introduction shows how Hindu philosophy and worship practices have expounded the idea of the divine feminine by conceptualizing it as a personified goddess at once singular and manifested in multiple forms. Drawing upon a variety of Hindu philosophical traditions, the authors relate the goddess as an abstraction to belief systems that render the goddess as humanized figures. In both formal theology and popular belief, this conception has resulted in an emotional and spiritual closeness to goddesses that continues deeply to influence Hindu social life and its cultural expressions, especially in its impact on the lives of women.Less
Beginning by recognizing that the idea of female divinity in Hinduism has been a mystery from the inception of Hindu theology, this Introduction proceeds to an overview of the contents of this volume. Presenting the chapters, arranged thematically and historically into four related parts, this Introduction shows how Hindu philosophy and worship practices have expounded the idea of the divine feminine by conceptualizing it as a personified goddess at once singular and manifested in multiple forms. Drawing upon a variety of Hindu philosophical traditions, the authors relate the goddess as an abstraction to belief systems that render the goddess as humanized figures. In both formal theology and popular belief, this conception has resulted in an emotional and spiritual closeness to goddesses that continues deeply to influence Hindu social life and its cultural expressions, especially in its impact on the lives of women.