Exploring early palm-leaf manuscripts from the NGMPP collection, I came across some rare Vaiṣṇava Tantras which were hardly known from any other source. In this lecture, I will talk about four of such texts: the Svāyambhuvapañcarātra, Devāmṛta-pañcarātra, Jayottaratantra, and the Vāsudevakalpa of the Mahālakṣmṃhitā, which are preserved in palm-leaf manuscripts of the 11–14th centuries.The first three texts are earlier than the texts which are regarded until now as the earliest Pāñcarātra texts. The fourth text, the Vāsudevakalpa, is exclusively concerned with the composite form of Lakṣmī and Vāsudeva, and is comparable to early Śāktatantras in certain aspects in its structure and contents. These texts together provide a broader picture of Vaiṣṇava Tantricism, and suggest that what was happening in the Śaiva fold was very similar to what was happening in the Vaiṣṇava fold.I will briefly present the contents of all these texts and discuss specific features of them.
Lectures by Dr Diwakar Acharya
Negative Flashes of Neti Neti and Realisation of Brahman
The Mūrtāmūrtabrāhmaṇa (II.3) of the Bṛhadāraṇyakopaniṣad introduces the néti néti formula and explains it. From Sanskrit commentaries we can gather that this formula was traditionally interpreted in two ways. The second of them, the one adopted by Śaṅkara, has become the favourite of most of the modern translations; the first interpretation has not attracted the attention of a modern scholar.On the other hand, a very competent scholar like Geldner (1928) has made an exception and interpreted the formula in an extra-ingenious way, as double negation, which was never considered in the tradition. This interpretation has now been revived in Slaje 2009. This asks us to re-examine the issue, and I will do so in my lecture by rereading the related portions of the Bṛhadāraṇyakopaniṣad.
Negative Flashes of Neti Neti and Realisation of Brahman
The Mūrtāmūrtabrāhmaṇa (II.3) of the Bṛhadāraṇyakopaniṣad introduces the néti néti formula and explains it. From Sanskrit commentaries we can gather that this formula was traditionally interpreted in two ways. The second of them, the one adopted by Śaṅkara, has become the favourite of most of the modern translations; the first interpretation has not attracted the attention of a modern scholar.On the other hand, a very competent scholar like Geldner (1928) has made an exception and interpreted the formula in an extra-ingenious way, as double negation, which was never considered in the tradition. This interpretation has now been revived in Slaje 2009. This asks us to re-examine the issue, and I will do so in my lecture by rereading the related portions of the Bṛhadāraṇyakopaniṣad.
Negative Flashes of Neti Neti and Realisation of Brahman
The Mūrtāmūrtabrāhmaṇa (II.3) of the Bṛhadāraṇyakopaniṣad introduces the néti néti formula and explains it. From Sanskrit commentaries we can gather that this formula was traditionally interpreted in two ways. The second of them, the one adopted by Śaṅkara, has become the favourite of most of the modern translations; the first interpretation has not attracted the attention of a modern scholar.On the other hand, a very competent scholar like Geldner (1928) has made an exception and interpreted the formula in an extra-ingenious way, as double negation, which was never considered in the tradition. This interpretation has now been revived in Slaje 2009. This asks us to re-examine the issue, and I will do so in my lecture by rereading the related portions of the Bṛhadāraṇyakopaniṣad.
Readings in the Jayottaratantra: Session Two
Recently I have located a 14th century palm-leaf manuscript of Jayottaratantra in the National Archives, Kathmandu, and am preparing an edition of it. Previously, we had no access to this text though the title appears in the list of Āgamas found in the Pādma- and Pārameśvarasaṃhitā, and also in the Pañcarātrarakṣā of Vedāntadeśika. The Jayottaratantra, in fact, serves as the foundational layer of the Jayākhya-saṃhitā, one of the earliest available Vaiṣṇava Tantras. The Jayottaratantra is quite concise and contains approximately 400 verses. Unlike the printed version of the Jayākhyasaṃhitā that contains nearly 5000 verses, it is coherent and consistent. I will report on special features of this text along with those of other three early Vaiṣṇava Tantras from Nepal, in one of my lectures.However, in these two seminars, I propose to read the ninth chapter that deals with Yoga from my edition of the text. We will interpret the text, occasionally discuss philological problems, and compare the text with the corresponding chapter of the Jayākhyasaṃhitā.
Readings in the Jayottaratantra: Session Two
Recently I have located a 14th century palm-leaf manuscript of Jayottaratantra in the National Archives, Kathmandu, and am preparing an edition of it. Previously, we had no access to this text though the title appears in the list of Āgamas found in the Pādma- and Pārameśvarasaṃhitā, and also in the Pañcarātrarakṣā of Vedāntadeśika. The Jayottaratantra, in fact, serves as the foundational layer of the Jayākhya-saṃhitā, one of the earliest available Vaiṣṇava Tantras. The Jayottaratantra is quite concise and contains approximately 400 verses. Unlike the printed version of the Jayākhyasaṃhitā that contains nearly 5000 verses, it is coherent and consistent. I will report on special features of this text along with those of other three early Vaiṣṇava Tantras from Nepal, in one of my lectures.However, in these two seminars, I propose to read the ninth chapter that deals with Yoga from my edition of the text. We will interpret the text, occasionally discuss philological problems, and compare the text with the corresponding chapter of the Jayākhyasaṃhitā.
Readings in the Jayottaratantra: Session One
Recently I have located a 14th century palm-leaf manuscript of Jayottaratantra in the National Archives, Kathmandu, and am preparing an edition of it. Previously, we had no access to this text though the title appears in the list of Āgamas found in the Pādma- and Pārameśvarasaṃhitā, and also in the Pañcarātrarakṣā of Vedāntadeśika. The Jayottaratantra, in fact, serves as the foundational layer of the Jayākhya-saṃhitā, one of the earliest available Vaiṣṇava Tantras. The Jayottaratantra is quite concise and contains approximately 400 verses. Unlike the printed version of the Jayākhyasaṃhitā that contains nearly 5000 verses, it is coherent and consistent. I will report on special features of this text along with those of other three early Vaiṣṇava Tantras from Nepal, in one of my lectures.However, in these two seminars, I propose to read the ninth chapter that deals with Yoga from my edition of the text. We will interpret the text, occasionally discuss philological problems, and compare the text with the corresponding chapter of the Jayākhyasaṃhitā.
Readings in the Jayottaratantra: Session One
Recently I have located a 14th century palm-leaf manuscript of Jayottaratantra in the National Archives, Kathmandu, and am preparing an edition of it. Previously, we had no access to this text though the title appears in the list of Āgamas found in the Pādma- and Pārameśvarasaṃhitā, and also in the Pañcarātrarakṣā of Vedāntadeśika. The Jayottaratantra, in fact, serves as the foundational layer of the Jayākhya-saṃhitā, one of the earliest available Vaiṣṇava Tantras. The Jayottaratantra is quite concise and contains approximately 400 verses. Unlike the printed version of the Jayākhyasaṃhitā that contains nearly 5000 verses, it is coherent and consistent. I will report on special features of this text along with those of other three early Vaiṣṇava Tantras from Nepal, in one of my lectures.However, in these two seminars, I propose to read the ninth chapter that deals with Yoga from my edition of the text. We will interpret the text, occasionally discuss philological problems, and compare the text with the corresponding chapter of the Jayākhyasaṃhitā.