Kashmiri Tantra and Kerala Tantra- A Introduction

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Over the last few decades, thanks to the effort of a group of scholars and important projects on textual sources in Tantric tradition, academic studies on Tantra have increased exponentially resulting in a large number of publications. Such studies have contributed to the understanding of the important role that Tantric traditions have played in the history of South Asia and the shaping of different religious beliefs and rituals. They have also made it clear that textual sources, although extremely important, provide only a specific perspective on the multiple faces of Tantra in practice, and that it needs to be complemented by the investigation on rituals in their actual form. It is in this frame that ethnography which studies the rituals and the experience of the performers in the contemporary living tradition - historical and textual studies have started interacting.

With this book on Kashmir Tantra, Narayanan Namboothiri takes an original path which projects the reader into the living tradition of Tantra. Indeed, he writes from the perspective of his personal experience and, according to the tradition, constantly using similes to explain concepts and guide the reader. Besides delineating the core aspects and texts of the Kashmiri Tantra, he shows the similarities and divergences between the Kerala and the Kashmiri Tantric traditions giving, along with the description of some of the rituals performed in temples of Kerala, the symbolic meaning attributed by the Tantric to each part of such rituals.

Since I started learning Kerala Tantric Pooja, I've been wondering who the God is that I'm praying to. Is he or she permanently sitting in the little Sanctum Sanctorum built by human beings? If so, how can such a God give security and comfort for the entire society?

My community was home to a large number of Christians and Muslims. As I learned more about their beliefs and ceremonial customs, I became increasingly confused. Muslims and Christians believe in a single God, whereas Hindus believe in multiple. To add to the confusion, I had been taught Puranic stories on a regular basis in which the Gods, who are supposed to be benevolent, argue and battle with one another. How do such normal combatants become worthy of worship?

I was an agnostic as a teenager. I started to wonder and question a few things. What is the relationship between God and I? Who is God, anyway? Is this God a local lord who rewards followers who often visit temples to offer sacrifices while punishing others who do not do such rituals?

Or is He a harsh country king who sits in an unknown region beyond the globe, assigning individuals to the splendours of heaven based on their worldly virtues and to the fiery furnace of hell based on their evil actions?

Is God a shepherd that leads souls through the lovely meadows of life, or the presiding judge of the celestial court? If this is not the case, as atheists contend, is God merely an optimistic idea developed in the imagination of primitive man, who was always afraid of life and its unfolding events?

Why Kashmir?

Those who have visited the Himalayas at least once know how the giant peaks of the Himalayas, towering with their snow-capped crowns, symbolize majesty and supremacy. Towering giants cloaked in white robes of snow stand as ancient guardians of some unearthly mystery.

Challenging the adage of heaven above and earth below, these peaks pierce the sky in many places and merge into infinity. That is why the Himalayas to a curious person become not just a mountain but a metaphor for something that connects transitory existence with eternal truth.

In the midst of the Himalayas, between those beautiful peaks, is Kashmir, a timeless tribute to beauty painted in green, blue, and white. "If there's a heaven on earth, it's here, right here," remarked the poet Amir Khusrau.

Anyone who visits Kashmir understands this emotion. Kashmir is a natural canvas: emerald meadows unfolding like velvet blankets, Chinar trees swinging in fall grandeur, the tranquil Dal Lake reflecting the sky, and the Shikaras running gently over the lake's crystalline surface all contribute to Kashmir's beauty.

Kashmir, known for its magnificent environment, is more than just a visual beauty; it is also a melting pot of complex ideas and philosophical beliefs. Its spectacular mountains and calm beauty have long inspired the human intellect and fostered several schools of thought.