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Here will be notes on Kashmiri Shaivism.

Kashmir Shaivism

Site search · Basic principles · Parātrīśikāvivaraṇa · Tantrasāra · Tantrāloka · Śivastotrāvalī · Pratyabhijñāhṛdayam · Scriptures of Trika: what is available in Russian

We carry within ourselves the creative charge of the universe, but due to certain circumstances we forget about it. // V. Dmitrieva.

Pāśa – the noose of living beings [5]
- self-pity and pity for others (gṛhṇā)
- longing, despondency (śoka)
- fear (bhaya‘m)
- shame (lajjā)
- disgust (jugupsā)

Key Concepts

Śaktipāta – the transmission of spiritual energy from teacher to student or directly from the Divine to a devotee. In Kashmir Shaivism, 7 levels of śaktipāta are distinguished:
- tīvra-tīvra-śaktipāta — the so-called “Supreme Grace” — leads to immediate identification with Śiva and liberation; such a being subsequently becomes a siddha-master and bestows grace from his abode (Siddhaloka) directly into the hearts of worthy aspirants;
- Tīvra-madhya-śaktipāta – “Supreme Middle Grace” – such a being becomes spiritually enlightened and liberated independently, relying directly on Śiva, without needing initiation or instructions from other external gurus. This is facilitated by the intense awakening of his spiritual intuition (pratibhā), which immediately removes ignorance;
- tīvra-manda-śaktipāta — “Supreme Lower Grace” — a person who receives this grace strongly desires to find a suitable guru, but he needs not instructions, but a simple touch, glance, or merely remaining in the presence of his master. This is enough to bring him into a state of enlightenment;
- madhya-tīvra-śaktipāta — “Middle Supreme Grace” — a disciple receiving this grace desires to obtain instructions and initiation from a perfect guru; over time he becomes enlightened. However, he does not fully immerse himself in this state during his lifetime and receives a permanent state of union with Śiva after the end of his life;
- madhya-madhya-śaktipāta — “Middle Middle Grace” — such a disciple will receive initiation from his guru and will have a strong desire to attain liberation, but at the same time he will still retain a longing for various pleasures and enjoyments; after the end of his life he goes to heaven, where he fulfills all his desires, after which he again receives initiation from his teacher and realizes permanent union with Śiva;
- madhya-manda-śaktipāta — “Middle Lower Grace” — similar to “Middle Middle Grace,” except that in this case the aspirant desires worldly pleasures more than union with Śiva; he must again be reborn as a spiritual seeker to attain liberation;
- manda — “Lower Grace” — in those who receive this level of grace, the desire to unite with Śiva is present only during times of suffering; Śiva’s grace must act in them over many lifetimes before spiritual liberation occurs;
Parādvaita – one of the key concepts of the philosophy of Kashmir Shaivism. Monism reduces all the diversity of the world to a single fundamental principle, recognizes the unity of the entire world, the substrate similarity of the objects comprising it, and their interconnection. Abhinavagupta, an outstanding thinker of 11th-century Kashmir Shaivism, calls the monism of his school parādvaita, or “absolute non-duality”; // [1]
Trika – the interrelationship of Śiva, Śakti, and Nara; is based on the three principal tantras (āgamas); studies the 3 energies (kriyā, jñāna, icchā [icchā, volition]); is based on the Upaniṣads.
darśana – vision, the foundational principle of Indian philosophy, direct contemplation of the deity

Basic Principles of Kashmir Shaivism

Twenty-five propositions in which Gabriel Pradīpaka condenses the teaching of Trika to its very essentials are set out on a separate page: Basic Principles of Kashmir Shaivism [4].

Literature

Paradvaita. Foundations of Kashmiri Shaivism. Pandit Balajinnath N.
The Six Yogas of Naropa. An Introduction to the Profound Path of the Six Yogas of Naropa by Lama Drashi Namjhal. The translation into Chinese was done by Mang Kung. The translation into English and the introduction were done by Garma C. Chang. The translation into Russian was done by T. Danilevich.
Tantrasara of Abhinavagupta. Translation from Sanskrit and Introduction by H.N. Chakravarty. Edited by Boris Marjanovic.
- Russian translation by Gabriel Pradīpaka posted here in full — all twenty-two chapters, with search across them.
Trika – Non-dual Kashmiri Shaivism. Gabriel Pradīpaka or Gurujī.
Ivan Dubovik on Kashmir Shaivism

Video materials

V. Dmitrieva