The entire Sastras are divided into two parts namely Nigama and Agama, while the Vedas are the parts of the Nigama, the Tantras are the parts of the Agama, the former is the mouth piece of Lord Brahma where as the later is the mouth piece of Lord Siva.
Further Agama is subdivided into Tantra, Yamala and Damara. Tantra is of Satwika nature. The word Tantra is derived from the root “Tan” means to spread, in the other sense “spreading of the cosmic energy for the cleaving asunder of miseries along with the attainment of supreme bliss". It is the science which saves the life by purifying the body as to prepare the body for the attunement with the Divinity.
Adi-Sankaracharya in the Saundaryalahari text (sloka 31) has mentioned, ‘’Lord Siva remained satisfied after deluding the world, by giving out the sixty-four Tantras which expound practices conferring one or another of the various psychic powers connected with the Chakras of the human body and worldly fulfillments for the achievement of Dharma, Artha, Kama and Moksha like Purusharthas.
Devimahatmyam (700 verses) takes care of Artha. Manava Dharmashastra (700 verses) takes care of Dharma. Vatsyana Kamasutra (700 sutras) takes care of Kama. Srimad Bhagavadgita (700 verses) takes care of Moksha.
All the above four texts fulfil the purushartha chatushtaya. Dharma underlies many themes in Hindu life, and in the four Ashrams stages, where dharma is learned, practiced, taught and realized; Brahmacharya (student), Gṛhastha (householder), Vanaprastha (forest walker/forest dweller), and Sannyasa (renunciate).
All tantric knowledge and Tantra shastra was ordained by Mahayogi Matsyendra Nath. So know that he is the grand king of real tantra system the Vaamchar, Now shakta sadhana was prevalent before even vedas came yet vedas also declared shakti (chichakti of Vedas) as mother of all Gods, Tripuropnishad, mahalakshmi upnishad, Kaula upnishad, Kalika upnishad and many more dedicated for her worship.
As Said The main sects are three Kaadi, Haadi and Saadi, (even after knowing I can not share all secrets and knowledge of real tantra as it is strictly passed only through Guru-Sishya parampara. But yet know what are these:
1. Kadi was taught by Sri Manmatha Sadashiva, Narayana, Hayagriva, Agastya, Shankara bhagavatpada etc are the Gurus, Hadi by Bhagavati Lopamudra (Parameshwara, Parashakti, Lopamudra, Kalatapanandanatha etc. are the Gurus) and Sadi by Sri Krodha Bhattaraka Durvasa Deshikendra (Mahadeva, Rudra, Durvasa, Dharmacharya etc are the Gurus).
2. Kadi invokes kameshwaramka sthita kameshwari, Hadi invokes kameshwari vibhushitanko kameshwarah and Sadi invokes kamakameshwarau shivau. In fact, Shadanvaya Shambhavi Krama described by Adi Sankaracharya in Saundaryalahari is meant for Sadi upasakas. The subtle differences in these three visualizations should be learnt directly from one’s Sadguru.
3. Kadi and hadi Panchadashi-s transform to laghu shodashi and maha /para /guhya shodashis (in case of kadi) and shuddha/hamsa shodashis (in case of Hadi). There is no shodashi in Sadi karma but the transformation is into saptadashI. Further, in the final step of karma system, all the three paths merge into ashtadashakshari.
Now the main Dieties of tantra are Dash Mahavidyas and Dash mahabhairavs, and there worship is prevalent in deva loka even when vedas havnt decended Gods worshipped these Great Goddesses forms, famously Vishnu worshipped Bhagewati Peetambara or Bagla mukhi to kill one Asur, Shiva worshiped her and all other devas too, so it was much much before the event of Shiva carrying sati and dancing ferociously.
Of these Mahavidyas ( they are called so because worshiping them in a specific way is said to give the sadhaka a specific power or a siddhi ), the Sri vidya upasana / Shodasi puja is considered as the most auspicious among the 10.
काली तारा महाविद्या षोडशी भुवनेश्वरी | भैरवी छिन्नमस्ता चा सुंदरी बगलामुखी धूमावती चा मातंगी महाविद्या दशैव तह ||
Adi shankara is a Sri vidya upasaka. The town Srinagar was called so because of the abode of Sri Vidya upasakas. She is worshipped as kamatchi / raja rajeshwari / Lalita / Bala tripura sundari / sarva mangala and she is supposed to grant the wisdom to attain moksha. This is a major sect among the shakta worshippers and it encompasses mild tantric pujas with Sri chakram etc.
So 54 Shakthi peetams + 10 Dasamahavidyas = 64 Yoginis
Then there is this Yogini tantras which also share some platform with Buddhist and Jain shakta tantras. There are 4 yogini temples; Hirapur, Ranipur-Jharial (Balangir), Khajuraho and Bhubaneswar in India and this yogini sect has been a predominant before 8th to 12th centuries. And then the Tantric sect of Sapta matrikas or Ashta matrikas, worshipping the warrior generals of Devi (according to Devi Mahatmiyam ) who are extensively used in Tantric rituals and pujas.
These worshiping of individual devi form has been classified as Vidyapita ( yamala vama and Shakti tantras ) and Kulamarga ( kuleshwari, kubjika, Kali and Tripura Sundari ). Each has its own Tantric subdivisions and appropriate texts traditions and gurus for that. Kula (कुल) refers to one of the male servants associated with Kama-rupam, one of the sacred seats (Pitham), according to the Manthanabhairavatantra, a vast sprawling work that belongs to a corpus of Tantric texts concerned with the worship of the goddess Kubjika.
Nine of the twelve female servants (three in each of the first four seats), are low-caste women who we find, in other contexts, embody the Mothers (Matrikas). The maids (cellaka) are Yoginis and the servants their male counterparts Kula. These replace the spiritual ‘sons’ and ‘daughters’ the Goddess generates and the guardians she appoints in the sacred seats listed in the ‘Kubjikamatatantra’.
Otherwise, generally the word Kulamarga or Kaula reffers to the distinctive religious practices related to the worship of Sakti and Shiva. It is subdivided into four subcategories of texts based on the Goddesses Kulesvari, Kubjika, Kali, and Tripurasundari respectively. The predominant ones of the kulamarga are kali and Tripureshwari / tripura sundari / sri vidya called as Srikula and Kalikula.
The srikula is the sect of worshipping devi in milder versions and is predominantly found in south India where devi is mild and beautiful. She is worshipped using Sri upasana and chanting Lalitha Sahasranamam, and few other slokams.
The Srikula also has extensive tantric rituals and sometimes occult versions and is further divided into vama marga (left hand occultism) and dakshina marga (right hand occultism). The kaulacharam is seen as more heterodox and involves black magic, and the dakshnamarga is the milder orthodox versions. Kanchipuram is the centre of srikula worship in south india.
The North central and east India has the predominant worshiping sect called Kali kula where all the Aggressive forms of Devi are worshipped like the Chandi, Chinnamastika, Durga, Kali, Tara, etc. Here the Devi is like aggressive type energy. Bengal is like the centre of Kalikula sects and its surrounding religions like the kamakhya temple of Assam, Bihar, Odisha, Nepal and the pure tantric temples of kerala are all few examples. Kalighat, kalipeet / Tarapeet etc are centres of kalikula sect.
The Sati which Shiva carried and Vishnu divided by Sudarshan Chakra was not real Sati it was Chaya Sati only (not Maya Sati), the Rudra which you find carrying Sati is not Shiva but Virbhadra, who can't give life to stone or dust who can resurrect any one like he resurrected Kaamdev needed to cry for his beloved, he could have simply resurrected her but leela has to follow its destined chart, how can sati who can incinerate sun or fire God, can be engulfed by fire, So know that actually Sadashiva and Mahashakti are in a realm where Time and space doesn't describes, as we see in universe other all lokas be it vaikuntha or golok or Kailash they come in space and time realm.
So to do leela The Adi Shakti and Adi Shiva make Shiva and Shakti, this couple makes Rudra and Rudrani, Now what leela we see of Shiva as he is crying or getting angry even, or bowing to Brahma or Vishnu and Vishnu and bramha also bowing and worshiping him is the Rudra who is a mere fragment of Shiva yet by Shiva's grace he has all powers of Shiva which none other Gods have.
And Rudra is first Rishi and master of Tantra, (by Yogi Matsyendranath) devised these sects under Nath and Shakta Sampradaya such as, Kaali kula, Kaula, Vaamachar, Samayachar, Dakshina char and Yamal, Aghor Kapalik, Siddha among them KaliKaula is top most and most powerful.
Hence, Tantra should not be misunderstood as it signifies the means for attaining the highest end, the ultimatum, the goal of human life as a whole. The meaning of Tantra is not confined to the sorcery, occultism and brutal sacrifice, for detailed please refer to Amarakosha, Sabdakalpadrumam and Panini's Vyakaranam etc.
Main Shaktism Scriptures; Devi Bhagavata, Kalika Purana, Sakta Mahabhagavat/ Devi Puran, Brhadharma Puran, Markendeya puran, Tantras mainly Sri Sri Mundamala tantra, Sri Mahanirvana Tantra, Sri Kali Vilasa Tantra, Sri Tripura Tantra, Sri Kali Tantra, Yogini Tantra, Yoni Tantra, Kamakhya Tantra, Kundalini Tantra, Sri Krishṇa Yamala Tantra, Rudra Yamala Tantra, Maha Vamakesvari Tantra, Sri Varahi Tantra, And Many Yamala Tantras and Nigam tantras (Narrated by Sri Bhairavi ), Siva Puran's Uma Samhita, Tantrokt Devi Sukta and Vedic Devi Sukta, Ratri Sukta, Devi Atharvasira, Sri Sukta, Vak suktam, Durga sukta, Tripura Upnishad, TripuraRahasyam, Devi Upapuran, Brahmand Puran and Padma Puran etc.
Sri Lalitha Sahasranam Stothram
Authored by Anadi Sahoo
