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[Full title: Means of worship (2) Man-made objects (1) Yantra]

(ii) Man-made objects Worship is offered to an idol which is sculpted as per the details laid down by the Silpasastra. This granite form is a concrete expression of the

Worship & worshipper 310 L goddesses. The Sri-vidyarnava-tantra" gives the different mediums in which the deities are invoked are Salagrama stone, jewel, yantra, sthandila and in idols. Worship to the goddess specially is offered to the cakra, yantra or the meru which are the forms of the goddess. In these types the goddesses are invoked, consecrated and is established in these forms. This is done with the help of mantras and mudras and rituals of the tantra. Salagrama in the form of suvarnamukhi, and jewel as traditional means are well known and are popular in worship. In the Devi-Pancayatana worship, where the goddess is at the center and the other four principal gods to whom worship is offered are placed around her. It is stated that one should not offer worship to these deities without first worshipping their respective forms. If this is not followed then that worship is useless. Yantra and idol these two mediums alone are taken for study here. Yantra has already been dealt with in detail in the introduction. Here, the different types as cakra, yantra and meru are taken in for study. The focus will be on the intricacies and other minute details which have not been dealt with before anywhere. Yantra. Der Yantra is a prop which holds the deity¹². The yantra is mentioned to be in the form of the mantra and the deities are in the form of the mantra. The Sri-vidyarnava-tantra states further that a yantra is so called because it regulates the sorrows in ones life by uplifting one from faults of lust and anger. Kama-krodhadhi-dosothath-sarva-dukkha-niyantranat; 11 Sri-vidyarnava-tantra ch.XI The Students Sanskrit English Dictionary p.454

Worship & worshipper 311 yantram-ahur-etasmin devah prinati pujitah. (Sri-vidyarnava-tantra ch. XI) A yantra should be worshipped either by drawing, or by meditating or by experiencing its presence. Care should be taken that a yantra or an idol of the deity should be free from the following ten faults - is unbroken, not having any cracks, is not burnt, is not fallen (bhrasta), which is not unrespected, which is not deformed, not touched by an unworthy animal, not fallen on an unworthy place, is not worshipped by a different mantra, is not polluted by the touch of an untouchable¹³. The yantra par excellence is the Sriyantram which is otherwise known as the Tripurayantram. Much work has been already devoted on the subject such as its form the different 'miniyantras' which together constitute to form one 'Mega-Sriyantra'; the intricacies regarding the different triangles and the deities presiding over the different involving and evolving angular planes etc... The work at present will focus on such areas which have been in the dark for long and therefore &? 11 will focus towards understanding them better. Yantra: mediums. Quoting the Rudrayamala-tantra; the Sri-vidyarnava-tantra 14 states that, a yantra be written with saffron or with red-lead by the yogins. The goddess should be worshipped in a yantra which should be drawn on the following mediums - gold, silver, copper, crystal, coral. The other mediums mentioned in the Tantraraja-tantra and quoted by the Sri-vidyarnava-tantra are a jewel and a rock. The benefits of worshipping on the different mediums as stated by the Tantraraja-tantra are as follows Sri-vidyarnava-tantra ch.XI 14 Sri-vidyarnava-tantra ch.XII

Worship & worshipper Benefit. No. Medium. The beauty of goddess Lakshmi. 1. Jewel Fame. 2. Gold Son. 3. Silver Wealth. 4. Copper Good health. 5. Stone 312 The Sri-vidyarnava-tantra further speaks of the beneficial result of drawing the yantra on some other mediums which is as followsSno. Medium. 1. Result. On the ground with the All the desires are fulfilled. saffron powder. 2. Gold. 3. Silver. 4. Copper. 5. Crystal. 6. Written on ruby. 7. Made of Gomedha. 8. Engraved on Emerald. 9. Alloy yantra. Brings all kings under control. Span of life, good health and beauty. All types of riches. Whatever the mind wishes for. Gives kingdom and enjoyment. Bestows all riches. Destroys all enemies. Causes all sorts of success, gives peace, enjoyment and destroys all enemies, longevity, good health, beauty and prosperity.

Worship & worshipper Yantra of alloy : Constituent and constitution. 313 Metals individually have their own limitations. A combination of the different metals would result in the procurement of their collective good and elimination of their negative aspects. The different metals are therefore amalgamated to ensure positive benefits. The Sri-vidyarnava-tantra 15 speaks about the constituents of a yantra made of alloy. The yantra technically is known as Lohatraya and its constituents are gold, silver and copper. The constitution of the different metals is as follows - ten parts of gold, sixteen parts of silver and twelve parts of copper. Life span of a Yantra. There is a time limit for the invoked goddess to stay in the yantra of different mediums. The time limit for usage of the yantra before its expiry date with regard to the different mediums is as follows Sno. Medium. 嘟劼� Gold 2. Silver 3. Copper 4. 5. +5 Bhurja leaf Crystal etc...(jewels) Period of usage. Span of life of the sadhaka. Twenty-two years. Twelve years. Six years. Forever. 15 Sri-vidyarnava-tantra ch.XII

Worship & worshipper Mediums which are to be avoided. 314 The Sri-vidyarnava-tantra speaks about certain mediums which are considered unfit for the writing down of Sricakra. Metals like lead and Kamsa are to be avoided. Further a yantra should never ever be placed on a plank, a cloth or on the wall. The yantra if ever, is so placed either knowingly or unknowingly, it then results in the total destruction of ones race, wealth and progeny. Types of Cakra. The Sri-vidyarnava-tantra 16 mentions of three types of Cakra due to the difference in their Bhuprastara. The Bhuprastara is the base on which the entire Sricakra is laid upon. For the denizens of the neither world, the Bhuprastara lines are very short ie. the space between the three lines is very small. In the case the denizens of the mortal world, these lines are turned upwards ie. they are erected. The yantra in case of the denizens of the heavens it is in the form of a meru ie. that in which the yantra is sufficiently raised. The Sri-vidyarnava-tantra speaks about the benefits of a Sricakra - (i) Beginning from the four squares, if the nine cakras in Sricakra are raised in order then it first results in the attainment of wealth and then death. (ii) The Bhupura, the sixteen petalled lotus and the eight petalled lotus are all on the same plane and the rest cakras are raised gradually it then results in attainment of wealth and is a bestower of progeny. (iii) If only the Bhupura is on ground level and all the other component parts including the bindu is raised gradually, then such a yantra results in wealth and fame. (iv) If the cakra beginning from the 16 Sri-vidyarnava-tantra ch.XII

315 Worship & worshipper rectangle to the bindu is on the same plane with none of its component parts raised, it then yields wealth, fame, disease-free life, and immortality. A Sricakra is further of three type's viz. Srsti, Samhara and Laya. The difference in them is not of the form but of the arrangement of the nine cakras, the two layers of lotuses, the three layers of cocentric circles and the all enclosing square with its four gates. These three types by mutual combination give rise to nine types of cakras. These nine sub types are as follows- & Srsti Srsti - Srsti Stithi Laya Stithi-Stithi Laya-Laya Srsti -Stithi Stithi-Laya Laya- Srsti Srsti-Laya Stithi-Srsti Laya-Stithi The Stithi-Stithi cakra is recommended for use by the householders. It results in the increase of lifespan, fame, wealth, sons, grandsons. The Srsti -Stithi Cakra bestows wealth but no progeny. But if this cakra is worshipped for a period of more than fifty years, it then becomes a bestower of sons and grandsons. The Stithi- Srsti cakra bestows son, longevity and increase in wealth but after fifty years of worship it destroys the offspring. An important note of warning is added by the Sri-vidyarnava-tantra that one desirous of welfare should not worship the Sriyantra which is placed on the back of a tortoise ie. the base or a stand which is in the shape of a tortoise. Incidentally, such a type of yantra in the form of Meru is prepared and consecrated just a few years back at Seliyur a suburb of Madras in Tamilnadu.

Worship & worshipper 316 A Sricakra is called as Navacakra yantra which means the yantra consisting of nine cakras. The nine cakras¹7 are as follows Sarvanandamaya cakra, Sarvasiddhipradayaka cakra, Sarvarogahara cakra, Sarvaraksakara cakra, Sarvarthasadhaka cakra, Sarvasaubhagyadayaka cakra, sarvasanksobana cakra, Sarvasapuraka cakra and Trailokyamohana cakra. These nine cakras are further categorised under three broad types as srsti, stithi and samhara. The following table will facilitate a quick view of the concept. No. Srsticakra Stithicakra Samharacakra I Trailokyamohana Sarvasaubhagyadayaka Sarvaraksakara II Sarvasaparipuraka Sarvarthasadhaka III Sarvasamksobha Sarvarogahara Sarvasiddhiprada Sarvanandamaya Meru. Another type of cakra is the Meru. The meru is a raised geometric representation of the Sricakra.. The natural Meru is the 'golden-Meru' on the Himalayas. This meru is considered as the permanent abode of the goddess. Mahalakshmi Ratnakosa XIV.141-143.

Worship & worshipper Sricakra-Meru There are two sub types of the Meru. The two sub types are Ardha-meru-sricakra and (ii) Ardha-sricakra-meru (i) Ardha-meru-sricakra- 317 - (i) An Ardha-meru-sricakra is a worship-device in which the portion consisting of the square, the circles, the encompassing lotus-petal are all on the same plane. The nine cakras are all raised. This projection of the cakras is all in ascending order of the cakras including the bindu. Such a type can be observed in the form of gopuras over the sanctum sanctorium in the temple in general in the south. Such a type can be observed prominently in the form of the Buddhist pagodas which have flat bases and spiralling tops. The Lingaraja temple in Orissa also has such a type of stooping gopuram

Worship & worshipper (ii) Ardha-sricakra-meruAn Ardha-sricakra-meru is a worship-device in which the portion consisting of the square, the circles and the two layers of lotus are all raised up in order and within the eight petalled lotuses. The nine cakras inclusive of the bindu lie flat within the same plane. Idols. [Image of Ardha-sricakra-meru]