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Chapter - IV WORSHIP OF GODS AND GODDESSES IN Isanasivagurudeva-paddhati The core of the present study is the modes of worship of various deities Devatas in Isanasivagurudeva-paddhati The book encompasses many important aspects pertaining to the worship of Devatas under 'Saiva, Vaisnava,' Sakteya and a combination of all the three streams evolved over centuries. But the author assigns primacy to the 'Sakteya path, the Kriyas related to which are so elaborate, extremely complex, intricate, odd and weird. The Tantric Kriyas now being performed and practised only remotely resemble what is detailed in Isanasivagurudeva-paddhati, in that they are only rudiments of the Isanasivagurudeva-paddhati prescriptions. Another important feature of Isanasivagurudeva-paddhati is that, in keeping with the secretive nature of Tantra, the Mulamantras, Chandas, Gayatrimantras, and other Tantric secrets are preserved and handed down to its practitioners employing Sankhyasastra techniques like Katapayadi. Many of the Tantric Mudras and Nyasakriyas have long ceased to be popular. What is attempted in this chapter is an analysis of the 251

treatment of the Tantric forms of worship of important deities, the rites, rituals, Prayogas (Viniyogas), installation of idols and festivals, in Isanasivagurudeva-paddhati. Although the book deals exhaustively with every aspect of temple worship, an important point is that as the Tantric rites are very popular means of worship involving the whole populace, meant for the welfare, protection and prosperity of the king, the country and the people as a whole, they were not confined to temples alone, but performed more outside the temples and on a large and elaborate scale. At the same time, individuals who could afford them were free to perform them in their homes. And for those who were poor, the author recommends simpler forms of Tantric Kriyas. Effective though these Kriyas are for specific ends, the author underlines the supremacy of Sraddha, Bhakti and Abhyasa as the primary prerequisites for all Sadhakas-in other words, Kriyas can never be substitutes for the above three Margas. sraddhabhaktisamabhyasat sarvesidhyanti sarvada " Since the science of Tantra is inherently confidential in nature, as stated earlier, and as the Mantras and the related Upasanakramas, Nyasapujavidhis, Avahanas, etc., have to be learned and imbibed directly from the Guru², those that are prohibited are scrupulously left out and those that are permissible and pertinent are included in this study. 252

All Tantric texts enjoin the supreme importance of Vastubali and Ankurarpana as initial Kriyas before any ceremony or any new venture. They also underscore the significance of the Sadhaka receiving Mantradiksa directly from the Guru or the preceptor. diksottaram hyamalata sivatva vyaktireva ca Through SP and Kriyapada, the author lists out the qualities and qualifications that a true Sadhaka ought to possess and prescribes Diksavidhis, Sandhyavandanadikriyas, and other physical, mental and spiritual disciplines through which a devotee can attain.the status of a real Sadhaka, who alone must perform religious rites and rituals. The concept of worship Right from the advent of man on earth, fear and adulation of, and submission to what he feared were integral to his emotional makeup. This was evolved, parallel to and in proportion to his cultural and intellectual advancement, the practice of reverence and devotion to the powers of nature, to certain plants and animals that provided him protection or posed a threat to his life, to other human beings superior to him in physical might, and to the dead. In course of time, there developed many crude and unsystematic forms of worship, which underwent upward modifications to the point of attaining firm, regular and methodical foundations in line with the respective religious, racial and regional peculiarities. 253

India, however, was home not only to many theist beliefs and attendant Darsanas but, surprisingly, also to atheist convictions and related perceptions spread over centuries, imbibing the spirit of the Itihasas, Puranas, and various cults that emerged in many forms and manifestations in different regions and finally metamorphosing into what it is now. Tantric Science offers one of the most systematic forms of worship in theory and practice. According to Dr. P.M. Rajan Gurukkal, "Tantras, also known as Agamas, are the Vedic and Non-Vedic instructions of Mantras and Kriyas passed on by word of mouth."4 An image of divinity has to be installed in a temple and so, temple-building itself becomes a meritorious act. Markandeya declares (SI.11, Ch.1) prasadakaranam punyam devarcakaranam tatha | surarca pujanam tatra punya namaskriya | | which means, "to build a temple is meritorious; so is the making of an image of a deity. Meritorious is the worship of a divine image and so is its adoration. 5 "The concept of worship in Hinduism is as varied as the many facets of the religion itself. Hinduism cannot even be called a religion in the formal western sense. It does not have any one founder or does not have any one Holy book of instructions. It grew gradually over a 254

period of about five thousand years by absorbing and assimilating all the religious, philosophical, ethical and cultural movements of India. Consequently, there is no one ideal of worship. Different schools of philosophical thoughts prescribe different forms of rituals or no rituals at all. People belonging to different strata of society also interpret worship in different ways. There is no one term for worship in Hinduism. It can be Yajna, Homa, Upasana, Sadhana, Bhajana, Arccana, Aradhana, etc. The closest general term for worship as understood in the west, would be Puja. Then again, Puja can mean more than just ritual worship. It means adoration, honour, respect, devotion, obeisance and much more." 6 Tracing the evolution of worship, S.K. Ramachandra Rao, says; "In the early Vedic context, fire worship in the form of sacrifices was not only elaborate, but involved expense. It was exclusively the privilege of the upper classes. But when we reach the Smrti age, we find that Vedic sacrifices were gradually going out of vogue, and were being substituted largely by worship of natural but unusual objects, serpents, tree and sylvan deities (Naga, Vrksa, Yaksa). Worship of such objects and also man-made icons representing deities was made obligatory for the householders in the Smrti texts of Manu, Yajnavalkya and Marici. Worship was not only simple in nature and procedure, but altogether inexpensive since faith (Sraddha) and devotion (Bhakti) were 255

considered all important. And worship would be resorted to by persons of all castes, and in all stages of life. While worship was suggested, the Mantras that were prescribed in the Smrti texts to be employed were largely borrowed from the Puranas (which again had greater popular appeal than the Vedic texts), although some Vedic hymns did enter into the worship sequences. And the ritualistic rigour characteristic of the Vedic sacrifices was given up nor was the worship ritual an elaborate one. In the early stages, the officiating priest may have had a Vedic background. But, later, the priests constituted a class by themselves, outside the fold of the ritualistic scholarship in Vedic lore. The worship of deities (several of them public in nature and some household deities) advocated by the Smrti texts may be said to be the immediate cause for the emergence of Agama literature. Worship was now made more impressive by the incorporation of numerous ceremonial services to the deities (Upacaras), and by adding colour by way of music, dance, drama and other entertainments before the deity, as details of worship". Temple is an institution that has evolved through a long history of varying traditions of worship. The very development of Vastuvidya as a science was through the construction of temples. 256

The origin of temple construction in south India can be traced to Pallava kings. Temples with idols installed and fixed with Astabandha and with superstructure above them came into being in Kerala during the 9th century A.D. 8