Shakti and Shâkta : essays and addresses on the Shâkta Tantrashâstra

SHAKTI AND SHAKTA

own land who take the cue from their Western Gurus and pass invectives upon the Shastra... At present the entire ritualism and Upasana in India are mainly conducted according to the rules of Tantra. A thorough knowledge of its philosophy is necessary to understand the meaning of Hindu rituals and ceremonies. The present work will be of invaluable service of this purpose,’”-—Vedanta Kesari,

“We have already on several occasions drawn the attention of our readers, to the courageous effort. which Arthur Avalon is making to supply students of comparative religion with materials which will enable them to treat with greater understanding certain aspects of religion in India hitherto veiled in almost impenetrable obscurity, .. . His industry and wise co-operation with Indian Pundits have thus supplied us with a mass of material that requires the most careful sifting and analysis and we owe him a debt of gratitude for making it accessible to us.’’—The Quest.

“Evidently the doctrine of the Tantras is nothing but a pure Vedantic one...One of the most striking features of the Tantra is its doctrine of both enjoyment and liberation... The Tantras have long been neglected by foreign scholars and their blind Indian followers. But now it is believed that through the unflinching zeal and energy of Mr. Arthur Avalon, these works will be rescued from obscurity and truly appreciated,’ —Modern Review.

“Arthur Avalon has by his learned edition of Tantrik Texts in both Sanskrit and English, indeed rendered an eminent service to the cause of Sanskrit literature. The Tantras have hitherto been a sealed book to many and this attempt to produce in lucid and eloquent English the main principles of the cult cannot fail to elicit admiration from all lovers of thesacred literature of this country...admirable introduction,’””Mahémahopadhyaya Satish Chandra Vidyadbhfiishanain The Calcutta Review. .

** We suspect that ‘ Arthur Avalon’ is one of the learned Pandits of Bengal whose native speech has not been without influence upon his almost impeccable English. He seems to share the belief of the ‘ saint’ whose work he edits and his historical acumen is not, so far as he revealed, any greater. His linguistic sense is purely native. But (rightly) he lays the greatest stress on the philosophical importance of Tantra, It contains ‘ a deep philosophic doctrine, ’ Let us see what it is. We may pass over the ritual, granting that it is perhaps the most elaborate system of autosuggestion in the world... What is this (doctrine) except the feminization of orthodox Vedanta. It is a doctrine for suffragette monists, the dogma

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