Shakti and Shâkta : essays and addresses on the Shâkta Tantrashâstra

SHAKTI AND SHAKTA consign to the waters Hindu Dharma as something full of rubbish when the Trim@rti in the shape of Colonel Olcott, Madame Blavatsky and Mrs. Besant came across the seven oceans and thirteen rivers and gave mystical interpretations of sneezing and the sound of the lizard and we made obeisance to you, Oh Trimarti! and batch after batch of us assumed the garb of the Theosophist.”’—Bhdratavarsha.

“The Tantra has not been so fortunate. The savants of Europe have previously been under the impression that the Tantra Sh4stra is utterly contemptible and full of superstitions. Mr. Avalon's is the first attempt «to remove that stigma from the Tantra Sh4stra. He is undoubtedly, therefore, the object of gratitude of every Hindu. There is another feature which distinguishes his work from the Hindu Shistras published by other European Scholars, Mr. Arthur Avalon did not begin the study of this Shastra with any pre-conceived notions. He has attempted to interpret it in the true spirit of a searcher after truth, a characteristic which is lacking in the case of the majority of European scholars. Mr. Avalon has not imposed his own notions in this manner. He has carefully seen the Indian Shistra with Indian eyes...He has not abused but in place of doing so, he has tried carefully to understand the Shastra. Those who in the name of scientific faith have put wicked interpretations on the Shjstra have done evil and not good.—P ratibh@,

“To the Western mind the generic term Hinduism’ conveys for the most part the idea of Vedantic philosophy. With the religious and ritualistic side of Hinduism the Occident is practically unaquainted. In fact till Mr. Avalon approached the subject of the Tantra Sh4stra hitherto relegated by scholars to the limbo of superstition if nothing worse, the European mind knew nothing of orthodox Hinduism ... In a masterly critical mtroduction Mr. Ayalon approaches a field of research almost unexplored. The result of his investigations into the nature, origin, age and authority of Tantric worship, whilst providing the casual reader with a fund of useful information, should also prove of no small value to tne Oriental student and pave the way to a more and more complete apprehension of the underlying truth of a form of worship which has come erroneously to be associated with wine and women, black magic and so on. The fearless and impersonal efforts of Mr. Avalon to remove the handicap from a much misunderstood form of worship deserves the support of all students of Eastern and especially of Hindu religious thought.’’—Occult Review.

“These books (Tantras) are probably the worst that Hinduism has produced, for they consist in the main of grossly superstitious rites,

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