Ritual

RITUAL
In the preceding discussion, all the factors related to the basic
doctrine of tantra, its metaphysics, art and science, are supplemental
to this central feature - ritual, or the spiritual science of
self-culture. Metaphysics, art and science are the edifice of
knowledge which provide the origin and goal of tantric sadhana;
ritual provides the corpus of means. Ritual is based on two basic
and interdependent presuppositions: first, that the self is potentially
divine and can be developed illimitably; second, and
following as a corollary from the first, that reality or the Absolute
(Siva-Sakti), whose inherent nature is joy (ananda), is the most
fundamental and desirable goal to seek. At one pole is the self or
individual aspiring to be free or enlightened; at the other pole is the
goal. Between the poles is the intermediate state of reaching for the
goal by means of effective techniques - this is ritual. Thus ritual
here can be defined as a 'link' connecting the individual psyche
with the universal noumena. Tantra offers an operational model
for psychic liberation and outlines an effective modus operandi
within its defined conspectus, and tantric ritual, therefore, should
be considered a key factor of psychic evolution.
In a theoretical exposition such as this, the purpose is to expound
the practical psycho-physical prescriptions of ritual and their
significance. This means we are obliged to discuss in terms of
concepts and abstractions what in reality is a dynamic translogical
unitary experience. It should, therefore, be borne in mind that
tools of language cannot do full justice to the actual experience of
living in the ritual. The real search begins when language ends and
logic-oriented positivism is dispensed with: 'Darkness is not
dispensed with by mentioning the word "lamp"' (Kularnava
Tantra). Just so, words are impotent to dispel the darkness of the
ego. Self-realization springs from an inner experience - a feelingsense
of something which can never be articulated in words.
Tantric ritual is thus both an aid and a psychological experiment
which sensitizes and revitalizes the inner experience for higher
spiritual awakening. Dr A. V. Gerasimov, a tantric scholar of the
The supreme Goddess as the Void,
with projection-space for Her
image. Andhra Pradesh, 19th
century. Bronze.
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