PERFECTED BODY, DIVINE BODY AND OTHER BODIES IN THE NTHA-SIDDHA SANSKRIT TEXTS Lubomr Ondraka

1 Introduction It is well known that the aim of the Ntha-Siddhas is the attainment of immortality. In India, however, immortality could have several different meanings. For a Vedic man, immortality means the achievement of the full life span or continuity of life through the son. Some Indic religious traditions have a particular concept of an immortal and imperishable soul. We may also hear stories about immortal yogins living somewhere in the Himalayas. The question that then arises is what immortality means for the NthaSiddhas. At first sight, it is clear that immortality in the Ntha-Siddha tradition is immortality in a much stronger sense than Vedic longevity or the usual imperishability of the soul. It is some kind of corporeal immortality. The key question is: in what body do the Ntha-Siddhas seek immortality? Is it a physical, material body? Or is it some other, non-material body? As we shall see, most scholars would subscribe to this second alternative. Not only do my findings not support this opinion, but they disagree with several fundamental propositions of previous research. This paper does not offer a definitive answer to these questions: it is merely an initial step attempting to deconstruct the prevalent ideas about the concept of body in the Ntha-Siddha tradition. 2 Previous Research 2.1 Shashibhusan Dasgupta Let us begin our analysis with the above-mentioned findings of other researches. The key personality is a Bengali scholar named Shashibhusan Dasgupta who devoted a long chapter in his famous work Obscure Religious Cults to the history, literature and religion of the Ntha-Siddhas (Das Gupta 1969: 191255). According to this author:
[T]he final aim of the Nth Siddhas was the attainment of ivahood in and through the attainment of immortality (p. 218). Liberation here [in Haha-yoga of the Nth Siddhas] means immortality first in a perfect body (siddha-deha) and then in a divine body (divya-deha), and this is the Siddhi or the perfection after which the Siddhas aspired (p. 219).

Here we encounter the key terms that concern us: the perfected body (siddhadeha) and the divine body (divyadeha). Thus, according to Dasguptas last statement, the process of liberation consists of two steps: the first is the attainment of the perfected body and the second in the accomplishment of the divine body. Unfortunately, Dasgupta immediately confuses this idea when he writes:
The final aim of the Nth Siddhas [is] Jvan-mukti or liberation while living, and this state of liberation is what is meant by immortality. While the other schools of thought regard the final dissolution of the body or its final dissociation from the spirit indispensable for

liberation, the Siddhas seek liberation in a transformed or transmaterialised body, which is the perfect body. What is this perfect body or the divine body? It is an indestructible spiritual body, absolutely free from the principles of defilement (p. 219).

Here Dasgupta seems almost to identify the perfected body with the divine body and he considers both of them to be non-material and spiritual.1 Later he continues in a similar vein:
[S]uch yogic practices lead the Siddha to his original ultimate nature as the immortal Being in his perfect or divine body (p. 229). Kya-sdhana of the Nth Siddhas implies, on the whole, a slow and gradual process of continual purification, rejuvenation and transubstantiation of the body through various yogic processes. It has been said that through the fire of yoga (i.e., the purifying processes of yoga) the ordinary body of change and decay is burnt away and from the process of purification and rejuvenation results a new immutable divine body as a transformation of the old (p. 234, cf. also pp. 239, 248 and 253).

At the very end of his chapter, however, when comparing the teachings of the Ntha and Rasa-Siddhas, Dasgupta surprisingly adds:
[T]he alchemists generally use the two words Siddha-deha and Divya-deha as synonymous, evidently because both are free from corruption, mortality and the defects belonging to the ordinary human frame. ... The Nth Siddhas and the Rasa Siddhas are known to be closely allied with each other regarding the ultimate object of their aspiration which consists in making the body a proof against death and decay... [But] the Nths also in certain places discriminate between Siddha-deha and Divya-deha as the exponents of the other mystic cults do (pp. 254255).

Thus, the position of Dasgupta is not entirely clear. It seems that for him both bodies are virtually synonymous, although he is aware of the fact that this does not need to always be the case. 2.2 Kalyani Mallik The second important author for our discussion is another Bengali scholar Kalyani Mallik, whose voluminous work Nthsamprader itihs, daran o sdhanpral (Mallik 1950) still remains the most detailed study of the Ntha-Siddha tradition.2 She agrees with Dasgupta that the first step in yogic sdhan is the achievement of the perfected body:
By process of purification ... and hathayoga [the yogin] acquires an ageless and immortal body. ... When this metamorphosis or transformation is completed, then the body one acquires is the siddhadeha (p. 304). The main goal of the Nth yogins is to make a human, natural and unripe body into the ripe one through yoga. This body, which is made ripe by the fire of yoga, is the siddhadeha (p. 520).

1 Dasgupta speaks repeatedly about the non-material character of these bodies: Through the fire of yoga the body becomes supra-material (p. 220); transubstantiating the material body of change to subtle etherial body (p. 247). 2 It is unfortunate that this seminal work has so far escaped the attention of most scholars in the field of Ntha studies.

Once a yogin acquires this perfected body, he is liberated (jvanmukta, pp. 293, 296, 303, 304) and beyond karmic bondage (p. 390). Mallik offers several descriptions of such a body:
This body is not nourished with external foodstuffs. This body and life do not depend on the mundane world. ... It cannot be mutilated even by the stroke of a sword. Although it is opaque to look at, it does not cast a shadow and does not leave footprints. Also it cannot be touched (p. 304). The siddhadeha is light, it moves quickly like a thought, it can attain any form and it can move arbitrarily. It manages to pass through a brick wall, water, fire, wind or rock. It can become invisible in a moment, but on the other hand it can simultaneously appear in many forms3 (p. 520).

The perfected body has a non-material, spiritual character:

As a salt is mixed in water, so the body of a liberated person acquires the character of brahma and, in this form, a yogin is the jvanmukta. When the yogins body is no different from brahma, it attains spiritualness. All the sense organs also become spiritual. This is the yogins siddhadeha or yogadeha (p. 293).

Here we have a new important term: the yogic body (yogadeha), which is identical with the perfected body. This identification is confirmed by several similar statements (e.g. pp. 524, 549, 550). With regard to the relationship between the perfected body and the divine body, Kalyani Mallik also speaks about the process of transformation:
The siddhadeha is gradually transformed into the divyadeha (p. 304).

This is discussed in greater detail later:

Having assumed the siddhadeha, the yogins do good in the world for a very long time and in this form they are engaged in public welfare. Gradually they become acquainted with the pervading self-nature (tmabhb). Then they can slowly see themselves in their visible great self-form and then the great knowledge (mahjn) arises. This is when the siddhadeha is transformed into the form of the divyadeha (p. 391).

Kalyani Mallik thus makes a clear distinction here between the perfected and divine body, since the divine body is an outcome of a yogic transformation of the perfected body. The divine body is not perceptible by our sense organs: it is entirely invisible (p. 304). Unfortunately, the situation is not so simple. Firstly, Mallik introduces a great number of other bodies into the discussion. Besides the above-mentioned yogic body, there are several other synonyms for the perfected body: mantric body, body of om, body of bindu, body of guru and many others.4 The divine body seems to have only one synonym: body of cognition (jnatanu, pp. 304, 325). Secondly, and this is a greater problem, a supposed
This characteristic is very similar to the description of the qualities of a body in Vysas commentary on YS 3.45. 4 mantradeha (p. 518), mantratanu (p. 304); praavatanu (pp. 303304, 307, 325, 328, 391, 518, 552), omkradeha (pp. 303, 325, 328); baindavadeha (pp. 314, 325, 391, 494; regarding the baindavadeha, however, Mallik says that there is no clear reference to it in the Ntha-Siddha texts, p. 314), baindavaarra (p. 304); gurudeha (p. 552). Other bodies are mentioned by Mallik mostly when making comparisons with different schools (e.g. siddhadeha is identified with a bhvadeha of the Vaiavas, pp. 297, 328). 3
3

difference between the perfected and divine body is impaired by a number of contradictory statements, e.g.:
The siddhadeha ... is called praavatanu or mantradeha. And it is precisely this that is the divyadeha (p. 518). There is no such distinction in the Ntha-Siddha tradition: when Ntha-Siddhas mention yogadeha, they mean both: siddhadeha as well as divyadeha (p. 550).

It is obvious that the position of Kalyani Mallik remains ambiguous. What type of body is the ultimate goal and what is the relationship between all types of different bodies is not altogether clear. 2.3 David Gordon White Another scholar whose view is relevant to our discussion of this problem is David Gordon White and his book The Alchemical Body (White 1996). He adds yet one more body to those in the Ntha-Siddha tradition: the diamond or adamantine body (vajradeha). Describing the Mhevara-Siddhas and comparing them with the Rasevara and Ntha-Siddhas, he says:
Rather then a perfected (siddhadeha) or adamantine (vajradeha) physical body, the Mhevara Siddhas goal was a divine body (divyadeha) of a more ethereal, even incorporeal nature (p. 102).

From this proposition we can conclude that the non-material, divine body is a unique feature of the Mhevara-Siddhas, whereas the Rasevara and NthaSiddhas strive for a physical, perfected or diamond body, which is immortal yet concrete and transcends the laws of nature (p. 72). But then a hundred pages later we read:
The fruit of this union, of the yogins commingled male and female essences, is nothing less than the new, supernatural, immortal self that will now emerge from the husk of the gross body, as the result of this yogic process. This is the siddha- or vajra-deha, the yogins perfected or diamond body, his innate immortal essence which he has now restored to its pristine perfection by burning away the gross and refining the subtle elements within himself (p. 202).5

Here the siddhadeha and vajradeha seem to be synonymous, they are definitely not physical, gross bodies, and thus it is not clear how they differ from the divyadeha of the Mhevara-Siddhas. The following interesting quotations concern the different bodies of the Rasevara-Siddhas:

White speaks in a similar vein at other points in his book: semen is the raw material and fuel of every psychochemical transformation the yogin, alchemist, or tantric practitioner undergoes, transformations through which a new, superhuman and immortal body is conceived out of the husk of the mortal, conditioned, biological body (1996: 27); the basic Siddha principle of telescoping the gross into the subtle as a means to generating a siddha body (p. 150); the pills ... cause a wholly subtle and immortal alchemical body to emerge out of the husk of the gross, biological body (p. 287). And in another of his works: What is it, then, that dies? It is the gross, biologically given body, a husk that is to be cast off like the slough of a snake. (White 2003: 20, adopted from White 1996: 281) 4

In alchemy, the rasa in question is mercury, which substitutes itself for human bodily fluids and thereby transforms a body of flesh and blood into a golden (svara), adamantine (vajra), or perfected (siddha) body (p. 303). Even if the body so produced is most often called a golden, adamantine, or realized body (svara-deha, vajra-deha, siddha-deha), it is in fact a mercurial body, an alchemical body (p. 271).

The specific character of the new, transformed body is not explained and, as in the case of the previous authors, we are in some doubt as to the precise position of this scholar not only on this particular question, but also on several other and sometimes very fundamental problems. What we can infer from Whites study is that the Ntha-Siddhas and Rasevara-Siddhas have the same goal: they both seek immortality in a perfected or diamond body although they differ in their means the Ntha-Siddhas use a tantric hahayoga, whereas the Rasevara-Siddhas employ alchemical techniques. The new, immortal body is a product of a transformation (yogic or alchemical) and does not have a gross character. And, what is important for us, according to David White a divine body does not appear to play a part in the doctrine of the Ntha-Siddhas. 2.4 Other Scholars Other authorities on the religion and philosophy of the Ntha-Siddhas do not add anything remarkable or fundamentally new. Pandit Gopinath Kaviraj analyses different concepts of body in many of his publications, unfortunately often in a too general context of tantric and yogic teachings which does not allow us to ascribe these ideas to the Ntha-Siddhas in particular with any certainty.6 Still, many statements in these passages are very interesting for our discussion, as for example:
The perfected body is not governed by natural laws. This is its main characteristic. When the body becomes perfected, then it is free from ageing, illness and similar afflictions and is capable of overcoming death. Sometimes the body is both non-ageing and immortal. But sometimes immortality and non-ageing do not coincide. When non-ageing and immortality occur in the body simultaneously then this perfected body (siddhadeha) is called a divine body (divyadeha) (Kabirj 1995: 166, very similarly also in Kavirj 1994: 268 and 1984a: 8990).

When describing the concept of body in the Ntha-Siddha tradition, Kaviraj too speaks of two steps:
The Ntha ideal is first to realise Jvanmukti through pia siddhi which secures an Immaculate Body of Light free from influence of Time i.e. a deathless undecaying spiritual Body of light and then to realise Parmukti or the Highest perfection through the process of mutual integration samaraskaraa. ... [T]he complete course of Ntha spiritual culture did not end with the attainment of siddha deha (Kaviraj 1990: 164).

In another exposition of the Ntha teaching, Kaviraj , however, surprisingly notes:

A body like this is said to be rare even among the gods. It is pure purer than ka itself. Siddha-kya, Divya-deha, Yoga-deha, etc., are but names of this Body (Kaviraj 1987: 78).

And similarly in another essay:

6

See e.g. Kabirj 1995: 165180, Kavirj 1994: 213231, 264282, Kavirj 1984a: 72112 and Kaviraj 1984b: 117125. 5

Call it by the name of mental body, celestial body (divyadeha), ideal body (bhvadeha) or by any other name, it is a marvellous acquisition (Kaviraj 1984b: 119).

It becomes apparent that it is impossible to draw any definitive conclusions from these statements of Gopinath Kaviraj. The writer Hazariprasad Dvivedi does not discuss the problem of different bodies at all in his lucid outline of the Ntha-Siddha tradition, and only in his chapter on the doctrine of the Rasevara-Siddhas does he describe the process of attaining immortality in the divine body (Dvived 1996: 188). And finally, Akshaya Kumar Banerjea, an author from within the Ntha-Siddha tradition, explicitly states that
this old yogic science enabled a spiritual aspirant to dematerialise his material body and to transform it so to say into a spiritual body (Banerjea 1988: 200). According to the Yogis, man has within himself the power ... to convert the physical body into a vital or mental body or to produce from one mental body one or numerous physical bodies or to spiritualise the physical body (p. 250).

2.5 Summary of Previous Research When we probe for a prevalent position on the problem of different bodies in the Ntha-Siddhas doctrine in academic circles, we are under the impression that the most influential theories are those of Shashibhusan Dasgupta. The large diffusion of his ideas has been further strengthened by the writings of Mircea Eliade, whose chapters on the Ntha-Siddhas in his famous work on yoga (1977b: 299314) heavily depend on Dasguptas Obscure Religious Cults.7 Consequently, the Ntha-Siddhas theory of the transformation of the physical perfected body into the non-material divine body is firmly established in all types of academic production nowadays: in highly specialized studies,8 in general works on Indic religions (Gonda 1963: 220) or on Hinduism (Brockington 1992: 156), in religious dictionaries (Bowker 1997: 686, Doniger 1999: 781), or even in general encyclopedias.9 All the above-mentioned studies by Dasgupta, Mallik and White seem to have one key problem in common: their authors normally illustrate most of their statements with a number of quotations from original texts, but in the case of different bodies they fail to do so.10 This is certainly surprising and rather suspect.
Eliade follows Dasgupta in his concept of bodily transformation: le siddha-deha des hathayogins nest pas sans ressemblance avec le corps de Gloire des alchimistes occidentaux; on ralise la transmutation de la chair, on construit un corps divin (divya-deha), un corps de la Gnose (jna-deha), digne rceptacle pour celui qui est un dlivr la vie (jvanmukta) (Eliade 1977b: 273 274); quil existe deux sortes de corps, ... et que lon obtient ce deuxime corps par la pratique du Yoga (cest pour cela quil est appel yoga-deha, le corps du yoga (ib., p. 314, see also pp. 281282). Eliade also repeats this view in his other books, e.g.: le hatha-yogin et le tantrique visent transmuer leur corps en un corps incorruptible, appel corps divin (divya-deha), corps de la gnose (jna-deha), corps parfait (siddha-deha) (Eliade 1977a: 109). 8 See e.g.: Muller-Ortega 1989: 3637; Bakker 1990: 291292; Haberman 2003: liii; Feuerstein 1998: 39, 507, 517, 542, etc. Owing to Eliades influential work, this concept is widespread even outside Indic studies (Needham 1983: 276). 9 The on-line edition of the Encyclopdia Britannica states clearly: Natha: religious movement of India whose members strive for immortality by transforming the human body into an imperishable divine body. 10 With one exception: two authors quote YB 52 as evidence for the occurrence of yogadeha (Das 6
7

When we take into account that the positions of these authors are often ambiguous, and moreover that they are not in full agreement with each other, it becomes obvious that the answer to our original question about different bodies in the Ntha-Siddha tradition is not easy to find in previous scholarship and that we have to go back to the texts of this tradition to begin our search for this answer. 3 Various bodies in the Ntha-Siddha texts The literary heritage of the Ntha-Siddhas is enormous and has still not been researched thoroughly enough. Judging from the catalogues of manuscripts in various Indian libraries and institutions, the number of extant Ntha-Siddha texts can be estimated at several tens if not a few hundreds. These texts, written in Sanskrit as well in almost all North Indian languages, remain largely unedited (Mallik 1954: 27), and those published are, with a few exceptions, often poorly edited.11 Since my research is based entirely on edited texts, the results must be taken with a degree of caution. The second limitation of my study for the purpose of this paper is its focus on Sanskrit texts only. And finally, it is exclusively a textual study as I did not research these questions among present-day Nths. A difficult and open question is what may be counted as a Ntha-Siddha text.12 It is not my intention to solve this problem here. A good many scholars have compiled different lists of these texts.13 The usual grounds for including a text in such a list are that it is ascribed to any Ntha-Siddha, or it pays homage to them, or it is respected within the tradition. My approach is rather broad: sometimes I also refer to non-Ntha hahayogic texts. On the other hand, I have excluded texts admittedly connected to Gorakantha, but visibly belonging to other traditions.14 3.1 Immortality First we should discuss what the texts say about immortality, since the most important characteristic of different yogic bodies is that they are said to be immortal. Indeed, almost all texts mention a possibility of attaining immortality, most frequently when describing the technique of khecarmudr. After the acquisition of this difficult mudr or other technique, there is no reason to be in
Gupta 1969: 220, Mallik 1950: 208). When mentioning adamantine (vajra) body (1996: 303), David White quotes four examples from the Gorakhbn (p. 507 note 4: Sabad 60, 211; Pad 5.1, 15.1). None of these lines, however, says anything about a diamond body. I am grateful to Jaroslav Strnad for a detailed grammatical and semantic analysis of these verses which confirmed my initial suspicion. 11 The only outstanding example of meticulous editorial work I am aware of is Mallinson 2007. The texts published by Kaivalyadhama Yoga Research Institute in Lonavla are normally good critical editions based on a great number of manuscripts, although the accepted reading is sometimes difficult to follow. 12 An even more basic question is whether the use of the term Ntha-Siddhas for a specific religious tradition is duly justified. I have strong doubts about this, but for the purpose of this paper I follow the terminology used by the authors quoted above. 13 Briggs 1989: 251257, Dvived 1996: 98101, Das Gupta 1969: 373374, Singh 1937: 813, Junej 2042: 146181, Mallik 1950: 121137. 14 I have left out the Gorakasahit edited in two parts by Janrdana Peya. The first part (Kdiprakaraa, Varanasi: Sampurnanand Sanskrit Vishvavidyalaya, 1976) is a text actually belonging to the Kubjikmata (for a discussion of this, see Heilijgers-Seelen 1994: 812), and the second part (Bhtiprakaraa, 1977) is an alchemical work (White 1996: 156158). 7

fear of death.15 Statements about the yogin who conquers death,16 does not age and die,17 becomes immortal,18 or whose is immortality19 are in the same vein. There are an abundance of similar phrases, but they are all too general and thus do not help to understand the precise character of the immortal body. What is perhaps of more interest is the statement that the soul does not leave a body filled with somakal,20 since this verse makes a reference to the prerequisite of bodily immortality: the body must be flooded with the nectar of immortality. 3.2 The perfected body The most important term discussed in the literature reviewed above seems to be the perfected body (siddhadeha). Surprisingly, this word does not occur in any of the Ntha-Siddha texts I have studied, not even in any synonymic form.21 This fact is extremely difficult to explain and I will return to this problem in a concluding discussion. At this stage I can offer one, albeit rather forced, explanation. The scholars have perhaps decided to use the term siddhadeha to describe a body which has achieved all the perfections (siddhis) and from this point of view it is really perfected. Unfortunately, no such definition may be found in the literature. In fact, the term perfected body is very rare in the whole of Sanskrit literature. As a technical term, it is probably only used in the texts of Gauya Vaiavism, where siddhadeha (or more frequently its synonym siddharpa) means the highest goal of the sdhaka: the body through which one has access to the ideal Vrajaloka.22 A similar example of where the word siddhadeha is found is the Sahajya Vaiavism and various Bengali traditions originating from this.23
mtyubhaya kuta? (AP 41d, HP 3.112d, GVS 40b, G 70b, S 4.109a, VM 6.61b, YB 94d, YK 8.43b, 8.145b, 8.169d, 8.183b, YM 58d, YSGS 1.78b); mtyorbhaya kuta? (GP 1.68b, GS 1.68b); klabhaya kuta? (GP 1.91d, G 92d, HP 2.40d, 3.88b, YK 3.167b, VM 6.82d). 16 mtyujayati (e.g. GP 2.44d, GS 2.44d, HP 3.43d, 3.58cd, 3.87b, S 3.83d, 3.87d, 3.89b, 4.48cd, 4.70c, 4.75b, VM 6.135d, YB 121ab), or mtyu vimucati (GVS 98d). 17 ajarmaram pnoti (GP 2.45c, GS 2.45c, VM 6.138c,), similarly bhaved ajarmara (VM 6.122d, YK 6.16d, YM 120d). 18 amaro bhavet (GVS 96d). 19 tasya syd amaratvam (GP 2.48g, GS 2.48g, HP 3.49g, VM 6.140c, YK 8.132g), similarly tasya syd amtatvam (YM 139c). 20 tath somakalpra deha deh na mucati (GP 2.50cd, GS 2.50cd, VM 6.143cd, YK 8.126cd, YSGS 2.27cd; in slightly different wordings HP 3.45cd, YM 141ab). For the meaning of kal, see Mallinson 2007: 213 note 277, and his other notes on the second chapter of KhV. 21 There are several different terms referring to body in this literature (kya, vapus, pia, arra, tanu), but no such compound is used. The only occurrences of the term perfected body in a hahayogic text that I am aware of are MS 17.60a (siddhatanu) and MS 6.6a (siddhastanuryog). This text is, however, probably a south Indian compilation from different sources (kaula, ntha, saiddhntika). For more details on Matsyendrasahit, see Mallinson 2007: 6 and 169 (note 19), where he quotes from the unpublished works of Csaba Kiss, who has prepared a critical edition of selected chapters of this important text. 22 See e.g. Bhaktirasmtasindhu 1.2.295 (explained in Haberman 2003: liiiliv, 96 note 126). The complicated theory of different bodies in Gauya Vaiavism is expounded in Haberman 1985, and in a wider context in Haberman 1988: 7273, 8693, 99104, 116123 and passim (see also McDaniel 1989: 4553). Siddhadeha also occurs in the important Bengali text Caitanyacaritmta of Kads Kabirj (2.8.47e, 2.22.66c, 3.1.54 here the perfected body is attained by a dog saying the name Ka, 3.5.96, 3.11.46). It is noteworthy that this term is a subject of debate between the bhaktas in Brindaban and Western ISKCON devotees: Brindaban residents see themselves as purer, or more advanced than their Western counterparts. They ... believe their human bodies are identical with their spiritual bodies (siddha-deha), making them transcendental lovers of Krishna by birth. (Brooks 8
15

3.3 The diamond body The term diamond body (vajradeha), frequently mentioned especially by David White, is also not referred to in our texts, but there are a few isolated occurrences of its synonym vajrakya. The fifth chapter of the Siddhasiddhntapaddhati includes a description of a gradual ascent of the yogin in each year of his sdhan. In the eighth year, he achieves the siddhi of aim and then, in the ninth year, he acquires a diamond body and he can fly or move through the air.24 The attainment of a diamond body is not, however, the final stage of the yogins endeavour, since in the tenth year he can reach anywhere he likes faster than the wind, in the eleventh year, he becomes omniscient, and finally, in the twelfth year, he becomes equal to iva.25 There is no other information about the character of this diamond body, but it is clear that it has some of the siddhis26 although not yet all of them and, most importantly, that it is not the final goal. The second text in which the vajrakya is referred to is the Khecarvidy, where the diamond body is the effect of drinking the nectar of immortality.27 Although the term diamond body is not directly used in the Amanaskayoga, in one verse it is said that in the ninth month the yogin becomes like a diamond.28 A similar statement is also found in a commentary to the Amaraughasana.29 Finally, according to the ivasahit, a yogin can obtain a body which is harder than diamond and does not become corrupted even in a thousand years.30 On the other hand, this term seems to be relatively frequent in the alchemical texts,31 and, understandably, it is an important term in tantric Buddhism.

1990: 274) 23 Urban 1993: 49 (quoting the unpublished PhD theses of Glen Hayes); Jha 1995: 71; Urban 2001: 147, 153; Openshaw 2002: 236237. 24 navame vajrakya syt khecaro dikcaro bhavet (SSP 5.40ab). This verse (actually the full passage) is quoted in SSS 5.54cd, and in different words also in YD 3.55ab: gaganacaro digvicaro navame `bde yas tu vajrakya syt. 25 SSP 5.40cd41, SSS 5.5556ab, YD 3.55cd56. 26 The relation between the siddhis and the diamond character of the body is already present in Patajalis Yogastras, where it is said (YS 3.46) that one of the perfections of body (kyasampat) is its adamantine hardness (vajrasamhanana) and this stra follows just after the discussion of the siddhis. Vysa unfortunately left this stra without any exposition. 27 vajrakyo mahyog varalaka sa jvati (KhV 1.71ab = MS 14.73ab with prajvati), vajrakyo bhavet satya tadplvanapnata (KhV 2.25ab = MS 15.26ab with tadptavanaptata), prapiban msamtrea vajrakyo bhaved dhruvam (KhV 2.116cd = MS 16.35ab). 28 yogndro vajrasanibha (AY 1.89d). This text describes the progression of the yogin very differently from the SSP and in much more detail. It begins with the shortest measure of time (eyewink), continues with longer periods (length of breath, days, months) and the full process culminates after twenty-four years when the yogin acquires all powers and mastery over all tattvas. This passage is summarised in White 1996: 316317, but the author seems to have misunderstood the text, since he writes He who practices uninterrupted breath retention for twenty-four years gains dominion over the goddess akti (p. 317), whereas the text reads: Remaining in the absorption continually for twenty-four years, [the yogin] gets the perfection of the akti-tattva (caturviatibhir varair layasthasya nirantaram aktitattvasya siddhi syt, AY 1.94). Laya definitely does not mean uninterrupted breath retention, but the absorption of mind, a state akin or equal to samdhi. 29 aame vajravad bhavet (A p. 5). 30 tasya na katir yti svaarrasya aktita / savatsarasahasre `pi vajrtikahinasya vai (S 5.126). 31 For the purpose of this study, I have looked through the alchemical Gorakasahit, where the diamond body has eight occurrences in the form of vajradeha(tva) (GSBhP 7.132b, 7.145c, 8.65b, 8.74a, 9.131b) and vajrakya (5.260a, 5.297b, 7.149c). 9

3.4 The yogic body We have seen that according to Kalyani Mallik the synonym of the perfected body is the yogadeha. This term, however, is equally rare in the texts. In one important passage of the Yogabja, to which we will return shortly, it is said that not even the gods can acquire a very strong yogic body.32 The Hindi translation of this verse has an interesting explanation of the yogadeha: it is a perfected body made ripe by yogic sdhan in the fire of yoga.33 The second occurrence of the term yogadeha is in the anthology Gorakasiddhntasagraha: the yogin should give up or destroy his ordinary mundane body, create a yogic body and protect it.34 I have not found any possible synonym of this term in the texts. 3.5 The divine body The only relatively frequent term in the Ntha-Siddha texts is the divine body.35 In a number of treatises we find this verse:
When the rajas is impelled by the motion of akti through the breath, then it achieves unity with the bindu, whereupon the body becomes divine.36

It is clear from the context that the divine body is a direct result of the union of rajas and bindu through the kualinyoga and thus it is not a product of any gradual transformation. Moreover, it is obvious that the achievement of the divine body is not the highest aim, since the yogins effort continues with other techniques. Several other texts, when describing the four stages of the ndayoga, mention the achievement of the divine body, which is full of energy, free of disease and having divine fragrance.37 For our discussion it is important that the yogin attains this divine body in the first stage called rambha beginning. It is clear that this body is nothing extraordinary. It marks the very outset of the yogins effort and it is definitely not a non-material or spiritual body, but an ordinary physical one,

devair api na labhyeta yogadeho mahbala (YB 52ab). This verse is quoted in GSS (p. 25) with a different number (51ab). 33 yogasdhan dvr yoggni m pakva siddhadeha (YB, p. 11). 34 yogadeha sjaty eta klabhty tv avaty ayam, hanti vaiayika deha tan ntha ko harvara (GSS, p. 48). 35 It is probably common in alchemical texts as well. I have found twenty occurrences of divyadeha in a relatively short GSBhP (5.176d, 5.252c, 5.254c, 5.261d, 5.301a, 6.95b, 6.102a, 6.198b, 6.288b, 6.337d, 6.459a, 6.482a, 6.571c, 7.14d, 7.18c, 7.152d, 7.243a, 7.322b, 8.103d, 8.133d). 36 vyun akticrea prerita tu yad raja / yti bindo sahaikatva bhaved divya vapus tata (GP 1.73, G 75, GS 1.73 and VM 6.66 with tad instead tata; in slightly different wordings YSGS 1.83, HP10 5.126). This verse is quoted in YCU 63 (in fact, the full passage in YCU is taken from G, see Bouy 1994: 99100) and in a different form in DhBU 89cd90ab (cf. Bouy 1994: 8692). The same idea of generating a divine body through the union of bindu and rajas is also expressed in S 4.87: aha bindu raja aktir ubhayor melana yad / yogin sdhanavat bhaved divya vapus tad, and again in HP10 5.123: sinduradravasaka ravisthne sthita raja / yti bindo sahaikatva bhaved divya vapus tad. 37 divyadeha ca tejasv divyagandhas tv arogavn / saprahdaya nya rambhe yogavn bhavet (HP 4.71, slightly different versions AP 47, HRA 4.19 and HTK 54.18). This verse is quoted in SLU 2.5cd6ab (see Bouy 1994: 108110). Interestingly, the same verse in HP10 does not include divyadeha and reads: divyagandho divyacakus tejasv crogavn (8.38cd). This version is also cited in GSS (p. 32, quoted as HP 4.71, cf. editors note 1). 10

32

since it is only in the third stage of this process that the yogin becomes free from pain, old age, hunger, sleep, etc. Another important occurrence of the term divyadeha is again in the fifth chapter of Siddhasiddhntapaddhati, which we have already quoted in connection with the diamond body. Here the progress of the yogin is described year by year and, in the third year, the yogin acquires a divine body and he is not harassed by lions and tigers.38 As we have seen, only six years later, in the ninth year, he obtains a diamond body. Thus, in this text the divine body is again near the beginning of the yogic path and certainly does not have a non-material or spiritual character. There are several other ways of attaining the divine body (various hahayogic cleansing techniques, mudrs, etc.),39 but all these verses confirm the fact that the divine body cannot be the highest and final aim of the yogic sdhan. 3.5 Transformation of the body The last problem to be discussed here is the transformation of the body. In other words, do the texts speak of the dematerialization of the gross body into the nonmaterial, spiritual body as the scholars do? The answer is: they do not at least not explicitly. The only passage which could possibly be understood as referring to such a process is found in the Yogabja:
51. The body consisting of seven constituents is slowly burnt by the fire of yoga and the gross elements gradually enter into [their corresponding] tattvas. 52. Not even the gods can acquire a very strong yogic body, which is free from deterioration and bondage, possesses various powers and is supreme. 53. The body is like the sky, even brighter than the sky, subtler than the subtle, grosser than the gross and stiffer than the stiff. 54. The yogin has a form according to his will, is independent, does not age and does not die. He frolics playfully wherever in the three worlds.40

This passage is very unique in the Ntha-Siddha texts and,41 moreover, its exact meaning is not entirely clear. Certainly, it refers to some elements of the
ttye divyadehas tu vylair vyghrair na bdhyate (SSP 5.36cd). This siddhi is depicted in several carvings on the prkra wall of the temple at railam (Linrothe 2006: 141) and it is also known to modern yogins (Hausner 2006: 172). 39 These techniques are said to produce the divine body: agnisra (dhautimtrea yogndro devadeha prapadyate, YSGS 4.19cd), praklana (kevala dhautimtrea devadeho bhaved dhruvam, YSGS 4.23cd, YK 4.77ab, 14.18ab), vamanadhauti (eva ktena klena devadeha hi labhyate, YSGS 4.41cd), mlaodhana (bhaved divyavapus tvat kmadevasamobhavet, YSGS 4.44cd), vrisra (sdhayet tat prayatnena devadeha prapadyate, GhS 1.18cd plus the following verse excluded form the critical edition, see p. 9, note 59), kaplabhti (bhaved divyadehaprpti kaphadoo na tasya ca, YSGS 4.57cd), pryama (daiva deha ca yat ppa sarva tan nayati dhruva, YK 3.25cd), khecarmudr (divyadeho bhavet satya divyavg divyadarana, KhV 2.117ab; na ca rogo jarmtyur devadeho bhaved dhruvam, YK 8.113ab quoting GhS 3.24cd; cf. HTK 14.19), japa (uttihen medin tyaktv divyadehas tu jyate, HTK 18.26cd). See also S 4.87, 5.52 and 5.248. 40 mahbhtni tatvni sambhtni kramea tu / saptadhtumayo deho dagdho yoggnin anai //51// devair api na labhyeta yogadeho mahbala / chedabandhair vimukto `sau nnaktidhara para //52// yathkas tath deha kd api nirmala / skmt skmataro deha sthlt sthlo jaj jaa //53// icchrpo hi yogndra svatantras tv ajarmara / krati triu lokeu llay yatra kutracit //54// (YB 51 54). 41 These verses are almost identical with YU 1.4043. In fact, the whole first chapter of this text is taken from YB (see Bouy 1994: 102106). There is an interesting change in YU 1.41a which reads devair api na lakyeta, whereas YB 52a has devair api na labhyeta. 11
38

bhtauddhi ritual, from the full context, however, it is apparent that something more is involved.42 This is suggested by passage in the Yogabja where it is said (76cd) that the wise yogin should burn the body consisting of seven constituents by fire to become free of disease and even immortal.43 3.6 Summary Let us briefly summarise the findings. In the Ntha-Siddha texts, it is not possible to find any elaborate description of the gradual transformation of the physical, material body into the spiritual, non-material one. The texts do not provide any coherent concept of different bodies. The term perfected body is not used at all. Other terms (yogic body and diamond body) are extremely rare and the only relatively frequent term is the divine body, which, however, is certainly not the final goal of the yogins effort, since a yogin attains this body at the very beginning of his path. 4 Discussion The results of my research produce more new problems than answers. At the beginning of this paper, I asked a key question: in what body do the Ntha-Siddhas seek immortality? I cannot offer a definite answer at present, but I believe that the texts speak for a more concrete and physical body than for some kind of a spiritual body. In saying this, I am in evident discrepancy with the previous findings of other scholars and thus I should propose some possible explanations for this contradiction. But could I be mistaken? There are a number of reasons for this possibility. This study is based solely on Sanskrit material.44 I have used only published texts and no manuscripts. Not even all the printed texts were available to me. Some texts have different editions and I did not study all of them. Some term or idea may have escaped my attention, or, I may not have understand it correctly. This possibility thus remains open. It is possible that some scholars view the doctrine of Ntha-Siddhas in a wider context of tantric teachings in general, or as very close to the theory of nondual Kashmir aivism in particular. Such a view would not be without substance. There is no space to go into detail here, but it is evident that if we take this position, at least part of the problem might be seemingly resolved. Especially the idea of the
The bhtauddhi is a preliminary part of a daily tantric ritual (it has been studied in depth by Gavin Flood 2000, 2002, and in a wider context 2006: 106113 and passim), by which a new, ritual body is constructed using a technique of visualisation. This body is temporary, whereas the yogic body described in the Yogabja seems to be permanent. More probably, these verses could refer to another yogic technique called mastery of the elements (bhtajaya), already mentioned by Patajali (YS 3.44) and described in several yogic as well as tantric texts (see e.g. Vasudeva 2004: 323329; ivastra 3.5). This skill is apparently essential for a yogin who strives for the perfected body. 43 The full passage reads: pum janmntaraatair yogd eva vimucyte / na tath bhavato yogj janmamty puna puna //75// prpnasamyogc candrasryaikat bhavet / saptadhtumaya deham agnin pradahed buddh //76// vydhayas tasya nayanti chedaghtdik vyath / tath `sau paramkarpo dehy avatihate //77// ki punar bahunoktena maraa nsti tasya vai / deho `vadyate loke dagdhakarpaavat svayam //78// (YB 7578, in slightly different wordings included in YU 1.55 58). 44 Hindi and Bengali material does not seem to contradict the results of the Sanskrit texts. 12
42

transformation of the body, the ability of the yogin to create any kind of body, the process of divinization of the body etc. all of these are easily to be found in the texts of Kashmir aivism.45 There are, however, several difficulties with this explanation. Firstly, no author explicitly connects the concept of body in the NthaSiddha tradition with the teachings of Kashmir aivism.46 More importantly, the divinization of the body is in fact a prerequisite for an individual tantric ritual, since according to tantric ideas only a god can worship a god. The divine body is therefore temporarily formed for the purpose of the daily ritual by the technique of imposing mantras of the deities on the practitioners body.47 And this is an entirely different situation from the concept of the divine body as described by the scholars. The last possible explanation of the discrepancy between my results and the previous research may sound rather bold: I am right while the others are mistaken. Moreover, I believe that a source of erroneous opinions prevalent among scholars might quite easily be identified. In 1937, three volumes of The Cultural Heritage of India were published in Calcutta (Avinashananda 1937). The best Indian academics at that time contributed to this prestigious work. One of them was a Tamil scholar V. V. Ramana Sastri who wrote a short study called The doctrinal culture and tradition of the Siddhas.48 This paper was one of the first studies of the teaching of the Siddhas in English and, despite its brevity, it contains a mass of important information.49 The difficulty with this study is that it does not properly distinguish between different Siddha traditions. Initially on the first page Sastri makes a distinction between the teaching of the Rasevara and the Ntha-Siddhas on the one hand and the Mhevara-Siddhas on the other:
Can this ugly death be avoided, if not wiped out? Only the Siddha reassuringly answers the question in the affirmative, saying that death may either be put off ad libitum by a special course of restrengthening and revitalizing the body, so as to put it permanently en rapport with the world of sense, [note 1: The view of the Rasevara Siddha and the Ntha Siddha.] or be finally ended by dematerializing and spiritualizing the body, according to prescription, so that it disappears in time in a celestial form from the world of sense and finds its permanent abode in the transcendental glory of God [note 2: The view of Mhevara Siddha.] (Sastri 1956: 300).

All these concepts are discussed in Flood 1993: 37, 39, 232233, 240, 272281. The exposition of the Siddhasiddhntapaddhati by Akshaya Kumar Banerjea (1988) fits very well into the doctrine of Kashmir aivism, but nowhere does the author make any explicit connection or comparison. Nevertheless, dozens of such allusions are found in Mallik 1950. It is true that from the monistic point of view the physical body is identical with the pure consciousness of iva (see e.g. Flood 1992: 4850) and thus, it may be regarded as divine. Unfortunately, the historical context of different Siddha traditions and their relation to the tantric and kaula milieu has not yet been researched thoroughly enough and thus not much more can be said at this point in time. 47 For the process of divinization of the body in Tantrism, see esp. Flood 2006: 7476, 113116 and passim, in aivasiddhnta, see Davis 1992: 113115, and for a specifically Kashmiri aiva description, see Sanderson 1986: 174176 (based on the Tantrloka) and Flood 1993: 275281. 48 Avinashananda 1937, vol. 2, pp. 303319. Our quotations are from the second, enlarged edition (Sastri 1956). 49 We should recall that the first edition of Dasguptas study Obscure Religious Cults was published in 1946. Dasgupta quotes Sastris article at the very outset of his chapter on the Ntha-Siddhas (see p. 192, n. 1 and p. 193, n. 2). Likewise, Mallik 1950 cites Sastris study many times. The main source of information on Siddhas available in English before Sastris article was published were entries in Hastings Encyclopdia of Religion and Ethics: Gorakhnth by G. A. Grierson (vol. 6, 1913, pp. 328330) and Yogs by L. P. Tessitori (vol. 12, 1921, pp. 833835).
46

45

13

Yet the rest of his exposition of the doctrine (pp. 301304) seems to be based entirely on the ideas of the Mhevara-Siddhas. It is precisely on these pages where we encounter many ideas prevalent among the later authors: different types of bodies and particularly the theory of the transformation of the gross body into the spiritual, non-material body. Sastri speaks here of the Siddhas in general, and it is easy to imagine how these theories could have also been ascribed to the NthaSiddhas. This is the first confusion. The second confusion is that the so-called Mhevara-Siddhas in Sastris article are in reality the Tamil Siddhas.50 From the modern literature on this tradition it is obvious that the Tamil Siddhas indeed have an elaborated concept of different bodies and their gradual transformation and dematerialization.51 The full process of the transformation of the body, as described in Tamil Siddha texts, can be summarised as follows:
When a body is hardened by yogic techniques we get what is called the yoga dha. ... When the kualin is aroused and passes through the six dhras, it is the process of the spiritualization of the body of the sdhaka. It is the process of the acquirement of yogic powers, siddhis, leading to a siddha dha, perfect body. It is a perfect body because the body can do and be anything at the will of the sdhaka. The siddha dha can have free movement in the universe and it does not have to adhere to the spatio-temporal laws of it. The attainment of siddhis or the siddha dha is no end in itself; it is but a means to another level of existence. After the attainment of the siddhi, the siddha dha is turned into a mantra dha called praava tanu. This praava tau is free from all gross matter and all impurities. It is a body consisting of the sacred formula O. This body is refined, transphysical, incorrutible, transfigured body of glory and power. The praava tau is transfigured into an eternal spiritual body called jna dha or the divya tau. When a Siddha attains this spiritual body he becomes a para-mukta; he attains ivahood (Ganapathy 1993: 124125).

From this description, it becomes apparent that what the above-mentioned authors say about the doctrine of the Ntha-Siddhas in fact refers for the most part to the Tamil Siddhas.52

This confusion has also been observed by White (1996: 401 note 117). One of the modern authors appears to continue to use this designation of Tamil Siddhas as Mhevaras (Ganapathy 1993: 2122, 1997: 235). The Tamil Siddhas are simply called cittar in Tamil, and the classification proposed by Kamil Zvelebil (1993: 1619) does not justify the use of the name Mhevaras for them. In fact, there is a very limited number of sources on the Mhevara-Siddhas (they are discussed in White 1996: 101103). According to my opinion, we do not have enough historical evidence so far to establish the Mhevaras as a separate and distinct Siddha tradition. 51 This concept is briefly explained in Zvelebil 1996: 2028, Ganapathy 1997: 241244, and in more detail in the chapter The Siddha Conception of the Human Body in Ganapathy 1993: 115140 (with numerous references to Tamil Siddha texts). 52 This is not to say that the scholars are not aware of different Siddha traditions. They are, but the problem is that in their expositions they often do not distinguish between them properly. Of course, it is not always easy to do so, since their teachings overlap in many important points and they were not monolithic groups, but to say that [t]he doctrinal differences among the various groups of Siddhas are minor and a genuine Siddha would not mind acquiring intiation (sic) in several of these groups (Ganapathy 1993: 21) is rather an extreme position. While it is true that, for example, the Ntha and Rasa-Siddhas have much in common, they still used different techniques, they had different texts and there were distinguishable traditions. It is therefore unfortunate that in Whites impressive study (1996) it is not always clear whether the author is referring to the Ntha-Siddhas, or the Rasa-Siddhas, or both. Another source of confusion may be the fact that the scholars discussed in the first part of this paper had no direct access to the texts in Tamil, and thus their knowledge about the Tamil Siddhas was highly, if not exclusively, dependent on Sastris article. 14

50

5 Conclusion To briefly summarise the findings: (1) the Sanskrit Ntha-Siddha texts do not confirm the theory of the transformation of the physical, perfected body into the spiritual, divine body; (2) these texts do not contain any coherent concept of different bodies or any explicit description of their transformation; (3) the prevalent ideas in the literature about the concept of body in the Ntha-Siddha tradition are inaccurate; and (4) these false theories are likely to have been caused mainly by a double confusion on the part of Ramana Sastri. I consider these results to be preliminary, since there is still much work to be done in order to gain a better understanding of the concept of body in the NthaSiddha tradition: (1) more texts, and not only in Sanskrit, must be taken into account; (2) the literary heritage of the Ntha-Siddhas is in no case homogeneous: an attempt must be made to determine different doctrinal (and probably also regional) streams; (3) historical and doctrinal relations between different Siddha traditions, including the Buddhist Mahsiddhas, should be studied.53 Then, I hope, it will be possible to show that the final goal of the Ntha-Siddhas (or at least most of them) was the attainment of a physical and gross body which was ageless (thanks in particular to the technique of khecarmudr), endowed with various perfections (siddhis), and not bound by mundane laws of nature (thanks to the process of bhtajaya). (2007)

I believe that the brilliant study by Ronald Davidson (2004) opens new horizons for understanding the early history of the Siddha milieu in India. Kurtis Schaeffer (2002) discusses one specific example of a Sanskrit Ntha text (Amtasiddhi), transmitted several times to Tibet, translated into Tibetan, and adapted for the Buddhist teaching. 15

53

Primary Sources AP Amaraughaprabodha. In Mallik 1954, pp. 4855.

A Amaraugha Shsan of Graksha-Ntha. Ed. with notes by Mukund Rm Shstr. Bombay: Nirnaya-Sagar Press, 1918. Kashmir Series of Texts and Studies, No. 20. AY Amanaskayoga: praeta mahyog Gorakantha. Rmll rvstav (samp.). Gorakhpur: Gorakhnth mandir, 2037 VS. Bhaktirastasindhu. See Haberman 2003. rcaitanyacaritta: Kads biracita. Sukumr Sen, Trpada Mukhopdhy (samp.). Kalkt: nanda pblirs, 1402 BS. DhBU Dhynabindpaniad. In The Yoga Upaniad-s, pp. 186213. GhS Gheraa Sahit. Ed. by Swami Digambarji and M. L. Gharote. 2nd ed. Lonavla: Kaivalyadhama S.M.Y.M. Samiti, 1997. G Gorakaataka: praeta ivagoraka mahyog Gorakhnth. Rmll rvstav (samp.). Gorakhpur: Gorakhnth mandir, 2038 VS. GP Gorakapaddhati: praet ivagoraka mahyog Gorakhnth. Rmll rvstav (samp.). Gorakhpur: Gorakhnth mandir, 2041 VS. GS Goraka-sahit. Camanll Gautam (samp.). Barel: Saskti sasthn, 1992. GSBhP Gorakasahit: Dvityo bhga [Bhtiprakaraa]. Janrdana Peya (sap.). Vras: Samprnanda-saskta-vivavidylaya, 1977. GSS Gorakasiddhntasagraha. Janrdanastr Peya (samp.). Parivardhita saodhita ca saskaraam. Vras: Vraseya-sasktavivavidylaya, 1973. GVS Gorakavacanasagraha. In Banerjea 1988, pp. 333344 (Appendix I). HRA Haharatnval: Of Srinivasabhatta Mahayogindra. Ed. by M. Venkata Reddy. Secunderabad: Vemana Yoga Research Institute, 1982. HP Hahapradpik: Svtmrma-kta. Saskaraakart Svm Digambaraj, Ptmbara Jh. Lonvl: Kaivalyadhma rmanmdhava yogamandira samiti, 1980. HP10 Hahapradpik (with 10 chapters) of Svtmrma with Yogaprakik: A Commentary by Blaka. Ed. by M. L. Gharote and Parimal Devnath. 2nd ed. Lonavla: The Lonavla Yoga Institute, 2006. HTK Hahatatvakaumud: A Treatise on Hahayoga by Sundaradeva. M. L. Gharote (ed.in-chief), Parimal Devnath and Vijay Kant Jha (eds.). Lonavla: The Lonavla Yoga Institute, 2007. KhV Khecarvidy. In Mallinson 2007, pp. 67113. MS Matsyendra Sahit: Ascribed to Matsyendrantha. Part I. Ed. by Debabrata Sensharma. Calcutta: The Asiatic Society, 1994. S ivasahit: ek locantmak saskara. Svm Mahenandaj (samp.). Lonvl: Kaivalyadhma rmanmdhava yoga mandira samiti, 1999. YD ivayogadpik: mantra-laya-haha-rjkhyacaturvidhayogn vivaraam sadivabrahmendrapacaratna ca: sadivayogvaraviracit. Dvityvtti. [Pue: nandrama], 1978. nandramasasktagranthvali, granthka 139.
16

SLU Saubhgyalakmyupaniad. In The kta Upaniad-s: With the Commentary of r Upaniad Brahma-Yogin. Ed. by A. Mahadeva Sastri. Repr. of the 2nd ed. Madras: The Adyar Library and Research Centre, 1986, pp. 105120. SSP Siddhasiddhntapaddhati. In Mallik 1954, pp. 144. SSS Siddhasiddhntasagraha: Balabhadraviracita. Surendra Kumr arm. Dill: star buk likars, 1986. YB Yogabja: praeta ivagoraka mahyog Gorakhnth. Rmll rvstav (samp.). Gorakhpur: Gorakhnth mandir, 2039 VS. YCU Yogacmayupaniad. In The Yoga Upaniad-s, pp. 337362. YK Yoga-karik [by] Nath Aghornanda: An Ancient Treatise on Yoga. Ed. by Narendra Nath Sharma. Delhi: Eastern Book Linkers, 1981. YM Yogamtaa. In Mallik 1954, pp. 5671. The Yoga Upaniad-s: With the Commentary of r Upaniad-Brahmayogin. Ed. by A. Mahadeva Sastri. Reprint. Madras: The Adyar Library and Research Centre, 1983. YS The Yogastras of Patajali: With the Scholium of Vysa and the Commentary of Vchaspatimira. Ed. by Rajaram Shastri Bodas. Rev. and enl. by the addition of the comm. of Ngoj Bhaa by Vasudev Shastri Abhyankar. Bombay: The Government Central Press, 1917. YSGS Yogasra: Goraka-sahit: Yogipravara Gorakantha viracitam. Prasanna Kumr Kaviratna (sak.). Kalikat: Dkya pustaklaya, 1847. Y U Yogaikhopaniad. In The Yoga Upaniad-s, pp. 390463. VM Vivekamrta of Vivarpadeva. Ed. by K. Smbaiva str. Trivandrum: Superintendent, Government Press, 1935. Trivandrum Sanskrit Series, No. 119.

Secondary Sources Avinashananda, Swami (ed.). 1937. The Cultural Heritage of India: Sri Ramakrishna Centenary Memorial. 3 vols. Belur Math, Calcutta: Sri Ramakrishna Centenary Committee. Bakker, Hans T. 1990. An Indian Image of Man: An Inquiry into a Change of Perspective in the Hindu World-view. In Hans G. Kippenberg, Yme B. Kuiper and Andy F. Sanders (eds.). Concepts of Person in Religion and Thought. Berlin and New York: Mouton de Gruyter, pp. 279307. Banerjea, Akshaya Kumar. 1988 [1962]. Philosophy of Gorakhnath: With GorakshaVacana-Sangraha. 2nd ed. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass. Bouy, Christian. 1994. Les Ntha-yogin et les Upaniads: tude dhistoire de la littrature hindoue. Paris: Collge de France, Institut de civilisation indienne; diff. de Boccard. Bowker, John (ed.). 1997. The Oxford Dictionary of World Religions. Oxford and New York: Oxford University Press.

17

Briggs, George Weston. 1989 [1938]. Gorakhnth and the Knphaa Yogs. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass. Brockington, J. L. 1992 [1981]. The Sacred Thread: A Short History of Hinduism. Delhi: Oxford University Press. Brooks, Charles R. 1990. Hare Krishna, Radhe Shyam: The Cross-Cultural Dynamics of Mystical Emotions in Brindaban. In Owen M. Lynch (ed.). Divine Passions: The Social Construction of Emotion in India. Berkeley: University of California Press, pp. 262285. Das Gupta, Shashibhusan. 1969 [1946]. Obscure Religious Cults. 3rd ed. Calcutta: Firma KLM. Davidson, Ronald M. 2004 [2002]. Indian Esoteric Buddhism: A Social History of the Tantric Movement. 2nd rev. ed. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass. Davis, Richard H. 1992. Becoming a iva, and Acting as One, in aiva Worship. In Teun Goudriaan (ed.). Ritual and Speculation in Early Tantrism: Studies in Honor of Andr Padoux. Albany: SUNY Press, pp. 107119. Doniger, Wendy (ed.). 1999. Merriam-Websters Encyclopedia of World Religions. Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster. Dvived, Hazrprasd. 1996 [1966]. Nth-samprady. Ilhbd: Lokbhrat prakan. Eliade, Mircea. 1977a. Forgerons et Alchimistes. Paris: Flammarion. Eliade, Mircea. 1977b [1954]. Le Yoga: Immortalit et Libert. Nouvelle d. rev. et corr. Paris: Payot. Feuerstein, Georg. 1998. The Yoga Tradition: Its History, Literature, Philosophy and Practice. Prescott: Hohm Press. Flood, Gavin. 1992. Techniques of Body and Desire in Kashmir aivism. Religion 22.1: 4762. Flood, Gavin D. 1993. Body and Cosmology in Kashmir aivism. San Francisco: Mellen Research University Press. Flood, Gavin. 2000. The Purification of the Body. In David Gordon White (ed.). Tantra in Practice. Princeton and Oxford: Princeton University Press, pp. 509520. Flood, Gavin. 2002. The Purification of the Body in Tantric Ritual Representation. Indo-Iranian Journal 45: 2543 Flood, Gavin. 2006. The Tantric Body: The Secret Tradition of Hindu Religion. London: I. B. Tauris. Ganapathy, T. N. 1993. The Philosophy of the Tamil Siddhas. New Delhi: Indian Council of Philosophical Research. Ganapathy, T. N. 1997. The Way of the Siddhas. In K. R. Sundarajan and Bithika Mukerji (eds.). Hindu Spirituality: Postclassical and Modern. London: SCM Press, pp. 232252. Gonda, Jan. 1963. Die Religionen Indiens. Bd. 2: Der jngere Hinduismus. Stuttgart: Kohlhammer. Haberman, David L. 1985. Entering the Cosmic Drama: Ll-smarana Meditation and the Perfected Body. South Asia Research 5.1: 4957.
18

Haberman, David L. 1988. Acting as a Way of Salvation: A Study of Rgnug Bhakti Sdhana. New York and Oxford: Oxford University Press. Haberman, David L. (transl.). 2003. The Bhaktirasmtasindhu of Rpa Gosvmin. New Delhi: Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts; Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass. Hausner, Sondra L. 2006. The Erotic Aesthetics of Ecstatic Ascetics. In Rob Linrothe (ed.). Holy Madness: Portraits of Tantric Siddhas. New York: Rubin Museum of Art, pp. 164177. Heilijgers-Seelen, Dory. 1994. The System of Five Cakras in Kubjikmatatantra 1416. Groningen: Egbert Forsten. Jha, Sakti Nath. 1995. Cri-Candra Bhed: Use of the Four Moons. In Rajat Kanta Ray (ed.). Mind, Body and Society: Life and Mentality in Colonial Bengal. Calcutta: Oxford University Press, pp. 65108. Junej, Vedprak. 2042 VS. Nthsamprady aur shitya. Gorakhpur: Gorakhnth mandir. Kabirj, Gopnth. 1995 [1975]. Tntrik sdhan o siddhnta. Dvita khaa. Bardhamn: Bardhamn bivabidyla. Kavirj, Gopnth. 1984a. Akha mahyog k path aur mtyu-vijn. Pan: Bihr rrabh pariad. Kaviraj, Gopinath. 1984b [1966]. Stages in Yoga. In Aspects of Indian Thought. 2nd ed. Burdwan: The University of Burdwan, pp. 113125. Kaviraj, Gopinath. 1987 [1927]. Some Aspects of the History and Doctrines of the Nthas. In Gaurinath Sastri (ed.). Notes on Religion and Philosophy by Gopinath Kaviraj. Varanasi: Sampurnanand Sanskrit University, pp. 5679. Kaviraj, Gopinath. 1990 [1962]. Philosophy of the Nathas. In Selected Writings of M. M. Gopinath Kaviraj. Varanasi: M. M. Gopinath Kaviraj Centenary Celebrations Committee, pp. 159164. [Originally published as a Prefatory note to Banerjea 1988.] Kavirj, Gopnth. 1994 [1963]. Tntrik vmay m kta di. Ttyvtti. Pan: Bihr rrabh pariad. Linrothe, Rob. 2006. Siddhas and railam, Where All Wise People Go. In Rob Linrothe (ed.). Holy Madness: Portraits of Tantric Siddhas. New York: Rubin Museum of Art, pp. 124143. Mallik, Kaly. 1950. Nthsamprader itihs, daran o sdhanpral. Kalikt: Kalikt bivabidyla. Mallik, Kalyani. 1954. Siddha-siddhnta-paddhati and Other Works of the Ntha Yogs. Poona: Poona Oriental Book House. Mallinson, James. 2007. The Khecarvidy of dintha: A critical edition and annotated translation of an early text of hahayoga. London and New York: Routledge. McDaniel, June. 1989. The Madness of the Saints: Ecstatic Religion in Bengal. Chicago and London: The University of Chicago Press. Muller-Ortega, Paul Eduardo. 1989. The Triadic Heart of iva: Kaula Tantricism of Abhinavagupta in the Non-Dual Shaivism of Kashmir. Albany: SUNY Press.

19

Natha. 2007. In Encyclopdia Britannica. Retrieved from http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/404167/Natha. Needham, Joseph. 1983. Science and Civilisation in China. Vol. 5: Chemistry and Chemical Technology. Pt. V: Spagyrical Discovery and Invention: Physiological Alchemy. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Openshaw, Jeanne. 2002. Seeking Buls of Bengal. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Sanderson, Alexis. 1986. Maala and gamic Identity in the Trika of Kashmir. In Andr Padoux (d.). Mantras et diagrammes rituels dans lHindouisme. Paris: Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, pp. 169214. Sastri, V. V. Ramana. 1956. The Doctrinal Culture and Tradition of the Siddhas. In Haridas Bhattacharyya (ed.). The Cultural Heritage of India. Vol. 4: The Religions. Calcutta: The Ramakrishna Mission Institute of Culture, pp. 300308. Schaeffer, Kurtis R. 2002. The Attainment of Immortality: From Nthas in India to Buddhists in Tibet. Journal of Indian Philosophy 30.6: 515533. Singh, Mohan. 1937. Gorakhnath and Mediaeval Hindu Mysticism. Lahore: M. Singh. Urban, Hugh. 1993. Secret Bodies: Re-imagining the Body in the Vaisnava-Sahajiya Tradition of Bengal. Journal of South Asian Literature 28.12: 4562. Urban, Hugh B. 2001. The Economics of Ecstasy: Tantra, Secrecy, and Power in Colonial Bengal. Oxford and New York: Oxford University Press. Vasudeva, Somadeva. 2004. The Yoga of the Mlinvijayottaratantra: Chapters 14, 7, 11 17. Pondichry: Institut Franais de Pondichry. White, David Gordon. 1996. The Alchemical Body: Siddha Traditions in Medieval India. Chicago and London: The University of Chicago Press. White, David Gordon. 2003. Ashes to Nectar: Death and Regeneration among the Rasa Siddhas and Nth Siddhas. In Liz Wilson (ed.). The Living and the Dead: Social Dimensions of Death in South Asian Religions. Albany: SUNY Press, pp. 1327. Zvelebil, Kamil V. 1993 [1973]. The Poets of the Powers: Magic, Freedom, and Renewal. Lower Lake: Integral Publishing. Zvelebil, Kamil V. 1996. The Siddha Quest for Immortality. Oxford: Mandrake.

20