The Nisvasa Tattva Samhita The Earliest Surviving Saiva Tantra (A Critical Edition and Annotated Translation of The Mulasutra, Uttarasutra and Nayasutra)

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Language: Sanskrit Text with English Translation Pages: 662 About the Book Transmitted to us in a well-preserved ninth-century Nepalese manuscript, the Nisvasatattvasamhita has come in recent years to be recognised as probably the oldest surviving complete scripture of the Mantramarga. Al- though its historical importance has been hinted at by a range of scholars across the twentieth century, this is the first time its text appears in print. This volume presents a critical edition and annotated translation of the three earliest layers of the text: the Mula- sutra, Uttarasutra and Nayasutra. The topics dealt with include cosmology, rituals of worship and initiation, and forms of yoga. A lengthy introduction sets these sutras in context, in particular by examining the evidence for dating them. There follow a summary of their contents, an account of the early manuscript and its three twentieth-century apographs, and a treatment of the various ways in which the language of the Nisvasa deviates from Paninian norms. Preface Some of the research of recent years that has thrown most light on the origins of Tantric Saivism has not been primarily about tantrism proper (the Mantramarga, or 'way of mantras'), but about the non-tantric Pasupata religions from which the Mantramarga sprung: the Atimarga. The most substantial contribution in this area is an article of SANDERSON that appeared in 2006 under the title 'The Lakulas: New Evidence of a System Intermediate Between Pancarthika Pasupatism and Agamic Saivism', For it is in this article that it is demonstrated that there is a remarkable doctrinal continuity, particularly in the cosmographic con Review: Superb translation - A somewhat specialised book but if you're interested in Sidddhantika teachings and history this is a fine translation.