Tantra - The Serpentine Ascent - Part I

Occult Vibratory Chemistry existed in India by the name of Tantra.

Tantra is derived from two Sanskrit words - Thanoti ( to expand ) & Trayate ( to liberate). This Science has the power to expand and liberate !

Expansion means to grow beyond one's boundaries. Expansion upto Infinity. Thanothi means the expansion of Consciousness ad infinitum.Individual consciousness should expand to Universal Consciousness for mergence in the Supreme Self.

Trayate means to liberate, to liberate man from bondgage, from the Seven Deadly Sins which bind him to the sublunar world. The purging of mortal dross is a must for Self-Actualisation and the " inner enemies of man " Lust, greed, anger, jealousy, sloth, covetousness & attachment ) are the real blocks in the way of Self Actualisation

Liberation is not possible without expansion of Consciousness. When our individual Consciousness expands to Cosmic, we feel whole & are liberated from the thraldom of matter.

The Upanishadic Philosophy was based on the Five Concentric Sheaths known as the Five Koshas. The outermost concentric Sheath, the Anna Maya Kosha, is known as the Material Sheath. It envelopes the other four sheaths -
vital, mental, intellectual & bliss.

Tantra, on the other hand, speaks about the Six Chakras, dynamoes of Cosmic
Energy in the human body.

These Chakras are ( in ascending order)

1. Root Chakra ( Muladhara )
2. Anal Chakra ( Manipura )
3. Solar Plexus Chakra ( Swadhistana )
4. Heart Chakra ( Anahata )
5. Throat Chakra ( Vishuddhi )
6. Eyebrow Chakra ( Ajna )

The Five Great Elements ( Earth, air, water, fire & ether ) & Mind reside
in the Six Chakras.

Earth-Principle resides in the Root Chakra
Water-Principle resides in the Navel Chakra
Fire-Principle resides in the Solar Plexus Chakra
Air-Principle resides in the Heart Chakra
Ether-Principle resides in the Throat Chakra
Mind-Principle resides in the Eye Brow Chakra.

The Microscomic representative of the Macrocosmic Shakti ( Cosmic Power ), the Kundalini, sportest as the Six principles in the Six Chakras in Her Cosmic Play.

O Infinite Power ! Thou art the Mind-principle in the Eye brow Chakra
In the Throat Chakra , Thou sport as the Ether-principle
In the Heart Chakra, Thou sportest as Air- principle
In the Solar Plexus Chakra, Thou art Fire-principle
In the Navel Chakra , Thou exist as Water-principle
In the Root Chakra, Thou art the Earth _Principle, O Mighty Mother !
And in the Crown Chakra, Thou sportest blissfully with thy beloved Consort !

She lies coiled in human beings as the Coiled Serpent Power ( Kundalini). She rises during Mediation and Yogic processes.

Her rise can be felt by the meditator. When She rises, a subtle warmth will be felt in the body. Voice changes. Voice becomes musical, " propertied as the tuned spheres". The personality of the native becomes very attractive due to the influx of Jupiterian energy. Wisdom and learning grace the individual. When She rises furthur, torrential bliss will be felt. And when She reaches the Crown Chakra, it is Cosmic Consciousness for the native !

She sports as Universal Power in the Macrocosm; and in the microcosm as the coiled Serpent Power!

Infinite Power of the Absolute art Thou!
The Cause of the Universe as Maya
The entire Creation is Thy Play
Thy blessing is Bliss Absolute !

The essence of all sciences art Thou
All women Thy manifestations !
The visible Universe Thou art
And the dormant Serpentine Power !

One of the pioneers in Tantra Research was Sir John Woodroffe , who had written many scholarly treatises on the subject. His magnum opus is the "Serpent Power", which is a scientific treatise about the Kundalini. His
practice of Tantra endowed him with personal magnetism. He became the cynosure of all eyes. There was a special lustre on his face, he possessed the Golden Tongue of Good Report & there was a spiritual halo around him. He had developed his Auric Field ( the human electro-magnetic field ) due to Tantric techniques and bacame a dynamo of spiritual energy. His masterly book is a scientific diagnosis about Tantra.

The heart and vocal nervous centers are intimately related physiologically. Bhava Shuddhi or purity of Heart makes the voice innocent and musical. The true Initiate is he whose voice is true and who possesses the Golden Tongue of Good Report!

The Cosmic Shakti is the Force behind the Universe & the entire Universe is her play & display. Kundalini is Her microcosmic representation. She has been depicted as the Mother Goddess in Pagan philosophies.

Nature is visible Intelligence; Intelligence is invisible Nature. The Spiritual & the Natural are not different. That which is spiritual is natural in its ascent & cause. That which is natural is spiritual in its descent and being.

She is the female component of the Ultimate and all systems deal with the male and the female components of Reality. The male component is He ! Consciousness and Force, the Supreme Self and Nature, Matter and Spirit, Being and Becoming, the One and the Innumerable, the Formless and then a delirium of Forms - She and He, two in one, inseparable ! He, outside Time, outside Space, pure Being, pure Consciousness, the Great White Silence wherein everything is contained in a state of involution, contained, yet formless !

She flings forth from Him in an outburst of joy, again to find Him playing in Time, She and He, two in one , inextricable! Can Nature exist without her Lord ? Can He exist without Nature ?

This is the Purusha and Prakriti of Sankhya, the Brahman and Maya of Vedanta , the Sive and Shakti of Tantra !

Without Him, I exist not
Without Me, He is unmanifest ! - The Mother of Auroville

It is due to Her Grace that a man becomes a material success. It is She who gives the successful man the indomitable Will Power needed for success.

On the other hand, it is also Her Grace which giveth spiritual success. It is She who gives the devotee the necessary Self-knowledge, makes him do altruistic acts & leads him to Self-Actualisation. In other words, She has two aspects, material & spiritual and Her Grace is absolutely necessary for success in both the spheres. .

It is said that She, as the Prakriti ( Nature ) of Purusha ( Supreme Self), is the base of the Universe & when She becomes supremely pleased with the devotee, confers on him Self-Actualisation !

She is the Creatrix, She is the Mediatrix, She is the Dispensatrix and the Executrix of the absolute mechanism of Universal Justice.

Power is Divine and not to be condemned

It is this Power aspect of Consciousness which India has depicted as the Divine Mother. It is a mistake of the ethical and the religious mind to condemn Power as something unworthy because it is in its very nature corrupting and evil. Despite arguments to the contrary ( Power corrupts and absolute Power corrupts absolutely), Power, Shakti, Will is the mover of the worlds and basically is spiritual in origin and divine in character !

A Power to call Eternity into Time
And make the body's joy as vivid as the soul's !.

The highest philosophic concept is that of the Philosopher-King, he who possesses powers both eternal and temporal. They were known as Raja-Rishies in India. Lord Rama, Lord Krishna, King Janaka were all Raja-Rishies. Marcus Aurelius & Augustus Caesar in the West were also reputed Philosopher-Kings. They did not renounce power !

Tantra as related to Astrology

Tides are caused by the Moon. The human body is 65% water. ( Even the Archbishop of Canterbury is 65% water ). If Moon can effectuate tides, what effect will he have on the human body which is predominantly water? And what about the effects of other planets ?