Sri Vidya – Tantric Spirituality
Sri Vidya is an ancient and influential school of Goddess-centered Shakta Tantrism, centering on the goddess’s three manifestations.
Sri Vidya Sadhna
By Sunanda Sharma
One of the highest forms of ‘sadhana’ is ‘Sri Vidya Sadhna’, also called the yantra, tantra, mantra sadhna. One needs to get initiated by a Guru to venture into this divine union with the universal energy; the abode of gods and goddesses and merging with the universe. It’s one of the most powerful sadhna to burn your ‘karmic debts’ and to rewrite the script of your life with the blessings of all the ascended masters, gods and goddesses.
It is the Guru who initiates you into Sri Vidya sadhna by conferring you with a ‘Deeksha mantra’ and aligning you on the path of the highest ascension of the soul. My journey into this ‘ divine realm of sadhna’ began when I had this higher calling to explore my soul’s ‘real mission’ on earth. I got myself enrolled for ‘Sri Vidya Shivir’ in Delhi. A little bit of skepticism was at the back of my mind but something just pushed me to join the shivir. To my surprise, it was a ‘life-altering’ experience. I was blessed to have received ‘deeksha mantra’ from no other than the father of Indian Healing ‘ Baba Avdhoot Shivanand ji’.
Srividya is basically an ancient and influential school of Goddess-centered Shakta Tantrism, centering on the goddess’s three manifestations:
1. The beneficent deity Lalita Tripurasundari
2. Her mantra;
3. and the yantra known as Sri Chakra.
Srividya creates a systematic, esoteric discipline combining elements of the yogas of knowledge, of devotion, and of ritual.
Sri Vidya is the knowledge of Sri, the Goddess, the knowledge that mattered or the real knowledge, that lead to liberation, or the path or teaching, that lead to the Supreme Truth. This intricate tradition guides the aspirant through the worship of several Gods and Goddesses to the central point which represents the Mother Goddess. The Sir Chakram or, in its elevated form the Maha Meru, is representative of this progression.
In the Sri Vidya tradition, the Sri Chakra is the yantra (diagrammatic symbol) for worship. When the Sri Chakra is elevated the Meru is formed. The Maha Meru is identical in structure to the Sri Chakra. If the Meru is viewed from the top or is compressed it takes the shape of the Sri Chakra. The structure of the Sri Chakra is complicated. The Sri Chakra is made up of a series of nine triangles around the central point or Bindu.
In the Sri Chakra, the journey is from the outer bhupura to the central Bindu, the path indicative of one’s own journey to the ultimate Godhead, step by step. This form of ritualistic worship is called the Navavarana Pooja, avarana meaning veil. Indeed the process resembles the removal of the veil of ignorance stage by stage until the devotee merges with the Bindu or the Supreme Mother. Each level or avarana is dedicated to a certain deity and offering worship, the aspirant is elevated to the next plane. Each level or Chakra has its own presiding deities and mudras.
The journey of the aspirant from the outer Bhupuram to the inner Bindu is identified with the awakening of primordial energy in man, the rising of the Kundalini in the Mooladhara and its journey to meet the Brahman in the Sahasradala Padma in esoteric union. The Sri Vidya worship of the Sri Chakra or the Maha Meru, the Navavarana Pooja in its highest form turns the body itself into the Sripuram, the abode of the goddess and the rituals, into the journey of self-realization or enlightenment. The upasakar transforms his body into the place of worship, burns it in the sacrificial fire and reclaims it by the grace of Shiva and Sakthi. The upasakar, in a sense, imagines himself as a female form, offering worship to the Divine Goddess. The path traced by the energy from the mooladhara to its point of union is identical to the progression through the pooja, from the outer charkas of the Sri Chakra to the inner triangle and then to the center point, the Bindhu, the Goddess Ambika with her consort Iswara.
Sri Vidya Sadhna will take you on a ‘mystical journey’ and other dimensions will unfold before you like a ‘blooming rosebud’. If you feel drawn to explore your ‘highest version’ do give it a thought; it’s an experience of a lifetime and beyond.
For more information on ‘sri vidya sadhna’ and Babaji, you can visit www.shivyog.com.
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About the Author
Sunanda Sharma is a professional Tarot Card Reader, Psychic, Author and Life Coach. She is a member of the Elite Psyche Team – Best American Psychics 2013, Member of Certified Psychic Society 2013, Winner of the Tarot Super Achievers Award 2012 India. She is a published author. She has written two books of Spiritual/Inspirational genre “Inspiration from the Spirit Volume I” and “Inspiration from the Spirit Volume II”. You can reach her at www.sunandatarot.com.
