TANTRALOKA THE LIGHT ON AND OF THE TANTRAS - VOLUME ONE: Volume One - Chapter One, With the Commentary called Viveka by Jayaratha, Translated with extensive explanatory notes

by Mark S.G. Dyczkowski

The Tantrāloka by Abhinavagupta (c. 975-1050) is undoubtably one of the world's great classics. Treating the whole range of early Śaiva Tantras as part of the Trika Śaivism Abhinavagupta systematically and extensively presents, he draws from all of them to enrich his marvelous and uniquely profound exposition. The result of decades of research, Dyczkowski provides along with his translation of the text and its commentary by Jayaratha, extensive explanatory notes drawn from a wide range of Sanskrit and other sources. These volumes are a must for anyone who is studying Tantra in general and, in particular, the Trika Śaivism of Kashmir.

Volume one is Chapter one and is an introduction to the whole Tantrāloka and is concerned with an exposition of the fundamental basis of all practice, namely, transformative insight with devout reverence of our true Śiva nature. It presents the basic categories of practice and so an overview of all the Tantrāloka as the essence of Trika scripture which encompasses all the schools of early Tantric Śaivism.

514 pages, Hardcover

Published March 3, 2023

About the author

Mark S. G. Dyczkowski was an English Indologist, musician, and scholar of Tantra and Kashmir Shaivism. He has published multiple translations and commentaries, most notably the 12-volume Manthanabhairava Tantra and an 11-volume Tantrāloka including the commentary by Jayaratha. Dyczkowski also played the sitar and collected over 1,500 compositions for sitar.

Reviews

[Filip Holm · Rating 5 out of 5]

A truly astonishing effort of scholarship by the recently passed Dyczkowski; both the translation itself and the (very) exstensive commentary.