The author's description.
Although possession in general and possession by yoginis in
particular is a subject that has often been treated in the
secondary literature, the testimony of the earliest saiva sources
of the yogini cult have never been analyzed in detail. This is due
to two main reasons: on the one hand, many of these sources
are still available only in manuscript form, on the other, studies
dealing with these manuscripts concentrated on other issues.
In this paper, therefore, I intend to present some of the earliest
tantric sources teaching the cult of yoginis, which, at the same
time, also deal with deity or yogini possession. I shall thus
attempt to show in what forms and contexts yogini and goddess
possession appears in the tantric sources and how possession
comes to be integrated into the cult of yoginis.
Abstract:
This paper examines the phenomenon of possession said to be caused by female spirits called yoginis, in early śaiva Tantras (mainly of the 7th-8th centuries CE). It shows that the earliest śākta Tantras, in particular the Siddhayogeśvarīmata, already describe this phenomenon in a śākta context. The paper also considers the testimony of the Brahmayāmala, another early śākta Tantra, which, however, speaks of possession by Bhairava and not by female spirits in most cases. It is suggested in the conclusion that possession as a ritual act was perhaps borrowed from the pre-tantrci sect of the Kāpālikas (skull-bearers). MsSVig
Although possession in general and possession by yoginis in
particular is a subject that has often been treated in the
secondary literature, the testimony of the earliest saiva sources
of the yogini cult have never been analyzed in detail. This is due
to two main reasons: on the one hand, many of these sources
are still available only in manusc
dealing with these manusc
In this paper, therefore, I intend to present some of the earliest
tantric sources teaching the cult of yoginis, which, at the same
time, also deal with deity or yogini possession. I shall thus
attempt to show in what forms and contexts yogini and goddess
possession appears in the tantric sources and how possession
comes to be integrated into the cult of yoginis.
Abstract:
This paper examines the phenomenon of possession said to be caused by female spirits called yoginis, in early śaiva Tantras (mainly of the 7th-8th centuries CE). It shows that the earliest śākta Tantras, in particular the Siddhayogeśvarīmata, already describe this phenomenon in a śākta context. The paper also considers the testimony of the Brahmayāmala, another early śākta Tantra, which, however, speaks of possession by Bhairava and not by female spirits in most cases. It is suggested in the conclusion that possession as a ritual act was perhaps borrowed from the pre-tantrci sect of the Kāpālikas (skull-bearers). MsSVig
