Tibetan Origin of Tantrism and Siva

[Samar Abbas]

On Mon, 11 Jan 1999, N. Ganesan wrote:
>   During what centuries, do we have "Siva from Tibet?
>   Want to read on Tibetan "Siva as well. References please.

  This occurred in the thread `Re. FW: Deepa Mehta's Fire'. Since the
topic has departed sufficiently from its original theme, I start a new
thread.

  Tantrism is of Tibetic origin as evident from the following. I have
given references below. All the religions of Tantrism, etc. are
derivatives of Bon, the ancient Tibetic religion.

1. Tantrism is referred to as `The Chinese Rites' in the Tantric texts.

2. The Fifth Veda fell to Tibet (story reproduced below), and thus the
   people of that country are adepts at the "Rites of the 5th Veda".
   (cf. Story given below).

3.. Siva's home is in the Himalayas, and he is white just as Tibetans
   (North Mongoloids). Mt. Meru is obviously in the Himalayas, probably
   near Lake Mansarovar.

4. Tantrism is still practiced in Tibet, where it is the national
   religion. It was more of an underground witchcraft movement in India.
   Orthodox Vaishnavism was not very happy with such beliefs, and in
   Bengal the Tibetan Buddhists (ie. Tantrics) were crushed by the Senas.
   These persons welcomed the Islamic invasion, since it led to the
   destruction of Vaishnavite shrines. The Sufis further developed the
   mustic Tibetic Tantrism, mixing it with Arabian alchmey and ancient
   Egyprian cults (absorbed into Arab Sufism), cf. the Madari Sufists etc.

    There are thus two fountainheads of mysticism in Asia, one is Tibet,
   and the other Arabia (cf. the Syrian Harran, the ancient Sabean
   shrine of the Ka'aba, a representative of Saturn, the Sabean Priapus,
   later absorbed into Islam).

5. `Parvati' the name of Shiva's wife, means `of the mountain', ie. she
   came from the Himalayas.

6. The source of Tantrism is given by the Tantric texts themselves as
   being Mahacina or Cina, ie. Tibet and the surrounding regions. As per a
   well-known legend, Vasishta travelled to Tibet to learn about the lost
   `Fifth Veda'. I have reproduced this story below {
   Rudrayamalatantra.XVII }
   { Brahmayamalatantra I-III } { Mahacinatantra }
   { Taratantram (Gaudagranthamala),Ch.141 }.

7. Taoism in China has the conept of yin-yang, similar to the Shiva
  -Shakti cult and the Adi-buddha and Adi-prajna in later Buddhism.
  { `Obscure Religious Cults, S.Das Gupta, Firma KLM, 1969 3rd
  ed. Calctutta, p.341 }

8. Goddess Uma, another manifestation of Shakti, is referred to as
   Haimavati or daughter of Himavat { Kena Upanishad.III.25 } { Chandra,
   Indo-Aryan Races', p.123 }.

9. The Siddha cult (a Hindustani alchmist cult) was, as per its own
tradition, introduced by one Taoist alchamist from China:

   There is a popular tradition that the SIddhas were a "a band of
death-defying theriacal and therapeutic alchemists indebted in all
respects to Bhoga, a pre-Christian Taoist immigrant from China, who, in
his methods of keying up the body of impure matter through `reverberation'
and `projection' to the pitch of pracitcally cancelling demise, merely
sought to promulgate the lesser athanasic precepts of Lao-tse, since the
vital objective of the Tao-Teh-King is the transfiguration of hte
immortalised ethereal body into a permanent garment of celestial virtue,
in order to fit it to associate to eternity with the Tao"
 - { Das Gupta ibid, p. 193 } and
 - { `The Doctrinal Culture and Tradition of the Siddhas', Dr.
   V.V.Raman Sastri, in Cultural Heritage of India, Vol.II 303-319;
   Ramakrishna Institute Mission of Culture }

  Tibetic alchmey mixed with Arabic-Islamic alchemy during the
golden age of Indian alchemy, 1000 AD- 1800 AD ; the Hindustani
Califate of Delhi. Free from Orthodox Vaishnavite oppression, a Hindustani
alchemy & Tantra developed and expanded rapidly, representing a mixture of
Islamic Sufic and Tibetic Tantric traditions.

10. One of the Tantras is called `Mahacinatantra', and the doctrines
propounded are Taoist and Tibetic Bon.

Here is the well-known tale of Vasistha going to Tibet to learn the
Tantric rites:

 Vasishta travelled to the sea-shore (as per the Rudrayamala Tantra, this
would indicate Bengal) or the Kamakhya hills, Assam (as per the
Brahmayamala Tantra) and observed strict Yoga worship for the Devi
Buddhesvari. He did for this for a long time without any results and so
cursed the Devi. The Devi appeared and said, " he had adopted an altoghter
wrong path; her worship was unknown in the Vedas;  it was known only in
the country of Mahacina;  and that Vasishta would gain his object if he
received instruction from Vishnu now residing there as Buddha. There he
was surprised to find the Buddha drinking wine enjoying several women. His
doubts were soon dispelled by Buddha, who initiated him.  {
Rudrayamalatantra.XVII } { Brahmayamalatantra I-III } { Mahacinatantra } {
Taratantram (Gaudagranthamala),Ch.141 }.

As per another legend, Brahma memorized all the 5 Vedas. He taught the 5th
Veda to the Brahmans, but kept the 5th Veda (ie. the Tantras) safe for a
time when mankind was ready. Due to his arrogance, Shiva cut off his head,
and the 5th Veda then fell to TIbet, where its inhabitants took up the
study with great zeal. Thus, as per the Tantras themselves, the original
home of Tantrism is associated with Tibet.

Here is a chart showing the Indo-Tibetic religions:

              Old Bon Tibetic Religion
            /          /       \     \
          /  Uttara Tantrism   Bon    Purbi (East Indic) Shaktism
     Lamaism    /     |                /        \       \
              /       |         Bengal     Assamese     Orissa
  Kashmir Shaivism    |        Tantrism     Tantrism     Tantrism
    Tantric Islam, Nath cult etc.   |             \
                           Vaishnava Sahajiya   Kamakhya
                             etc.                 Cult etc.

N.Ganesan wrote:
> The Tantras date to the centuries AD, and are very late.

That does not matter. They are renditions, copies of copies etc. of
ancient texts and practices. No Vedic text is found on paper earlier than
the 11the century, since paper was introduced by the Moslems, but that
does not mean that the Vedas were composed in the Islamic era. Similarly,
these Tantras were composed in Tibet in the early centuries BC, and Tibet
is the fountainhead of Tantrism, and in fact all mystic knowledge in the
East. They were written down only much later.

N.Ganesan wrote:
>   Vajrabodhi in Seventh century AD set sail from Kanchi
>   to Java and China to teach Tantrayana. He was
>   from Malaya/Potalaka parvata.

Dravidian `Tantrism' is of African Origin. The African origin of the
Old Dravidian `Black' Shiva; his affinities to the Bantu Shiva, etc. has
already been shown on this list, and there is no need to repeat.
Indeed, one may find Dravidian `voodoo' among the untouched Dravidians
living in remote areas. One should not use the word `Tantrism' for this
set of beliefs, since Tantra means 5Th Veda from Tibet. `Dravidian
religion' or Dravidian Shavism are better terms. It is independant of
Tibetic Tantrism. The practices may have been similar. Just because the
Greeks had the Dionysus and Priapus cults does not mean that they were
`Tantrics', or `Shaivites', so the occurrence of Priapus-like cults among
the Dravidians and Bantu Africans does not imply they are Tantrics.

 It is important to distinguish the White Tibetic Shiva, the Black Old
Dravidian Shiva; and the Roman Hermes, Greek Priapus and Nordic Odin; they
have no relation. These are similar gods in different religions.

Samar