Dear Jacob,

I forgot to answer your Chakra vs Yantra question.

Sri Chakra is the same as Sri Yantra.

All such chakras are yantras. But not all yantras are chakras. Yantra is the generic term and the most frequently used term. Yantra is part of the three component system mantra-yantra-tantra.

Aagamas are the books that deal with the procedures of installations at temples. There are quite a few western Indologists who studied these books. I attended a paper presentation on the topic at SALC department, University of Chicago.

By the way, the script used in the yantra under question has glyph features of an older style of Telugu writing, not 100 years as assumed by the museum people.

On Wed, Oct 12, 2016 at 5:52 AM, patrick mccartney <psdmccartney@gmail.com> wrote:
Speaking of chakras and letters, on pp 705-707 of Grierson's article on the Sharada script https://archive.org/details/244194891OnTheSharadaAlphabetJournalOfTheRoyalAsiaticSociety171916SirGeorgeGriersonKCIEMRAS
is an explanation of the metaphysics of the alphabet. Unfortunately, there is only a discussion of the vowels and not the consonants, etc. It seems that the file on archive is not complete. Even though the title page says the last page is 708, it does seem to have an abrupt ending. 


But 

On p 705 the following book is mentioned http://www.worldcat.org/title/shiva-sutra-vimarsini-of-ksemaraja/oclc/21777974 - I'm guessing this is the possible source for Grierson's discussion on the alphabet. Unfortunately, the closest copy to me is about 5000 miles away. Archive.org has two other books by the author, Iyengar,  but not this one. https://archive.org/search.php?query=creator%3A%22Srinivasa+Iyengar%2C+P.+T.%2C+1863-1931%22 

 Might you have a .pdf copy of this book? 

The Shiva-sutra-vimarsinī of Ksemaraja (1912) by Iyengar



 I'd appreciate it if anyone might be able to help me find similar discussions/information on the rest of the alphabet? If they are mentioned in Ksemaraja's work, does anyone know exactly where? I had a quick look in the śaktopāya section. 


All the best,

Patrick McCartney, PhD
Fellow
School of Culture, History & Language
College of the Asia-Pacific
The Australian National University
Canberra, Australia, 0200


Skype - psdmccartney
Phone + Whatsapp:  +61 414 954 748
Twitter - @psdmccartney




On Wed, Oct 12, 2016 at 7:26 AM, <jacob@fabularasa.dk> wrote:
Dear Nagaraj,

Many thanks for your reading of the yantra, and for the confirmation that it is indeed a yantra (though I would still be curious to know if cakra is sometimes used with the same meaning). I am sure the museum will be most appreciate of the information.

Also thanks to Arlo Griffiths for the references. A. A. Ślączka's original doctoral thesis can be downloaded from Leiden University here:

https://openaccess.leidenuniv.nl/bitstream/handle/1887/4581/total%20document.pdf?sequence=17

Best wishes,
Jacob


Nagaraj Paturi skrev den 2016-10-11 22:04:
Dear Jacob,

It is a Yantra. It has the word yantra inscribed on it.

It has :

యంత్రరాజాయ విద్మహి(sic)
మహాయంత్రాయ ధీమహి శం నో
యంత్రః ప్రచోదయాత్

(yaṁtrarājāya vidmahi mahāyaṁtrāya dhīmahi śaṁ nō
yaṁtraḥ pracōdayāt )

అస్మిన్  తాంబ్రయంత్రసుఖం
చిరం కర్తుం .... స్వాహా

(asmin  tāṁbrayaṁtrasukhaṁ ciraṁ kartuṁ .... svāhā )

హీం జ్వలాయ విద్మహి (sic)  మహా
శూలినే ధీమహి

(hīṁ jvalāya vidmahi (sic)  mahā śūlinē dhīmahi )

There is a mention of a deity called pratikriyāśūlin  in the
yantra.

This may indicate that the yantra is meant to counter the action of
another supernatural power.

If this guess is correct, it is usually not the kind used in the
pratśṭhā in a temple.

The interpretation  " it is a Telugu "Saccra" (cakra) used to ward off
disease and spirits of possession" should be correct.

Using yantras in the installation (pratśṭhā ) in a temple is a
usual practice. But this one does not seem to be of that kind.

On Tue, Oct 11, 2016 at 8:40 PM, <jacob@fabularasa.dk> wrote:

Dear list,

Bornholms Museum, located on the eponymous rock island in the Baltic
Sea, asked me for clarification about the attached object. According
to the registration notes, which probably date back about a hundred
years, it is a Telugu "Saccra" (cakra) used to ward off disease and
spirits of possession. It is also stated that cakras are generally
installed below temple deities to empower the deity and attract
people to the temple.

If anybody knows the specific name of the cakra and any other
details of its application, I would be happy to convey the
information to the museum. I would also be interested to know what
the distinction between a cakra and a yantra is in this context, and
whether the installation of cakras/yantras to empower deities,
attract people, or otherwise is indeed a general practice in Indian
temples.

Kind regards,
Jacob

Jacob Schmidt-Madsen
PhD Fellow (Indology)
Department of Cross-Cultural and Regional Studies
University of Copenhagen
Denmark
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--

Nagaraj Paturi

Hyderabad, Telangana, INDIA.

Former Senior Professor of Cultural Studies

FLAME School of Communication and FLAME School of  Liberal Education,

(Pune, Maharashtra, INDIA )

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--
Nagaraj Paturi
 
Hyderabad, Telangana, INDIA.
 
Former Senior Professor of Cultural Studies
 
FLAME School of Communication and FLAME School of  Liberal Education,
 
(Pune, Maharashtra, INDIA )