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
_______________________________________________
INDOLOGY mailing list
INDOLOGY@list.indology.info
indology-owner@list.indology.info (messages to the list's managing
committee)
http://listinfo.indology.info (where you can change your list
options or unsubscribe)
--
Nagaraj Paturi
Hyderabad, Telangana, INDIA.
Former Senior Professor of Cultural Studies
FLAME School of Communication and FLAME School of Liberal Education,
(Pune, Maharashtra, INDIA )
_______________________________________________
INDOLOGY mailing list
INDOLOGY@list.indology.info
indology-owner@list.indology.info (messages to the list's managing committee)
http://listinfo.indology.info (where you can change your list options or unsubscribe)