Kaula (Hinduism)

This article is about a school of Hinduism. For other uses, see Kaula.

Kaula, also known as Kula, Kulamaarga ("the Kula path") and Kaulaachaara ("the Kaula tradition"), is a Tantric tradition which is characterised by distinctive rituals and symbolism connected with the worship of Shakti and Shiva that is associated with cremation-ground or charnel ground asceticism, found in Shaktism and Shaivism. Different types of Kulacharam were practiced in Assam, Mithila, Kashmir, Bengal, Tripura and Kerala as its primary worships.

Kaula preserves some of the distinctive features of the Kapaalika tradition, from which it is derived. It is subdivided into four subcategories of texts based on the goddesses Kuleshvari, Kubjikaa, Kali, and Tripurasundari respectively. The Trika texts are closely related to the Kuleśvarī texts and can be considered as a 'domesticised' part of the Kulamaarga. These subcategories emerged as cults with a wide range of practices—some with mild practices involving worship of Siva or Sadashiva as a householder deity while others involved worshiping ferocious goddesses with blood, alcohol and erotic offerings.

In later Hatha Yoga, the Kaula visualization of kundalini rising through a system of chakras is overlaid onto the earlier bindu-oriented system.

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 unless otherwise noted. Additional terms may apply for the media files.