Some notes on the shaiva temple celebrations and an excursus on the fishing, diving and hunting festivals of rudra

An integral aspect of the life of the post-Vedic Hindu community was participation in the temple celebrations. It was considered highly beneficial in the tAntrika tradition, both to the individual and the community, and helps explain the basic premises of the prescriptions of the mature vAstushAstra. This indeed also explains the archaeology of medieval bhArata, wherein the temple forms the primary focus of any human settlement, from city to village. Today, this once pan-Indian facet of Hindu life can only be experienced in a form comparable to its historical performance south of mahArAShTra and in Nepal and Orissa, because centuries of Islamic savagery and a failure to reestablish Hindu tradition upon the eviction of the Christian barbarians has all but erased classical Hindu custom in the rest of the subcontinent (although some vestiges survive beyond the subcontinent in Bali, the refugium for the Indonesian tradition that also came under the cloud of the West Asian madness). Thus, we can only imagine based on textual and archaeological reconstructions the glorious performances of the once vigorous centers of the Agama tradition, such as those in kashmIra, vArANasi, the kShetra-s of the pa~nchanada, tirAbhukti, va~Nga, mAlava, jejakAbhukti and the like.

The temple celebration like most Agama traditions of larger Astika fold has its ultimate origins in the older smArta rites of vaidika period. On one hand, its community aspects lie in the ancient public festivals of the vaidika period. The foremost and most ancient of these was the glorious indra mahotsava. Many aspects of the Agamika festivals are fashioned on this ancient smArta festival, which probably goes back to the period of Indo-European unity. Other old vaidika public festivals are specified by the rAja-karma-sAMvatsarIya sUtra-s, along with the mantra-s from the atharvaveda which are deployed in them, whose celebration was the duty of the kShatriya ruler. These include the autumnal festival of the lustration of horses and elephants along with some type of military procession (which is retained today in the dashamI festivities following the autumnal navarAtrI) and the autumnal dIpotsava (which survives today retaining some old aspects in the form of the dIpAvalI). The former was also preceded by an apotropaic/protective veterinary festival to the deva-s agni, vAyu, mitra-varuNa and the ashvin-s. Elements from this ritual in the form of consecration of water pots with various oShadhi-s and dhAnya-s placed on a square altar were adopted by the Agamika festivities. The other aspect, which contributed to the origin of Agamika celebrations, was related to smArta rites pertaining to the iconic worship of certain deities that emerged in the late Vedic period. This aspect included the general elements in the iconic worship of deities like brahmA, skanda, rudra, viShNu and durgA in temporary maNDapa-s, hoisting of flags and also the specific ritual of bathing (snapana) of images (specified for rudra, viShNu and durgA). The relationship of the above-mentioned ancient rituals to an interesting, recent archaeological find from an IVC/SSVC site in the form of a procession (apparently) of a female deity remains entirely unclear, but might point to some type of vague continuity with practices from an early period of Indian history. In temporal terms, the Agamika rites which we shall be discussing are closer to comparable temple celebrations elsewhere in the Indo-European world, such as those occurring under the Neoplatonic system in the Greco-Roman world. While the prototypes were already in place by the late vaidika period, the Agamika-style rituals, which we shall be discussing here, appear to have first blossomed with the rise of the gupta-vAkATaka empire that unified the subcontinent, bringing forth the new Hindu golden age and a period of monumental temple-building.

The core of the Hindu temple celebration is centered on the principle of the two-fold nature of the consecrated images: the achala-mUrti-s and chala-mUrti-s. The former are immovable images made usually of stone installed in the grabhagR^iha of the Ayatana. The latter are smaller portable images usually made of metal. The former are worshiped in situ only by those qualified to access the grabhagR^iha (usually tAntrika-s of the first varNa and no one else) and is at best seen from outside the garbhagR^iha by the initiates from the 4 varNa-s, but never touched or directly worshiped by them. The latter idols, in contrast, are meant to be seen by all and sundry and are taken out on processions, wherein they provide a darshana to the people, much like a kShatriya going on his procession. It is this procession of the portable idols that lies at the heart of the classical Hindu temple celebration (the utsava). Such utsava-s are a common feature of the saiddhAntika shaiva, pA~ncharAtrika vaiShNava, shAkta, medieval kaumAra, saura and shAstA systems. While such utsava-s are also practiced by the vaikhAnasa vaiShNava-s it is not entirely clear if their medieval practice was an evolute of their earlier versions closer to the late Vedic performances or a secondary acquisition inspired by their pA~ncharAtrika counter parts. The shAkta utsava-s from south India that survive today are clearly modeled after their shaiva counterparts, though the kAlikA purANa clearly indicates the presence of a once more diverse shAkta tradition that partly survives in East India. It is likely that there were earlier shaiva versions distinct from the saiddhAntika utsava tradition (as hinted by the bhairavotsava-s, the bhUtamAtR^ikA ritual alluded to by rAjA bhojadeva, and the foundations of the siddhilakShmI festival, i.e. the public pratya~NgirA). Currently, there is considerable textual material regarding these celebrations from saiddhAntika shaiva and pA~ncharAtrika traditions followed, by much smaller textual collections from the kaumAra, shAstra and shAkta traditions.

The shaiva temple utsava-s are specified in several of the major tantra-s of the IshAna-srotas, such as the raurava, sUkShma, kAmika, kAraNa, ajita, suprabheda, vijayottara and the like. But in actual practice the paddhati-s of famous deshika-s like somashaMbhu, trilochanashiva and aghorashiva have considerable influence on the realized shape of the ritual. In particular, in the Tamil country the extensive manual of the great aghorashiva, the kriyAkramadyotikA plays an important role. There is another manual used for the daily celebratory procession, namely the parArtha-nityapujA-vidhi from the Tamil country which was written by another Acharya with the same name, but distinct from the great aghorashiva. These utsava-s or the celebratory processions have found a place in a several regional poems such as umApatishiva’s machi makaM pATu from Chidambaram, the chera king chEramAn perumAL’s poem AdiyulA (centered on his pilgrimage to Kashmir with the shaiva tamil poet sundaramUrti), ahobala’s virUpAkSha-vasantotsava-chaMpU in the Vijayanagaran capital, ShaDakSharI-deva’s account in the karNATa country, and ma~Nkhaka’s account in the Kashmirian shrIkaNTha-charita. These expressions testify the notable imprint left by these utsava-s on the minds of the beholders. The utsava-s themselves span a wide range of performances from the daily nityotsava, the pakShotsava-s on the full and new moon days, the sa~NkrAnti-s or the solstitial festivities, the R^ikShotsava-s to mark particular astronomical configurations (e.g. the full moon in Ardra which is the constellation of rudra as stated in the veda) and finally the mahotsava-s which could last from 1 to 17 days.

The daily procession, nityotsava, provides a model for all the utsava-s, which are developed via iteration and modification of the recursive elements to lead to the culmination in the form of the mahotsava. Thus, it might be compared to the vaidika formulation of the great rituals such as the rAjasUya, the vAjapeya and the ashvamedha through a similar process of elaboration from ground plan of the basic darsha and pUrNamAsa rituals. It should be noted that the utsava-s, probably even more than the above-stated great shrauta rituals, are distinct from regular deployments of mantra practice in that they interface closely with the laity (i.e. those not or insufficiently conversant with the principles mantra practice; these might include both “casual” worshipers and highly involved individuals like those Hindus in the community who follow the bhakti practices). While certain saiddhAntika tantra-s, like the sUkShma go into various circum-ritual matters such as temple employees and their salaries, the primary concern of these as well as the paddhati-s are rituals. Thus, in laying out the their elaborations of utsava-s, the tantra-s mainly describe how the ritual activity is expanded even as the utsava is being enlarged (though it is not blind to the interface with the non-ritual domain). What exactly comprises the ritual followed a certain logic that was primarily only understood by the learned deshika-s – thus, aspects of the utsava that impinge on the sphere of the ritual are closely regulated by Agamika injunctions, whereas others are not, and left in the domain of the lay celebrators [Footnote 1]. Thus, there is a distinction in how the utsava is ultimately “understood” by the tAntrika initiate or knowledgeable observer and the laity, even though they may share several aspects of the basic experience.

The nityotsava is performed on a daily basis, in the morning, noon or evening and is described in detail in the ajitamahAtantra (paTala 25). After the worship of the main achala-mUrti (typically a li~Nga) shaiva ritualist next performs the daily homa of the IshAna-srotas. Before the procession starts, having completed his homa the ritualist enters the grabhagR^iha and worships either just the trident or up to 9 deities (see below) with their respective mantra-s in their respective chala-murti-s with a pa~nchopachAra pUjA. For the pAshupata missile, he draws a lotus figure on the center of a bali plate and worships the missile in it with the famed pAshupatAstra mantra. The trident is placed on this plate. Thereafter he might make a temporary li~Nga if needed and invokes bhava or uses the golakA (the metal sheath of the li~Nga) for the same purpose. He may then invoke dharma and yaj~na in the sandals of shiva. He then strikes the large bell of the temple to set the procession in movement. In increasingly more elaborate versions of the nityotsava, the tantra instructs that along with the trident other images also be carried in the procession. In its most elaborate form with all 9 deities, an image of vinAyaka is borne in front of the possession. This is followed by the image of maheshvara with the idol of umA carried to the left. Alternatively both of them might be seated together on the same throne. Behind them the idol of the regent of the pAshupata missile, known as the pAshupateshvara is carried. He is followed by the trishUla borne on the bali-vessel. This is followed by (the golakA) borne aloft on a stick; alternatively a li~Nga made of rice or flowers is carried. This is followed by the pAduka-s, then the vR^iShbha and finally the gaNa chaNDeshvara makes up the rear of the procession. All the 9 deities or in the simplest form only the trident is taken around the outer walls of the temple in a pradakShiNa on head of a putraka [Footnote 2], who has had a bath, cleaned his mouth and who is wearing clean white clothes with an upper garment, a turban, a pavitra on the fingers, the tripundra on his forehead and flower garlands. The images are fanned by peacock feather fans and yak-hair fly whisks, and are shielded by canopies. There is drumming and taurya-gAna following the ma~NgiNI tAla (rhythm), flags of shiva are waved, incense is burned and lamps are lit. However, silence is observed in the gateway of the temple. After the pradakShiNa is complete in the procession makes an inner pradakShiNa stopping at the directions of the following gods and music should be played for each of them as per the following ancient rhythms:
indra: East: sama-tAla
agni: Southeast: baddhAvaNa-tAla
yama: South: bhR^i~NgiNI-tAla
nirR^iti: Southwest: malli-tAla
varuNa: West: nava-tAla
vAyu: Northwest: bali-tAla
soma: North: koTishikhara-tAla
IshAna: Northeast: ta~NkarI

The the procession images are brought into the garbhagR^iha with the playing of the vR^iShatAla music. Then the putraka-s are sent away to wash their feet. The ritualist does a pa~nchopachAra pUja to the images. Then he lifts up the trishUla from the bali plate with the pAshupatAstra mantra and reciting it again places it to the right side of achala li~Nga. In the case of an invasion by an enemy the ritual is done only inside the temple with the trishUla.

The mahotsava is a much larger affair which itself comes in many forms which are named as per the encrypted numeration of days (AMT paTala 27): bhauvana (7), shAkta (9), raudra (11), saura (12). mAnava (14), pakSha (15). Of these, aghorashiva states in kriyAkramadyotikA that the mahotsava of 9 days is the ideal one. These may be performed to coincide with particular specified nakShatra, or the birth nakShatra of a king or patron, or the date of founding of the temple or village. These festivals are marked by the making and hoisting of the bull flag. The bull flag is made of a white denim-like cotton cloth that can be up to 10 ells in length and 2.5 ells in breadth with a double triangle free edge typical of Hindu flags. In the center of the cloth a white bull is drawn in with a prominent hump. The mouth, horns, hooves, ears, dewlap, genitals, and lips are painted red and the eyes are black and white. The tail is painted yellow, the arse painted orange. Bull is depicted with a garland of small bells. Set of ten trees namely, sAla, tamAla, kramuka, madhuka, champa, veNu, ashoka, punnAga, shirISha and bilva are specified for the flag post. The flag itself has additional components such as the second supporting staff, the “shoulder” planks, a cotton hoisting rope, a metal ring for the rope, a darbha grass garland, a golden tortoise or bull for the hole where the staff is inserted and a brick barricade for the staff. All of these are specified in great detail. This just gives an idea of the kind of ritual detail to material that is found in the tantra-s. This is combined with considerable mantra practice that is only familiar to the shaiva initiates. The fire altars for the ritual are also rather elaborate, just as in a larger shrauta ritual. There is a one out rim of eight altars in the 8 directions with a central large one. In the outer eight the oblations are made to bhava, sharva, IshAna, pashupati, ugra, rudra, bhIma and mahAdeva with their respective mantra-s as specified in the kAraNAgama. In central altar an offering is made to shiva. In a similar circuit the homa with the first four brahma mantra-s is offered in their respective directions followed by the fifth in the central altar. For the fire offerings the ritualists wear new clothes (necessarily covering his chest with the upper garment) and turbans and accompany the sAdhaka-s who might sponsor the rituals and the putraka-s who carry the idols. The pUrNAhuti in the central fire is performed with the recitation of the famed vyomavyApin mantra or just the pa~nchAkSharI. There is also a ceremony of the weapons of rudra and other deva-s, wherein metal replicas of these weapons are worshiped. In addition to maheshvara who is the central deity of the festival other deva-s are also given special worship in specific days. In the classical 9 day festival for example, vinAyaka is specially worshiped on day one for warding of obstacles. On day two prajApati is worshiped, on day five indra is worshiped, on day 7 viShNu is worshiped, on day 8 the vasu-s are worshiped on day 9 the marut-s are worshiped.

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

Footnote 1: The logic of ritual is very important element of Hindu thought that forms the foundation of the Astika dharma or the sanAtana dharma. It was this foundation that was attacked by the nAstika-s such as the tathAgata, the nagna and maskarin of the cowshed. However, the former two systems eventually fell back to reinstate the logic of ritual via the backdoor. However, the discussion of this logic is a topic in itself, which we might revisit at a later point. For now we shall point to a curious parallel in the yavana world mentioned by Plutarch suggesting that perhaps this logic was probably present even there (even though it is not usually understood in the modern west as such) – Lysimache the priestess of the goddess Athene Polias was asked by the muleteers who had ferried the holy vessels to the Acropolis temple in Athens for drinks. She refused stating that if she obliged such an action might become part of the ritual. This suggests that yavana-s had a logic comparable to that of the Hindus of what constitutes ritual and what cannot be allowed to wander into its domain.

Footnote 2: A putraka is an initiated assistant to the deshika, but he has not attained the high dIkSha that is supposed to completely obliterate his pashupAsha.

continued…