Abhinavagupta (DevanÃÂgarë à ¤ à ¤Âà ¤¿à ¤¨à ¤µà ¤Âà ¥Âà ¤ªà ¥Âà ¤¤à ¤Â; c. 950 â 1016 CE) was a philosopher, mystic and aesthetician from Kashmir. He was also considered an influential musician, poet, dramatist, exegete, theologian, and logician â a polymathic personality who exercised strong influences on Indian culture.
Abhinavagupta was born in a KÃÂnyakubja BrÃÂhmin family of scholars and mystics whose ancestors immigrated from Kannauj on invitation by the great king of Kashmir, Lalitaditya Muktapida. He studied all the schools of philosophy and art of his time under the guidance of as many as fifteen (or more) teachers and gurus. In his long life he completed over 35 works, the largest and most famous of which is TantrÃÂloka, an encyclopedic treatise on all the philosophical and practical aspects of Kaula and Trika (known today as Kashmir Shaivism). Another one of his very important contributions was in the field of philosophy of aesthetics with his famous AbhinavabhÃÂratë commentary of NÃÂá¹Âyaà ÂÃÂstra of Bharata Muni.
"Abhinavagupta" was not his real name, rather a title he earned from his Guru, meaning "competence and authoritativeness". In his analysis, Jayaratha (1150âÂÂ1200 AD) â who was Abhinavagupta's most important commentator â also reveals three more meanings: "being ever vigilant", "being present everywhere" and "protected by praises". Raniero Gnoli, the only Sanskrit scholar who completed a translation of TantrÃÂloka in a European language, mentions that "Abhinava" also means "new", as a reference to the ever-new creative force of his mystical experience.
From Jayaratha, we learn that Abhinavagupta was in possession of all the six qualities required for the recipients of the tremendous level of à ÂaktipÃÂta, as described in the sacred texts (à Ârëpà «rvaà ÂÃÂstra): an unflinching faith in God, realisation of mantras, control over objective principles (referring to the 36 tattvas), successful conclusion of all the activities undertaken, poetic creativity and spontaneous knowledge of all disciplines.
Abhinavagupta's creation is well equilibrated between the branches of the triad (Trika): will (icchÃÂ), knowledge (jñÃÂna), action (kriyÃÂ); his works also include devotional songs, academical/philosophical works and works describing ritual/yogic practices.
As an author, he is considered a systematiser of the philosophical thought. He reconstructed, rationalised and orchestrated the philosophical knowledge into a more coherent form, assessing all the available sources of his time.
Various contemporary scholars have characterised Abhinavagupta as a "brilliant scholar and saint", "the pinnacle of the development of Kaà Âmir à Âaivism" and "in possession of yogic realization".
The term by which Abhinavagupta himself defines his origin is "yoginëbhà «", 'born of a yoginë'. In Kashmir Shaivism and especially in Kaula it is considered that a progeny of parents "established in the divine essence of Bhairava", is endowed with exceptional spiritual and intellectual prowess. Such a child is supposed to be "the depository of knowledge", who "even as a child in the womb, has the form of Shiva", to enumerate but a few of the classical attributes of his kind.
Abhinavagupta was born in a Kanyakubja Brahmin family in Kashmir. His mother, VimalÃÂ (VimalakalÃÂ) died when Abhinavagupta was just two years old; as a consequence of losing his mother, to whom he was reportedly very attached, he grew more distant from worldly life and focused all the more on spiritual endeavour.
The father, Narasiá¹Âhgupt, after his wife's death favoured an ascetic lifestyle, while raising his three children. He had a cultivated mind and a heart "outstandingly adorned with devotion to Mahesvara (Shiva)" (in Abhinavagupta's own words). He was Abhinavagupta's first teacher, instructing him in grammar, logic and literature.
Abhinavagupta had a brother and a sister. His brother, Manoratha, was a well-versed devotee of Shiva. His sister, AmbÃÂ (probable name, according to Navjivan Rastogi), devoted herself to worship after the death of her husband in late life.
His cousin Kará¹Âa demonstrated even from his youth that he grasped the essence of à Âaivism and was detached of the world. His wife was presumably Abhinavagupta's older sister AmbÃÂ, who looked with reverence upon her illustrious brother. Ambàand Kará¹Âa had a son, Yogeà Âvaridatta, who was precociously talented in yoga
Abhinavagupta also mentions his disciple RÃÂmadeva as faithfully devoted to scriptural study and serving his master. Another cousin was Ká¹£ema, possibly the same as Abhinavagupta's illustrious disciple Ká¹£emarÃÂja. Mandra, a childhood friend of Kará¹Âa, was their host in a suburban residence; he was not only rich and in possession of a pleasing personality, but also equally learned. And last but not least, VatasikÃÂ, Mandra's aunt, who got a special mention from Abhinavagupta for caring for him with exceptional dedication and concern; to express his gratitude, Abhinavagupta declared that Vatasikàdeserved the credit for the successful completion of his work.
The emerging picture here is that Abhinavagupta lived in a nurturing and protected environment, where his creative energies got all the support they required. Everyone around him was filled with spiritual fervor and had taken Abhinavagupta as their spiritual master. Such a supporting group of family and friends was equally necessary as his personal qualities of genius, to complete a work of the magnitude of TantrÃÂloka.
By Abhinavagupta's own account, his most remote known ancestor was called Atrigupta, born in antarved KÃÂnyakubja in Madhyadesha, i.e. the Middle Country. From Madhyadeà Âa he travelled to Kashmir at the request of king LalitÃÂditya, around year 740 CE.
Abhinavagupta is famous for his voracious thirst for knowledge. To study he took many teachers (as many as fifteen), both mystical philosophers and scholars. He approached Vaiá¹£á¹Âavas, Buddhists, à ÂiddhÃÂnta à Âaivists, and the Trika scholars.
Among the most prominent of his teachers, he enumerates four, two of whom were VÃÂmanÃÂtha, who instructed him in dualistic à Âaivism, and Bhà «tirÃÂja in the dualist/nondualist school. Besides being the teacher of the famous Abhinavagupta, Bhà «tirÃÂja was also the father of two eminent scholars.
Laká¹£maá¹Âagupta, a direct disciple of Utpaladeva, in the lineage of Trayambaka, was highly respected by Abhinavagupta and taught him all the schools of monistic thought: Krama, Trika, and Pratyabhijña (except Kula). à ÂambhunÃÂtha taught him the fourth school (Ardha-trayambaka). This school is in fact Kaula, and it was emanated from Trayambaka's daughter.
For Abhinavagupta, à ÂambhunÃÂtha was the most admired guru. Describing the greatness of his master, he compared à ÂambhunÃÂtha to the Sun, in his power to dispel ignorance from the heart, and, in another place, with "the Moon shining over the ocean of Trika knowledge." Abhinavagupta received Kaula initiation through à ÂambhunÃÂtha's wife (acting as a dà «të or conduit). The energy of this initiation is transmitted and sublimated into the heart and finally into consciousness. Such a method is difficult but very rapid and is reserved for those who shed their mental limitations and are pure. It was à ÂambhunÃÂtha who requested he write TantrÃÂloka. As guru, he had a profound influence in the structure of TantrÃÂloka and in the life of its creator, Abhinavagupta.
As many as twelve more of his principal teachers are enumerated by name but without details. It is believed that Abhinavagupta had more secondary teachers. Moreover, during his life he had accumulated a large number of texts from which he quoted in his magnum opus, in his desire to create a syncretic, all-inclusive system, where the contrasts of different scriptures could be resolved by integration into a superior perspective.
Abhinavagupta remained unmarried all his life, and as an adept of Kaula, at least initially maintained brahmacharya and supposedly used the vital force of his energy (ojas) to deepen his understanding of the spiritual nervous system he outlined in his worksâÂÂa system involving ritual union between Purusha (as Shiva) and Shakti. Such union is essentially non-physical and universal, and thus Abhinavagupta conceived himself as always in communion with Shiva-Shakti. In the context of his life and teachings, Abhinavagupta parallels Shiva as both ascetic and enjoyer.
Abhinavagupta studied assiduously at least until the age of thirty or thirty-five. To accomplish that he travelled, mostly inside Kashmir. By his own testimony, he had attained spiritual liberation through his Kaula practice, under the guidance of his most admired master, Ã ÂambhunÃÂtha. He lived in his home (functioning as an ashram) with his family members and disciples, and he did not become a wandering monk, nor did he take on the regular duties of his family, but lived out his life as a writer and a teacher. Abhinavagupta's personality was described as a living realisation of his vision.
In an epoch pen-painting, Abhinavagupta is depicted seated in VërÃÂsana, surrounded by devoted disciples and family, performing a kind of trance-inducing music on a veena while dictating verses of TantrÃÂloka to one of his attendees--behind him two dà «të (female yogës) waiting on him. A legend about the moment of his death (placed somewhere between 1015 and 1025, depending on the source), says that he took with him 1,200 disciples and marched off to a cave, today this cave is known by (Abhinavagupta Cave) located at hill called Bairam at Beerwah, reciting his poem Bhairava-stava, a devotional work. They were never to be seen again, supposedly translating together into the spiritual world.
Abhinavagupta's works fall into multiple sections: manuals of religious ritual, devotional songs, philosophical works and philosophy of aesthetics. Here are enumerated most of his works. Bold type faced titles represent the most important ones.
His most important work was TantrÃÂloka ("Elucidation of Tantra"), a synthesis of the entire Trika system. The esoteric chapter 29 on the Kaula ritual was translated in English together with Jayarathas commentary by John R. Dupuche. A complex study on the context, authors, contents and references of TantrÃÂloka was published by Navjivan Rastogi, Prof. of the Lucknow University. The first complete English translation of TantrÃÂloka was published by the Indologist Mark S. G. Dyczkowski in 2023 after 45 years of work. The last recognized master of the oral tradition of Kashmir Shaivism, Swami Lakshman Joo, gave a condensed version of the key philosophical chapters of TantrÃÂloka in his book, Kashmir Shaivism â The Secret Supreme.
Another important text was the commentary on ParÃÂtrëà ÂikÃÂ, ParÃÂtrëà ÂikÃÂvivaraá¹Âa, detailing the signification of the phonematic energies and their two sequential ordering systems, MÃÂtá¹Âkàand MÃÂlinë. This was the last major translation project of Jaideva Singh.
TantrasÃÂra ("Essence of Tantra") is a summarised version, in prose, of TantrÃÂloka, which was once more summarised in Tantroccaya, and finally presented in a very short summary form under the name of Tantravaá¹ÂadhÃÂnikàâ the "Seed of Tantra".
Pà «rvapañcikàwas a commentary of Pà «rvatantra, alias MÃÂlinëvijaya Tantra, lost to this day. MÃÂlinëvijayÃÂ-varttika ("Commentary on MÃÂlinëvijaya") is a versified commentary on MÃÂlinëvijaya Tantras first verse. Kramakeli, "Krama's Play" was a commentary of Kramastotra, now lost. BhagavadgëtÃÂrtha-saá¹Âgraha which translates "Commentary on Bhagavad Gita" has now an English translation by Boris Marjanovic.
Other religious works are: ParÃÂtrëà ÂikÃÂ-laghuvá¹Âtti, "A Short Commentary on ParÃÂtrëà ÂikÃÂ", ParyantapañcÃÂà Âëkà("Fifty Verses on the Ultimate Reality"), Rahasyapañcadaà Âikà("Fifteen Verses on the Mystical Doctrine"), Laghvë prakriyà("Short Ceremony"), Devëstotravivaraá¹Âa ("Commentary on the Hymn to Devi") and ParamÃÂrthasÃÂra ("Essence of the Supreme Reality").
Abhinavagupta has composed a number of devotional poems, most of which have been translated into French by Lilian Silburn:
One of the most important works of Abhinavagupta is êà ÂvarapratyabhijñÃÂ-vimarà Âini ("Commentary to the Verses on the Recognition of the Lord") and êà ÂvarapratyabhijñÃÂ-vivá¹Âti-vimarà Âini ("Commentary on the explanation of êà ÂvarapratyabhijñÃÂ"). This treatise is fundamental in the transmission of the Pratyabhijña school (the branch of Kashmir Shaivism based on direct recognition of the Lord) to our days. Another commentary on a Pratyabhijña work â à Âivadá¹Âá¹£tyÃÂ-locana ("Light on à Âivadá¹Âá¹£á¹Âi") â is now lost. Another lost commentary is PadÃÂrthapraveà Âa-nirá¹Âaya-á¹Âëkàand Prakërá¹Âkavivaraá¹Âa ("Comment on the Notebook") referring to the third chapter of VÃÂkyapadëya of Bhartrihari. Two more philosophical texts of Abhinavagupta are KathÃÂmukha-tilaka ("Ornament of the Face of Discourses") and BhedavÃÂda-vidÃÂraá¹Âa ("Confrontation of the Dualist Thesis").
Abhinavaguptas most important work on the philosophy of art is AbhinavabhÃÂratë â a long and complex commentary on Natya Shastra of Bharata Muni. This work has been one of the most important factors contributing to Abhinavagupta's fame up until present day. His most important contribution was that to the theory of rasa (aesthetic savour).
Other poetical works include: Ghaá¹Âa-karpara-kulaka-vivá¹Âti, a commentary on "Ghaá¹Âakarpara" of Kalidasa; KÃÂvyakauá¹Âukavivaraá¹Âa, a "Commentary to the Wonder of Poetry" (a work of Bhaá¹Âá¹Âa Tauta), now lost; and DhvanyÃÂlokalocana, "Illustration of DhvanyÃÂloka", which is a famous work of Anandavardhana.