{{Short description|Hindu tantric spiritual practice}} '''Shava sadhana''' (śāva sādhanā) is a [[Tantra|Tantric]] [[sadhana]] (spiritual practice) in which the practitioner sits on a corpse for meditation. Shava sadhana is part of the ''[[vamachara]]'' ('heterodox') practice of worship, which is followed by the [[Western esotericism|esoteric]] Tantra.<ref name="Charleston2004"/>
Shava sadhana is regarded as one of Tantra's most important, most difficult and most secret rituals. Tantric texts as well as oral tales detail the process of the ritual and also tell its importance. The purpose of practicing the ritual range from knowledge, propitiating a deity, material motives, even dark objectives to gaining control over the spirit of the deceased. There are strict rules that need to be followed in the ritual, even in selection of a suitable corpse for the ceremony.
==Textual references and oral legends== [[File:Kali by Raja Ravi Varma.jpg|thumb|The goddess [[Kali]] (pictured) is believed to have given the poet [[Ramprasad Sen]] a vision due to the practice of shava sadhana.]]
The following Tantric texts detail the ritual process: Kaulavali-nirnaya, Shyamarahasya, Tara-bhakti-sudharnava, Purasharcharyarnava, Nilatantra, Kulachudamani and Krishnananda's [[Tantrasara]].<ref name="Banerji2007">{{cite book|author=S.C. Banerji|title=A Companion to Tantra|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pmpwLdmvcggC&pg=PA28|date=1 January 2007|publisher=Abhinav Publications|isbn=978-81-7017-402-8|pages=28–30}}</ref> The ''[[Kali tantra]]'' says that those who worship goddess [[Parvati]] without shava sadhana will suffer in [[Naraka (Hinduism)|Naraka]] (hell) until dissolution of the world.<ref name="Charleston2004"/>
An oral tale about the shava sadhana is told by the Tantrikas of Bengal. Vasudeva Bhattacharya of Tipperah (West Bengal) went to the Goddess temple of [[Kamakhya]] and worshipped the deity by Tantric means. A voice told him about the ritual and that he will gain [[moksha]] in his next life when he will be reborn as his own grandson Sarvananda. Vasudeva gave his servant Purvananda an engraved copper plate with a mantra. Purvananda, now an old man, now served Sarvananda, who he passed the secret of shava sadhana ritual, told by his former master. Purvananda volunteered to be used as the corpse for shava sadhana and Sarvananda performed the ritual, where ghosts tormented him; storms tried to interrupt his practice; beautiful dancers tempted him, until the Goddess gave him a vision. She blessed him with ''vak [[siddhi]]'', the ability to make something happen by just saying it. She also revived the servant. Sarvananda became a [[siddha]] and the first tantrika to see the theophany of the Goddess' ten [[mahavidya]] forms. The Shakta poet [[Ramprasad Sen]] is also told to have performed the ritual and gained the vision of his patron, goddess [[Kali]].<ref name="Charleston2004"/>
==Aim and importance==
Shava Sadhana is regarded the most important ritual in [[Shaktism|Shakta]] Tantra, particularly in [[West Bengal]]. Shaiva [[Aghori]]s from [[Varanasi]] are also known to practice this ritual.<ref name="Charleston2004">{{cite book|author=June McDaniel|title=Offering Flowers, Feeding Skulls : Popular Goddess Worship in West Bengal|url=https://archive.org/details/offeringflowersf00mcda|url-access=limited|date=9 July 2004|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=978-0-19-534713-5|pages=[https://archive.org/details/offeringflowersf00mcda/page/n133 123]–132}}{{Dead link|date=May 2024}}</ref> Shava sadhana is "the most secret part of Tantric mysticism" and is regarded one of the most "misunderstood" due to its non-[[Aryan]] nature.<ref name="Lysebeth2001"/> It is also regarded as the "most difficult form of spiritual practice". The [[sadhaka]] needs to adhere to all rules of the ritual and is warned that violation of the regulations may lead to dire consequences.<ref name="Lysebeth2001"/> Even a small mistake in the ritual can lead to death or insanity of the practitioner.<ref name="White2001"/> Due to the intensity of consequences if the ritual is not properly done, a Tantric priest from [[Bolpur]] said that the ritual is rarely practiced in the area.<ref name="White2001"/>
The purpose to do shava sadhana varies from person to person. An aim of shava sadhana is to unite the [[Kundalini]] with [[Para Brahman#Shiva and Shakti philosophy|Param Shiva]].<ref name="Lysebeth2001"/> From a [[yoga|yogic]] or Tantric point of view, it signifies detachment from the physical world, and uniting with the Absolute, identified with the male god [[Shiva]], the Divine Mother [[Shakti]] or the abstract [[Brahman]]. The detachment leads to freedom from [[Samsara]] (the cycle of birth, death and reincarnation) and the adept goes beyond the orthodox concepts of purity and impurity; auspiciousness and inauspiciousness. The ritual is done using a corpse, considered a highly impure and inauspicious symbol in traditional Hinduism.<ref name="Charleston2004"/> Since it deals with directly encountering death, it is believed to lead to non-death, symbolized by longevity, wealth and power. The ritual is said to erase the fear of death from the practitioner's mind. It may also be conducted to placate a personal deity. For Aghoris, the purpose is not spiritual, but simply to acquire the skull for rituals or gain power over the soul of the deceased so that he can act as a medium to other spirits or acquire powers to control them. Andre Padoux interprets shava sadhana as [[black magic]] which is done to accomplish evil motives.<ref name="Charleston2004"/>
==Selection of the corpse==
There are strict rules in the ''Tantra Shastra'' regarding the [[corpse]]. The corpse should be fresh and undamaged. No part of the body should be missing. There should not be deformity in any part; e.g. a one-eyed corpse would be rejected.<ref name="Lysebeth2001"/> The ''Tantrasara'' specifies that corpse may be human (preferred) or animal. In humans, the most preferred (''maha-shava'', great corpse) are a [[chandala]] (a child of a [[Shudra]] father and a [[Brahmin]] mother; an outcaste and the lowest of the mixed castes) who died due to drowning, lightning-strike, snake-bite, injury, or was killed by a stick, sword, spear, or other weapon; and a courageous young man who died in battle while fighting his enemy. Specific animals are also recommended in the text.<ref name="Banerji2007"/>
Bhattacharya suggests that the Tantrika may even murder to get hold of a suitable corpse for shava sadhana. A young chandala boy may be intoxicated and then killed by the tantrika by deceit. However, Professor McDaniel notes that tantrikas she met in [[Tarapith]] disagreed. They believed that the appropriate corpse is chosen by the Goddess herself and murdering someone for the ritual is interfering with the Goddess' work.<ref name="Charleston2004"/>
Some corpses are taboo for shava sadhana: that of a Brahmin (priest caste), of a cow (sacred Hindu animal), of a woman, of an aged man (age not specified), of a leper, of an "[[Dalit|untouchable]]", of a beardless man, of a man whose genitals are not clearly visible, a man who died due to suicide or starvation/famine, of an [[apostasy|apostate]], and of a hen-pecked man.<ref name="Banerji2007"/> Though corpses of women are forbidden by the ''Tantrasara'', a Tantric priest from [[Bolpur]], West Bengal described how people used to use the corpse of a virgin girl for shava shadhana. The girl is believed to become the goddess Kali's vessel and speak in the ritual.<ref name="White2001">{{cite book|author=David Gordon White|title=Tantra in Practice|year=2001|publisher=Motilal Banarsidass|isbn=978-81-208-1778-4|pages=76–77}}</ref> In absence of human corpses or carcasses of specified animals, the carcass of any animal can be used. If even it is unavailable, a human figurine of [[Darbha]] (grass), rice, barley etc. can be used. In case an effigy cannot be made, sesame is sprinkled on the ground.<ref name="Banerji2007"/>
According to Hindu belief, death happens on two levels: a physical death and a ritual death. The latter happens only after the ''kapala kriya'' ritual of the funeral, when the skull of the burnt corpse bursts or a hole is opened in it so the [[prana]] (life force) exits it. The corpse used for shava sadhana thus in an intermediate stage between life and death.<ref name="Charleston2004"/>
==Process== Shava sadhana is conducted generally on a [[new moon]] day.<ref name="Charleston2004"/> The ''Tantrasara'' suggests for the eighth or fourteenth lunar day in a fortnight as well as Tuesdays are suitable for the ritual.<ref name="Banerji2007"/>
The sadhaka is left alone with the corpse in the night.<ref name="Charleston2004"/> The ''Tantrasara'' recommends the following for the ritual: a [[shmashana]] (cremation ground) or cemetery, or an abandoned house, a riverbank, a mountain, a battlefield, near a [[bilva]] tree or any other lonely place.<ref name="Banerji2007"/> The ritual is generally done in a shmashana.<ref name="Charleston2004"/><ref name="Lysebeth2001"/> Siddha pithas, sacred places reputed to grant [[siddhi]]s may be preferred for the ritual.<ref name="Singh2010"/> The sadhaka repeats a [[mantra]] while bringing the corpse to the designated site of the ceremony to purify it.<ref name="Kinsley1998">{{cite book|author=David R. Kinsley|title=Tantric Visions of the Divine Feminine: The Ten Mahāvidyās|url=https://archive.org/details/tantricvisionsdi00kins|url-access=limited|year=1998|publisher=Motilal Banarsidass|isbn=978-81-208-1522-3|pages=[https://archive.org/details/tantricvisionsdi00kins/page/n213 208]–210}}</ref>
In Shakta ritual as described in the ''Tantrasara'', the corpse is worshipped with flowers and invoked as a form of [[Bhairava]] (a form of Shiva) and the seat of the Goddess and requested to awaken to please the Goddess.<ref name="Kinsley1998"/> The corpse is washed and placed on tiger or deer skin or a bed of [[Desmostachya bipinnata|kusha]] grass.<ref name="Charleston2004"/><ref name="Kinsley1998"/> The hair and feet of the corpse may be tied. The corpse is believed to be a vessel of power while the rite is performed and tying the hair ensures that the energy does not escape.<ref name="Charleston2004"/><ref name="Banerji2007"/> Another interpretation states that the bondage reflects the practitioner's desire to control the spirit of the corpse.<ref name="Kinsley1998"/> Then, the sadhaka will sit on the corpse for meditation.<ref name="Charleston2004"/> In Shakta narratives, betel nut is put into the corpse's mouth and it is turned on its back and smeared with sandalwood paste. Shakta sandhakas draw a [[yantra]] on the back of the corpse and sit on it. The 64 [[yogini]]s and the [[guardians of the directions]] are worshipped with vegetarian offerings. The corpse-seat is again worshipped and the practitioner mounts the corpse like one sits on a horse.<ref name="Charleston2004"/><ref name="Kinsley1998"/> Another tradition says that the practitioner is expected to sit in [[Virasana]] ("the heroic pose").<ref name="Singh2010">{{cite book|author=Lalan Prasad Singh|title=Tantra, Its Mystic and Scientific Basis|year=2010|publisher=Concept Publishing Company|isbn=978-81-8069-640-4|pages=163–164}}</ref> The ''Tantrasara'' narrates that the practitioner should get off the corpse to draw a triangle or protective circle around him and the corpse or again to scatter mustard or sesame seeds in all directions.<ref name="Kinsley1998"/>
While meditating, the practitioner (whose goal is detachment) should think on what makes the corpse (who was alive till a day after) different from him and other living beings and thus discover the knowledge of the living force within all living beings. He (or she) identifies with the corpse and contemplates on the ephemeral nature of the body, whose dissolution leads to the discovery of the living force within.<ref name="Charleston2004"/><ref name="Lysebeth2001">{{cite book|author=Andre Van Lysebeth|title=Tantra: The Cult of Feminine|date=1 January 2001|publisher=Motilal Banarsidass|isbn=978-81-208-1759-3|pages=75–76}}</ref>
The sadhaka may also meditate on a deity.<ref name="Charleston2004"/> Offerings to the deity are put in the corpse's mouth.<ref name="Kinsley1998"/> The practitioner may perform [[pranayama]] and meditate on his guru and the deity in his mind.<ref name="Kinsley1998"/> He can also practice [[japa]] (repetition of a [[mantra]] or a deity's names or epithets), till the corpse promises him to grant his wish.<ref name="Banerji2007"/> He may encounter an [[Akashvani (term)|Akashavani]] (a voice from the skies) which may try to tempt him with material things.<ref name="Singh2010"/> He will experience terrifying visions and sounds as well as temptations; however the practitioner should remain untouched and concentrate on the meditation. Upon successful completion of the sadhana it is believed that the residing deity of the sadhana( Maa Tara / Mahadev ) appears before the sadhaka and the sadhaka would be blessed with Brahma-gyan and mantra-[[siddhi]] (a supernatural power to use a mantra) or become one with Shiva / shakti. Uniting with Shiva-shakti is said to lead to detachment, a characteristic of the ascetic god. Shiva is himself equated with shava, the corpse. As the vessel of Shiva, the adept becomes an [[avadhuta]], a mystic who is beyond egoic-consciousness, duality and common worldly concerns.<ref name="Charleston2004"/> The ''Tantrasara'' says that a voice may ask for more offerings or bless the practitioner by granting his wishes.<ref name="Kinsley1998"/> Only rarest of the rarest sadhakas such as Krishnananda agamavagisha , sadhaka bamakhepa and ramprasad sen are said to have completed this sadhana successfully and believed to have seen the divine vision of Devi kali and Tara.
Shakta practitioners are said to have a theophany of the Goddess, in the form of a young girl or woman or in the sky or she may possess the corpse. The Shakta practitioner is considered to be a child of the Divine Mother, who is surrounded by fear, tormented by ghosts and demons and overcome with love towards her and needs to be rescued by the Mother. When the Goddess is said to possess the corpse, the corpse is considered sacred as a [[murti]] or vessel of the divine spirit. The head of the corpse is said to turn towards the devotee and begins speaking affectionately (or sometimes terrifyingly) with him. The devotee then asks for a boon (spiritual or worldly) that the Goddess is compelled to grant. Some practitioners regard that his own body becomes a corpse while performing the ritual. The Goddess fills life into him by possessing him.<ref name="Charleston2004"/>
A sadhaka who becomes afraid when the corpse comes alive and falls inside the protective circle, dies; while one who falls outside is doomed to eternal insanity. The one who remains resolute is blessed with [[moksha]] (salvation) and "occult powers". Persons who practice shava sadhana with lower goals may be blessed with siddhis, but those in turn may lead to their downfall.<ref name="Singh2010"/>
At the end of the ritual, the corpse is freed from his bondage of rope and bathed again. The corpse is buried or immersed in a body of water. All articles of worship are also cast into the water.<ref name="Banerji2007"/> The untying of the rope and immersion of the corpse is believed to release the contained energy, accumulated while the ritual was on.<ref name="Charleston2004"/>
Although it is generally recommended to be performed alone in a deserted place, a [[sadhu]] who performs shava sadhana may be sometimes aided by his Tantric female consort, who are known as uttara sadhika. She stays within the protective circle and helps the sadhu if he is getting distracted by the spirits. The sadhu may also call upon his [[guru]] (not physically present at the site) to protect him in the ritual.<ref name="White2001"/>
[[File:Aghori baba (4101921853).jpg|thumb|Aghoris of Varanasi are recorded to perform shava sadhana.]]
The [[Aghori]]s of [[Varanasi]] perform shava sadhana with some difference in the ritual. The corpse is bound to a stake at the wrist or ankle by a silken thread and a protective circle drawn around it to keep evil spirits of the cremation ground away. The spirits are offered meat and liquor outside the circle. The spirits would try to talk with the practitioner and gain entry in the circle but he should ignore them until finally he will conquer them, forcing them to accept his offerings and leave. This is signified by the corpse's mouth opening a bit. An offering of [[kheer]] is put in the corpse's mouth. Finally, the Aghori decapitates the corpse to acquire its skull or extracts a bone from its spine to gain control over its soul. The remaining body is cast in the river. The rite should be followed by a period of asceticism to gain mastery of the soul of the deceased. While the Aghori sits on the corpse's chest and meditates, the [[ojha]] (exorcist or wizard) performs the ritual by seating on the stomach of the deceased.<ref name="Charleston2004"/>
==Related rituals== Drinking of [[panchagavya]] and feeding of twenty-five Brahmins is prescribed with the rite. God is believed to possess the sadhaka for a fortnight after the ritual. He should stay away from material pleasures like coitus, dance and music in this period.<ref name="Banerji2007"/>
==References== {{Reflist}}
[[Category:Hindu prayer and meditation]] [[Category:Hindu tantra]] [[Category:Tantric practices]]