Yantra
Yantra (यन्त्र; lit. 'Machine'/'Contraption').
Representations of the yantra in India have been considered to date back to 11,000–10,000 years BCE.
Mantras, the Sanskrit syllables inscribed on yantras, are essentially "
Etymology
In
Usage and meaning
Yantras are usually associated with a particular deity and are used for specific benefits, such as: for meditation; protection from harmful influences; development of particular powers; attraction of wealth or success, etc.[8] For instance, the Sivali yantra, used mainly in Southeast Asian Buddhism, is used for the attraction of wealth and good luck.[citation needed] They are often used in daily ritual worship at home or in temples, and sometimes worn as a talisman.[9]
As an aid to meditation (meditative painting), yantras represent the deity that is the object of meditation. These yantras emanate from the central point, the bindu. The yantra typically has several geometric shapes radiating concentrically from the center, including triangles, circles, hexagons, octagons, and symbolic lotus petals. The outside often includes a square representing the four cardinal directions, with doors to each of them. A popular form is the Sri Chakra, or Sri Yantra, which represents the goddess in her form as Tripura Sundari. Sri Chakra also includes a representation of Shiva, and is designed to show the totality of creation and existence, along with the user's own unity with the cosmos.[9]
Yantras can be on a flat surface or three dimensional. Yantras can be drawn or painted on paper, engraved on metal, or any flat surface. They tend to be smaller in size than the similar mandala, and traditionally use less color than mandalas.[10]
Occult yantras are used as good luck charms, to ward off evil, as preventative medicine, in exorcism, etc., by virtue of their magical power. When used as a talisman, the yantra is seen to represent a deity who can be called on at will by the user. They are traditionally consecrated and energized by a priest, including the use of mantras which are closely associated to the specific deity and yantra. Practitioners believe that a yantra that is not energized with mantra is lifeless.[9] In Sri Lankan Buddhism, it is required to have the yantra of the deity with us, once the deity has shown the acceptance of our prayer.[citation needed]
Gudrun Bühnemann classifies three general types of yantras based on their usage:
- Yantras that are used as foundation for ritual implements such as lamps, vessels, etc. These are typically simple geometric shapes upon which the implements are placed.
- Yantras used in regular worship, such as the Sri Yantra. These include geometric diagrams and are energized with mantras to the deity, and sometimes include written mantras in the design.
- Yantras used in specific desire-oriented rites. These yantras are often made on birch bark or paper, and can include special materials such as flowers, rice paste, ashes, etc.[10]
Structural elements and symbolism
A yantra comprises geometric shapes, images, and written mantra. Triangles and hexagrams are common, as are circles and lotuses of 4 to 1,000 petals. Saiva and Shakti yantras often feature the prongs of a trishula.[11]
- Mantra
- Yantras frequently include mantras written in Sanskrit.
- Use of colors in traditional yantra is entirely symbolic, and not merely decorative or artistic. Each color is used to denote ideas and inner states of consciousness. White/Red/Black is one of the most significant color combinations, representing the three qualities or gunas of nature (prakriti). White represents sattwa or purity; red represents rajas or the activating quality; black represents tamas or the quality of inertia. Specific colors also represent certain aspects of the goddess. Not all texts give the same colors for yantras. Aesthetics and artistry are meaningless in a yantra if they are not based on the symbolism of the colors and geometric shapes.[12]
- Bindu
- The central point of traditional yantras have a bindu or point, which represents the main deity associated with the yantra. The retinue of the deity is often represented in the geometric parts around the center. The bindu in a yantra may be represented by a dot or small circle, or may remain invisible. It represents the point from which all of creation emanates. Sometimes, as in the case of the Linga Bhairavi yantra, the bindu may be presented in the form of a linga.[13]
- Triangle
- Most Hindu yantras include triangles. Downward-pointing triangles represent the feminine aspect of God or Shakti, while upward-pointing triangles represent God's masculine aspect, as in Shiva.
- Hexagram
- Hexagrams as shown in yantras are two equilateral triangles intertwined, representing the union of male and female aspects of divinity, or Shiva and Shakti.
- Lotus
- Mandalas and yantras both frequently include lotus petals, which represent purity and transcendence. Eight-petaled lotuses are common, but lotuses in yantras can include 2, 4, 8, 10, 12, 16, 24, 32, 100, 1000 or more petals.
- Circle
- Many mandalas have three concentric circles in the center, representing manifestation.
- Outer square
- Many mandalas have an outer square or nested squares, representing the earth and the four cardinal directions. Often they include sacred doorways on each side of the square.
- Pentagram
- Yantras infrequently use a pentagram. Some yantras of Guhyakali have a pentagram, due to the number five being associated with Kali.
- Octagon
- Octagons are also infrequent in yantras, where they represent the eight directions.[11]
Yantra designs in modern times have deviated from the traditional patterns given in ancient texts and traditions. Designers in the west may copy design elements from Nepali/tantric imitations of yantras.[14]
Yantra tattooing
Yantra Tattooing or Sak Yuant (
Yantra drawing
The world’s largest
Gallery
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Yan Paet-thit, a Thai yantra tattoo
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Traditional engraved copper Sri Yantra
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Yantra of Paramashiva, with trident
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The Sri Yantra diagram
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Ashtamatrika yantra diagram
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Tripurabhairava yantra diagram
See also
- Mandala
- Kolam
- Rangoli
- Shri Yantra
- Sriramachakra
- Yantra tattooing
- Dayata meditation paintings
- Muggu
References
- ^ "Recent entries into the dictionary". spokensanskrit.de. Archived from the original on February 15, 2017.
- ISBN 9781134597987.
- ISBN 9780791488904.
- ^ "An Archaeologist at Work in African Prehistory and Early Human Studies: Teamwork and Insight". www.oac.cdlib.org. Retrieved 2017-04-11.
- S2CID 163969200.
- ISBN 978-0-89281-132-8
- ^
Monier-Williams, Monier (1899), A Sanskrit-English Dictionary, Delhi
{{citation}}
: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link). See also Apte, Vaman Shivram (1965), The Practical Sanskrit Dictionary (Fourth revised and enlarged ed.), Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass Publishers,ISBN 81-208-0567-4: "1) that which restrains or fastens, any prop or support; 2) "a fetter", 4) any instrument or machine", [...] 7) "an amulet, a mystical or astronomical diagram used as an amulet"; White 1996, p. 481; - ISBN 978-1-135-18978-5.
- ^ ISBN 0-02-865997-X.
- ^ ISBN 90-04-12902-2.
- ^ ISBN 90-04-12902-2.
- ISBN 978-0-89281-132-8
- ^ "What Are Yantras and How Can They Benefit Me?". The Isha Blog. 2014-08-09. Retrieved 2017-04-11.
- ISBN 90-04-12902-2.
- ^ "สักยันต์". thai-language.com. Retrieved 2015-02-05.
- ^ "Sak Yant – Magic Tattoo | Thai Guide to Thailand". Archived from the original on 2011-10-01. Retrieved 2021-04-13.
- ^ "Projects". Soundarya Lahari Trust. Retrieved 2022-01-18.
Further reading
- Rana, Deepak (2012), Yantra, Mantra and Tantrism, USA: Neepradaka Press, ISBN 978-0-9564928-3-8
- Bucknell, Roderick; Stuart-Fox, Martin (1986), The Twilight Language: Explorations in Buddhist Meditation and Symbolism, London: Curzon Press, ISBN 0-312-82540-4
- ISBN 978-0-89281-132-8
- White, David Gordon (1996), The Alchemical Body: Siddha Traditions in Medieval India, Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, ISBN 0-226-89499-1
External links
- Quotations related to Yantra at Wikiquote
- Media related to Yantra at Wikimedia Commons
- web
.stanford .edu /class /history11sc /pdfs /yantra .pdf