Tantra Sara: The Essence of Tantra (A Poetic Rendering)

Tantra Sara, “The Essence of Tantra”, was composed by Abhinivagupta as an encapsulation of his entire philosophy. Abhinivagupta lived sometime during the period of 900-1050 CE, and spent most of his life in Kashmir. He is often considered the foremost exponent of the school known as Kashmir Shaivism.

The Tantra Sara, as the term “sara” indicates, is the “essence” of tantra, of Abhinivagupta’s philosophy. In its 22 chapters, we are presented with a darsana, a vision, in which all and everything is woven into a complete tapestry of spirituality. Tantra Sara is extremely terse and replete with the technical terms. This is demonstrative of Abhinivagupta’s genius; consciousness and Nature are described in extraordinary detail. He was a scientist of spirituality in the highest degree.