The Kalacakra Tantra Vol. II

Contents: Foreword. Preface. 1. Birth of Individual Avatara and Winds. 2. Prolegomena on Cakras. 3. Prolegomena on Nadi. 4. Prognosis of Signs of Death. 5. Hatha-Yoga, Medicine, Perfumery and Midwifery. 6. Logical Analysis of Other Doctrines. Bibliography. Index.

The Kalacakra Tantra was the last major Tantric text composed before the decline of Buddhism in India. Over the course of its thousand-year journey, the book has left an indelible influence over different regions of Asia. Apart from the Vimalaprabha commentary composed during the mid-eleventh century, no verse-by-verse commentary is available to the general reader. Kumar has translated the entire 1,047 stanzas of the text written in Sragdhara metre. In addition, he has produced distinct volumes of fresh, in-depth commentary for each of the five chapters of the original Sanskrit text. The first volume was published in 2022.

This second volume delves into the understanding of the inner Kalacakra. The internal mechanisms of winds, subtle veins and cakras have been explored with clarity. In Indic tradition, hatha-yoga has been propounded for the first time in this section of the Kalacakra Tantra. Likewise, it contains the first Indian critique of the tenets of Islamic philosophy. This volume also examines several methods to calibrate the biomechanics of prana-vayu to defer the impending death.