Kiss of the yoginī: ''Tantric sex'' in its South Asian contexts

393 Pages·2006·5.108 MB·English

by  White, David Gordon

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Kiss
Yogin¯ı
of the
M
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Kiss
Yogin¯ı
of the
“TANTRIC SEX” IN ITS SOUTH ASIAN CONTEXTS
M
David Gordon White
THE UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO PRESS
CHICAGO AND LONDON
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The University of Chicago Press, Chicago 60637
The University of Chicago Press, Ltd., London
© 2003 by The University of Chicago
All rights reserved. Published 2003
Paperback edition 2006
Printed in the United States of America
Kamil Zvelebil’s translation of the late medieval Tamil poem the
Ka¯mapa¯naca¯stiram(“Treatise on the Arrow of Lust”) on pp.74–75
was previously published in The Siddha Quest for Immortality: Sexual,
Alchemical and Medical Secrets of the Tamil Siddhas.Oxford: Mandrake
of Oxford (1996).
11 10 09 08 07 06 2 3 4 5
isbn0-226-89483-5 (cloth)
isbn0-226-89484-3 (paperback)
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
White, David Gordon.
Kiss of the yogin¯ı: “Tantric Sex” in its South Asian contexts / David
Gordon White.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
isbn0-226-89483-5 (cloth : alk. paper)
1. Tantrism—South Asia. 2. Sex—Religious aspects—Tantrism.
I. Title.
bl1283.842 .w45 2003
294.5(cid:2)514(cid:2)0954—dc21 2002029031
(cid:2)(cid:3)
The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of the
American National Standard for Information Sciences—Permanence of Paper
for Printed Library Materials, ansi z39.48-1992.
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mama ma¯tr.pitr.bhya¯m. yayor dravyair vina¯idam. pustakam. na¯sambhavis.yat
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Contents
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List of Illustrations ix
Preface xi
Note on Transliteration xvii
Abbreviations of Titles of Sanskrit Works xix
1. Tantra in Its South Asian Contexts 1
2. The Origins of the Yogin¯ı: Bird, Animal and Tree Goddesses
and Demonesses in South Asia 27
3. The Blood of the Yogin¯ı: Vital and Sexual Fluids in South Asian
Thought and Practice 67
4. The Mouth of the Yogin¯ı: Sexual Transactions in Tantric Ritual 94
5. The Power of the Yogin¯ı: Tantric Actors in South Asia 123
6. The Consort of the Yogin¯ı: South Asian Siddha Cults and
Traditions 160
7. The Flight of the Yogin¯ı: Fueling the Flight of Tantric Witches 188
8. The Sublimation of the Yogin¯ı: The Subordination of the
Feminine in High Hindu Tantra 219
9. Tantra for the New Millennium 258
Notes 273
Bibliography 335
Index 357
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Illustrations
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1.a. Goddess Can.d.ika¯, riding a corpse 9
2.a. Childbirth scene 42
2.b. Bird-headed Grah¯ı 43
2.c. Goddess shrine beneath kheja.ratree 56
4.a. Ka¯makala¯yantra according to the S´ilpa Praka¯s´a 95
4.b. Ka¯makala¯yantra superimposed upon erotic sculpture 98
4.c. Initiate collecting sexual fluids 107
4.d. Yonipu¯ja¯,“Veneration of the Vulva” 110
4.e. Female sexual display 111
4.f. Ka¯l¯ıand Ta¯ra¯venerating S´iva as a lin˙gam 119
5.a. Rajasthani kuladev¯ıs and popular goddesses 128
5.b. Navadurga¯masks 130
5.c. Khod.¯ıya¯r, kuladev¯ıof the medieval Cu¯d.a¯sama¯dynasty 131
5.d. Detail from image of Bha¯vna¯Yogin¯ı 138
5.e. Orgy scene 145
6.a. Rajput prince kneeling before Na¯th Siddha 170
6.b. Tha¯n.¯ıYogin¯ı 172
6.c. Siddhaloka 176
6.d. Seated yogin 178
7.a. Cobra-headed Yogin¯ı 190
7.b. Veta¯la-possessed corpse looking up at Yogin¯ıfor
whom it is a vehicle 205
7.c. Animal- or bird-headed Yogin¯ı 206
7.d. Yogin¯ıbeating a drum 208 ix