Pañcharatnēśvarī Vidhi

 

Pañcaratneśvarī Vidhi is followed by upāsakas of both śrī and Kālī kulas. Before the Japa of the Mūlamantra, a group of five vidyās called Pañcaratneśvarī (five gems) is recited. The original procedure is to perform a round of puraścaraṇa of the Mūlamantra (ṣoḍaśī, Dakṣiṇā Kālī or Guhyakālī), followed by a round of puraścaraṇa for each of the five mantras from the Pañcaratneśvarī group and then perform the second puraścaraṇa of the Mūlamantra again. During everyday Japa, this is symbolically replaced by a customary Japa of the five mantras before the Japa of the mūlamantra.

These five mantras are said to purify respectively the physical, mental, emotional, astral, and transcendental bodies. Alternately, they accomplish the task of pañca-tattva śuddhi. They also aid the upāsaka by establishing mastery over the five senses and the five elements. They also protect the sādhaka from five kinds of dangers and obstacles.

In śrīkula tantra, the Pañcaratneśvarī vidhi includes the below five mantras:

1. Mukhya Pañcadaśī
2. Mahāṣoḍaśī
3. Bālā (eight letters)
4. Sumukhī (twenty-five letters)
5. Ugratārā (sixteen letters)

The above list is seen in Trikūṭā Tahasya and Parā Tantra (I have written earlier about these mantras). A slightly different list followed in my Saṃpradāya is seen in Bṛhadbaḍabānala Tantra and Sundarī Rahasya.

In the context of Kālī-kula followed especially by adherents of Kashmir Shaivism, the five mantras recited are:

1. Mūladurgā (eight letters)
2. śāradā (seventeen letters)
3. śārikā (thirteen letters)
4. Sumukhī (twenty-five letters)
5. Bagalāmukhī (thirty-four letters)

The list from Kālī-khaṇḍa of Rudrayāmala and Kabandha Tantra replaces śāradā and śārikā with Bhadrakālī and śabarī.

 

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