Abstract
The tantric texts dedicate special chapters to the search for nidhi (treasures). The vision of hidden treasures is considered to be a siddhi (supernatural ability) that occurs after many thousand rounds of mantra repetition and other rituals. Generally, nidhi is considered material treasures, i.e. gold, precious stones, and any other objects related to becoming wealthy. In JY, there is a strong link between nidhi and Kubera, and a particular form of Kālī, called Nidhīśvarī or Kuberajananī, from JY.4.54, once propitiated, bestows the treasures to the sādhakas. Another aspect, closer to the visionary nature of the experiences leading to finding treasures, shall allow us to bring in the JY materials on the altered states of consciousness, where the visionary switch happens in particular conditions after particular auditive and physical forerunning signs. We shall discover how nidhi fits among other consciousness-altering practices such as āveśa/svasthāveśa, khorika, prasena. The prescriptive JY shall be compared to the flowery Kathāsāritsāgara, a text recompiled by Somadeva in the late 11th century Kashmir, reusing some contemporary tantric references and materials.
About the speaker
Olga Serbaeva completed her PhD on yoginīs in Śaiva Purāṇas and Tantras at Lausanne, followed by a habilitation at Zurich on the Vidyāpīṭha Tantras. She publishes and lectures widely in Russian, German, English and French, and is a well known expert in the voluminous Jayadrathayāmala compendium, a key source for the non-dual Śaivism of Kashmir. Her research interests include Śaiva Tantric texts, yoginīs, conceptualisation of the feminine in Indian traditions, and the transcreations of Indian concepts related to altered states of consciousness in contemporary Europe. She also designs and develops databases at various Universities and creates applications and performs data analysis for Humanities research projects.
Watch the Recording
https://podcasts.ox.ac.uk/embed/cb40f7d5-d3f8-444c-a5c2-06e1d51f2603
