Uḍḍiyāna looms large in early Krama scriptures, as does its karavīra charnel ground, which is vividly depicted in the Kālīkuladevīpañcaśataka and Kālīkulakramasadbhāva. This paper looks closely at the way Uḍḍiyāna is envisioned as a powerful seat of Kālī and her sacrificial assembly, and a site of revelation in the Krama tradition, particularly in the lineage inaugurated by Jñānanetra in the ninth-century. This will include a look at later Krama sources that creatively invoke the presence of Uḍḍiyāna through hymns and ritual practice.
About the Speaker
Ben Williams is an intellectual historian focused on South Asian religions and the history of Śaiva tantra. He has received extensive training in Indian philosophy, literature, and aesthetics in Sanskrit sources and completed his PhD in the Department of South Asian Studies at Harvard University. Ben is currently an Associate Professor of Hinduism at Naropa University, and serves as the faculty lead for Naropa’s MA program in Yoga Studies.
In 2025, Ben became the first scholar-in-residence for the Muktabodha Indological Research Institute, where he is guiding a number of initiatives related to the preservation of Sanskrit texts. This position coincides with the funding of a Muktabodha Chair of Yoga Studies at Naropa University, which Ben will hold until Spring 2028.
