“Bisarga”—the lexical meaning of this word is emission or flowing forth. Tantra declares that bisarga is the very pulse of consciousness—where in one breath creation occurs (emanation), and in the next breath everything returns to its source (withdrawal). That is to say, Goddess Kaulikī is that power who abides within this breathing rhythm of consciousness.
The word “Kaulikī” derives from “kula.” “Kula” means a unity bound by one thread, where no duality exists; all opposing aspects dissolve into one another. In Kaula philosophy, Śiva and Śakti are not separate—they are two interdependent aspects of the same consciousness. Just as Śiva’s stillness is expressed through Śakti’s movement, so Śakti’s movement finds rest again in Śiva’s silence. This mutual fusion is “kula”—and the living manifestation of that unity is Goddess Kaulikī.
In her state, creation and dissolution are not two different processes, but rather two aspects of one continuous līlā. Creation means consciousness’s outward movement, and dissolution means its inward return—both are the breathing rhythm of the same cadence. Thus Goddess Kaulikī is actually that great breath of consciousness, within which the world is being born every moment and returning to its source every moment.
In the Kaula or Kula tradition, Kaulikī is the living form of non-duality—she who merges Śiva and Śakti, puruṣa and prakṛti, stillness and movement, creation and dissolution into one indivisible unity. In her, consciousness is not a static entity; it is infinite movement—a rhythm, a breath, an unceasing bisarga—where Śiva and Śakti are eternally breathing in and breathing out within each other.
In the Mālinīvijayottara Tantra, the Goddess is called Mātṛ-sadbhāva—meaning “Mother-essence” or “maternal consciousness,” who is the source-mother of all goddesses, all powers, even all thoughts and consciousness. In this form, the Goddess is not the manifestation of any particular power; she is the source of all powers, that great maternal consciousness from whose depths the entire universe is born, develops, and finally dissolves back into her.
The word “sadbhāva” means existence or abiding in one’s true nature. Thus “Mātṛ-sadbhāva” means that essential state of maternal consciousness—where consciousness is not yet manifested, but is full of infinite possibilities. She is like the silent womb before creation—where every goddess, every principle, every sound and form still slumbers in seed-form as potential.
Tantra says, “All powers existing in Mātṛ-sadbhāva are reflections of each other.” At this level, Kālī, Tripurasundarī, Kaulikī, Sarā—all goddesses lose their separate forms and merge into one supreme source. For Mātṛ-sadbhāva is that primordial power who has hidden within herself the seeds of all manifestation.
In this state, the Goddess is like a vast silent ocean—where waves have not yet risen, but the possibility of waves silently radiates with luminosity. From here sound breaks forth, forms are born, thoughts and deities emerge. Thus she is called “Sarvaśakti-jananī” (mother of all powers), for she is the source and sustainer of all powers.
The Mātṛ-sadbhāva of the Mālinīvijayottara Tantra means that great maternal consciousness who is the womb-form of all creation—from whom the sounds, forms, thoughts, time, and deities of the external world are all born. She is not merely the mother of powers, but the supreme primordial form of consciousness itself—silent, unmanifested, yet full of infinite radiance, that “maternal essence” who herself is the great power luminous at the root of all powers.
These various names or forms cannot be seen as separate from one another, because each is a different manifestation of the same supreme power of consciousness. Just as Tripurasundarī is the manifestation of consciousness’s beauty, so Kaulikī is of its movement, and Mātṛ-sadbhāva is the symbol of its primordial state. All of them together convey that power is actually consciousness’s own dance, its own blissful reflection.
This is why it is said that the seventeenth kalā of the Krama path, which is consciousness’s highest level or summit, is not the limited part of any particular philosophy. It is the point of convergence of the entire tantric worldview—where all goddesses, all forms, all philosophies come and unite in one consciousness. Here Tripurasundarī and Kālī, Kaulikī and Mātṛ-sadbhāva are not different; they are various radiances of one supreme being, like countless reflections of one light.
Kālī in Krama philosophy is not merely a goddess of rituals, customs, or symbols; she is the living manifestation of that identical supreme consciousness in which time, power, knowledge, creation and dissolution—all are mingled together. The seventeenth kalā is that ultimate phase of consciousness where all these different streams come and unite in one unbroken experience—where neither Śiva is separate nor Kālī separate; both are reflections of each other’s consciousness—this is called the tantric manifestation of advaita philosophy.
The tantric manifestation of advaita philosophy is actually the description of that state where “the one and non-dual consciousness” (ekam evādvitīyam—Chāndogya Upaniṣad, 6.2.1) is revealed not as a static, abstract concept, but as living and experiential reality. Where Vedanta says Brahman is still and formless, tantra says—Brahman itself is consciousness’s vibration (spanda-tattva), meaning Śiva’s silence and Śakti’s movement are united within each other.
In Advaita Vedanta it is said—”Brahma satyaṃ jagam mithyā, jīvo brahmaiva nāparaḥ” (Śaṅkara-bhāṣya, Brahma-sūtra, 2.1.14). That is, Brahman alone is real, the world is māyā or apparent. In this view Brahman is still, formless, unchanging, and the world is merely a covering of ignorance upon it.
But tantra, especially Kashmir Śaiva philosophy, throws completely opposite light. Here the world is not called illusion, but rather the manifestation of consciousness—”chitir eva chitirūpiṇī śaktiḥ” (Tantrāloka, 1.99). That is, chitta or consciousness itself manifests as power to create the world. When this consciousness perceives itself, then creation occurs, and when it returns to its own depths, then dissolution.
In tantric non-dualism, Śiva and Śakti are not two separate entities; they are the stillness and movement of the same consciousness. Abhinavagupta has said—”naikātmyamātraṃ paramārthatattva” (Tantrāloka, 1.43)—meaning, the ultimate truth is unity, where division is merely a technique of expression.
Śiva is consciousness’s silent radiance (prakāśa), and Śakti is that radiance’s self-reflection or movement (vimarśa). These two aspects together complete consciousness.
Thus it is said—”śivaḥ śaktyāyukto yadi bhavati śaktaḥ prabhāvitum” (Tantrāloka, 1.5). That is, when Śiva is with Śakti, only then is he creative. Without Śakti, Śiva is merely static potential; Śakti alone gives him life and movement.
This unity-consciousness is the life of tantric non-dualism—where “inactive Śiva” and “active Śakti” are actually two rhythms of one consciousness, like inhalation and exhalation are two aspects of one breath.
Spanda-tattva—the dynamic non-dualism of consciousness. In Kashmir Śaiva philosophy the word “spanda” has special significance. “Spanda” means the inherent vibration of still consciousness, that spontaneous movement which never ceases. The Spanda-kārikā (1.2) says—”yad etad spanda-rūpaṃ chet tattvam tad īśvaraḥ.” That is, consciousness’s vibration itself is God, and in that vibration all creation and dissolution are contained.
Here non-dualism means not stillness; rather the inseparable union of stillness and movement. When consciousness is still, it is Śiva; and when it is moving, it is Śakti. These two states are complementary to each other—one cannot exist without the other.
The transformation of māyā—from illusion to līlā. In Vedanta, māyā is the power of ignorance that conceals truth. But in tantra, māyā is no illusion, but rather consciousness’s own creative power that manifests the world.
In Tantrāloka (3.78) it is said—”māyā tu śakti-rūpā svātantrya-līlā-bahulā.” That is, māyā is a līlā of power itself—consciousness’s blissful play, which creates many forms from within itself.
Therefore in tantric non-dualism, the world is not to be abandoned; the world itself is God’s dance of bliss. Liberation does not mean escaping from the world, but rather realizing unity while remaining in the world—that the world and Brahman are one and identical.
In tantra, liberation is not static nirvāṇa; it is a living experience where meditation’s silence and life’s dynamism are complete simultaneously. Here knowledge and action, meditation and līlā, silence and dance—all are manifestations of one consciousness.
In this state the practitioner realizes—”If you experience him in silence, he is Śiva; if you experience him in movement, he is Śakti; and both together are that one non-dual consciousness.”
This realization itself is known in tantra as “advaya-darśana”—where the distinction between seer, seeing, and seen disappears.
The tantric manifestation of advaita philosophy is the realization of such consciousness where Śiva’s silence and Śakti’s vibration become one. Brahman here is not static, but living; it is dancing in its own bliss, radiating, creating.
The Chāndogya Upaniṣad had said—”sad eva somya idam agra āsīt, ekam evādvitīyam”—”This universe is nothing but one singular being.” Tantra calls that singular being—chiti, parāśakti, mahākālī—who in silence is Śiva, and in vibration is the universe.
The tantric manifestation of advaita philosophy is that supreme experience where consciousness is dancing in its own līlā, transforming its own silence into its own song—and where the world, power, and Brahman—all have merged in one indivisible radiance, which Abhinavagupta called—”chitiḥ svātantrya-rūpā parameśvarī.”—consciousness itself is the supreme goddess, itself creation, itself the non-dual truth.
The identity of Kālī, Prajñāpāramitā and tantra: In the subtle analysis of the modern Kashmir Śaiva or tantric philosophy analyst Śivopādhyāya, this principle becomes even deeper. According to him, the supreme goddess Kālī of the Krama path and the Prajñāpāramitā of Buddhist tantra—these two goddess-concepts are actually two languages of the same non-dual consciousness. Both are symbols of such consciousness that knows itself within itself, contains itself, and realizes itself as the foundation of all experience and knowledge.
First let us see what Prajñāpāramitā is. The word means “the ultimate perfection of wisdom”—that is, such knowledge that transcends all limits, divisions and concepts to reach ultimate truth. The word “Prajñāpāramitā” is formed of two parts—Prajñā and Pāramitā. The meaning of each part is deep and symbolic, because these two together express the meaning of “ultimate completion of knowledge” or “mother of non-dual bodhi” in Mahāyāna Buddhist philosophy.
The first part Prajñā comes from the Sanskrit root ‘jñā’ (jñā), which means “to know,” “to understand,” or “to realize.” With this is joined the prefix “pra,” which means “completely,” “in a higher way,” or “internally.” Thus pra + jñā = prajñā, which means “complete knowledge,” “higher realization,” or “inner knowledge.” In Buddhist philosophy this prajñā is not ordinary knowledge; it is such an awakening that transcends the limits of objects and thoughts to realize the true nature of reality (tathatā or Suchness). Here the distinction between knower, knowledge, and known disappears, and consciousness sees itself in its own reflection.
The second part Pāramitā comes from the root word “pāra” (pāra), which means “the other shore,” “the other bank,” or “ultimate destination.” With this is joined the suffix –mitā (mitā), which means “attained” or “accomplished.” Thus pāra + mitā = pāramitā, which means “reaching the other shore,” “ultimate perfection,” or “consummation beyond limits.” In Buddhist terminology “pāramitā” means that perfect quality which transcends human finite thinking and limitations to reach the level of infinite consciousness—such as the six pāramitās: generosity, ethics, patience, energy, meditation and wisdom.