Shaiva Kali: One Hundred and Four

In this state, no separation remains. Shiva and Shakti, knowledge and action, thought and expression—all dissolve into one inner reality. Just as a river loses its name when it merges with the sea, here all actions, thoughts, and experiences merge into the current of one supreme consciousness. Hence it is said: "Where Shiva and Shakti, doer and deed, stillness and movement—all are dissolved in the same inner substratum."

By "inner substratum" or "underlying foundation" is meant that one supreme consciousness in which the entire creation, movement, thought, knowledge, and action—everything is silently contained. This consciousness cannot be seen with eyes, yet nothing exists beyond it; just as waves appear separate but are actually forms of water itself, so all forms of the world, all actions, all dualities are manifestations of this one consciousness.

In the language of Tantra and Kashmir Shaivism, this is called Chittattva or supreme consciousness—who creates by himself, experiences by himself, and finally draws everything back into himself. This consciousness simultaneously holds two aspects—Prakasha (luminous radiance) and Vimarsha (power of self-awareness). When consciousness perceives its own radiance through its own vision, creation occurs; and when it turns back toward itself, dissolution happens. Thus the entire universe is actually the unfoldment and reabsorption of this consciousness—no independent reality exists outside it.

This underlying foundation symbolizes such a state where all divisions, differences, and opposites actually take the form of one eternal play. Here Shiva is no longer inactive, nor is Shakti a separate active power; both are two aspects of one indivisible consciousness. Stillness expresses itself in movement, and movement rests itself in stillness. In this very state emerges the supreme equilibrium of consciousness—where Shiva's silence and Shakti's vibration are reflections of each other.

This state of union is called Kulattva. "Kula" means unity or beings bound in one thread, and "tattva" means that fundamental principle which lies hidden behind all divisions. In Kulattva, creation and dissolution, effect and cause, Purusha and Prakriti, sound and silence—all become one. Nothing separate remains here; everything is one unbroken current, one inner reality, where Shiva and Shakti, knowledge and action, thought and expression—all merge into one continuous luminous flow.

The "inner substratum" is actually that supreme consciousness who creates shadows of duality in his own play, and again draws those very shadows into himself. This is an infinite cycle—of manifestation and return, of movement and rest, of creation and silence—where every movement is the Goddess's breath, and every stillness is Shiva's eternal peace.

Kaulikī or Visarga is that level of consciousness where every movement of the universe, every change is like the Goddess's breath—and every stillness, every silence is like Shiva's inner being. Together they create an unceasing unity-dance, where creation and dissolution, extroversion and introversion, inhalation and exhalation—all are merged in the eternal rhythm of one consciousness.

When consciousness has not yet manifested itself—when it is not expressed in any form, sound, movement, or thought of the world—that state is called Mātrisadbhāva. "Mātrisadbhāva" means "maternal being" or "womb-like state"—where the seeds of all creation exist silently, in unmanifest condition. This is that supreme level where consciousness is still dormant, but within it countless possibilities pulse in hiding—like the first stirring of life before breath is infused in the womb.

At this level of Mātrisadbhāva, there is no sound, but the seed of all sounds exists; there is no form, but the potential for all forms floats like silent radiance. As if infinite silent space conceals the dawn of countless universes—which have not yet manifested, but are ready to awaken moment by moment. This is that position where "nāda" (vibration of sound) and "bindu" (center of form) are still inseparably united, and the Goddess exists merely as the womb of possibility.

Tantra says this Mātrisadbhāva is the primordial state of creation—the silent womb of Parashakti. From here everything is born—sound, letters, thought, world, and deities—all unfold from the seeds contained in this silent womb. Therefore Mātrisadbhāva is not merely a goddess; she is that great womb of existence where manifestation and non-manifestation, waking and sleep, possibility and reality—all abide in one ineffable unity.

At this level consciousness is as if silent yet radiant—glowing within itself, but that light has not yet taken any shape. Mātrisadbhāva is thus the supreme interiority of consciousness, from which the first sound of the world springs, the first vibration is born, the first form awakens. Within her, creation is still possibility, and within possibility lies all creation—where silence itself is the supreme word, and the ineffable is the highest expression.

If we separate these four forms, the principle breaks apart; seeing them together reveals—they are four aspects of the same power: Tripurasundarī the beauty of manifestation, Kālī the mystery of return, Kaulikī the rhythm of constant circulation, and Mātrisadbhāva the womb of primordial possibility. Thus the conclusion is one—consciousness is one, forms are many; just as one sun reflects in different waters in different colors, so the same supreme power expresses itself in various names, various practices, various philosophical languages. For this reason Tantra says—the divisions of name and form are for instruction; at the peak of experience they all merge into one non-dual bliss, where each name of the Goddess is a mirror of the other, and all mirrors together reflect just one face—that of the indivisible supreme consciousness.

In the Bāmakeśvara tradition, the Goddess is called Tripurasundarī, meaning "She who presides over the beauty of the three cities" or "the supreme beloved dwelling within the three worlds." But here the word "Tripura" is not merely the name of three geographical worlds—Bhū, Bhuvaḥ, Svaḥ—these three also have deeper philosophical meaning.

"Bhū" means the gross world, that is, the material world—which we see, touch, and experience with our senses; this is consciousness's outward expression.

"Bhuvaḥ" means the subtle world, that is, the mental and emotional level—the field of thought, imagination, memory, and feelings; this is the intermediate level of consciousness.

And "Svaḥ" means the causal world, that is, the unconscious or seed state—from which thought and form arise, and into which they also dissolve; this is consciousness's most subtle, almost silent level.

Therefore the word "Tripura" indicates not just three worlds, but also three levels of consciousness—jāgrat (waking or conscious state), svapna (dream state or inner thought-world), and suṣupti (deep sleep or subconscious peace).

These three states are the three stages of human experience. In waking, consciousness becomes outward like the Bhū world and touches the world; in dreams it enters the inner world like the Bhuvaḥ level, expressing itself in forms of imagination and thought; and in deep sleep it merges into silent rest like the Svaḥ level, where all differences disappear.

But behind these three states dwells one eternal being—who never wakes, never sleeps, never dreams; rather remains eternally awake through all three states. She is Tripurasundarī.

That is, Tripurasundarī is that Goddess who expresses her beauty through these three levels—in waking she is the beauty of forms, in dreams the beauty of thoughts, and in deep sleep the beauty of silent peace. All three levels are her manifestation; all three worlds are her play. The state in which these three levels are unified and all differences dissolve is Turīya—the fourth and ultimate level of consciousness, where only supreme bliss (ānanda-bodha) dwells.

Therefore Tripurasundarī is not merely the goddess of worldly beauty; she is that non-dual consciousness who flows through Bhū, Bhuvaḥ, Svaḥ—these three worlds and three consciousness-states—yet remains established beyond them. Her beauty is not external; it is that inner radiance which burns equally in the light of waking, the imagination of dreams, and the silent darkness of deep sleep. Hence she is called Tripurasundarī—that One blazing within the three cities, who is the eternal beauty of consciousness at the heart of all experience.

Tripurasundarī is the symbol of that inner unity of consciousness manifested through these three states, where all levels are bound in one thread. That is, she is that beauty which flows through each level and leads them to supreme unity. In the waking state she shines in the forms of the outer world, in dreams in forms of imagination, and in deep sleep in the form of silent consciousness—but in all three states she is one and indivisible.

In Bāmakeśvara philosophy, therefore, Tripurasundarī means such a consciousness-power who transcends the limits of the three levels and is established in the fourth state—Turīya. That Turīya itself is the true supreme beauty, where there is no division, no duality—only one radiant, peaceful, blissful consciousness.

For this reason she is called "Sundarī," because she is the very form of beauty—that beauty which is not external, but consciousness's own radiance, which illuminates world, mind, and soul together. Tripurasundarī is thus that Goddess who integrates the three consciousness-levels of waking, dream, and deep sleep into one non-dual bliss.

In the Sāra method, the Goddess is called Sārā—meaning "essence-principle" or "the essential being of root consciousness." The word "Sārā" comes from the Sanskrit root sṛ (saraṇa) or sṛṣ (living self-flow), meaning 'to flow', 'inner current', or 'essential being'. For this reason "Sārā" means that essence of consciousness which flows silently behind all forms, names, sounds, thoughts, and actions.

The Sāra method says that whatever diversity is seen in the world—sound, form, time, space—all are manifestations of this one consciousness, but their underlying root or essence is everywhere the same. Just as flower, fruit, leaf—all are different yet at their root is the same sap that keeps the plant alive; similarly at the depth of every form, deity, feeling, or principle in the universe lies one living being—Sārā, that inner essence of life.

This Sārā state is the inner unity-form of consciousness, where there is no division—where Shiva and Shakti, manifestation and silence, knowledge and action become one. The Sāra method is therefore not merely philosophical explanation; it is a path of experience—where the practitioner concentrates mind, senses, and thoughts to unite with that one essential consciousness.

In Tantra it is said—"Sārā consciousness alone extends everywhere." That is, this essence is the life of the universe, the silent flow of Goddess-form power.

Therefore in the Sāra method, Goddess Sārā means not merely any specific form; she is that essential being who pulsates in one infinite unity at the heart of all forms and sounds. In her lies the source of all principles, and in her all dissolution. She is the essential-form Goddess of consciousness—in whose presence the world lives, thought awakens, and life flows.

In the Kula or Kaula tradition, the Goddess is called Kaulikī or Visarga—here her form is like the breath of consciousness, where creation and dissolution are joined in one unbroken flow. In this form the Goddess is no longer any "external power"; she is consciousness's own natural movement, its own circulation—like the unceasing rhythm of inhaling and exhaling breath.