Saiva schools and sects

[Guest guest]

I am in search for information about Saiva schools and sects. I know about the

great tradition of Kashmir Saivaism with many schools and sub-schools, and

about the Saiva

Siddhanta tradition of South India.

Are there other Saiva schools or sects?

 

Kind regards,

Alexandra

[Guest guest]

Dear Alexandra,

Veera Saivam is another famous Saiva school (or religion) which is

against the concept of varna/caste and many other beliefs of

traditional hinduism. However, in practise I learnt that this

religion is considered as a caste in India and followed only in

tradition and not in spirit (like most other religions, I might add!).

 

There is another major religion called Suddha sanmargam which

originated from Tamil Saiva Siddhanta, but it does not worship Shiva

or any other form of God. The major exponent of this religion is the

famous Saint Ramalinga Adigalar (www.vallalar.org). I am giving below

the salient features of Sanmargam as I understand it.

 

The goal of Sanmargam is to attain immortality with the human body

itself and it asserts that real moksha is attainment of immortality

with a deathless body. Ramalinga Adigalar attained immortality It

also declares that the concept of idol worship and varna are just

symbolisms and need not be followed. While Sanmargam holds vedas,

purans, Saiva Siddhanta literature etc to be true, it also accuses

vedas/puranas/scriptures of hiding the real truth behind mythical

locks and asserts that all other religious paths including vedanta

are just stepping stones to Sanmargam. As a result, Ramalinga

Adigalar asks his disciples to stop spending time in trying to break

the "locks" of vedas and puranic literature (like Mahabharatha,

Ramayana, etc) but to follow Sanmargam. A fundamental philosophy of

this path is that there is only one god who permeates everything and

is to be seen in the form of divine grace light. True compassion

towards all jeevas (plants and animals) and sincere bhakthi is

necessary to bring in grace of God by which deathlessness can be

attained. A person that attains deathless body dissolves into

ether/space. They will NOT leave their body behind. From Agastya,

Thirumoolar, Bogar, Babaji (paramguru of Yogananda), Madhavacharya,

Adi Shankara, nayanmars of Saiva Siddhanta tradition, to Ramalinga

Adigalar, many have attained such deathlessness (they never left

their physical body dead - they just disappeared). The classic

Thiruarutpa narrates each stage in attaining deathlessness and the

first stage is attainment of suddha deham (or pure body). It says

such a body will not cast its shadow on earth. Indeed, many saints

never left their shadow and neither can be photographed (Modern

examples: Lahiri Mahasaya - Paramguru of Paramahansa Yogananda,

Ramalinga Adigalar, etc.) In final stages, the physical body cannot

be seen by ordinary eyes, and the person disappears! Sanmargam

declares that those saints that leave a dead body will be born again

but in higher lokhas and havent attained final moksha.

 

There are also other forms of Saiva Siddhanta which are referred to

in centuries old classical texts in Tamil. However, I am not aware of

those and they dont have any mass following currently.

 

-Siva.

 

-- In , "Alexandra Kafka"

<alexandra.kafka@a...> wrote:

> I am in search for information about Saiva schools and sects. I

know about the great tradition of Kashmir Saivaism with many schools

and sub-schools, and about the Saiva

> Siddhanta tradition of South India.

> Are there other Saiva schools or sects?

>

> Kind regards,

> Alexandra