Illness and Immortality: Mantra, Mandala, and Meditation in the Netra Tantra

The Netra Tantra is a medieval Sanskrit text that explores health and healing through a yogic practice dedicated to chanting mantras, building mandalas, and meditation. Patricia Sauthoff examines the role of ritual elements in rites to alleviate illness and death, analyzing the forms of the deity Amrtesa or Mrtyuñjaya, the nature of mantra, and the relationship between the tantric practitioner and the patient. The study explores what is meant by immortality within the medieval context and how one attains it, focusing on the conception of a body vulnerable to demons and reliant on deities for continued existence. The book offers new translations of large sections of the Netra Tantra, providing readers with various points of entry into the text.

Format: Hardback
Length: 232 pages
Publication date: 29 April 2022
Publisher: Oxford University Press Inc

Illness and Immortality delves into a medieval Sanskrit text, the Netra Tantra, which focuses on health and healing through a yogic practice centered around mantra chanting, mandala creation, and meditation. Patricia Sauthoff explores the significance of these ritual elements in rites aimed at alleviating illness and death. She conducts an in-depth analysis of the deity Amrtesa or Mrtyuñjaya (Conqueror of Death), the nature of mantras, and the relationship between the tantric practitioner and the patient. This work examines the concept of immortality within the medieval context and provides insights into the path to attaining it. It raises questions about how ritual can alleviate illness, the role of the deity in health and healing, and who has access to the rites described within the text.

At the core of this study lies the notion of a body vulnerable to demons and reliant on deities for its continued existence. The three yogic bodies, namely sthula, suksma, and para, play a vital role in promoting physical and spiritual well-being. The book features new translations of significant portions of the Netra Tantra, making it accessible to tantric practitioners and scholars alike. By offering various entry points into the text, readers can delve into the influential and important concepts and practices found within this long-revered but under-studied work.

Dimension: 235 x 156 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780197553268