vamachara

plural vamacharas · alternative vāmācāra · alternative vāmāchāra · alternative Vamachara

1. countableuncountabletantric religionlifestyleA path to bliss through practices, including meat-eating, breaking social taboos and indulging in sex and intoxicants, that are sometimes considered immoral.

   The other vamachara does indeed exist here with all its objectionable practices, in the name of the worship of innumerable petty female deities such as Mariyamman.

   1977, Saiva Siddhanta, volume 12, page 65

   2 more examples

   2002, Vamachara, entry in James G. Lochtefeld, The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Hinduism: N-Z, page 736, Within the tantric tradiion itself there is a long-standing debate about the propriety of such acts, and whereas the vamachara practice uses these elements in their actual forms, in the dakshinachara ("right-hand") practice other items are substituted for the forbidden ones.

   She also predicted the tantric sadhanas I would do in the future, both vamachara and dakshinachara. ‘Vamachara? I have no such plan, Mother.’ 'You will have to do lata sadhan, mahacheen kram, kaulik sadhana and mahamudra.' She laughed, for she had just named sadhanas that required a female consort.

   2014, Om Swami, If Truth Be Told: A Monk's Memoir, unnumbered page

2. countableAny such path, set of practices or individual practice.

   It is said that one is born into one of the dakshinacharas, but that one must be initiated into any of the vamacharas.

   2012, Stephen E. Flowers, Lords of the Left-Hand Path: Forbidden Practices and Spiritual Heresies, unnumbered page

   2 more examples

   Side by side with popular saivism, which was being guided by tantras, including those of vamacharas, from a fairly earl[y] period[…].

   1981, Ca. Vē Cuppiramaṇiyan̲, S. V. Subramanian, Na Kaṭikācalam, editors, Literary Heritage of the Tamils, page 367

   […]he strongly reproves the yogic ideal of rejection of household life, indulgence in mortification of the body and the vamacharas for the realisation of so-called Mahasukha.

   1994, H. Kumar Kaul, Aspects of yoga, page 201

   Synonyms: vamamarga

plural Vamacharas

1. alternativeAlternative form of vamachara.

   The Aryanised socio-religious culture had degenerated into Vamachara Tantric practices, the cult of sex and palate.

   1993, Binay Bhattacharya, Kamakhya Hills and Elsewhere, page 9

   2 more examples

   The Dravidians, mild inhabitants of India, worshipped Pitrus (forefathers) and other iconographic representations of deity, emphasizing the hierophantic side of worshipping idols, which included Vamacharas, left-hand practices of the Shakti cult, etc.

   1970, Curran De Bruler, Nataraja Guru, Unitive Understanding, page 58

   "The initiated Bhatta (Kashmiri Brahmin) bent upon taking liquor, being addicted to Vamachara by which the pride of his own clan has been set at naught, with a plate of fish in his hand, approaches the house of his teacher[…]."

   1975, K. N. Dhar, Glimpses of Kashmiri Culture, volume 3, page 67

2. tantric religionlifestyleA follower of the vamachara path.

   The Vamacharas follow texts like Kularnava, Kamika, and the Parasurama agamas among others.

   2009, V. R. Parthasarathy, Indu Parthasarathy, Devi: goddesses in Indian art and literature, page 65

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   The Dakshinacharas emphasised the male principle while the Vamacharas paid more attention to the female principle. But, both exalted sex to a religious principle.

   1967, K. Damodaran, Indian Thought: A Critical Survey, page 235

   Above all, in the medley of Aryans, Mongols and aborigines, which it created, it unconsciously led the way to some of the hideous Vamacharas.

   1993, Venkateswarier Subramaniam, Buddhist-Hindu Interactions: From Śakyamuni to Śankarācarya, page 73