Agama Susama (Glimpses of the National Seminar on Agamas)

Pages: 276

Foreword
Agamas are known to be the reservoir of knowledge an Upasana as an important component of

Sadhana Marga. They are believed to provide a synthesis of Karma Marga and Jnana Marga.

Agamas have also become the main source-material on what may be described as Temple Culture,

- which consists of themes, such as, the principles of Temple construction, rules and norms

for installation of the Idol in the garbhagriha of the Temple, methods, techniques and

modalities of worship, including the rules and norms for conduct of rituals, special Utsavas

etc. and various Tantras aimed at realization of specific phalas. The etymological meaning

of Agama signifies that Agama Sastra is a compendium of Dharma and Adharma and it provides

useful guidelines for purusing Dharma Marga in practical life.

Agamas are highly diversified in terms of their basic tenets and practices. We have

Vaisnava Agamas, Saiva Agamas and Sakta Agamas. Even in the Vaisnava tradition, we have two

main streams of approaches viz Pancaratra Agama and Vaikhanasa Agama.

Different forms of Upasana Kramas are conceived and prescribed in Agama Sastra. Sri

Madhvacharya, provides an interesting rationale for these different categories of Upasana

karmas. While commenting on the Brahma Sutra.

In his Brahma Sutra Bhasya, Acharya states as follows :
Thus, the variance in Upasanas is due to the differences in the of different

Upasakas. The modality of doing Upasana through the idols of the Lord, pertains to those who

are not fully accompalished with true knowledge. We all belong to the category of and hence

worship of the deity in the form of Idols is prescribed.

It is asserted in the Aga