Varṇa Māla Key Ideas of Mantra Śāstra (Understanding Arthur Avalon - A SRISTI Study Series Volume I)

What is a mantra? Is it a sacred formula? A psychological affirmation? A symbolic ritual sound?

In the classical doctrine explored by Arthur Avalon, mantra is something far more precise: It is the structural relation between sound and awareness.

Varṇa Māla – Key Ideas of Mantra Śāstra presents a guided study of the philosophical foundations underlying the Sanskrit alphabet (Varṇamālā) and its role in shaping cognition. Drawing from traditional sources—grammatical, Upaniṣadic, Tantric, and yogic—this volume reorganizes complex metaphysical arguments into a clear and progressive study framework.

The Book Explores:

• The four levels of speech (Parā, Paśyantī, Madhyamā, Vaikharī)
• The alphabet as differentiation of awareness
• The function of repetition (Japa) in stabilizing attention
• The transformation of sound into perception
• The progressive internalization of mantra practice

Designed for serious students, practitioners, and scholars alike, this companion volume does not replace Arthur Avalon’s work—it prepares the reader to understand it. By bridging classical doctrine and experiential observation, this book invites the reader to examine a central claim of mantra-śāstra: Sound does not merely describe experience—it participates in forming it.

About the Author

Agasthiya Kulapathi Śrī Śakthi Sumanan is a traditional Śrīvidyā and Kaula practitioner with over three decades of Devī Upāsanā and Tantric sādhana. Founder of SRISHTI (Sri Shakti Sumanan Institute), he integrates classical Sanskrit sources and Arthur Avalon's works into structured teaching, presenting mantra-śāstra with textual fidelity, experiential clarity, and pedagogical precision.

Binding Type: Paperback