The Heart of the Yogini

This is not correct. Dr. Teun Goudriaan has placed it in the proper context. Among the commentators of the Nityashodashikarnava a foundational text of the Tripura tradition, he has listed names such as Lakshmana, Gaurikanta, Shankanandanatha, and Shriharsha Dikshit. This is also not accurate. Lakshmana (Lakshmidhara) and Gaurikanta are commentators on the Saundaryalahari, and Shriharsha Dikshit is a commentator on the Sharadatilaka, not the Nityashodashikarnava. Shankanandanatha is a paddhatikara author of a ritual manual; he is an interpreter of the Jnanarnava Tantra. This statement referring to the attribution of these authors to the Nityashodashikarnava must also be examined. Dr. Goudriaan (p. 152) has stated that he wrote his manual based on the Jnanarnava Tantra. The ancient commentator of the Vamakesvara Tantra is Dipakanatha, not Dipakanatha The source text distinguishes between the two spellings of the name.

The Yogini Hridaya and the Vamakesvara Tantra

Dr. Andre Padoux's essay titled "The Yogini Hridaya as contained within the Vamakesvara Tantra" has just been published. As the title suggests, the learned author has attempted to prove here that the Yogini Hridaya, like the Nityashodashikarnava, is a part of the Vamakesvara Tantra. He has provided two main pieces of evidence for this. The first is Shivananda's verse: "In the middle of the scripture exists the Nityashodashikarnava" (p. 3). The second is the sentence in the colophon at the end of the first patala chapter of the second edition of the Yogini Hridaya: "In the Vamakesvara Tantra Yogini Hridaya Dipika" (p. 89). This reading is not accepted by the 'Kha' manuscript of the same edition, and all other manuscripts follow the 'Kha' manuscript. Even in the 'Ka' manuscript, this is found only in the colophon of the first chapter; therefore, this reading has not been accepted in the present edition. Amritananda himself writes in one place:

"This uddhara extraction/explanation is indeed in the Vamakesvara Shastra, but here it is devoted to explaining the unknown meaning of this scripture" (p. 106).

It becomes clear from this sentence that he considers the Yogini Hridaya distinct from the Vamakesvara Shastra (Tantra). By Vamakesvara Shastra, he refers to the Chatushati Shastra (Nityashodashikarnava). This subject is also clarified by another one of his citations:

"But where is this Kaulika relating to the Kula path meaning indicated in the Vamakesvara Tantra? ... He explains the Kaulika meaning indicated in 'Ganesha' (Nityashodashikarnava 1.1)" (2.57).

It is clear that in Amritananda's view, the Nityashodashikarnava and the Yogini Hridaya are two different scriptures.

1. Hindu Tantric and Shakta Literature, p. 67
2. See Abhinavagupta, p. 570.
3. See the same, p. 567.
4. See the special issue of the aforementioned journal (pp. 251–257).