Behind the Name

 The name Mahaavidyaa means Goddess of Great Wisdom.

Mahaa - great
Vidyaa - wisdom

Many times a seeker pursues the path of Tantra because they are on a quest for supernatural powers.

And sometimes the seeker does receive supernatural powers.

What are these supernatural powers? Surviving freezing temperatures, withstanding immense heat, levitation, the ability to make fire appear from, seemingly, out of nowhere.... 

Sometimes the seekers can live extraordinarily long lives, between 250-1000 years and more. Many can survive on very little to no food, some merely surviving only on air itself. And then there are those who can even live without breath...for ages. 

But that's not how it starts. 

In the beginning the seeker should only be seeking knowledge, for it is only knowledge that is given in the beginning. Knowledge comes by transfer from teacher to student, through prophetic dreams, information scribbled in a book or by obtaining knowledge through another practitioner. Once the knowledge starts to become part of a constant and consistent practice for the practitioner, only then can the process develop into wisdom. The seeker becomes wise. 

His desires develop from three aspects of Maya:  Sato, Rajo, Tamo

On this path, the seeker is able to understand what kind of practitioner he will become. As this process continues many queries, thoughts, dilemmas, confusions, feelings, emotions, desires....disappear. 

All that is left is action; an action oriented life. 

At a high level these actions are oriented towards the benefit of the world. It is within these great actions that the Divine assists. It is with the help of this assistance that the seeker's job becomes easier. The faculties that are deemed supernatural are gifted to the practitioner. 

These Siddhis or the supernatural powers are not given to display boldly as if for a circus show....and the honest practioner knows this. This is why they keep these powers, and the knowledge of them, to themselves. For some, these powers may not show for many years. 

The purpose of these powers is for transformation.  

At the same time, many who get into Tantra leave it for 2 reasons:
1. The struggles of transformation one meets that is caused by the path this leads to.
2. When the seeker believes they are not able to develop superpowers, the seeker loses heart and leaves.

Make no mistake, this is a carefully exacted weeding out process. 

For the one who leaves, however, I must assure you, even he has received something for the work that is accomplished. The Great Divine Mother is motherly in nature first. She gifts the child with something so that the practitioner can somehow live his life better....OR they will grant reprieve from something bad in the practitioner's life so that their track becomes smoother. 

For the practitioner who remains on this path, the learning occurs every single day. 

He continues to acquire knowledge about the different aspects of these 10 Great Divine Forms of The Divine Mother: Das Mahaavidyaas.