TANTRA

Tantra is a religious philosophy according to which Shakti is typically the main deity worshiped, and the universe is regarded as the divine play of Shakti and Shiva. Shakti is the mother aspect of the Godhead while Shiva is the father aspect.

The word Tantra applies as well to any of the scriptures commonly identified with the worship of Shakti. Tantra deals mainly with spiritual practices and ritual forms of worship, the goal of which is liberation from ignorance. The intended result is the direct knowledge that the individual soul and the Godhead (Shakti/Shiva) are one.

Besides the Shakti Tantras, there are also Buddhist and Vaishnava Tantras. In the Vaishnava sect, devotion is to God as Vishnu.