agamas: Indian Tradition of Image Worship

From the earliest times, our ancestors realized their limitations with respect to other forms of worship, namely Vedic sacrifices and chanting of Vedas, but aspired for some sort of easier approach ‘to enlist His proximity in a collective way’. The collective worship at a common location has been rendered possible by Agamas.

Agamas not only enabled common folk to offer prayers but also contained instructions or temple practices, sculpting of images and their consecration, and codes for building of temples. It is rather unfortunate that such an important subject as Agama has not received the notice it deserves in modern times. In its humble attempt, this treatise seeks to present salient details on Agamas such as fundamental aspects, classifications and religious connotations.