Ancient spiritual traditions lost due to govt apathy: Dr Baumer

JAMMU: Though Indologist and expert on Kashmir Shaivism Dr Bettina Sharada Baumer got the Padma Shri on Republic Day for her dedication and research to preserve the ancient tradition of Shaivism in Jammu and Kashmir, she faced neglect and opposition to her work in the past.

Sumit Hakhoo

Tribune News Service

Jammu, February 2

Though Indologist and expert on Kashmir Shaivism Dr Bettina Sharada Baumer got the Padma Shri on Republic Day for her dedication and research to preserve the ancient tradition of Shaivism in Jammu and Kashmir, she faced neglect and opposition to her work in the past. Dr Baumer left the Valley following the armed insurgency in 1990. She said Kashmir had lost its ancient spiritual traditions due to the neglect by the government.

“The work to preserve Shaivism is being done outside Kashmir now. An effort was made to start an institute dedicated to the rich cultural and intellectual heritage of the state, but I faced stiff opposition from some quarters due to which the project could not take off,” said Dr Baumer, who is presently living and working in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh.

A visiting professor of religious studies at the University of Salzburg (Austria), Dr Baumer, while remembering her agonising days in the Valley during 1989-90, said, “I experienced the suffering of the Kashmiri Pandits who had to flee the Valley in 1990 due to the wide-spread violence. Even the house in which I stayed from 1986 at Nishat near Srinagar was burnt down by terrorists,” she said.

Dr Bettina, a disciple of Swami Lakshman Joo, teaches three basic tantras- Vijnana Bhairava, Paratrisika (Abhinavagupta’s Vivarana commentary) and Netra Tantra (with commentary by Ksemaraja)- of the Trika School along with the texts like the Siva Sutra, Spanda Karika and the Pratyabhijna Hridayam.

She has translated all the works into German and English and taught it in a number of universities in the Europe and India. Besides, she also teaches the hymns belonging to Kashmir such as the Sivastotravali by Utpaladeva, Stavacintamani by Bhatta Narayana, Sambapancasika and dtotras by Abhinavagupta.

“I had read texts about Kashmir Shaivism in Sanskrit long before I come to Kashmir and met Swami Lakshman Joo in 1986. I was attracted by the great spiritual and intellectual tradition of Kashmir, which at that time was little known outside the state,” she said.

Feeling encouraged by the award, she said, “The award is more than the recognition of my work. It is the recognition of the tradition of Shaivism in Kashmir, which is still little known. It encourages me and others to work for the propagation the Kashmiri tradition.”