Shaḍadhva: The Six Paths

Shaḍadhva means “the six paths”. In Śaiva Siddhānta it is the full map of existence, from solid matter up to pure awareness, laid out as six connected “paths” or levels. As taught in the Vāyavīya Saṃhitā of the Śiva Purāṇa, the six paths are Kalādhva, Tattvadhva and Bhuvanadhva (the three paths of the “outer”, objective world) and Varṇadhva, Padādhva and Mantrādhva (the three paths of sound, the “inner” side).

During dīkshā (initiation), a rite called shaḍadhva śodhana, “purifying the six paths”, is performed. It dissolves the bondage of the paśu (the bound soul) step by step at every level of existence.

The Six Paths

The Three Outer Paths

1. Kalādhva: The Path of the Kalās

The five kalās are the five phases in which Śiva unfolds the universe, from the most shrunk (most bound) to the most open (most free). They are the main frame of the six paths:

In this table the tattvas are counted upward from earth. Each kalā holds a range of tattvas and bhuvanas. The shaḍadhva śodhana moves the sādhaka’s (practitioner’s) awareness step by step upward from Nivṛtti to Śāntyatīta.

2. Tattvadhva: The Path of the Tattvas

The 36 tattvas of Śaiva Siddhānta (compared with the 25 of Sāṃkhya) cover the whole range from Śiva-awareness down to earth. Counted from the top down:

• The pure tattvas (tattvas 1–5): Śiva, Śakti, Sadāśiva, Īśvara and Śuddhavidyā
• Māyā and the five kañcukas (sheaths) (tattvas 6–11): Māyā, Kāla, Niyati, Kalā, Vidyā and Rāga
• Purusha (tattva 12): the bound individual soul
• Prakṛti and all that comes from it (tattvas 13–36): the full chain as taught in Sāṃkhya

In shaḍadhva śodhana, each tattva is dissolved in meditation into the one above it, just as the visible world dissolves at pralaya (the end of a cosmic cycle), until only pure Śiva-awareness remains.

3. Bhuvanadhva: The Path of the Bhuvanas

The 224 bhuvanas (planes of existence or “worlds”) are spread across the five kalās. Every form of embodied life, from the lowest world below the earth to the highest Śivaloka, is a bhuvana. In shaḍadhva śodhana, one rises in the mind through all the bhuvanas, sees Śiva as the ground of them all, and so lets go of attachment to any single bhuvana as one’s “home”.

The Three Paths of Sound

4. Varṇadhva: The Path of the Varṇas (Sounds)

The 50 sounds (varṇas) of the Sanskrit alphabet, from a to ksha, make up the sound-body of the visible universe. Each sound is a form of divine Śakti. The mātṛkā-nyāsa (Chapter 22 of the Uttara Khaṇḍa) places all 50 sounds on particular parts of the practitioner’s body, turning the physical form into a temple of sound. Purification on this path means tracing all 50 varṇas back to their source in the first Nāda (sound), and then to Oṃkāra and to Śiva.

5. Padādhva: The Path of the Padas (Words)

Sacred words and formulas (padas) make up the padādhva. They include Vedic mantras, formulas from the Śaiva āgamas, and the pañcākshara (Namaḥ Śivāya) in its syllables. Purifying this path dissolves every structure of language back into the first ground of sound, Śiva’s own self-expression.

6. Mantrādhva: The Path of the Mantras

The whole system of Śaiva mantras, from the Pañcabrahma mantras to the full pañcākshara and all its extended forms, makes up the mantrādhva. It is the most sacred of the three paths of sound. Śiva himself is the supreme Mantra, and all other mantras are partial expressions of him. Purifying this path traces every mantra back to the pañcākshara, the pañcākshara back to Oṃkāra, and finally to the silence from which all sound arises.

Shaḍadhva Śodhana in Dīkshā

The purification of the six paths is performed as a central part of the Māntrī dīkshā (Chapter 17 of the Uttara Khaṇḍa). The steps:

1. The guru, in a state of oneness with Śiva (Śiva-samāpatti), looks over the śishya’s (disciple’s) whole make-up along all six paths in his mind
2. The guru finds the particular tattvas and bhuvanas to which the śishya’s awareness is bound
3. Through mantra, prāṇa (life-force) and will, the guru dissolves these bonds level by level
4. The śishya is then rebuilt from the pure nature of Śiva downward, a symbolic “second creation” in the Śaiva way
5. The pañcākshara is the main tool of sound for this dissolving and rebuilding

The Vāyavīya compares this to a fire that first burns the husk (the outer pāśas, or bonds) and then refines the grain (the inner paśu) until only the pure essence remains.

Tattva Śodhana (Chapter 18)

Chapter 18 of the Uttara Khaṇḍa describes a purification that goes with this one, tattva śodhana: purification through the 14 yoni-jātis (kinds of birth). In this practice, the sādhaka:

1. Traces in the mind the paśu’s wanderings through 14 kinds of embodied life (from mineral to fully human)
2. Burns the three pāśas (āṇavamala, māyāmala and kārmamala) gathered over these lives
3. Places the five kalās on the body as a symbol
4. Cuts the śikhā (the ritual tuft of hair) as a sign of cutting off past identities

This practice completes the inner shaḍadhva śodhana and prepares the śishya for full initiation.

What the Six Paths Teach About the Universe

The six paths are more than a ritual map. They are a complete account of the universe. The Vāyavīya teaches that:

• The universe is Śiva showing himself through these six paths
• Saṃsāra (the cycle of rebirth) is nothing but taking oneself to be the lower levels of the six paths
• Liberation is recognising that one’s true self is Śiva, the source and ground of all six paths
• Every sādhanā (japa, dhyāna, pūjā, yoga) is a movement up the six paths towards the source

Sources

• Śiva Purāṇa, Vāyavīya Saṃhitā (Book 7), Uttara Khaṇḍa, including Chapters 17, 18 and 22